Sunday –
I headed off to visit the super cute nephew and SIL on the east coast.
After getting settled on the plane, the flight was delayed. There was a warning light on that would not go off. I was hoping it was a light problem and not actually the problem the light was warning about. The captain said he’d let us know as soon as he knew how long the delay would be once the mechanic arrived. Not five seconds later, the lady behind me asks the flight attendant, “how long are we going to be delayed?” The flight attendant, to her credit, did not say, “Are you f-ing kidding me? HE JUST SAID we’d let you know.” But instead stated, “We’re not sure, but even if we’re delayed an hour, no one is going to miss their connections.” I found this information comforting and settled down to knit after texting the SIL my status.

As promised, I did not miss my connection and arrived safely in Virginia. After landing, I texted SIL of my arrival. And then, my phone rang. It was a different SIL with a crochet question…and then someone texted me with a work question….while I was trying to figure out where my gate checked bag had gone. It was a little bit of a perfect storm…for about 5 mins. whew! but everything settled down. I found my bag and my peeps, finished up with one SIL, and the work thing got settled. All was well with the world…except for food. I was starving. I got Panera. MIL and SIL got Starbuck’s.

The in-laws visit for Nephew’s birthday overlapped with mine by one day; here’s a picture of the handsome bunch.

You’ll notice I’m not particularly dressed up on the left there. Those are my airport clothes.

After the group pic, we went to see a “Trail of Lights” type thing. Nephew was super cute as we pointed out lit trucks, boats, and sharks to him. He was a good sport and repeated a lot of the words.

Then, that night, he got a bath as usual. Grandma and Aunt and mom in the bathroom proved to be a bit much and he did take the opportunity to show off by washing himself. When mom said it was time to wash his “bum bum”, he stuck his rear end right under the running faucet.

Gotta love that hair!

Monday –
Grandma and Grandpa were leaving for home and Nephew was pretty sad to see them go. We put on some tunes and had a dance party in the living room and that seemed to help a bit.

We took the Nephew to his check up. One of the questions was, “does he know 50 words?”. I thought he knew an awful lot of words, so sure, 50 sounds reasonable, but we double-checked with the doctor and turns out only mom has to be able to understand them, so yea, he clears 50 by a mile. good times. As a PSA, I will let you know the doctor said to watch out for peanuts and button batteries as choking hazards. No peanuts til they’re older. I’m not sure how old. peanuts are probably ok once they can vote?
This was his first time to meet this particular doctor after they moved. SIL was talking to the doctor and was closer in proximity to him, so the Nephew analyzed this and decided that since I was not on as good of terms with the scarey doctor that I was a good haven and tried to crawl up my legs. I immediately picked him up and cuddled him while his mom and the doctor finished talking. One of the high points of my life, I’m telling you.
That took up a good chunk of the day.

We had Chipotle for dinner. His mom claimed we’d have to hurry because he eats fast, but I’m married to his uncle and one must eat fast or have to get to go bags a lot, so I beat him……I believe at every meal.

And then we got Starbuck’s. SIL was on the hunt for a Starbuck’s that had the Thanksgiving blend on tap. Sadly, this one did not.

Tuesday –
On the next day of my adventure, we got up and hung out around the house a little bit. Once we were all ready to go, we went to get lunch at Chick’s Oyster Bar. I love this place. They had the broth kind of clam chowder that is healthier than the cream based kind so, while it looked funny, I was pleasantly surprised by my choice.

We enjoyed eating on the balcony over the water at picnic tables.
Then we were off to the beach.

step 1: Put on my super cool sock money hat (courtesy of Michelle).

step 2: Take photos with crazy adorable Nephew.

step 3: Get near the ocean and lean over so Nephew can touch the water. The water is very cold, so it is important to stay at the edge. Focus on the toddler so he doesn’t get wet and cold. Pay no attention to the water suddenly rushing around my shins and soaking into my sneakers. It seems I forgot exactly how the ocean works. oops! whew doggies it was cold!

step 4: Embrace the hilarity of the situation.


Next on the agenda was a yarn shop (The Yarn Club). I opted to go in barefoot so as not to share my sand and seawater with them. The first lady that helped me did not seem to notice my bare feet. She just directed me to the locally dyed yarn and left me to peruse. The lady that assisted me next (Andrea) and ended up ringing up my purchase nicely asked, “What happened?” and I told her that I’d accidently waded in the ocean and didn’t want to bring the sand in her shop, so I’d taken my shoes off. She told me how nice that was of me and continued to discuss knitting, buttons, and Austin with me. She must have been thinking Texans are a little off if they are accidently wading in the ocean, but she didn’t give it away if that was on her mind.

This yarn shop had a nice selection and pretty much bothered me exactly the amount I prefer, so I can recommend it if you’re in Virginia and need knitting-type stuff.

After grabbing Starbucks, we went back to their casa to nap. I’ve never been much into naps, but I tell you what, keeping up with a two year old wore me out!…and before you ask, no, the coffee did not keep me awake but it was delicious! This Starbuck’s did not have the Thanksgiving blend either, but he informed us that they usually didn’t have it brewed in the afternoon…..information she could have used several weeks ago, I think.

Wednesday –
I kept Nephew while SIL picked BIL up. I got Nephew up, changed him, dressed him, fed him breakfast and put Mickey Mouse on the tv with very little incident. I felt like I’d accomplished something monumental. When he asked where his mom was, I explained that she’d gone for Cheerios and he seemed to think that made perfect sense. When they got home and it was mom and dad. He was THRILLED! He seemed to have forgotten about the Cheerios falsehood immediately.

After a bit of interaction, BIL needed a nap, so we took Nephew to Chick Fil A for lunch and then hit the grocery store to procure a last minute turkey. After that, you guessed it, I napped (on the couch this time so I could occassionally wake up and chat with SIL).

Later that evening. SIL gave me lessons in how to make spanish rice (healthier than I expected) and home-made salsa (YUM!). We had that and baked chicken for dinner.

Nephew tried to ride the dog shortly after dinner, but she did not seem in the mood. I was impressed that she was as patient as she was.


BIL kept Nephew and SIL and I were able to sneak off for some girl time that evening. We hit up the local Target. We had a lot of fun just doing the mundane clothes shopping and ended up mostly just looking. I did inform SIL about reusable stainless steel K-cups so she can now have her Thanksgiving blend whenever she likes, so the trip was definitely a win.

Thursday –
Thanksgiving!

This is the first turkey that Ryan has supervised and it was delicious. Way to go, BIL!

SIL and I got several sides from Boston Market because we had planned for a pretty low key Thanksgiving. While there, a gentleman asked for a sample of a side in a cup. The Boston Market employee said, it is the same as the side you see here. And he said, I need a sample “cause if my woman likes it, I’ll buy it.” SIL and I shared a look. I’m still not sure how I feel about the lady in question being referred to as “my woman” but I suppose if she’s ok with it then….well, I guess that’s up to her. Thanksgiving progressed as planned. We also hit up the grocery store for a few odds and ends on the way back. The cashier there was so pleasant, I’m giving her special mention. Way to go, for being in such a good mood when you were working on Thanksgiving! (I wish I could recall her name)

All the Aggies had our maroon on. Ready for the big game! Sadly, this did not go according to plan.


Nephew is a whirling dervish. This is the best pic of him and his new blanket. We gave him a camera to take pictures while we took pictures of him, but that resulted in a lot of pictures where his cute face is covered by the camera.

Nephew and BIL enjoy A Charlie Brown Christmas.
I was a little sad to be leaving the next day but was also ready to go home to my bed/pillow and TH. SIL and I stayed up past midnight talking, but then we had to crash so she could take me to the airport EARLY the next morning.

Friday –
I woke up at about 4am (Eastern) to be ready to leave for the airport by 4:30am so I could be a the airport by about 5am for my 6:25am flight. That came really early. It was super weird to be up so early on Black Friday and not be shopping.

Ps. Nephew is now able to say, “WINNING!”.

Pps. BIL & SIL, THANK YOU for the hospitality!! I had a PERFECT time and have so many beautiful memories! :-)

TH and I went to the DC area to visit my SIL, BIL, and their munchkin. He’s too cute for words.
After the guys got Chipotle for dinner, I got to rock the Nephew to sleep. There are some things even Mastercard can’t buy…. but I did use it for the plane tickets. (4/2/11)

Sunday, we woke up and got some breakfast at the diner nearby (Star Diner). Nephew enjoyed running around and talking to strangers.

Then we took the subway to the mall and went to the Old Post Office. On the way to the P.O., TH swung into the National Aquarium and bought another glass fish as his from the last trip met with an untimely end.

Nephew was a great sport about waiting in line to go to the top.

There were places to eat in the P.O. and we grabbed a quick snack. I also got some cherry chocolate to remember the Cherry Blossom festival by at the Chocolate Gallery.

We checked out the Cherry Blossoms and generally were very touristy prior to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory.


On the way home, Nephew really got into the subway riding.


Monday (4/4/2011), we roadtripped to Norfolk, VA (got Starbuck’s on the way). I tried to teach the Nephew to say, “Winning!” like Charlie Sheen the whole trip, but he never took the bait. He did enjoy laughing at all of our Charlie quotes though.

We got PF Chang’s for late lunch. You might be thinking that we should not eat at chains and should try the local flavor, but that way lies folly and I’ll get to it in a minute. I asked for lemon with my water and I got plain water. So, when I saw the waiter, I asked for a lemon and he said, “a whole lemon?” “what? no! a lemon slice for my water.” Who asks for a whole lemon at a restaurant? weird.
At the PF Chang’s Nephew fell asleep and BIL ended up taking him back to the hotel. At one point, he was carrying the recycle bin around (he’s green at such a young age).


So, TH and SIL and I went to the mall. Turns out this mall (pembroke) was geared towards men. There was a Radio Shack, a sport clips (where TH got a haircut), a Cookie place, an interesting collectible store (think star trek, star wars, etc), and a Game Stop (where TH got a Naga gaming mouse)..we made endless jokes about “Naga Naga Nagonna work here any more anyway.”
SIL and I were bored with this fairly quickly and got directions to the real mall (Lynnhaven) from the girl in Bath & Body Works (where a guy would buy hand soap). SIL and I left the mall with my phone in GPS mode and headed out into the sun to find the yarn store a block away. As we walked towards a neighborhood I tried to explain to my non-knitting SIL that sometimes yarn stores are in old homes. That is just how they are. I’ve even been to a yarn store in an apartment in Austin. I won’t go back and I was a tiny bit afraid for my life at one point, but I was told there would be yarn, so I went. SIL was not biting. She calmly informed me that she would be happy to wait outside and let TH know what had happened to me, but no way was she going into a house with me for yarn. I said, well, let’s keep going. It turned out there was a strip center to our left and the yarn store was acceptably housed for her to enter. We went inside the Yarn Basket and I looked around.

When I’m on vacation, I like to try to buy yarn that has been locally spun or dyed. So, I nicely asked the lady if she had any locally dyed yarn. She looked at me like I was a moron and said no. I explained that I was a knitter from Texas and like to get souvenirs. She just kind of stared at me. So, I asked where her sock yarn was. The selection was meager at best. I really feel like the Michael’s in Austin had more yarn to offer that I’d be interested in and by this point, she had made me feel so unwelcome that I wasn’t buying anything. So, we left.

We went back to the hotel and then all went to dinner at the Oyster Bar. Loved it! Hamburgers, shrimp, Nachos, everything was good!

Tuesday, 4/5/11, TH and I gave a local venue a shot. We had brunch at Guadalajara in Virginia. Turns out I should have followed my rule not to eat Mexican food outside of Texas. I ended up requesting jalapenos. The waiter responded, “a whole jalapeno?”. Evidently, I look like the kind of girl that eats whole fruits and vegetables. I responded, “no, sliced jalapenos, like people put on nachos?”. He seemed to understand and came back with a bowl of sliced jalapenos, so that was progress. Turns out, that’s my best advice on how to save a meal if you are about to eat REALLY bland Mexican food. Order a bowl of sliced jalapenos and turn it upside down over your entree. Worth every penny of the 1.75+tax they charged me. Oh, one more thing. If they call queso “cheese dip”, just go ahead and order the jalapenos right then.

We met up with SIL and nephew and checked out some apartments.
While in the office of one apartment complex, a lady asked TH if he knows anything about computers. There’s a pause because SIL and I both are not answering for him and ratting him out, but he knows about computers the way the Pope knows about Catholicism. Finally, in the understatement of the year, he says, “a little bit”, because he’s not sure what he’s getting himself into. Turns out she’s having trouble printing a powerpoint presentation and I could have helped her. :)
TH, SIL, Nephew and I ran around Virginia beach a little bit and among other things stopped at the Knitting Corner. This shop has been around since 1948. After a few minutes inside, it was clear why. The owner was there and not only was she helpful and had a great selection, she was really nice…..as I expect people that get to work among lovely yarn should be. She helped me select some yarn for socks that I’d not worked with before (Ella Rae Lace in purple) and I picked up some Malabrigo sock yarn in Africana Violeta and some Sirdar purple baby bamboo yarn that was on sale. You may be sensing a theme, but I swear there were all different colors of yarn in her shop. I just ended up buying all purple. TH admired a Louisa Harding Merletto wrap so I ended up buying Merletto Beauty online since she didn’t have any in stock. I must admit that now that I’ve knitted with Merletto, I’m not that crazy about it. It splits VERY easily.
…and then we picked up BIL and headed to the real mall where we got a snack. I had a crepe from Crepes Duo ( a lovely strawberry concoction) and then we all walked around the mall for a couple of hours and then went to Chick’s Oyster Bar for dinner again because after all, it was local and delicious!

The guys were good sports and waited while Alyce and I checked out the Atlantic ocean. BIL even drove around the block so no one would think we were casing the place. Thank you, BIL! I appreciate you humoring me.


Wednesday (4/6/11), I got up early and then did a little shopping in downtown Virginia Beach. I visited The Royal Chocolate shop. They were very nice and accomodating. They packed my chocolate with ice so I could leave it in the car on our way back to Maryland. They had tons of different chocolates to choose from including Bacon Chocolate!

We checked out Busch Gardens in Williamsburg. Here’s some advice should you ever visit:
do not eat a cheeseburger that tastes a little off.

do not rid three roller coasters twice each right in a row since you’re there during off season and there’s no line.
when your Navy pilot BIL suggests that you not ride the third coaster a second time in a row RIGHT then, you should reconsider.

when same Navy pilot decides to skip the fourth ride, follow his lead because you may be getting on a virtual motion ride that spins you around in pitch black and tries to disorient you. This will only serve to make you completely green. Turns out what they’re really teaching you at OCS is good decision making.

On the way back to Maryland, we stopped to eat an Ihop. Worst Ihop experience ever. Their service was crazy slow which is super fun when trying to wrangle a tired toddler and our order wasn’t what you’d call 100% correct in addition to the food not being up to par. We were all regretting this choice by the time we left. We finally got home to Maryland and everyone was pretty beat.

Thursday, SIL and I went out and got Einstein Bros. Bagles for breakfast. I believe this is the first time I’ve had them and I rather enjoyed my Thin Plain Bagle with Blueberry Spread.
And, of course, we celebrated TH’s B-day. I think Nephew enjoyed the cake more than anyone, but here’s a pic of the birthday boy. Happy Birthday, TH!

TH and I took a lil’ vacation. We had a very nice time overall, but there was a major lapse in customer service on the part of the Atlantis hotel.
Our AC went out in the middle of the night on Tuesday night. I called the “prompt response line” the next morning and was told they would send someone up to look at it. Great, we left to get breakfast. When we got back, the room seemed cooler, but not cool. We took a quick nap, not having slept well in the heat the night before. When we woke up, I called again because it did not seem to be that cool anymore and was told that engineering was working on it, so off we went to ride water slides without a care in the world.
We got back at about 3pm to reapply sunscreen and I called again. Engineering was still working on it.
We got back to the room at 5 or 6 to reapply and I called again because by this point, there is no fooling me, the room is hot. They tell me that the AC has been fixed and I just need to wait a few minutes for the room to cool down. We leave the room to go downstairs and soak up the AC and get back to the room in about 30 mins.
I call down again. She puts me on hold and allegedly talks to engineering. I need to wait 30 minutes for the system to pressurize so I can have cool air. By this point, TH has noticed that our passports are curling from the humidity.
I call down 30 mins. later and am told that I just need to wait a little while longer. The issue has been resolved. While I was on the phone with that lady, another lady called and left me a message to let me know that my issue should be resolved and to call if I have any more issues. So, I called back because I’m hot and clearly, there are some issues. I am told that I need to continue to be patient. We go to dinner.
At 9:45pm TH and I go down to the theater and watch a movie. In my crazy Pollyanna mind, I think that surely the room would be cool when we return. I do not think TH harbored any such delusions, but he humored me and let me enjoy Limitless. It ends at about 12:15am.
The room was not cool. I called downstairs and was told that she could start the room change process, but that it would take awhile. She says that the manager is at the front desk working on getting people into ACed rooms. I have seen the line in the lobby and at this point, I decide we are going downstairs because calling is getting us nowhere. So, we pack everything up preparing to go to a new room and head to the lobby. I wait in line for what I think was a little over 30 mins. so that a very pleasant, but not very informative young man can give me a room key for a different tower of the hotel which does have AC. I’ve noted by this point that I was not on a list to get a different room, so had I not gone downstairs, no room change would have happened. He instructs us to go pack all our stuff and takes our room keys. We take our already packed belongings and crash at about 1am across Atlantis from our original room. Right before we’re about to go to bed, TH points out that the key is only for one night, so the next day, we’re going to have to move somewhere else. There is nothing left to do but sigh.
The next morning, we go to the front desk of the tower we’re in to get the issue resolved because we’re not checking out for two more days. The pleasant but turns out not very helpful young lady gave us room keys to our old room which we still were checked into but left the checkout day as the day we were speaking to her despite my instructions to the contrary. We notice this as we’re entering our old hotel room which miraculously does at this point have AC.
We go down to the front desk and I spot the manager. She seems to think we should have been instructed to leave our stuff in our hotel room, not lug everything across the island. I nicely inform her that we’re leaving on Friday but it is Wednesday and we’re checked out. I also state to her, “Bless their hearts, the prompt response ladies were no help at all.” She weakly claims to be sorry about that and fixes the date issue and informs us that we will get a credit to our account. But, it was too little too late. After spending a few hours the previous Wednesday in a customer service class, I could only think about how MANY opportunities they’d had to recover and had botched every single one. From lying to me to sounding insincere to being snappy to misinforming me to being blase’ about the whole thing. I’d had enough. There is a slim chance at this point that I’ll ever go back to Atlantis despite the fact that the lazy river is AMAZING and the rest of the trip was damn near flawless. see pics.