We pulled into Lynchburg Monday afternoon which also happened to be Caleb's 5 month birthday. It was a beautiful day and Aunt Kaitlyn and Connor couldn't wait to get outside. Our 5 month old on the other hand has been sitting like a champ, has 2 teeth, and loves to sing and talk to his brother. He likes to fall asleep to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and still has his lovely blue eyes.
Our first evening in town we had yummy barbecue at Dickies and spent more time visiting and talking than eating. It does a heart good to be surrounded by loved ones. It's also pretty wonderful to have people that love all over your kiddos. The Lagares' are more like family than anything else, so they easily fit right in with our crowd around a table.
On Tuesday we got to play with Rhett and Flynn, and Connor had a blast with his pals. They played so well together, and it made me so wish to have them live near us! Caleb even rolled over for the first time from his back to his belly. Daddy wasn't too happy to not be there for it, but so fun to reach a milestone in a special place. Erica was so sweet to open her house for play time, and getting to share wonderful news in person was GREAT!
Tuesday night Uncle Casey had an event at work and let me tell you, The Rot is no more. It has really transformed into a great Food Court and I think I would have pigged out had it been there when I was a student. We ate yummy food, and then Connor insisted that everyone get the hand packed rainbow ice cream because it was so delicious.
Daddy flew in Wednesday morning in time to celebrate Uncle Casey's golden birthday! We went to lunch, hit a few antique stores, and stopped to order a special cake for Casey.
We ate dinner at Water Stone Pizza downtown and went home with leftovers. It is always a hit and Connor even remembered that last time we ate there on the patio.
We opened presents and ate the Strawberry Lemon cake back at Uncle Casey's house. He happily shared blowing out his candles and opening his presents with the help of Connor. I can't believe we have gotten to spend the last few birthdays together. It is so special to be able to be a part of of each others lives even though we live so far apart. I can't believe my baby brother is 25!
On Thursday we borrowed Grandma Glenda's minivan and drove 3 hours over to Warrenton to see the Fisher's a meet sweet baby Sabrina. We were able to visit for about 4 hours and it seemed like mere minutes. The dads got to have dad time, the kids got to have kid time, and I got to have special time with Aunt Katrina. Sisters? It sure feels like it. I cried when we had to leave to head back to another event Casey was running at the school.
On Friday we made some stops around campus, #ProudLUAlum, and then hit some more shopping downtown. We had lunch at Market on Main, and I think I could eat there every day of my life. Caleb also got to sit in a high chair for the first time, and just thought he was big stuff. Connor couldn't get enough of the fact that his little brother is getting bigger.
We finished up the evening heading to the Snowflex out in the cold. This was a special stop for Connor who equates Virginia with sledding, and didn't understand why this year we didn't get any snow. Scratch that, IIIIIIII am sad we didn't get any snow this year. Totally gypped. Aunt Kaitlyn and Connor had a blast on the extremely fast tube courses. They were so slick after the weather that they didn't open up one of the lanes. Seeing Connor's face when his brand new LU ball cap flew off going down was heartbreaking. Watching Aunt Kaitlyn scoop it up as she went down was epic! Kaitlyn for the clutch!
On Saturday we headed over to Percival's Island to try to enjoy the Virginia outdoors for our last day in the Burg. It. Was. Freezing! I mean cold! Again, why was there no snow?? It was a lot of fun adventuring down into the forest and seeing "nature" but I was happy when we jumped back in the warm car. I happily kept Caleb snuggled up against me with his little face tucked inside my sweater. He loved every minute of it!
We had lunch at The Farm Basket, and Aunt Kaitlyn, Connor, and Daddy even got to play a little bit down by the river, while Grandma, Uncle Casey, and I marveled at who had the best sandwich.
That evening we headed up to our special place up on the Blue Ridge; Peaks of Otter. We thought....thought, that just maybe we would be able to feed the deer like the last time we were here. We headed out with carrots and lettuce, but upon opening the car door realized really quickly that we were crazy. It was 23 degrees and felt every cold degree of it. There would be no leisurely walk around the lake! Ha! We sat, huddled inside the car, waiting. There were a few cabin fever moments where certain crazy people got out to explore, but they weren't gone long, though they did bring back icicles. We drove around a bit and did spot our fair share of deer, none of which had any interest in coming anywhere near us. So we did our part and threw carrots AT them resulting in fluffy white tails hopping away in the opposite direction. Yay, we did nature! God did decide to give us a breathtaking sunset that evening while we said goodbye to those beautiful mountains.
Spring Break was so so full! We got to see dear friends, have great family time (6 in one bedroom), and enjoy a place so special to us. It was over in a blink though. I'm not sure how many times in one week you can hear "You guys just need to move up here" before you just want to cry. I mean, it would be pretty awesome!
