Visiting Home

Fresh from our holiday state side. I wanted to take a blog and just reminiscence about all the great craic we had. In the event that you don't receive a mention, my immense apologies. Our trip was ten weeks long and I don't want to make this the entry 'that never ends'. If you're interested, read on. I think this is more for my sake than anyone elses.

Our adventure started in California where my marathon-running brother lives with his way-too-magnificent-to-put-up-with-him wife and his imaginative son live. We did loads of stuff with them that seem trivial to some of you who do these things everyday. We went to Target, Starbucks, went driving/riding in a car, ordered things in English, and watched television (I miss all those English channels...). Highlights: the ginormous corn maze that we conquered in under two hours, Lime-A-Ritas, and looking at the photos from their wedding. We had two separate birthday parties - one for me with an orange dreamsicle cake of magic and one for Jacob with a chocolate chocolate masterpiece cake. Snickerdoodle cookies, too! Lots of walks in the sun and bright days. Bed time story with the nephew was unforgettable. 

We ventured to Las Vegas to see our good friend get married. We didn't gamble much, instead choosing to lose our money to arcade games. So much to do in Vegas. We did what we could - walked the strip, went to a Tiki bar, and did the whole picture under the sign. The wedding itself was a once in a lifetime event - Elvis married them!

Texas. Home of the Hegemiers. We had a fantastic time in their company. We went to the gun range, enjoyed multiple trips to Jamba Juice, witness a will-be-told-forever poop story, and prepared for our seven day cruise. The cruise itself was with Disney and was fabulous. We went to Costa Maya, Cozumel, and the Grand Caymans. Each and every place was special for different reasons. We had a good time just walking around the Grand Cayman Island. We sampled some local beer and long islands with our spicy fish and conch fritters. Costa Maya had a beautiful beach with lots of shops. Jacob had a great time searching through the water, attempting to locate random sealife.

Disney provided a number of shows to watch and I went to most of them. We got to see a ventriloquist, a production that told the Cinderella story differently, a show that featured villains of Disney, and one with the good guys too. We got to see Wreck It Ralph on board too. The Halloween show and Pirate day activities were great - everything was themed appropriately. 

The food was disgustingly delicious. I got to eat snails - my first. Everyone got to munch on whatever they wanted the entire time, it was a great time for all. Plenty of soft serve ice cream, pizza, fruit, salads, and meat. Loads and loads of meat. I was so close to my gout goal.

We moved on to Florida after that to spend some time with my daddio and mumsies. It was marvelous. We went to a Wolf Reserve where we got to play with cubs and walk into an actual wolves territory, we held skunks, and we fed raccoons too. We walked on the beach, enjoyed the sun, and ate plenty of everything. Mum made peach cobbler (Brooke style) and we introduced them to some new Korean food. We tried new beers and talked - a lot of talking. My favorite part was just sitting and talking - oh and the Sheetz coffee. 

Thanksgiving was spent up north with mum's side of the family. The car ride there and back was eventful with dad's seemingly never-ending chatter. Constant reminders of all the wonderful trips we used to take when we were younger. The random pile into the car last minute and drive to the beach to spend the weekend rides. Thanksgiving itself couldn't have been better. We ate so much food, all sorts of traditional and Italian things. Everything was delicious and it was truly grand to spend time with family. We even got to shoot with my cousin which is always a good time. 

The last leg of our journey was spent in Georgia where we got to spend time with more family and friends. I spent a much needed night drinking wine and catching up on VD, more than a few nights of drinking with some of my favorite people, days of watching horrible horror with mates, hung out with my little brother a number of wonderful times, made it to my good friend's show, bonded with Jacob's family, and did a bunch of things most people would consider boring but I found to be amazing. 

Right now Jacob is attempting to replace the screen of my phone, Icarus is asleep at my feet, and I'm enjoying a Saturday of doing nothing but enjoying the company of two guys I love. Our ten week adventure in America was glorious. A massive thank you to all of our family and friends for your generosity, kindness, helpfulness, and overall awesomeness. 

Until next time!