This is how Bev looked for three days. It was not fun for anyone. 
I made this delicious Ramen soup and Andy and I were the only ones who felt up to eating it. Which is weird because Beverly and Maverick LOVE ramen. 
Poor Maverick had strep the week before we got the flu and the amoxicillin made him break out in a rash all over his body. 
On the plus side, I was able to help Max catch up on some math and reading work and it was nice for him to get the one on one attention he probably doesn’t get at school. I was also able to give Maverick and Harvey haircuts… though Harvey got restless halfway through so he wound up with a mullet… but we’re keeping it cause it’s cute.
Last week we were on deaths door, or so it felt. Every kid had their turn with fevers that lasted around five days for each of them. Max and Beverly got so sick they were hallucinating. Max kept saying that there was an earth quake and Beverly said the trees were trying to get her. Needless to say, it was a long week. We didn’t leave the house because we didn’t want to infect anyone else, and frankly, we didn’t feel up to doing anything. Saturday was the last day anyone exhibited a fever, so we felt comfortable to go on a drive Sunday, though we did opt for virtual church Sunday morning just in case there were any lingering germs. Harvey was so stir crazy he kept begging me to leave, “Mama, go bye bye now. Car. Bye bye. Shoes, car bye bye.” In the best language he knew how. He was temporarily satiated when I let him play in the jeep for five minutes outside. He was pretty excited to go somewhere on Sunday, so he barely slept in the hotel that night. We drove up to Cumming first and saw the second home I lived in. We pulled up, snapped a picture and I got out of the car to switch spots with Andy and realized we were being watched. My old neighbor (who still lives there!) saw us and was chatting with the owner of our old home. I apologized, because I’m sure it was weird to watch someone snap a picture of your home and just sit their for a quick minute. I said, “Sorry! I used to live here, we’re just going on a Sunday drive back to my old stomping grounds.” He walked up and we chatted for a while about why we moved out, building the home (my mom was a big fan of pink), how many kids we each had, etc. I got to hear about the neighbors now grown kids with kids of their own (I used to babysit his kids!). The owner said, would you like to see our backyard? I took him up on his offer and we admired his handy work. He is a landscaper by trade and so the yard looked impeccable. He had set up a garden area in the land across from the creek and had built a pool right up to the basement deck. He had redone the deck, the kitchen counters, and painted the cupboards (they let us come in and see the kitchen too). I noticed they still had the pink tile in the kitchen and the pineapple chandelier in the dining room. It brought back a lot of memories, but it no longer felt like home. It was so nice to see such friendly owners who took such good care of the property. The wife said she adored the home and it was absolutely perfect for their family, which made me very happy to hear. I know my parents designed that home intending to be there for quite some time, but God and life had different plans for them.
We headed twenty minutes south to the first home I lived in. We were outside the home for maybe a minute when the owner popped his head out and came to say hi (or really, what are you doing sitting in front of my home). He was also very friendly. He’s a math teacher by trade and he and his wife live in that house and don’t have any kids. They’ve totally renovated the home to the point of knocking down walls and moving the stove. The master bedroom takes up a good portion of the upstairs. Both families love their homes and it gave me joy to see someone taking care of the homes that we once loved.
After seeing the home we had dinner at a Chinese restaurant that my family and I frequented on special occasions (my parents probably went there more often for date nights). The owners are still the same and remember the theater that my dad owned in the same complex and remembered that my parents came there often. They were very friendly and doted on us and our kids.
We stayed the night at a nearby hotel which was great fun for the kids, not so much for the adults… especially Andy. Harvey was so excited and very restless so Andy went and laid with him in his bed and needless to say didn’t get much sleep. Andy wound up sleeping pretty much the whole drive home, which he desperately needed. We woke up, ate the free breakfast at the hotel and headed to the Atlanta Aquarium. It was pricey! But TOTALLY worth it. We had so much fun! I was amazed at the variety and rarity of the animals they have there!
They had bull sharks, hammerhead sharks, tiger sharks, sand sharks, and more! It was amazing! 
This school of fish was in the shark tank… I imagine it is there food. 
There’s a bull shark right behind Harvey and me in this picture. 
Harvey loved the aquarium almost as much as I did. 
They had Beluga Whales! I was so impressed! 
My favorite was the whale shark. It was ginormous! 
Harvey loved sitting next to this napping sea turtle. 
They had mana rays and stingrays it was so cool! 
Harvey was super brave and walked the rope across the gator cage.
We headed to Varsity before heading back to Augusta. It was a greasy and tasty as ever. It brought back a lot of memories of field trips and trips to ATL with my parents.
The rest of the week was filled with catching up post vacation and sickmagadon. Here are some snap shots from our week!
Andy has mostly enjoyed coaching football. He loves getting to spend that time with Max. 
Max has really gotten into football this year. He has been more eager to get in on the tackles. 
Andy and his team getting ready to play a game in pouring rain… then to be told it was canceled a minute before they were supposed to start. 
I took photos of all the football players and Harvey stepped in for his turn. 
Maverick has really enjoyed baseball this year. 
Harvey loves going to Costco with mom because it means a slice of pizza for lunch. I usually let him eat it at the store, but I was in a hurry to get home… so we dealt with a nappy mess. 
I got to be the “Mystery reader” in Beverly’s preschool class. She was thrilled. It was a lot of fun! 
The next day her best friend Afton came over and they were playing mystery reader all day. 
We got to do craft time at the local Chik-fil-a with some friends. 
We occasionally take the kids to the local soda shop after our Saturday morning practices (and ballet) This Saturday they had super heroes and princesses. 
Andy and I escaped the kids for two hours to enjoy dinner in peace. We had delicious Korean bi bim bop at the best and maybe only Korean restaurant in the area. It made us think of Jieun’s family. We miss you guys!