What a week - planes, no trains, and automobiles!!

It has been a crazy past few days. Last week my dh headed to different parts of the country, while our children stayed here with what I lovingly call their Ohio grandparents. In no way would I call us jetsetters, but we took our respective planes to Maryland and Alabama. I believe I have flown more in the past 2 yrs than almost my entire life. I did feel like a slob in my jeans though arriving at the airport with all the other business people heading off to important meetings, but I preferred to be comfortable since I still had to drive for 2 hrs after landing in AL to get to MS. Note for everyone flying out of CMH - they are strict about the little baggie rule. I had to surrender my half-filled Bath&Body Works travel size bottle of body wash or check my bag. I had one bag, and I wasn't going to check it since I was a little under the gun to get to my location. So, I gave it up for national security, because you never know what a sah mom my do with that soap. Maybe wash someones mouth out? I told the nice TSA lady who likes to talks loud, that I guess I will just have to use whatever my mom has to get clean. Oh well, I'm over that.

I did make it on time to my mom's retirement party, with time to spare. She was happy that I came even thought the girls were not able to. I did have pictures to show everyone though. She had a very nice reception. I was able to see people that I had also worked with in the past when I was in college. I did have a nice compliment from a women that has known me most of my life. She said that I have grown up so nicely and looked good. I was so glad I went. It is not very often I get to be with mom without the girls with me. It was nice hearing all the nice things people remember about my mom, and how helpful she was to everyone, and the Christian witness that was evident in her life. I am very proud of my mom, and I am so thankful she is getting to retire healthy and finally getting to do what she wants. I was also thankful for her service to the university because that allowed me to get half of my college tuition paid for! Now, does that carry over to grandchildren as well? As you see in the pics above, the first one is of mom recieving a Gail Pittman plate commissioned by the president's office for his office's use. I hope to get it in the will. The other, I just had to include one of my alma mater.

Being down south allowed me to get to enjoy one of my favorite foods - Fried Crawfish Tails! YUMMY!!! My dh had already been bragging that he was going to get to eat fresh crab cakes in MD, but I would choose my crawfish over crab most days. I was also able to come home with new MSU shirts for myself and the girls - pics will be up soon.

Another item I was able to secure from the Warm South was Mata's Pizza. As many of my readers know my dh bday was this past week. As I have posted before he is the master gifter. He had already purchased his big bday present, but I wanted to surprise him with something. I know pizza is a big deal in Ohio, with every kind of pizza place imaginable, but there is none like Mata's Pizza in Anniston, AL. Mata's is a mom and pop place that has been around for years. My dh and his friends have been frequenting there since at least high school or before. It was started by this Greek couple, and I don't think anything has changed since then. It is nothing to wait an hour on the weekends for a pizza and they are not open on Sunday ever! Oh, and they don't deliver. Needless to say the owner knows my dh on first name basis. He loves the place. We even ate there on our honeymoon. They are known not only for their pizza but their grinders and salads as well. Mata's was on speed dial at our home. Well, I called as friend of ours to inquire about having some pizzas shipped if possible. I found out, yes this is possible, but maybe pricey to ship and the logistics of doing it. Then it dawned on me since I was flying into Bham maybe we could work out something. Thankfully Delta accepts perishables and bags with dry ice. They should since I saw decedents being loaded onto my plane. So here was the plan - Jeff orders our pizzas - Rick realizes who they are for and fixes them just right, wraps them, and freezes them hard for the trip - Jeff purchases the dry ice, labels the bag correctly, gets the bag to Russ - Russ who now works in Bham meets me in the Bhm airport cellphone parking lot for the package drop - and thankfully the airline accepts the bag and it gets check and safely makes it to Ohio still frozen. I surprised my dh with Mata's pizza for supper, and a big cheer for the wife who delivers his favorite pizza from AL - Mata's Extra Special. I had told him I was cooking supper that night when I called him that morning before our respective flight to come home, and he just thought I was bringing bbq. Sorry to all who would like to try the pizza - he is not sharing. So, if you ever find yourself in Anniston/Oxford, AL you must eat at Mata's Greek Pizza and Grinders. I would also like to say a HUGE thanks to Jeff, Russ, and Rick for helping me make my dh bday happy with his favorite pizza!!! So, when we run out will you ship more?

I know I am getting long winded with this post, but the rest of the week consisted of sick kid, sick husband, and myself sick, and then to top it off FREEZING weather. I do not like my husband being out of town when it snows, b/c I have to shovel it. I did enough of that when I was in CA. I am thankful it was only a few inches and not feet of snow.

Oh, I almost forgot. On my 2nd leg of my flight home, I got to sit next to a demo from CA. Don't you know I had an interesting conversation, thankfully I don't think he is going to vote for Hillary. I thanked him for that. He is worried about globally warming, and I told him I was worried about all the unborn babies that will die every year. But the poor guy was seated between 2 Christians, but I am not so sure about the other who believes in doing work for the kingdom, but wonders why you have to join a church and doesn't really believe in denominations. It did make the hour and half flight not seem so long, but I was hoping to finish the new Beth Moore book. Also, my dh and I ended up with the same type of rental car at different airports and different companies - what are the odds of that!