Sadly, I was a bit disappointed in Kroger. It was very picked over and much higher-priced than what I'm used to. On top of that, it's hard to shop at a store you're not familiar with. I tried very hard to stick to our $65 budget, but we went over a little bit and I didn't even find everything I needed.
I got back to Kelly's house around 8am. I tossed the perishable things in the cooler and left everything else in the car. We made the beds, packed our bags, made our sandwiches for the day and put them in a smaller cooler Kelly loaned us.
We didn't leave Kelly's until 9:30, which was the latest we talked about leaving, so technically we weren't behind schedule. But I live by the motto "To be early is to be on time. To be on time is to be late." And we still had to go dump all of our bags and food off at the condo first in the opposite direction before heading into Atlanta.
I was a bit apprehensive about this whole business of "rent a condo" sight unseen and online. I've had a few friends do it before and I've even stayed in a home that a friend has rented from out of state. But this was an entirely new experience for us. We reserved this condo back in November 2015 and there wasn't much to do until our trip got closer. We ran into a little technical glitch a month or so prior where we couldn't access our reservation or find it anywhere and of course there was NO ONE we could call to verify it. Fortunately, that was resolved within a couple of days. As our arrival day approached, we had some papers, including a rental contract, to sign with a $500 refundable deposit on the line. Once we received the rental property rules, we learned that check-in was at 4pm!! No, no, no. That would NOT work for us on Thursday. We needed to be able to unload our car and food at the condo before leaving for Atlanta. So I called the owner and inquired about an early check-in. He said that shouldn't be a problem, as there wasn't anyone using it right before us. Then he said he had a favor to ask. If any of the neighbors around the condo ask who we are, he wanted us to tell them that we are family friends of his. It took me a second while my head was processing what he just requested. He was asking us to lie to the neighbors! He said that the condo is in an HOA and they don't like that he rents it out on VRBO. Obviously, I would never lie, but I really didn't want to engage in an awkward conversation where I had to actually say I wasn't going to lie for him. Especially because I wasn't sure how he'd react. Would he cause problems for us? Cancel the reservation? Find a way to keep our $500 deposit? *sigh* I admit, I was fearing man more than God as I quickly contemplated the situation. In the end, it didn't matter what he would do. I had to tell him I couldn't, nor wouldn't lie to his neighbors regardless of the consequences. His request felt like a heavy bricks on my chest. I mustered up my courage and said I couldn't do that for him. From his stammering and quick back-pedaling, it seemed like the owner was a little surprised, like he hadn't encountered such a response before. He told me not to worry, it was fine. I did tell him that in all honesty we were not planning to be at the condo very often, except in the evening and the chances of us actually running into his neighbors were pretty slim. But still...I couldn't help but be a little anxious about our housing arrangements until I knew we were definitely in and had our deposit back!
Fortunately, the owner had approved a 9am check-in time for us and gave us the keypad code to get in to the condo, for which I was greatly relieved!
This condo is a corner unit within walking distance of a marina on Lake Lanier. When you first walk in you see the long staircase going up.
Walking to the right of the staircase, you enter the little living room with a couch/chaise, coffee table/foot rest, fireplace (which we did not use!) and a TV mounted to the wall. (This picture was near the end of our trip when the kids were pretty wiped out!
Behind the couch is the dining area with a table.
To the left of the dining room is a fully-equipped galley kitchen with a door that lead to the back patio and grill. It also had a great pantry to use where I stood to take the picture.
This is the half-bath downstairs near the living room.
This is the walkway from the kitchen, living room, dining room area that takes you to the front door and stairs. The door on the left leads to the garage which we couldn't use. It was empty except for the garbage cans and carpet on the floor.
This is what you see as you ascend the stairs. The washer and dryer with the upstairs bathroom behind it and the doors to two bedrooms. You have to go right, past the washer and dryer closet to get to the Master.
This is bedroom number 1. Karcyn was on the twin bed and Calvin took the top bunk, JJ had the bottom. It was perfect for them!
This is bedroom number two where Jake and Coop shared a queen-sized bed.
The kids' bathroom.
The Master bathroom is the first thing you come to after entering the suite.
Then you enter the bedroom with a queen-sized bed, full bedroom set and cable TV.
The walk-in closet across from the Master bathroom.
And just for kicks...one of the signs on the wall that Jared could live by. This boy wants to retire on a lake one day :)
This condo is 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath and 1500 square feet, costing us only $99 a night!!! I couldn't believe it! A hotel is, at the cheapest rate, $115 a night for our family and a cracker-jack box at best. I loved the space the condo offered us and the opportunity to prepare and eat "home-cooked" meals. Did I mention the price?!? Such a steal!
Once we got to the condo, Jared and I unloaded the bags and put the perishable food in the fridge while the kids and Kelly checked out the place. Uncle Steve had to work :( We hurried as fast as we could--we didn't want to delay our drive into the city. (I actually took the interior pictures after we got back :) We certainly expected some traffic as we made our way into the city, but for reasons unbeknownst to us, it was especially egregious on Thursday morning. It is still a mystery to us. I was starting to sweat a bit, too. We were planning to go to the aquarium first, eat lunch then do the football hall of fame. The highlight of the aquarium though, I suspected, was seeing the dolphin show which was included in our price. The only show we could see that day, however, was at 11:30, but the ticket suggested you be in line around 11am. It was taking SO long to get to the aquarium. Which was literally downtown! Not where you'd expect an aquarium to be...on a city block or two. Then we had to find a parking garage and then a level of that garage that had an open parking stall. Then we had to walk to the entrance, show our passes (Go with the CityPASS every time, peeps!) then we had to pause to get our picture taken--an aquarium memory grossly overpriced that we would never purchase them--and make our way in. By then it was 11:22! As soon as we spotted an aquarium worker, we inquired about the show. He said it was starting soon and to get in line. There was no line. Fabulous!! There were just a few people gathered by the doors and for a few seconds I was hopeful until a lady turned around and said someone was checking to see if there were any seats left because it was a full-house. Of course. But just a moment later, a man asked us to follow him. We were led on a walk through a back way and down forbidden halls that weren't open to the public and then up some stairs. We came to the end of a wing with an open door that led to the show and two officials told us to just find whatever seats we could. The show introductions had already begun and it was dark in there as if we were walking into an enormous movie theater with a massive water tank below.
We were a party of 8 with almost half of the party being little kids. We didn't have time to really plan, but somehow, the stars aligned and it worked. Jake and Cooper were together in some seats up at the top of the huge amphitheater. Jared and Calvin were together a few rows up and over from us. Kelly and JJ and Karcyn and I were together. We entered in the middle of the arena, like you would in a movie theater. There were lots of seats going up to our left and lots of seats going down on our right. I spotted some empty seats two rows up from where we entered. In order to make it work, I put JJ on my lap and Kelly was next to me. Karcyn was in the row right below us. I thought it was fortunate to find seats so quickly, but Karcyn's was so close to the floor, it was hard for her to see over the heads of the people sitting in the back row of the next section going down. So Kelly pulled her up on her lap and it worked! The dolphin show was INCREDIBLE! I felt nothing but overwhelming gratitude for this remarkable tender mercy God gave our family from Texas. It meant so much to me that we could see this show and we were given that opportunity. We didn't sit together and it was a bit of a gamble at the last minute. Not how I prefer to do things.at.all. But it was spectacular! Karcyn was screaming her cheers and super excited. She was cracking up me and Kelly. JJ was mesmerized and clapped his heart out as he watched with bulging eyes. I loved that the kids were able to see what amazing things dolphins can do!
Cooper participated with the Tsunami's swim team in College Station this summer. He got a cool fluorescent green shirt and water bottle. At the end-of-season party, I asked the instructors if we could buy a couple more of those shirts. I had wanted one also but kept forgetting to send money. Apparently they had a big bin full of leftover shirts that they needed to get rid of. I found one for me and gave them some cash to cover it. They refused to take the money and told me to just take it. In fact, they said I could take as many as I wanted because the season was over and they just needed to have them gone. So then the wheels started turning and I thought it would be great if, on our trip to GA, we had matching shirts when we went to the aquarium. So that's what we did! I thought it was fitting Kelly wore bright colored shorts. We didn't even plan it!
As we left the Dolphin Tales show and walked down the ramp, we could see the dolphins in the water below.
Albino alligators!
What are those things in the ground??
There were several gigantic water tanks 20+ feet high and 75+ feet wide. They were incredible to see with all the different creatures within.
JJ, Calvin and Jake (in the blue shirt...he apparently didn't get the memo about the dress code for the day).
Can you find Dory? :)
You can't have a Dory without a Nemo (or a Marlin).
And Gil
The common seadragon. Never knew such a thing existed!
I was flabbergasted by the enormous size of the manta rays!
"Destiny" the whale shark from "Finding Dory"...pictures just don't capture the magnitude of this creature either. Notice there's a shark in the bottom left corner. Maybe that'll help with perspective.
After we pulled ourselves away from under the sea, we tried our hand at touching some small sharks and sting rays.
Some smaller tunnel fun...
If you hadn't noticed...with the exception of one picture with the dolphins, we could never get JJ to turn around to look at the camera if there was a tank nearby. I think he was afraid he might miss something.
The belugas were eating lunch so we figured it was a good time for us to eat, too. We still had another stop to make! The kids picked out a couple of small souvenirs (we gave the kids a little bit of money for the entire trip...so it was up to them to decide how to spend it). JJ actually changed his mind three or four times while we were standing in line. Thankfully, we had Dad to swap out the items for us. Then we found some covered tables outside the aquarium in the courtyard area where two other notable venues converged on the square...the Center for Civil Rights and the World of Coca-Cola. Jared and the boys went to the car to get our food while we sat at two tables to take a load off. One of the best money-saving things we did was eat packed lunches. It's at least $50 per lunch to feed our crew. We easily saved $250 minimum just by packing sandwiches and chips on our travel days.
After lunch, the boys took our cooler back and then he hiked up the road to the College Football Hall of Fame. Once we showed them the tickets we had purchased, they gave each of us a cool Hall of Fame pass on a lanyard. It looked like a big all-access press pass that we wore around our necks.
When you enter the museum, you sign in and pick a college football team that you want to follow or learn about. On one entire wall hangs the helmet of every college football team. It's pretty impressive. After you select a team to follow, that helmet will light up :)
Texas Aggies being represented :)
Oregon Ducks being represented :) Georgia Tech, Oklahoma and Michigan State were represented, as well.
And BYU--twice. By our engine and caboose.
This museum is 99% interactive. I wasn't sure what to expect, but that wasn't it. In one area, you could stand in front of these big computer screens that rotate. You swipe your pass in front of it, and because you registered when you first came in, it knows which team you want to learn about and brings up that information on the screen. (JJ picked "BIU")
We loved watching the cow pop up on the screen and give a personal message.
Some of the other exhibits in the big hall.
Virtual face painting with your team of choice was a hit with everyone!
"Are you taller than a football player?" Nope, I guess we're not!
The HIGHLIGHT of the entire day--right up there with narrowly making the dolphin show--was when Karcyn and Calvin sat down to do a mock interview as guests on ESPN's College Gameday segment. Karcyn just plopped down and nailed it! She was even reading a teleprompter and knew just exactly what to do and where to make her voice fluctuate and how to use her hands, etc. We laughed so hard we were crying. She might just have a future in broadcasting!! Click HERE to see her steal the show :)
Next stop: The indoor football field arena where you can practice and train just like the college football players do!
Here are some positive affirmations before heading to the field to practice. I love that "Win the Day" from the Oregon Ducks made the cut!
Karcyn found a cheerleader/dancing trainer :) It told her what to do, she did her best interpretation and then the computer recorded her moves and aired them on the jumbo tron in the arena :)
Calvin working on this throw.
JJ taking a stab at it.
Kicking the ball sure looks easier on TV, right Coop? :)
Doin' the skills...
Jake, trying a pass.
JJ throwing objects a little more his size!
Some more Karcyn moves!
JJ running down the field and getting ready to catch the ball from the staff member.
The pass Cooper caught after diving for it!
Calvin running to catch an incoming pass.
We finally headed back to the suburban. It wasn't too far, but was a nice little walk and right past Olympic Park, which, unfortunately was all closed down. We couldn't figure out why. Until I spied a banner that had something about 20 years on it. And that's when I realized that Atlanta hosted the 1996 Summer Olympics twenty years ago! They were getting ready for a big anniversary commemorative celebration.
This picture was on our way back. I wanted to get a shot with the ferris wheel in it. Kelly considered taking us there. She thought it was along the same lines as the Eye of London. But after a little more research, she discovered it was a traveling ferris wheel--most likely owned by gyspies and she put a quick kabosh on that idea ;)
We thought traffic was bad going into the city...we hadn't seen anything yet. We left around 4:30pm and spent another two hours in the car by the time we dropped Kelly off and got back to the condo! We were wiped out! Almost four hours of driving...took us about the same time, maybe longer, as if we had been driving to and from Houston. Our little bums were tired of the car seats (especially after two back-to-back days of driving just to get to Georgia). And we were going to turn around and do it again the next day! But really, it was a small price to pay. We were having fun going to new and exciting venues and enjoying Kelly's company. Let's just say the kids slept well that night. We all did.
Sort of. The master bedroom mattress was just barely softer than a plank of wood. It was tough to get comfortable on, but out of sheer exhaustion, we slept. I'm just not sure how great our sleep was.
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