25 hours of Little Rock

So, on Friday after school, I got into the car immediately and drove to The Parents. The Sister, The Mother, and I got into the car and drove to Arkansas. We hit the Little Rock at 10pm and went directly to bed. We got up, saw The Great Aunt, and then got in the car and drove back home. All in 25 hours. 12 of driving, 10 of sleeping. 2 of visiting, and 1 of miscellaneous adventuring.

Sheesh.

The Sister and I have been getting along a lot better lately, and while that doesn't mean she's stopped saying stupid things, it just means I don't throw them back in her face. For example:

- She asked me if the malls were open on Sunday. For some, that's a legit question, but not only is she three credits short of a degree in shopping for sport, she's also got a degree from an accredited university in retail management. Don't they cover that in the first day of classes?

- While I was attaching my GPS to the windshield, she asked me if it was like, magnetic to glass? Couldn't make that up people. Couldn't make that up.

The Great Aunt. She's 92, and sharp as a tack. She's also the world's judger of weight. Meaning, very shortly after you get in to see her, she will tell you that you have gained weight. It's one of the awesome perks of spending the morning with The Great Aunt. If you're lucky- and of course, I am- you will also be treated to some passive-aggressive remarks about your lack of procreation courtesy of The Mom. Don't be jealous.

There were some delightfully awkward moments, in which The Great Aunt and The Great Aunt's Daughter-in-Law (The Great Cousin?) talked about the times they remember with me- when my dad died. My mom teared up and my sister had no clue what to do or say. She wasn't the only one.

My sister had made it crystal.clear. that we were to leave no.later.than.noon. noon. no later. noon. we have to leave by noon. NOON. She had a birthday party to get to.

So, at 11:55, we started saying our goodbyes. We hopped in the car and headed back home. After a small nap while The Mom was driving, we took a small detour to grap 25 free maps from the Texas travel center (my kids have destroyed my classroom maps just in their humorous attempts to fold them up).

Then, The Sister took over the driving, along with the blaring of her music and the calling of the friends and the general Sister-ness she has, so sleeping was not really an option. We did manage to pass two of the more gruesome crashes that I've ever seen on the highway.

We got home safely, not counting the bruise I have thanks to The Sister's little attempt at highjinx, and then I finally get to move on to enjoying the rest of the weekend.