I've Got Spurs that Jingle Jangle Jingle!

Hey Mickey! Look! I'm a cowboy!

Yes Yes, you read right. I'm in Texas. Mom, Glenn and I drove all the way from Maryland to Texas! I'll give ya the play by play.

Why we're here: Well, it's the 75th Anniversary of AA(Alcoholics Anonymous) and my mother owns Celebrate Recovery, which is a recovery, sort of gift store. It's really cool. It's in Severna Park. Anyways, it's the anniversary and there's a HUGE conference in San Antonio, which we're here to sell things at...if that phrase makes any sense.

How long did it take?!- It took about 26 hours, not including stops and hotel overnights(more on those later)

Is it hot?- YES. Oh Ma God. It's like 111 degrees here, literally. We just got home and we're staying in a house about 7.2 miles from the conference center. I'm sitting comfortably in my room, under a fan, on a squishy bed. It's very nice.

Okay, so the hotels. The first day we drove more than we thought we would. We drove about 10 hours I think, and then stopped in a little podunk town called Mt. Juliet (which according to the touchy hotel manager, is becoming "popular"). In the morning we stopped for breakfast at Cracker Barrel, and then various McDonalds, Steak'n'Shakes, and gas stations along the way. I read most of my book, and ended up finishing it in the car there. I'm actually almost finished with the one I started Day 2 of driving. Anyways, we drove a lot, and then we stopped in Tennesee. We had a nice dinner...of Steak'n'Shake I believe and then went to find a hotel. After trying MANY hotels, only to find that most had weddings and birthday parties, we finally found a Sleep Inn closer to Nashville. We spent the night there.

Day 2: On day 2, we woke up around...7:30 I guess. After fighting for the shower, we finally all got clean. Then we went downstairs to the lobby and the teeny tiny "customer lounge" for breakfast. We ended up eating in the lobby. I had a nice bagel and cream cheese. We got back on the road, and I continued reading. Again, we got about 10 hours down and settled into a Comfort Inn that night. We ate at the Black-Eyed Pea, and I reallyy hope we get to eat there again. Our waiter, Colin, was SUPER nice and really cool. He was younger so I guess that's to be expected. I had a really nice chicken tenderloin plate with green beans and mac'n'cheese. It was delish! I really wish they had a BlackEyed Pea down here in San Antonio, but alas, all we have is Taco Taco and WhatABurger, which we MUST try! After settling into the hotel and trying to combat the OVEN that was our room, we got some sleep.

Day 3/Today: We woke up today around...8:30,well, I did. Mom and Glenn were up MUCH earlier than I was, but I'm 16, and this is MY summer vacation! Anyways, they went to breakfast while I got dressed and then after I ate the muffin they brought back(which was dry and hard to eat) we got back on the road. I got to drive today and I discovered the joys of cruise control, and the pains of Texas drivers. It was pretty fun. After about an hour of driving, we stopped at Cracker Barrel, yet again(they're EVERYWHERE here) and got lunch. Our waitress today was very odd and she talked REALLY loud. It was a bit offputting. After lunch we hit the restrooms and decided to shop for a little bit. That's where we met our new member of the family, a RAINBOW stuffed Armadillo WebKinz whom we named Colin(after our waiter at the BlackEyed Pea.) We couldn't decide on a name so his full name is Colin Bucksnort. Bucksnort was a town that we passed on our way...I know it's odd. Well, I drove about 4 hours today and after a very scary traffic jam in downtown San Antonio, we arrived at the house.

The House: The house is super nice. It's about 5 minutes from downtown, and 7 minutes from the local plaza. It's got a garage, which opens up into the laundry, which goes into the kitchen. The front door opens into a living room ,which also extends into the kitchen. From there, the dining room is straight ahead, and then there are two wings of the house. On one side, there's Aunt Diane and I's room which has two twin beds, and some drawers, and a closet. Across from us is Allen's room, with a queen bed. There is a bathroom for all of us to use right next to Allen's room. In the other wing, is Mom and Glenn's room, which has a king bed and an adjoining bathroom. Mom keeps walking into my room thinking it's hers, it's really funny. She'll walk back, say "this is NOT my room!" and then stomp away. It's a little humorous. Anyways, that's my adventures in Texas so far.

We're also keeping a list of things that we saw in Texas that we never see in Maryland, which I will post when complete. That's all I have for you, and remember ladies and gentlemen, the best time to wear a striped sweater IS all the time.

Hugs and Cake,
Cowgirl Emily