Thursday, March 26, 2015

Our Savannah Souvenir



Back in December, I told you that Drew successfully completed basic training and safely made it home. Hooray! What I did not tell you is that between his graduation and our return to Texas we took a trip to Savannah, Georgia. If you aren’t familiar with this beautiful gem of a city, then you absolutely need to add a visit to your to-do list. I had been once before, on a week-long trip with a fun group of social studies teachers, but Drew had never visited, even though he had lived in Georgia for several years. I was so excited to plan our trip so I could show him why I had immediately fallen in love with Savannah, and since we would be there just before Christmas, I knew there would be an extra sense of excitement in the air.

The holiday decorations and atmosphere were exactly what I had hoped they would be; they made the evenings that much more beautiful.
I love white lights, and these were strung across the street for blocks in each direction. It was gorgeous.
After Drew’s graduation ceremony on Fort Benning, we enjoyed lunch with his parents and then departed for the opposite side of the state, arriving at our hotel just before dinnertime. I spent a somewhat ridiculous amount of time researching and choosing the hotel for our long weekend and I am glad that I did. We were on the western edge of the historic district, not on busy Bay Street, but within easy walking distance of everything. It was THE perfect location for us. Plus, we paid a little less than what we would have for one of the Bay Street hotels, but we got much more for our money.

B Historic Savannah Hotel
For our first evening in Savannah I wanted to get Drew down to see the river as soon as possible, so I made a reservation for dinner at River House Seafood. We got a little bit lost while finding the restaurant, but we had fun along the way. Since Drew was still wearing his uniform, a street performer played the U.S. Army Song as we walked down the street; I was pretty proud to be on the arm of my soldier.

The entire weekend was amazing and so pleasant. The city was adorned with white lights and Christmas decorations. The weather was beautiful and, although the pre-holiday season is a peak time for tourism, it didn’t feel too crowded or busy. As we browsed through shops and tourist attractions, we hoped that we would find some special souvenir by which we could remember our trip. We contemplated Christmas ornaments, art prints, coffee mugs, and other trinkets, but nothing seemed to excite us. Instead, we took lots of pictures, walked miles back and forth across town, indulged in delicious lunches and dinners, and enjoyed being back together again.

We loved watching the container ships go up and down the river. They are quite an impressive sight.
Mass at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist was beautiful.
We enjoyed a peaceful stroll through Forsyth Park after Saturday evening Mass and before going to dinner.
I wonder if the army is looking for super models?

Waiting for our walking tour to begin. We highly recommend Free Savannah Walking Tours.
Posing with the statue of the Waving Girl.
Everyone recommended that we dine at The Olde Pink House and we are so glad we did. It was one of my favorite parts of the trip because the food was incredible and the staff went above and beyond our expectations.
An unforgettable memory: Drew's plate of congratulatory strawberries courtesy of The Olde Pink House. He would probably like for me to note that he now has a full head of hair.
On our drive home we were lucky to see this fragment of a rainbow - a beautiful reminder of the many blessings in our lives.
We left Savannah feeling happy and rested, wishing we could have stayed longer, and already wondering when we would return. Stopping in Birmingham to visit Drew’s parents broke up the journey home, and we pulled into our driveway less than one week after leaving Fort Benning. Since we were immediately thrown back into real life, it took us a while to get completely unpacked and nearly three months later I feel like we have yet to catch a break from piles laundry. Anyway, being back under one roof again was great but also stressful. I found myself more easily irritated and I wondered if I was just having a hard time readjusting; it can be tough to transition from being a team, to having to be a one woman show, and then going back to the team again. My husband is unbelievably patient and understanding, but I know my moodiness was affecting him, and I was even annoying myself!

Don't get me wrong, I certainly have my cranky days here and there (who doesn't?), but perpetual irritability was not normal for me and as the days wore on, I had a sneaking suspicion that I knew the cause. So, after my morning shift on December 22nd, I went home and took a pregnancy test. The instructions on the package said to wait at least two minutes, and up to ten, for results. I swear to you, not thirty seconds later, there it was: PREGNANT! Just to be sure and to help the shock wear off, I took another test, even though it was expired and, once again, POSITIVE!

I was positively pregnant.

No wonder we had struggled to find the perfect souvenir when we were in Savannah; we had the best souvenir with us the whole time, we just did not know it. :)

Proof positive! (Pun intended.)

Introducing Baby Smith, due August 27th!


Our 9 week ultrasound photo
:D :D :D :D :D :D :D