Are We There Yet?

So, we made it to Jacksonville last night at about 1:30 A.M.  We left home at around 1:45, so twelve hours of travel time is not too shabby.  The girls were pretty good travelers too, considering we did not break up the trip at all.  We only had a few meltdowns fromm Miss Lala, which consisted of an arching back when being placed back into her seat.  It is not the most pleasant of tasks forcing your surprisingly strong nineteen month old into the confines of her seat.  We stopped in Columbia, South Carolina for what The Boss calls my "obligatory dining wild goose chase".  I am a big fan of South Carolina BBQ, which has a mustard based sauce, that is sweet and gooey, and oh so delicious.  The place we went to last night was called "Little Pigs" and was a buffet with "all the fixins" - green beans, collard greens,baked beans, cole slaw, mac and cheese, hash, BBQ pork, brisket, fried chicken, chicken livers, and on and on.  It was great.  I stumbled on this place looking for a place I had visited before that would give your party a 10% discount if you cleaned your plate.  As an eternal member of the "clean plate club", I remembered this and tried searching for it.  I recognized the pictures on the internet, and called the restaurant for directions.  I also asked them if they were the same place I remembered.  The man replied with a chuckle, and said "No. . . well yeah but that was 20 years ago".  I felt sick.  What a punch to the gut.  I have become old enough to refer to something I remember over twenty years ago - when I was a teenager!  Shocking and stunning.  So, I called my dad and told him, so he could also wallow in my self pity.  So, now we have invaded Matty's, surprisingly well decorated (according to The Boss) bachelor pad, and it may never be the same.  With my two girls, Matty's three year old son, and Bowers' three year old son, we are in for quite a frenetic weekend.  I have a feeling that the fury of Hurricane Fiona will be nothing compared to what we are about to witness.  Hopefully they'll occupy each other between the hours of 3 and 8 tomorrow night so we can watch the Cats whip the stinkin 'Cards.  But, for now it's off to the beach, and I will try to post with some pics from Atlantic Beach later.  In the meantime - GO BIG BLUE!!!