Day One

Chad has arrived safely in La Ceiba.  He frequently travels but the unknown of this trip had me feeling anxious.  We really didn't know what communication would be like once he landed and because of this, I wasn't certain how I would know that he had made it safely.  They landed sometime this afternoon and then took a bus for three and a half hours to get to La Ceiba and to their hotel for the week.  He has internet connection in the hallway of the hotel so we were able to text back and forth a few times.

It went a little like this...

Me:  (message sent earlier in day, just in case he would see it...)  Duke lost!!!

Chad: Hey! We are at the hotel! Long, long van ride from airport....like 3.5 hours.

Me: Awesome!!! Great to hear!  Pretty?

Chad: Ummmm, no not pretty.  Can't even explain it.  Like nothing I have ever seen.  Everything looks abandoned even though it is lived in.  Vegetation everywhere....millions and millions of palms.  Pineapple all over.

Chad:  Can't believe dook lost!!!!

Yes, even in Honduras, where his life is about to be changed forever, it matters that DOOK lost :)  What can I say? We bleed carolina blue!  It may seem trivial but it is a big deal for Chad to be out of the country in March.  Just a small part of the sacrifice he is making...clearly, the reason is much bigger than Carolina basketball and he already see that as well!

They headed off to dinner, we exchanged a few quick messages once they were back from dinner....mainly to tell him that Carolina did win and that the boys and I said special prayers for him tonight.

I know we won't get to communicate much over the next week and in fact, I hope that he will completely disconnect so that he can get the most of this experience...but, I also know that I will continue sending him score updates just in case he is able to check his phone....it is March Madness!

On the home front, we made it through day one as well....it was a long day to say the least.  My morning started a few minutes before 5 o'clock and I had to wake the boys up a little after 6 o'clock so that we could make it to "Morning with Mom" at Payton's school.  Grandma and Meme joined us for a little early morning fun!  It was simple but it felt great to be able to be there with him.  Owen spent an hour with Pawpaw - eating cheerios and watching the disney channel - while we were enjoying a chocolate covered doughnut.

From there, we took Owen to preschool.  While he was in school, I ran many errands...I think it was the most I have ever accomplished in a three hour period!  Payton finally has a baseball pants that fit and a few birthday presents.

After school, we had lunch and did a little driving around Winston - finally found the elementary school that Payton will likely attend next year.

Payton rode home with Aunt Chandra so we were able to visit with Aunt Chandra and KK for a few minutes.  KK had a soccer game and Carson had golf practice so Allen and Chandra invited us to have dinner with them in Clemmons.  My food was awesome and the boys were pretty good so I was happy we decided to go with them.  After dinner, the boys and I picked Carson up from golf practice and he headed back with us to watch the Carolina game.  Four boys and one Mom...and, I volunteered for this!  It helps when at least one boy is old enough to avoid throwing himself in the floor when something doesn't go his way.  We did our best to watch the game while dealing with two wild boys!  It was a close game but the Heels pulled through with a W...survive and advance!  I finally had all the boys asleep and in bed by about 1030.

Tomorrow I will be taking Owen to a birthday party where I will not know a single person...looks like it's time to attempt to make a friend...or at least learn someone's name.  I just hope tomorrow doesn't feel as long as today did.  I am one tired Mama!

This Mama is heading to bed.  Thanks for your continued prayers for Chad.