Atlanta

As luck would have two days after Ambrose and I returned from our month long vacation John had to be in Atlanta for a week for work. Initially the thought of traveling with a mobile toddler for one more second made me break out in hives, but after a lot of thought I figured if John's job allows us to be together we need to take them up on it. So, Ambrose and I flew in on Saturday night (did I tell you how awful it was, 2hr delay, then flight cancellation, rebooking, another delayed flight and finally ending up at our destination without our luggage....good first impression Delta), unpacked delayed luggage on Sunday, repacked Monday morning and hit the road for our 5hr road trip.

After a fairly painless drive we arrived in Atlanta only to discover that we arrive in the heart of rush hour traffic. Fantastic and a total stress free way of starting our "family adventure", as john so affectionately called it. As we sat in traffic I started to feel a little panicky. I'm not a big city driver, I'm not aggressive enough, I always seem to end up in the exit only lane and when not in an exit only lane I'm darting across three lanes as I cut off a handful of people trying desperately not to miss my exit. I began to feel that Ambrose and I were going to sight see in our room the entire time because there was no way I was getting out and driving anywhere. John reminded me that I'd be out in not rush hour traffic and I had my Droid navigation system.

Let me tell you, I stressed and stressed and stressed about getting that phone. Not only is there the expense of the phone, but the new monthly expenses that go along with having a smart phone. In the end I went for it, and that phone earned it's keep while in Atlanta. I can't sing the praises of that navigation system enough. Even when I miss my exit, or miss my street the thing reroutes me and somehow I magically end up at my location. Love love love it.

We first went and saw the aquarium, I wasn't sure what Ambrose was going to think, but the love for fish must be in his genes because he couldn't get enough of the place. He ran from aquarium to aquarium babbling and pointing. There were very few moments he was confined to his stroller because I just couldn't keep him in there. He loved it.

after our success at the aquarium I though this kid was going to loose his animal loving mind at the zoo, and he might have, if he could see the animals. I was constantly pointing at things in the distance, and I couldn't get him to look further out than the fence or the dirt and leaves surrounding the enclosures.

Here he is, he loved the dirt around the fence, loved pointing to the water, but I know he never even notice the giraffe's. There was a petting zoo, an elephant undergoing some sort of a blood draw who was nice and close and some beautiful birds, but other than that, I don't think he really saw many animals.

He did go on the carousel, which of course I'd pick the one animal that was stationary the whole ride, but despite the unamused look on his face he really seemed to enjoy it.

We also went on the train, which was a great escape from the heat as it wound through the grounds of the zoo, he played on a playground and for the most part I just let him wander around stopping at what he found interesting. I think he had a wonderful time, but as far as the animals go, he was more enthralled with the birds in the Wal mart parking lot.

You win some you loose some.