Nathan and Jenny O's Pretty Long Day

Although the circumstances that have brought us back down to Alabama are not the best, it has afforded us the luxury of spending time with large swaths of our families.  For example, this morning we, along with my mom and brother, went down to Montgomery Zoo, where I learned that you can hand-feed giraffes and that, moreover, hand-feeding giraffes is awesome and they have very distinct personalities regarding how aggressively they will wrap their tongues around your hand to get at the food (did I mention awesome?!)

Once we had to leave there (because my brother had to continue his drive on to Atlanta to hop on a plane back to the real world), Nathan and I settled in for the three hour drive up to see his paternal grandparents.

Granpa R

It was good to see them- it always is, of course, but especially so in the wake of a funeral.  We didn't stay for very long, because visits that go beyond an hour are a bit tiring for them, but we got a few new stories out of Granpa R, so that's always good.  Then it was back in the car for the return drive, but we indulged ourselves by stopping at our favorite Mediterranean restaurant in Birmingham (or even, perhaps, the world?).  I tell you what- I do not in any way regret our move, but there are certain things about the 'Ham that I miss very much indeed...