Richmond, VA

After a quick stop at the Elon Campus Shop for a new T-shirt I headed for Richmond.  I wanted to be there by noon to meet Wendy and Suzanne for lunch.  After a few hours of catching up over lunch, Wendy and I headed to their house and Suzanne continued on for an afternoon of shopping.  The weather took a turn for the worse somewhere between Elon and Richmond and it was chilly and rainy for the duration of my stay, but that didn't stop us from having a great time.  Wendy and Suzanne have 2 fabulous boys, Logan and Gavin.  Logan is a legitimate athletic prodigy and Gavin is sure to be an A-list Hollywood player before too long.  On our first afternoon we met the boys at the corner as they got off the school bus and I couldn't believe how big they had gotten since my last visit 2 years ago.  Time really does fly...

Logan and Gavin are boys in the truest sense of the word.  They love to be outside, wrestle each other to the ground and talk smack to each other whenever possible.  I was honored to actually get a hug from each of them as they existed the bus --- they are both dangerously close to the age where PDAs are cause for embarrassment of epic proportion.  First things first - we did some homework.  I got schooled in "new" math by Wendy.  She explained it very well which gave me a whole new perspective on why high school kids can't ever calculate my change correctly without the help of a computer or cash register.  What was wrong with "old" math?  It seemed to serve us well, right?

Football practice was cancelled due to the rain, so we ate dinner in, watched Monday Night Football and had a mini dance party in the living room.  Wendy and I also realized we both play Words with Friends and started a game which has since turned into an obsessive competition.  She beats me every game?  I am not used to such agony, as I nearly always beat my Mom.  :)  Practice makes perfect, right?

Logan has an obsession with Under Armour and one of our good friends from Elon works for the company at their offices in Maryland.  So, I sent the following text to him in an effort to guilt him into some freebies!  We'll see if it worked when I see him on my way back down to Atlanta next month.  Knowing Rob, we'll both be donning an entire new wardrobe just to prove a point.

Text to prove Rob promised Under Armour freebies

During my visit I snuck in some quality conversation time with Suzanne which always leaves me feeling inspired.  She is one of those people who makes you feel good to be alive when you spend time with her.  She won't blow smoke up your butt - she'll tell you how it is.  Of all of my friends' spouses, she's the one I look forward to discussing my professional life with the most.  We talked about my decision to take a break from work and she analyzed and broke things down for me in a way that only she could.  Thank you for that, Suzanne. 

After a delightful 2 days in Richmond I got back in the car to head further North.  It was a great visit that could have lasted much longer and I look forward to another visit in the Spring so we can go boating on Smith Mountain Lake...