Ohio or Bust

So we loaded up the kids and took off for Ohio last Thursday. My grandma Smith turned 80 over the weekend, the family got together to have a big party. We left at 5am that morning so that we could have at least part of a day left when we got there. It's usually an 8 hour drive from our house to Columbus, Ohio, but with two little ones, we had to make a few extra stops. But, we didn't do too bad on time. We got to our destination around 2:45pm that day. We stopped a few times to feed the boys and change diapers, as well as letting Tanner run around a little.

I was a little afraid of how Spencer would react to the long car ride. He doesn't do too well in the car. He really dislikes the car seat, so we were a little worried. We said a little prayer for our patience as well as the boys comfort and patience in the car. Thank goodness prayers are heard and answered! Spencer did great going out there and coming back. While we were in Ohio, however, he screamed himself hoarse every time he was in the car - which was at times often.

While we were in Ohio, we stopped and saw my aunts and uncles, cousins and grandma. We ate at this really good sausage place in downtown Columbus like we usually do whenever we go there. They had an authentic German band playing while we were there so Tanner had a good time.

We missed our exit for the interstate on the way back to where we were staying and took a trip right through the heart of Columbus. It would have been a lot more enjoyable if Tanner weren't screaming to death. We drove by The Ohio State University campus. If anybody knows me at all knows that if I could have anything in the world it would be to attend The Ohio State University. I'm a huge fan!! So it was great to be back around that campus again.

The friends whose house we were staying at is really close to a number of major hospitals. It's funny because Marlene, the lady who we stay with, has been trying to get me to move to Columbus since I was in high school, was telling us about all the possibilities Nick would have at the hospitals if we ever decided to move out there. They want to put their house on the market some time next year because they are getting older and want a single story house. I just have to say, I love their house!! It's in a great neighborhood. There are, I think we counted, over 11 hospitals just within about 20 minutes of each other. Columbus pays fairly well. She mentioned that the OSU Medical Center will pay tuition to go to OSU. So we looked into it a little bit while we were there. This hospital will pay 100% tuition for Nick, as well as 50% for dependents. They have their own retirement plan, and a number of other really good benefits. I looked to see if Ohio State offered a program for what Nick wants to go into and sure enough, they sure do have the exact program. So we're going to look into it a little bit more in depth and see what happens.

The drive back was good. We were only in Ohio for three days and came back on Sunday. Again we left at 5am, but this time we didn't stop for breakfast or lunch. We had enough food in the car to eat while we were driving. Of course we had to stop a few times for the boys. But we made better time on the way back. We got back home about 1:30pm. It was good to be home!

While we were driving through western Maryland we took some pictures of the scenery. It was phenomenal! I love the colors of the fall here on the East Coast. Nothing compares!