A Magical Weekend at My Sister’s House in Georgia

It’s been a whirlwind couple of days here, which has left little time to do anything other than eat and sleep, let alone blog, but I’m popping in real quick with an update from this past weekend!

My sister lives in Georgia with her husband and six kids, so we don’t get to see them as often as we’d like. And it’s weird that we don’t, because Amy and I are actually the same exact person. Like, to a T, from what we like to how we talk and our interests. They’re all the same. We text every single day and ask each other what we’re making for dinner, and even though she might be the busiest parent on the planet shuffling kids from sports and activities and school, she still makes time for me. How amazing is that? Mom (and sister) of the year.

I’ve missed her so much and it was so nice to spend a few days with her and the kids and finally see her house (that she’ll be moving out of in a few weeks and into an even more beautiful one). Her house now, though, has this incredible pool that the kids swam in from morning until night, leaving them worn out when they crawled into bed at the end of the day. I am doing my best to talk PJ into us getting a pool out at the farm because, like Georgia, Tennessee is pretty much unbearable in the summer if you’re outside for any extended period of time unless you have a pool. They are endless entertainment for all, so keep your fingers crossed for me that I succeed in my mission of convincing PJ, won’t you?

The weekend was spent eating kabobs and pizza around their kitchen island and staying up late talking to my sister on the couch with wine and laughing until I cried. I wish so badly PJ could have been there with us, but he drove on down to the beach shack to start working on it and to get it ready for us to stay in. He’ll be with us next time!

We also stopped by Chehaw, which is the local zoo in Albany, though it felt more like Magic Kingdom at Disney World it was so cool. We saw kangaroos and camels and flamingos and lemurs and alligators and the kids gasped at every one of them. It was the perfect way to spend our last day. How cute are they all piled in the Land Cruiser?

Amy’s house is this gorgeous colonial with a formal entryway and huge bedrooms. It feels lived-in and cozy, like a family of eight lives there and experiences life there, which happens to be my favorite kind of home. You instantly feel welcomed when you step through the door, and with kids ranging in ages six to 16, there’s always someone to talk to. Isn’t her formal living room so lovely (below)?

It’s a very loving and warm home, and I found myself so sad to leave as we drove out of their long driveway, especially because the sight of all the cousins together (all nine of them!) brought us all so much joy. This is the first time they’ve had time to really hang out and just enjoy each other’s company.

I wish so badly we could live closer to them and this could be an all-the-time ordeal, kinda like the way PJ was with his cousins growing up. Amy and I have always wanted to do life together and talk about how great it would be pretty much daily.

Moral of the story is this: If you can help it, never live far away from your best friend or your sister, especially if they happen to be the same person.