In which we make it to Richmond, BUT

So, we did eventually get out of the AAA car place. Right after I wrote my last post, Gregg, the very nice guy who works the front counter of AAA, came back and showed up the problem. Basically, after the coolant exploded all over the car (thanks to the radiator hoses, cracked manifold cover, thermostat getting blown, etc) they fixed it all. What no one knew, and would not have been able to guess until the car was driven for more than a few minutes, was that the coolant got into places we didn't anticipate.

Namely? The spark plugs. So, coolant burned one of the plugs and caused a misfire which caused the engine light to come on. I actually started to laugh at this point...not because spending even more money was remotely funny, but it just figured that it would be something like that. IT figured that something would have to go wrong. So, we gave the go ahead to replace ALL the plugs AND the wires and left to get some lunch. We were basically praying that they would get done before 1:00PM because that was our cut off point for being able to leave for Richmond and spend time with our friends. If we left after that, there just wouldn't be enough time. Luckily for us, AAA works FAST! Chris and I headed out to grab some lunch and when we came back 35 minutes later everything was done and ready to go. So, we hit the road around 12:30 or so and made it to Richmond for a very fun and relaxing rest of our weekend.

So, we had to spend more money, but they assure us that the car is now perfect (Chris already knows he needs to get the brakes checked in a couple months as per the last date of brake service), and we just need to be thankful we own this car and owe nothing on it. It's hard to remember that when you just plop down a TON of money to get it fixed, but we can't do without that car and especially considering mine will most likely hit the end of its life in the next two years (thank you Michigan weather for rusting the heck out of my car) because it will eventually be cheaper to find me a used car to replace this one. So.....

Richmond was a lot of fun and I'm glad we made it. Jamie and Andy showed us a great time and we had good food, saw a jazz band, toured the Edgar Allen Poe museum, got a Slurpee (which are not available in Raleigh as we have no 7-11), and just hung out. We got back on Monday afternoon and picked up Parker, who treated us like we left him for seven years of solitude at the vet. He was very excited to see us and very fuzzy from the bath we gave him. Sadly, I missed him terribly. I can only guess what it will feel like some day when we have kids and take a weekend away....fun while it lasts, but you miss them terribly? Probably.

And to end this on the best note possible- I sat down with my principal today to go over the observation she did in my classroom last week and got rave reviews! Woo hoo! Honestly, I am never really worried. Even with the child from Hell in my room- my principal is fully aware and I just do my best. This time, though, she was really impressed, and that makes me feel great! Next year is my tenure year, and it just puts me in a great place with a great track record for all my observations over the last three years. What a way to start the working week!