LONGEST drive to TAMPA

I will NEVER (i know, "be careful of what you say") choose to EVER go on a road trip with a baby (and a sick one at that) by myself EVER again! Sweet Baby (well he now has to grow up quicker as he is not the baby of the family anymore) Eli was absolutely miserable the ENTIRE drive there and back! Honestly, without exaggeration, he cried, actually screamed for 16 of the 20 travel hours. If you could have been a fly inside my car you would have heard me tell God more than once that I was about to start screaming with Eli. My SweetPea had a legitimate reason for his unhappiness... he was accidentally given two doses of the flu vaccine instead of one flu and one chickenpox/mmr vaccine. Consequently the vaccine gave him the flu... and all the not so lovely side effects... fever (up to 104 a few times), cough, achy body, runny nose, sneezing, and a double ear infection. To top it off he is teething something ferocious in his mouth... 4 teeth are really close and 4 more not too far behind! He sure missed his Dada as he would cry for him. Somehow without getting a good nights sleep or long restful naps, we made the most of being with dear friends. We stayed most of our trip with a girl I met in Kenya and her husband then one night we stayed with some friends I have known for almost 12 years (from the good ol' CIU village days). Speaking of old friends, on our way down to Tampa we stopped in Jacksonville for a nice long "pit stop" so Eli could stretch his legs. During our little adventure we had lunch with one of Christopher's dearest friends from way back when. I have to admit talking on the computer is so very different than meeting face to face, so I was a bit nervous, but Kristen and I didn't miss a beat talking a million miles a minute during our 2 1/2 hour lunch and amazingly Eli did phenomenal, given the circumstances. We then drove to Shands Hospital, where a dear friend/brother of mine, Wyman Bowers fiance was in the ICU after a horrible car accident (more to come on her recovery). It was a joy to be able to give hugs and support to Wyman, Mr Det and Miss Polly, to see Dr. and Mrs Campbell, and to meet Ann Forrest Wilson's immediate family. Eli was a nice distraction to the sad and depressing hospital surroundings.