Anderson's Salisbury Debut

Last Friday we loaded up the Wright Family Roadster and headed out on our first big road trip. Anderson seemed to love the drive - sleeping most of the way and staring out the window when his eyes were open. We made a lunchtime stop in Knoxville and visited with our dear friend GG who had a fabulous lunch waiting for us. Then it was back in the car, destination Salis-vegas. All told, the trip took us about 8.5 hours of actual drive time.


While in Salisbury, we entertained many visitors who traveled from near and far to meet Anderson. Although he slept through most of the visits, he and especially his parents, were deeply touched by all of the folks who came over to see him. In addition to spending time with both sets of grandparents, Anderson's days were filled with arms that were eager to "love on him."


On Saturday he met Janet and Berkley - little nine-year old Berkley held him as if she was a momma already - Jill's 1st grade teacher and dear friend, Nana Joyce, our longtime family friend, Candy, and his cousins Gina, Dwayne, Sarah, and Perry (actually they are first cousins once removed for those,like me, who like to figure this stuff out) and Weston (his 2nd cousin). Following all of this visiting, Anderson attended his first surprise birthday party for his Aunt Kim where he met her and Uncle Daniel for the first time. He also was introduced to Great Aunt Karolyn, Great Aunt Marilyn, and Great Uncle Phil. Kim was surprised by the number of people who came out to celebrate her big 4-0 and we all had a great time celebrating her. The day ended with the Carolina/Duke game that Jonathan has asked we just not talk about. But, the highlight of that event was that Anderson got to meet Earle who came over to cheer on his 'Heels.


Sunday was just as full with visits from Jill's college roomie, Laura, and Jonathan's college roomie and family, Chris, Rachel, Mia and Sam. Mia also got to try out her pre-babysitting skills by holding Anderson while her brother made fast friends with Deacon - Jill's parents' golden retriever. Following a Wake Forest win over Clemson (phew!), we were thrilled to see the Michaels - Autumn, Jeff, Boone, Della Scott, and Mary Kirk. The evening was complete with the Oscars, although the awards show reminded us that we saw far too few of the movies that were nominated and that it isn't likely that we'll see many in the forseeable future!


Monday started out with a wonderful visit with Earle (another of Jonathan's college roomies) and Laura, followed by lunch with Nancy at one of Salisbury's newest restaurants - yum! We got back home just in time to introduce Anderson to Mr. and Mrs. C and their grandson, Samuel, and spent the evening with Aunt Kim and Uncle Daniel who drove in for some more time with their new nephew. Of course, Wawa (Grandmother Wright) and Grandaddy Wright were with us, too.


Today, our last day in Salisbury, we had a quick visit with Kay and then headed to Cleveland to see Jonathan's Granddaddy Wright. We snapped a memorable picture of four generations of Wright boys - Great-Grandadday Carl, Grandaddy Larry, Jonathan, and Anderson. A pretty special occasion and Great-Granddaddy just loved feeling Anderson's tiny grasp on his finger. We then had lunch at Sidewalk Deli and got back just in time to meet Jeannie and Stella, followed by Tracy and a return visit by Berkley. Micki stopped by in the evening while Wawa and Granddaddy got in some remaining "A" time.


A whirlwind visit but oh so special. There's nothing like going "home" to remind you of how special a place it is. We're now off to Charleston to meet Jack and Uncle Jeff and enjoy a few days of anonymity.