Fa La La La La....Oink Oink Oink

We've finally made it home from Atlanta after visiting my aunt and uncle.  It was a good trip, but I came home with a special "souvenir"--a cold from the deepest depths of bad places.  Add a compounding secondary infection and it has resulted in a voice change reminiscent of adolescent boys, trash cans FULL of tissues, nearly two empty bottles of mucinex and one filled prescription of Zpack.  Please pray that No. 2 is still safe inside his "incubator," blissfully unaware of the feverish little men inhabiting my chest and nose, and protected from any drug side effects.

Meanwhile, I'm currently trying to nap while the Eminator catches some Z's but tossing from my left to my right side for "drainage" purposes isn't really relaxing, so I decided to sit upright instead--and here I am, blogging.  So, let's catch up.

After Thanksgiving Day, we enjoyed (or rather sweated and cussed a little through) the Iron Bowl on Friday.  After Bama secured what seemed like an impossible victory, Jason packed up and headed back to Birmingham (the wheels of justice continue turning, regardless of the holiday season).  This fact left Emma and me at the mercy of the my aunt's and mom's social calendar for Saturday.  As fate would have it, they had already planned a "cemetery outing" which involved putting flowers on many family members' graves.  Weighing the the entertainment value of this trip for Emma, and ultimately deciding cemeteries are not proper places for toddlers to run and play, I opted instead to take Emma to ride the Pink Pig---an Atlanta tradition since 1953-and one my mom and aunt remember from their childhood. (And thanks to my friend Deborah for bringing this attraction to my attention!)

Side Note: The excursion worked out really well because we were also able to see my friend Ashley, and congratulate her on her recent engagement! She is going to be a beautiful bride and I'm really excited for her and her fiance Whitney. They were also VERY accommodating, letting Emma and I intrude on them during Saturday morning hours, watch an Elmo DVD, listen to talk about "tee tee" and they didn't mind Emma spilling snacks everywhere.  It was great to see them both and congratulate them in person!

After leaving Ashley's we headed to Macy's at Lenox where we bought our tickets.

I surveyed the line and decided to head for the food court to fuel up for the wait ahead.

Even though the wait wound up being only 25 minutes, what better way to pass the time that taking pictures in front of the pink pig photo backdrop.

Next we entered the tent, home to the seasonal Pink Pig.  "Pink" is an understatement.  Shelby Eatenton Latcherie would have been proud and jealous. I'm pretty sure the entire place was covered in "blush and bashful."

And here she is. Priscilla pulling into the station for another group of riders.  (Behind her is one of the cars from the original train at the downtown Rich's store.)

The (very short) ride takes you through scenes from the 1950s, like the one below.

And on this special day Priscilla discovers, she's a perfect pink pig, just like her mother.

  "Guarding" Priscilla from any other suspicious and interested onlookers.

OF COURSE there was TONS of pig paraphernalia for sucker grandparents and parents (like me).  My favorite?  Well, the pig nose of course!!

It was a great mommy daughter date, and I really enjoyed getting to spend the time with Emma.  A wonderful way to start the Christmas season--and maybe even a new tradition!