Scotlaaaaaaand!

Well guys, I'm here and I'm cold. Yeah, usually we have a gradual work-down to 60 degrees but no. 85 in Atlanta. 60 in the UK.

I'm sure you want to know how the last 48 hours or so have been. Let me try to remember...

waiting at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta Baby Girl International Airport

Last I wrote, I was nervously awaiting our plane flight. The flight had 12 open seats in Business Class and negative 21 in coach. If nobody from coach opted to upgrade, we had a pretty good chance of getting Business. Soooooo. we got to the airport 3 hours early to make sure we could get in and go through security and all that. The international concourse of Hartsfield is reaaaaaaaaallllly nice. And also, DEAD AS A DOORNAIL. There were probably 10 people in the place, 4 of which were trying to go through security. It was a breeze. From the time my Granama dropped us off to the time we sat down at the gate was probably 15 minutes. So, we waited, and waited, and waited. The flight was delayed, and we waited some more. Finally, they called us up to the counter after everyone was boarded.

BUSINESS CLASS!!!

ALLLLLLLLLL MY LEGROOM!

Clay is overjoyed.

I may never fly again at this point, because I know I will never afford business class. We were literally waited on hand and foot. They called us by name and gave us bottled water without us even asking. Over and over and over again! Like, our bottle would be empty and they would swoop in a replace it with a full one!! They took our dinner orders like we were at a restaurant and we got to watch movies and sleep on our little recliney seats with soft, plushy pillows and blankets. and DINNER! Holy cow it was awesome! They would come by and put a little cloth on your tray table and then start bringing you all kinds of stuff. For appetizers, Clay and I both had a salad (with a tiny bottle of balsamic), tomato basil soup, and grilled shrimp and pineapple. For entrees, Clay had braised beef ribs and I had fettuccine alfredo. And for dessert, I had ice cream and Clay had fruit and cheese. We watched a little of Iron Man 3 and ended up going to sleep around 1am.

ONLY TO WAKE UP TO THEM OFFERING US BREAKFAST! French toast and cheese eggs and coffee and orange juice and fruit and bagels and tiny bottles of jam. It was like a dream.

We landed in Manchester around 11:00 UK time... which was 6am Georgia time. We breezed through customs (although, the customs guy made Clay take his hat off and looked him over a few times because his passport picture is of Fat Clay.) We found a little computer kiosk and booked a room in St. Andrews at the apartment of a university student. Then we lugged our 4 50lb bags, 2 carry-on bags, and 2 bookbags on a bus to the Car Rental Village. Got a Peugeot hatchback, loaded it up, and we were off! The only issue is that we didn't want to turn on Clay's phone and my phone is off. So how do we get there? A dinky road map of the entire UK. We only got turned around twice and 6 hours later, we were in St. Andrews! (It would have only taken 5, however, we took a nice unexpected detour through Edinburgh during rush hour.)

Clay driving!

Fog in Scotland!

Edinburgh!

When we got off the highway.

it's beautiful!

We are currently staying in the second bedroom of Philip, an undergrad student at the University who apparently came into some money and bought the place. He rents it out all the time, and there's rarely a time when the room isn't booked. It just happened to be open for the next few days. We're still looking at what the next step will be, but apparently, Philip has some friends who owe him some favors and may be able to put us up for a few days so we don't have to stay in a hostel. He also let me WEAR HIS DRESS ROBES!!

the view from our window

We drove to Dundee today (against the better judgment of Philip - he says you should "lock your door and slam your foot on the gas) and dropped off the rental car. We got some coffee and lunch and wandered around and we both realized Dundee looked a bit like the UK version of NOLA. Except cleaner and nicer and less bums. Maybe that's why Philip was scared about us going there.

statue in Dundee that I've been looking at online for months!

We hopped on a bus and came back and wandered around St. Andrews for a few hours. This place is gorgeous. Literally. I joked about it looking like Hogwarts but SERIOUSLY. Everywhere we go, it's like magical people are going to pop out and start expecto patronuming each other. Here are some pictures:

We're about to go get some dinner in town. Tomorrow, we're going to go look at a cottage to rent and possibly look at some other places. We're also going to find out how we can UK rig my phone. Should be fun.

Some fun things:

Driving on the left side of the road is crazy. The highways were easy, but every time we'd get on a two lane road, we'd freak out because we'd think people were coming at us. It's doable. Just strange. Also, shifting is the same, but you're doing it from the opposite side of the car. With your left hand.

Roundabouts are everywhere and they are magical. Red lights are few and far between, but when they turn red and yellow at the same time, you can go.

The stereotypical UK person looks like this guy. I'm not even kidding. For those of you who are wondering, this is the cartoon version of Karl Pilkington from the BBC show An Idiot Abroad.

Also, Clay ate haggis nachos. And the people of Dundee think that "cajun" means "pour sweet, slightly spicy red sauce on it."

I heard both a 12 year old and a tiny old lady say the "f" word. Peny Turner, you may need to bring some ear muffs. I know you like to suck all the air out of the room when you hear cuss words. They are thrown around like Mardi Gras beads here.

More tomorrow! God is working things out perfectly and hopefully we will have a place to live by this time next week.

Carm

Today is the day.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

::deep breath::

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

That does not even begin to tell you how stressed out I am about this right now.

We are heading out on a plane (hopefully) in about 6 hours. Now, I say hopefully because we're flying on Buddy Passes, which is not necessarily guaranteed. As of right now, the plane is overbooked in coach, but there are quite a few business class seats available. We're praying that they don't bump anybody up front and we get on the plane. If not, our baggage will go on without us and we'll try again tomorrow. No big deal. The life of a Delta employee/family member. Sometimes you get on the plane and sometimes you get to spend an extra night with your grandparents. It's a win/win situation. I love them.

I know last time, I wrote about a possible place to live and how excited I was about it. Weeeellllllll. It's a bit out of our price range. It's a nice place and has a lot of amenities that would be great: washer/dryer, dishwasher, two bedrooms, furnished. It's also a renovated 19th century Victorian villa that was previously a school house. We could manage it if we got it, but without any idea of income, we're trying to keep our options open, just in case God has something else in store for less.

So here's the plan. Get on the flight today. Get internet on the plane and book our temporary accommodations (we've got a couple places lined up). Try to sleep on the plane. Get off the plane in Manchester. Try not to kill people from lack of sleep. Rent a car and drive up to St. Andrews. SLEEP at previously mentioned temporary accommodations. Get SIM cards for our phones and find a place to live. Then start looking for jobs and whatnot.

Sound familiar? That's almost the exact plan I had like 2 months ago. YAAAAAAY.

I'll at least write about something positive. We got to spend some time with Katie and Gabe and Ossie. Katie is my very first roommate ever from UGA and I seriously can't believe that after all this time, she still loves me. :) HA! I'm kidding. It was great to be able to see them and hug them before we left!

We also got to see our dear friends Brent and Kate (and Cora!) and go to a BRAVES GAME! and the Braves won! We got to meet their 7 week old Cora and I got to snuggle with her as much as I wanted! Wheeeeeee! We love them and it was good to finally go to a game with them (after years of watching them in NOLA).

So now, we're just sitting around, nervously waiting to go to the airport and get this party started. So of course, we're watching the replay of the Braves game last night. What a fitting way to spend our last little bit in the states.

Carm

O'er the laaaaand of the freeee! and the hooooome of the BRAVES!

We are in Atlanta. The Braves just finished a 14 game winning streak and I get to go to TWO games this time around. We have also literally caught every single game on TV since being back in the state where Jesus lives. Yes. Jesus lives in Georgia. You didn't know this?




Snellville has this weird feel to it. All those years in New Orleans, I would think fondly about it, like it was "home." I'd remember all the good times, all the memories, I'd look at pictures and think about how much growing up I did here. But whenever I come back it's... weird. Not bad, it just doesn't feel normal. There's just not really any place that feels like home to me anymore. I guess that's a good thing, since I'm moving very very far away.



So. This time next week, I will be living in a brand new country. It still feels like a dream. We are still trying to tie up loose ends though. Gotta cancel our cell phone plan. If anybody can pull some strings at AT&T and help us cancel Clay's contract without a crazy fee, please contact me within in the next 3 days. We're still trying to figure out bank accounts and how we'll manage money from here. Should be interesting.

BUTTTT. We may or may not know about a possible perfect awesome place to live by tomorrow. Everything is still up in the air, so I'm not going to write it out just in case it doesn't work out. But if we get this flat, it will be an absolute miracle. I can't talk about it too much or I'll jinx it. UGH! I WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT! Monday... we have to wait for Monday.

Friday, we had an epic party at the Ritchie's. Sam, being the best little hostess in all the world, offered their house to us so we didn't have to drive all over Atlanta to try to see everyone. It was really great. Their place was all decorated with Scottish flags and maps and I got to hug so many people that I love. Clay, on the other hand, had a Shiloh High class of 2004 reunion with his old posse and it was ridiculous. Anybody who knew Clay in high school remembers how rambunctious he was. He became high school Clay again that night.




I also finally got to meet Kyndall Crumpton! Kellie and I have been friends since high school, so it still feels weird to me that we're all married... but now she's got a precious baby girl! I'm so blessed to have amazing friends that no matter how far away I move (Florida, Louisiana, SCOTLAND!) they still love me and make time for me. I can't tell you how much this means to me. I really have the best friends on the planet.

Thanks to everyone who came out to wish us well. And as always, thanks to the Ritchies for providing their house and always making us feel at home. I really can't express how thankful I am that no matter how far away I go or how bad I am about calling or texting or staying in touch, my friends still love me after all these years. I am so so so blessed.

 

Gotta go to church. Clay is preaching so I need to get all pretty because I'm the PREACHER'S WIFE. I still just think this is nuts. My whole life. It is insane.

Carm

I WAITED TOO LONG TO BLOG!

Sooooo much has happened in the last month. Let me try to remember everything.

July was a pretty good month. Our besties Matt and Elise went to Europe for a little while and scouted out St. Andrews for us. They brought us back some souvenirs and some good advice. And apparently, there are rabbits running wild in St. Andrews. RABBITS. Can't wait to run around in the parks with all the rabbits!

Matt and Elise!

Saw the eye doctor. I still have active uveitis. It's been 4 months straight now. Not really sure what to do about it anymore. I told my ophthalmologist I was moving to Scotland. Actually, her tech told her about it while she was printing all my records. It was pretty funny. She actually stopped and talked to me like a normal person for once. She gave me a bunch of samples and good advice. I will miss her, I guess. I'll mostly miss all the fun nurses. "Hey Carmen. Still got uveitis?"

My last few days at Chick-fil-A were especially difficult. I tried to pretend like I wasn't leaving, but by the last day, I was crying about everything. Every half hour as someone would clock out, I would hug them and cry and Sam would take pictures of me with the store's iPad.

Josue, after he made me cry!

all my kitchen ladies!

I'm really heartbroken about leaving this place. I've grown so much, as a leader, as a believer, as an adult. Working here has made a huge impact on the woman that I am, and I can't express how grateful I am for the opportunity to be a part of it for just a short time.

Last weekend, I had the privilege of being the Matron of Honor in Jolynne and Jonathan Chapman's wedding! Laura-Leigh (our college roommate) and Lauren (Jo's seminary roommate) and I drove 9ish hours up to Murray, KY Thursday, met up with Tricia (college friend), and spent the weekend running around Kentucky and being the best bridesmaids we could be (and having a pretty dad gum good time). We decorated, we went to Walmart, we hugged Jolynne's cute parents and got all pretty. We spent most of the weekend crying though. Crying about how sweet everything was, about how I'm moving, about how gorgeous Jolynne was, and how lucky they were to be so happy. We sent them off to Puerto Rico, and we drove the 9 hours back to New Orleans...

making butterbeer!!

she's gorgeous!

...and got home at 4am. I got about 4 hours of sleep and then went to church, deliriously tired (but with amazing bridesmaid wedding leftovers hair!). We had brunch with Matt and Elise, I took an epic nap, and when I woke up, Clay had packed everything into the car. EVERYTHING. It was becoming real.

It became even more real as we spent our last evening at the Solomon's. It wasn't pretty. But we will see them again. I'm not worried about that.

Doesn't change the fact that I'm still sad about it though.

Met with my rheumatologist and he seemed legitimately sad that I was leaving. Love that guy. He gave me all my paperwork and had some nice things to say about me :)



We had one last breakfast at my CFA, I gave them back all the blue pens I had been accumulating and we were off!

We've spent the last 4 days packing, packing, and more packing in Panama City Beach with the Turners. Giant suitcases, checking weight limits. I even got to go back to Graceville and see Emily and wander around BCF like the good old days. We took a billion pictures and just played around like we used to in college, before we grew up and got jobs and whatnot. I miss when the living was easy.

cutest dog ever! Nick!

But here's the fun part. Let me tell you how much God has come through for us in the last few days:

• We got our visas approved in 7 days. SEVEN. We were thinking it was going to be weeks. I was having stress dreams about getting rejected for visas and having to go through repeal processes and losing the massive amounts of money that we paid for them. Nope. Seven days. 
• Our finances are a miracle. We somehow have saved enough to live on for a year in St. Andrews without having jobs. These past 4 months, I spent many sleepless nights wondering why God was allowing me to have uveitis and how it was sucking all of our savings with doctor visits and prescriptions and taking time off work. But God told me to trust him and he provided for us beyond what I could have expected, in ways that he has been lining up for the last decade. He has been preparing for this since before Clay and I even met. I just think this is amazing!

We're saying goodbye to the Turners tomorrow and heading up to Atlanta for our final hoorah. I'm always sad leaving my family. I wonder how bad tomorrow's going to be?

I found this great picture! I love them!

are these my glasses??!

Carm