{Sweet Home Auburn, Alabama}

Is 6 o'clock too early to go to bed?  Cause y'all - I am t.i.r.e.d. 

This past weekend, my traveling Aggie friends & I took a road trip to the A&M/Auburn game in Auburn, AL.  We loaded up & left around 10:00 Thursday morning.  Unfortunately Lynn wasn't able to go this time, but she stopped by to say bye & bring us our morning send off beverage.

 

Because it's 12+ hour trip, we decided to drive to Biloxi, MS & stay there Thursday night.  The normal 7 hour trip took 9 due to traffic in Baton Rouge, but we arrived 7:00, checked in at Harrah's & then headed down to the beach. 

The weather was gorgeous & there was a beautiful almost full moon out...I could have sat out there for hours.

We headed back to the hotel, had a drink by the pool, grabbed a quick supper & then hit up the slot machines.  Unfortunately I didn't get rich, but I did break even so I consider that a win!

We slept in Friday morning, packed up & then started the 3 hour drive to Montgomery.

 

It rained off & on on our way, but we arrived in Montgomery around 4:00 to clear skies.  We checked into the hotel & then headed down to happy hour in the hotel bar.

The location of the hotel {Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center} was perfect & we had a great view!  After a few drinks, we walked around downtown & decided to have supper at a Mexican restaurant called Jalapenos.  Note to self, if you ever go to Montgomery - don't waste your time eating there.  It was not good & the service was terrible. You don't think that you can go wrong with Mexican food & margaritas...but we did!

 

After supper, we headed back to the room to take a nap before Midnight Yell...what can I say - we old people need our rest. =)  We drug ourselves out of bed around 10:00 & headed down to the bar where it was being held - SandBar on the River Front.  Thankfully it was right across the street from our hotel.  A few drinks & yells later, we headed back to the hotel around 12:30am.

We woke up Saturday morning, had a picnic in our room & then made the hour drive over to Auburn.

We started checking the forecast weeks ago & for the longest, the rain chances for game day were 60%-80%.  Not surprising to us since it has rained on almost every single one of our football road trips.  When we checked on Friday, it was down to 10%.  Half way to Auburn, it started raining.  When it comes to us, even a 0% chance could still mean rain. =)  Thankfully the rain stopped & besides a few rain drops during the game, we somehow managed to dodge the rain until we got in the car to leave after the game.  It was hot & BEYOND humid all day & night, but at least we didn't get soaked this time.

We arrived in Auburn around 2:00 & stopped at a gas station to grab some ice and....Casey lost the keys.  Thankfully I had brought an extra set, but we turned my Yukon upside looking for those stupid keys & they were nowhere to be found.  I knew I had them when I came out of the store cause I unlocked the car, but it was like they disappeared.  I was certain they were inside the vehicle somewhere so we left & headed to the game.  Once we parked, we decided to look one more time & there they were, in the bottom of our food bag.  HUGE relief for me.

We knew some people tailgating so a very nice Auburn fan gave us a tour of campus & showed us where to go.  Hats off to the Auburn fans, all those that we encountered were very friendly & helpful.  

After tailgating for an hour or so, we headed into the game.  We had great seats & the whole experience was so much fun!  {until I broke my flip flop...but that's a whole 'nother story}

 

Prior to kickoff - Auburn releases an eagle & it circles around the stadium and lands on the center of the field.  It was hard to get a good picture, but it was seriously the coolest thing ever to watch.  Definitely one of the highlights of the night.

 

It wasn't the prettiest of games {we had to kick 5 field goals cause we couldn't make it across the goal line}, but WE WON!  We FINALLY broke our road trip losing streak.  And it didn't rain during the game so it was definitely a great night! It's been so long that I had forgotten how fun it is to win an away game. 

 

 

A lady bug flew on us during the game so we took that as a sign of good luck! =)

While we were at the game, we got a text from a friend that they saw us on tv!  Y'all - we are celebrities!!  Ha! =)  But, how cool that out of the thousands of people there, we made it on tv?! {and good thing we were celebrating a touchdown & not doing something embarrassing...just sayin'.}

It's also worth mentioning - do not ever waste your money on boiled peanuts.  We kept seeing them at gas stations & around town, but had no clue what they were.  They were selling them at the game so I got us some to try & YUCK!  Kinda tastes like a mushy black eyed pea.  We were all in agreement that it was a wasted $5 bucks.

Once the game was over, we made the mile hike back to the car, had a little road rage in post-game traffic, grabbed a bite to eat & then headed back to Montgomery.  We got back to the hotel around 1:00 & then stayed up to watch the Longhorn game.  Four short hours later, our alarm clocks went off & it was time to head home.  13 LONG hours {& at least 50 Cracker Barrel sightings} later, we arrived back in Brenham.

I look forward to our road trips all year long cause I have the absolute best time.  Regardless if it rains or if we lose - the time spent with these ladies is the best!  We eat too much, drink too much, spend too much & sleep way too little...but it's worth every single second of it.

Meanwhile, back in Brenham - my sweet Nola girl spent 2 1/2 days at Barking Ranch playing & making new friends and a day & a half getting spoiled by my mom & dad.  I know she was in good hands, but I sure missed her & I know she missed me.  After a few very long - but oh so worth it - days, we were both ready to crash early last night.

Our road trip record is now 3-3.  After 3 straight losses the past 3 years, we were told if they lost again - we weren't allowed to go to anymore away games. =)  Thankfully they pulled out the win cause we are already planning our trip to UCLA in September 2017...let the countdown begin!