day 10

Small town Georgia at Christmas-
We went to Georgia several Christmas seasons as a child, and Ali and I have gone every Christmas but one since we have been married. As kids we always stayed with my Aunt Janice and Uncle Tommy in Cartersville. We had the best time all being in one house and I can still hear my Aunt Janice with her SOUTHERN accent saying "Time to get up, Santa Clause has been here" We had all of our presents in the living room and our cousins Santa gifts were in their parents bedroom because of lack of space. We would drive the 12 hours and as soon as we would get there Amy would make Ashley and I change clothes and we were out the door going to see some boys or something. Amy set me up on my first blind, double-date, one Christmas, I think I was 14 or 15. One Christmas, I must have been 15 I went to my first fraternity party for New Years (without my parents knowing of course), and another year on New Years Amy and I accidentally crashed the wrong New Years party. We had lots of fun!
Now I trek my kids all across the South to go spend Christmas with their cousins. We all stay (my parents and my family), and one year even my father-in-law, at my sisters house. We always do the extended Dial family Christmas on the 23rd, and on Christmas day we still get together at my Aunt Janice's house, or they come to Ashley's.
I love seeing Cartersville with all the decorations hanging on the street light poles, and I always feel at home driving thru Villa Rica and seeing the little old houses decorated for Christmas. Something about it just feels like Christmas to me. I've spent lots of nights in December and early January driving on 20 to get to and from Georgia.