Ava's Baptism

A week after returning from our vacation, a small group of family and friends joined us at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Tustin for Ava's baptism. The ceremony was presided over by Reverends Reese Riley and Kay Sylvester.

What's the Episcopal Church? Referred to by many as "Catholic Light," the Episcopal Church is the official name of the Province of the Anglican Communion in the U.S. The Church was organized shortly after the American Revolution when it was forced to break with the Church of England on penalty of treason as Church of England clergy were required to swear allegiance to the British monarch, and became, in the words of the 1990 report of the Archbishop of Canterbury's Group on the Episcopate, "the first Anglican Province outside the British Isles." In keeping with Anglican tradition and theology, the Episcopal Church considers itself a via media, middle way, between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. Ava's gown and hat were both family heirlooms worn by several generations of Smith/Knapp(/and now Cruz) women.

(Ava being baptised)

(Chris, Ava, Abby and Godmother Aunt Hannah)

(Poppy, Grammy, and Ava)

(Ava, Grandma, and Grandpa)

Following the church service, everyone headed back to our house where we had a nice little brunch and Ava got to open up her presents. At least for the time being the opening of the presents is far more exciting for Ava than the presents themselves.

Atlanta's African-American History

When we planned our trip, we planned it - in part - around the fact that the Braves were going to be playing our L.A. Dodgers. Fortunately for us the Saturday game of the series was an afternoon game (better for Ava's schedule) and was also Jackie Robinson Day (honoring the anniversary of the integration of baseball - even though Robinson made his debut on April 15 not April 19 when Major League Baseball remembered him this year). So it was fitting that we started our day by visiting Sweet Auburn, the neighborhood where Martin Luther King, Jr. grew up, and home to the MLK National Historic Site.

Although we probably could have walked from our hotel we decided to take MARTA, the Atlanta subway system. Once we got to our stop we had a short 4-5 block walk through a fairly run-down neighborhood. The one really pleasant thing about Atlanta (and all of the Southeast) was how friendly everyone was. Walking through a depressed area we saw lots of people who weren't exactly the poster-children for the joys of urban living, but each and every one (even the ones who were likely strung out on drugs or waiting to get their next fix - was friendly, smiled, and asked how we were doing, except the one guy wandering around with a crazy hairdo and no shirt). On the way to the historic site you pass by Ebenezer Baptist Church (not to be confused with the New Ebenezer Baptist Church, which is directly across the street. Unfortunately for us (and fortunate for the church), the church is undergoing renovations to make the inside appear as it did in the mid-20th century.
Given the fact that tours of MLK's home are based on a timed-ticket system, we didn't have time for a long breakfast, but we were able to grab some good food to go from the Thumb's Up Diner (the park rangers referred to it as "yuppie," but I'd say it was just good diner breakfast food). Then it was off to Firestation No. 6, which was built in 1894 and served the community for nearly 100 years. The firestation houses an old fire engine and equipment, as well as very informative displays about the desegregation of the fire department.Our ranger met us at the firestation and then took us down the block to MLK's birth home. For me it was a surprise to see just how large and comfortable the house was, and how nice the surrounding neighborhood was. Contrary to my preconceived notions, MLK lived in what our ranger explained was, at the time, the richest African-American community in the country, which helped MLK develop the view that blacks could achieve and obtain anything that whites could.
Heading back down the street from the birth home, we went to the visitor's center, which, as expected, had very well done exhibits on MLK's life and times (although we entered from the wrong side and did everything in reverse chronological order). Across the street from the national park is the King Center, which includes a library, archives, and MLK's final resting spot.
All this proved to be too much for Ava and she fell asleep in her stroller on our way back to MARTA.
We took some time to relax back at the hotel before driving to Turner Field, which was originally built as the main stadium for the Olympics before they took out a portion of the stadium (what is now the outfield) and converted it into a baseball stadium. Part of the parking lot for Turner Field sits on what used to be Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, and the Braves honor their past with, by other things, replicating the outfield fence where Hank Aaron's record-breaking 715th home run landed.The game was in the late afternoon, meaning that the Atlantans (is that what they're called?) had plenty of time to tailgate and roast in the sun. As you approach the stadium, you get to a huge open plaza filled with statues of Braves legends, fans mingling before the game, and on this day a long line of fans waiting to get John Smoltz autograph.
Once inside the stadium, you are greeted by expansive concourses (a far cry from the dark narrow concourses of Dodger Stadium) and an outfield area filled with games for kids (not just a couple piddly games like they have at Angel Stadium, but an entire outfield's length of games for kids). The outfield concourse is also home to the Braves Hall of Fame and Museum. In order to enter you had to buy a token for $2 (the same price as the kids game). While waiting in line I noticed that all the kids were getting Jeff Francoeur figurines, so I asked the token seller how to get one. He hesitated at first, and then told me that I could just have one. That made my day - not as cool as a bobblehead, but definitely the next best thing. We spent a bunch of time in the Braves museum - very, very well done with lots of old uniforms and memoribilia, the Braves most recent World Series trophy, and even an old train car used to carry the Braves on road trips back in their old Milwaukee days.
We still had plenty of time before the game started, and we wandered about the whole stadium, enjoying the historical displays all around, as well as some of the many food offerings (including a bbq sandwich with peach bbq sauce). We settled into our seats just past first base and enjoyed the pre-game show, including a very informative video on the Dodgers. In addition to having the largest diamond vision screen that I've ever seen the Braves also do a great job of informing the fans about the opposing team's history as well as their current players. Chuck James, filling in for the injured Tom Glavine, got off to a rocky start, and gave up a home run to former Braves star Andruw Jones, but then settled down. It was nice to see the Braves fans cheer for Jones even though he put their team down 1-0.

In the third inning, a foul ball came flying our way, and I had to stand up and jump into the aisle to protect Ava. If she wasn't with us, I'm sure I could've caught the ball since it landed about 3 feet in front of our seats in a flat, open area of concrete. Instead, everyone around us sat there dumbfounded and let it bounce up into the higher seats. Unfortunately, the Braves exploded for 5 runs in the fifth inning causing me to get frustrated and Ava to get extremely grumpy, so we left before she had a total melt down and headed back to the hotel so she could get to bed.
Our last night of our trip was very mellow, and despite the fact that we didn't see too much of Atlanta, I definitely enjoyed it. If we ever go back, I hope we can spend some time getting out of downtown and seeing more of the city, including a trip to the Varsity (which was featured on Food Network yet again the other night).

Heading to the Big City

The final stop on our Southeastern journey was Atlanta, but before we got there, we made a little detour to Royston, GA - population 2,493.

There's not much in Royston (although they do have a Bojangles), but it was the home of baseball great Ty Cobb, and is now the home of the Ty Cobb Museum. Interestingly, the Ty Cobb Museum is located in a medical building. In addition to his financial riches earned from a long baseball career, Cobb also made a ton of money through his investments, including early investments in Coke and Ford, and he was very generous with his wealth, donating money to build the first hospital in Royston. Most observers probably wouldn't think of charity as one of Cobb's virtues given that he was more well known for his aggressive playing style and for being a racist (although some sources claim that his racism has been greatly overstated). In any event, he was one of the greatest ballplayers of all time, and earned more votes than Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson, and Walter Johnson in the inaugural Baseball Hall of Fame class. The museum showed off a nice selection of his baseball memoribilia. It was definitely worth a side trip (thanks to ESPN's article on the 10 best baseball museums), and gave us a chance to drive down some meandering country roads.

We arrived at our hotel - the Westin Peachtree Plaza - in the late morning hoping to check in. Abby had called a couple days earlier to confirm that we could have an early check in, but upon arrival they told us we'd have to come back at 2pm because no rooms were available and the hotel was at 102% capacity for Robotics (apparently a competition of high school aged kids from around the world who build robots). Unable to check in, we headed to grab a bit to eat and then to the Georgia Aquarium - the world's largest. After getting lost we ate outside at Corner Bakery where Ava entertained herself with a spoon (that we accidentally put in our stroller - meaning we accidentally stole it). The aquarium was just a few short blocks away in downtown's tourism hub - next to the New World of Coca-Cola and across the street from the Centennial Olympic Park (a nice park in the middle of downtown with fountains that kids can run through, but not really all that exciting).

The aquarium lived up to expectations. It is divided into five different areas (or as I like to think of it "lands"), and we started off with the Ocean Voyager and immediately walked through its glass tunnel where we were surrounded by fish and sharks.Continuing through our ocean voyage, we came to a massive wall of fish, with a very well laid-out viewing area, where we sat and watched the schools of fish swim underneath two enormous whale sharks. Since we were able to sit down we fed Ava a bottle in what I'm sure will be one of the most exciting places Ava ever eats.

The aquarium's lands were devoted just to giant sea creatures, and we explored cold water climates, rivers, and animals that live off Georgia's coast, including sea turtles.

My favorite part - and Ava's too - were the touch tanks. Ava especially liked the main tank where little sharks and fishes swam side by side and didn't mind all the teens and tweens trying (unsuccessfully) to grab them.We decided to forego the World of Coca-Cola because Ava would've had to have skipped a nap, and went back to the hotel to check in. It's the cylindrical tower on the left - all the strange colored windows are actually boarded up windows due to the tornado that hit in March.Our room was ready, and we were happy that we would soon be able to unpack and freshen up. Unfortunately, we opened the door of our 48th floor room only to be greeted by a musty smell. Exploring the room further, we found a wet spot on the ground next to the desk. Unacceptable! So we kindly called the front desk (ok, so maybe not so kindly) and demanded that we get another room, which they eventually gave us. As the bellman helped us with our bags and we headed down to the 27th floor, we couldn't help but notice two poor souls trying to enter the room we just vacated. Apparently the Westin couldn't be bothered to even check to see if our complaint had any validity. Shame on Westin. Even if I'm getting a free hotel room, I still expect a basic level of customer service and room quality which certainly wasn't met here. Although I must say the concierge was fantastic with directions, maps, and a rubber duck for Ava.

We eventually got settled in and were able to enjoy the rest of our stay, our view of the city, and a nice southern dinner at Pitty Pat's Porch (named after Scarlett O'Hara's aunt in Gone With The Wind, who Scarlett visited in Atlanta). Again we got lost, which was super embarrassing since the restaurant was directly across the street from the hotel - although we can blame some construction for blocking the sign and entry).

Visiting Team K in Clemson

After several days in North Carolina, we headed south to, where else, South Carolina to visit Team K (Greg, Steph, Hania, and Amelia Kusinski). Like the O'Rourkes, Team K moved from Irvine to the Carolinas for work. In this case, Greg (aka Dr. K) took a job as a professor at Clemson.

Before heading to Clemson, we met the group at Fluor Field in Greenville, home of the Greenville Drive. The team was initially named the Joes by the people of Greenville in honor of native son Shoeless Joe Jackson, but the parent club, the Boston Red Sox, nixed the name and rejected the will of the people citing Jackson's permanent ban from baseball. Instead, the powers that be named the team the Drive, an obvious reference to BMW, which has an enormous plant in Greenville. Sitting on the grass down the third base line, we were able to enjoy the entire game, and Ava entertained herself for most of the game by eating her puffs.
As with all minor league stadia, one of the highlights of the experience is trying the local food. My meal from the Textile Grille - a hot dog with a side of mac cheese for an extra $1.50, and a beer for just a couple bucks - did not disappoint. This wasn't just any old hot dog - it was sliced in half and placed in a buttered and toasted hoagie roll. And this definitely wasn't your normal mac and cheese - instead, it was fried mac and cheese! Biting into it you could see that it was essentially highlighter orange Kraft mac and cheese that was battered and deep fried. So bad for you, yet so good. After witnessing the Drive get pummelled by the Greensboro Grasshoppers, we walked a few blocks to downtown Greenville, which has been heavily redeveloped with lots of new shops and restaurants, and we walked over the Liberty Bridge at Falls Park. It may not quite be Niagara Falls, but the falls are a great sight - a nice surprise in the middle of an urban setting. Although I'm normally quite fearful of walking over bridges - you may recall that in London in 1998, I made it about 20 yards over one of the bridges over the Thames before running back to the safety of the shoreline - I think my gephyrophobia may be gradually decreasing over time, and didn't think twice about walking on the curvy Liberty Bridge.Walking back to the car from the falls, Ava finally gave in to her tiredness and fell asleep in her stroller, which pretty much never happens at home. We then made the hour or so drive to Steph and Greg's house in Clemson (techinically it's in Seneca). Before visiting High Point/Sophia, I probably would've said that Clemson/Seneca was in the sticks or the boondocks, but relatively speaking, Steph and Greg's neighborhood is much more suburban (they can get to the grocery store in 5 minutes).

Continuing our goal of trying to have a relaxing trip, we spent a lot of time hanging out with Team K. Hania shared her toys with Ava, and Ava did a good job of not attacking little Amelia. For any would-be parents out there - make sure you get your kid some bubbles. Hania loves her bubbles almost as much as Jack loves his, and she even tried to blow bubbles herself - although she came closer to eating the bubble wand than actually blowing bubbles.Since Greg teaches at Clemson, we took one afternoon to stroll around campus and meet up for lunch. Other than seeing students wearing Clemson's garish orange and purple colors, the Clemson campus is quite nice with lots of grass and trees - although, unlike California campuses, no one seems to take advantage of the grassy areas by laying out or having an outdoor class. One of the highlights of our little tour was seeing Memorial Stadium (aka Death Valley). The stadium even houses Howard's Rock - a rock that was stolen from Death Valley, CA and given to then-head coach Frank Howard (not to be confused with the former Dodgers star of the same name). The rock is kept under glass naturally to protect it from students from the University of South Carolina (the other USC).While in visiting South Carolina, Steph and Greg introduced us to a couple local bbq places where we had some great ribs (from Sardi's) and brisket (from Big Dave's). This was in addition to the excellent hushpuppies and bbq that we had from Carter Brothers in North Carolina (John is a hushpuppy connoiseur and also introduced us to sweet tea, which Abby became addicted to). I'm not sure how we survived eating such heavy food, and we still had a couple days to go.

Our stay in South Carolina was pretty short - just two nights - but Team K visits California quite frequently, so I'm sure we'll see them again soon. And who knows, maybe they'll come back to California. If they do, we'll have to ask them to bring some bbq with them.