Random Notes from the Birmingham Trip
1. The boys came back up to the room (I really could only do so much BrickFair) and were delightedly showing us their purchases. Then Owen grinned excitedly and said, "and I bought something for YOU Mom!" He pulled out the most gorgeous pair of Lego earrings you have ever seen.
I almost cried....because that's just how I am.
2. I decided we should do barbecue one night while we were there so I poured myself into barbecue reviews, hunting down forums and lists.... Is it really any wonder that I understand the boys' obsession with Lego so well? Anyway, after much consideration I decided on Bob Sykes Barbecue. We headed out, and although the sign said "Ribs, Ribs, Ribs," there were no ribs to be found. They were out of ribs. Owen just kept saying, "OUT of RIBS? But they're a BARBECUE place." Oh well. Ernie and I went with the pulled pork and Owen had the barbecued chicken. Leo had fries. I think Owen fared the best....Ernie was damn jealous of that chicken. The pork was good but nothing blew me away. I was a tad disappointed. I did like the neon arrow though.
3. Never one to let go of an obsession however, I decided we'd try for a better barbecue experience the next night. We had planned to go out but we were all pretty tired at that point so Ernie and I ran and picked up ribs (for Owen and me) and chicken for Ernie. Finding an open place on a Sunday really narrowed down choices so I went with Jim n Nicks in the Five Points area. I'd read about the cheddar biscuits but oh MAN. No wonder they've been noted in Saveur Magazine, Bon Appetit, etc. I know barbecue is a personal kind of thing but Owen and I loved our ribs. The collards and mac and cheese were fine but there was only so much room and the collards had so much ham that they distracted from the ribs for me. We ate leftover cheddar biscuits for breakfast the next morning as we headed out of town.
4. When I planned out the trip I told the guys that I got to pick something to do too...and I chose Arlington, an antebellum house museum that is owned by the City of Birmingham. I adore Greek Revival houses. The boys didn't really want to go but I said we were ALL going. It turned out to be wonderful way to spend a bit of a sunny Sunday in Birmingham. The tour guide was great, asking the boys questions and I was rightfully proud of their responses (I am SO easy). They got to hold a Civil War rifle with a bayonet. I was nervous about Owen and a bayonet and a chandelier above him but all went well. Later Owen proclaimed the whole thing to have been AWESOME and even Leo seemed to have had an o.k. time. It made me happy. It made me feel like the child Cynthia who loved to visit old houses.....