Hey, Hey Friends!
If you missed Part 1 of our Atlanta Bowl Game Trip, you can check it out here.
On New Year’s Eve, Tab had pre-game meetings all morning long so the kiddos and I hit up the breakfast buffet {BEST PANCAKES EVER!}, Barnes and Noble across the street, and did a little relaxing in the room before Tab was finished. Then we took a little shuttle ride over to the main bowl headquarters’ hotel to see what was happening over there.
It was all decked out in Auburn gear because they were seated first they got the main bowl headquarter hotel and UCF fans stayed at another location.
There were lots of bowl decor and a crazy amount of people hanging out in the Marriott lobby.
Let me tell you it was COLD in Atlanta on New Year’s Eve. Our plan was to walk to grab lunch somewhere before heading back to the hotel. We walked and walked and apparently, that was everyone’s plan because the wait times were long. We finally found the Atlanta Braves All Star Grill without a wait! WAHOO! I’m telling you-it was COLD!
We had tickets that afternoon for the Georgia Aquarium.
This girl was such a trooper all week. We had late bedtimes, early wake-ups, and hardly any nap times but she hung like a big kid and grabbed a nap whenever she needed one. On this particular day, she fell asleep right when we entered the aquarium and slept for a good hour.
There were lots of cool things to see. Every exhibit was fantastic! And the place was full of bowl game attenders.
I snuck a selfie with this guy.
We decided to wait in line to climb up through this little tube/tunnel to get a closer look at the penguins. I was all about going with them, until I realized how tiny and HOT that little tunnel was! I quickly backed out to become the photographer instead.
They got an up close look and thought it was super cool!
Then we made our way to the dolphin show. We arrived way early because they kept announcing, “The Last Dolphin Show of the Day”. And you guys had told me it was good, so I didn’t want us to miss it! {Thanks for your recommendation, by the way! It was my favorite part of the aquarium!}
This family, the Stewarts, are from Tulsa, Oklahoma. It’s so fun getting to hang with other football families. Our boys had a blast together.
Britt woke up just in time to enjoy the show!
Bowen moved over to Tab’s lap and Britt quickly realized all the big kiddos had their own seat. So she moved to her seat and sat there like a big girl. ha! {She kicked her shoes off too like she was relaxing for the show.}
The show did NOT disappoint! I’m telling you-it was my favorite part!
We had just enough time after the show to see the whales/sharks exhibit.
We were inside one of those tunnels where fish, whales, and sharks are swimming all around you.
My favorite fish of the day! ha!
We came out of the exhibit to this..the UCF pep rally! It was crazy, loud and all kinds of fun. I’m not sure if this was just a UCF event or if Auburn was performing right after?? We made our way to the exit, because we had dinner reservations and couldn’t stay to watch.
The view from the second floor. 🙂
We waited for our ride inside the gift shop and were THAT family again. This time we were that family that knocked off a Georgia Aquarium mug and it shattered all over the floor! #youcanttakeusanywhere
Check out all my dates for New Year’s Eve! SO stinkin’ cute!
The couple on the left used to be on Tab’s crew years ago. They’re so sweet and live in Atlanta, so they met up with us for dinner. The couple on the right-Stewarts are on Tab’s crew now and were on the bowl crew as well. Our families had a blast hanging out!
We ended New Year’s Eve with shrimp and grits {at least, I did anyway…ha!} and were in bed by 11:00 p.m. Successful New Year’s Eve if I do say so myself.
The next morning was GAME DAY!!
The game was at 12:40 p.m. on Monday and prior to that game we had tickets for Fan Fest across the street.
We arrived around 9:15 a.m. and it was amazing! There weren’t many people there so the kiddos got to do all kinds of activities. Without lines!
I haven’t used this carrier in months, but the thought of carrying Britt and all our stuff-had me packing it for this day in particular. I loaded her up and it worked GREAT!
While the kiddos were jumping, there was a woman who was jumping near us. She was trying her best to flip and could not get her body over. I thought-that’s exactly what I’d be like up there! She and her friends were laughing and I totally related!
My mom game was STRONG. 🙂
They kicked field goals. #oratleastattempted
Meanwhile, Tab and the crew had arrived at the stadium.
We were running, catching, and the throwing back warm Chick-Fil-A chicken nuggets!
We walked up the hill to the stadium, where it began lightly snowing and only 1/5 of us were wearing jackets. Can you say, “COLD”??
We had pre-game passes to go down on the field and take some pictures with Tab. They had the tunnel open and the field was crazy cold. We huddled together waiting for Tab to make his way out.
The other families were down on the field too. Britt found Mrs. Paula and Mrs. Rebecca. These ladies are so sweet. Love these football wives!
Tab made it out and we snapped a couple pictures! So proud of this guy! He works super hard all year long providing for our family, is gone a ton during football season, and still manages to be our biggest cheerleader!
We hid away in this lounge area for a bit warming up and gobbled up some Chick-Fil-A chicken sandwiches!
Our seats were great! And the kiddos did awesome!
At one point, Mrs. Rebecca held Britt {and she feel asleep} so Bowen made his way to my lap and just a few minutes later he was asleep too!
Afterwards, more Chick-Fil-A goodies…can you say BEST BOWL GAME EVER?!
All the families made their way to the sports bar/grill area to watch a few other games.
We packed up and hit the road at 7 a.m. the next morning. Ready for a full day in the car!
Do my eyes look puffy? Because they were!! haha!
We had a GREAT family road trip and I’m so glad we got the chance to check out some of the sights Atlanta has to offer. I must tell you southern hospitality rang true for our visit. Everyone we encountered…whether it be at a restaurant, at a store, at a tourist attraction, or simply walking down the street was SO NICE!
I’d highly recommend it to your family for a getaway!
XO
It looks like y’all had a great time! Thanks for sharing! You know, I never think about what the officials do or how they spend time during bowl weeks! So it was fun to get that inside sneak peek!
Oh my goodness! You're supermom!! Look at you with four kids at that game doing everything like a BOSS! What an unforgettable time for your whole family!
I agree about the Southern hospitality in Atlanta. We had such a blast there when we went for Thanksgiving a few years ago. It looks like it was cold and crowded…you are definitely a super mom to handle 4 kiddo's in those conditions. And yes, a bowl game sponsored by CFA is just perfect!
Go Knights!!! Every time Tab came on the screen I would tell my husband look that’s the husband of the blogger I follow! Finally he was like ok I get it can I just watch the game now!!!
Go Knights!! It was soooo cold that day, us Floridians were not prepared for light snow and teen temps!! haha! My sister lives in Atlanta and we've NEVER been to the aquarium but your pictures make me want to go with the kids next time we visit.
Not only is your mom game strong, so is your hair game!!!!!! It's looking extra gorgeous!
I live a few hours away from Atlanta and it was SO cold on NYE…bless you!! Looks like everyone had fun and you are killing the mom thing!!
Best bowl game sponsor ever! If I got to pick I would pick chickfila! Just eating their food looked like fun and then you did sightseeing too! Ha!
Looks likecsi much fun. Great memories the kids will have each year.
I think you should take a mother-in-law on the next trip! 😆😆Looks like every minute was a blast!
A few things:
1. Chick-fil-a is top notch at everything they do.
2. The ENTIRE south was freezing that weekend. Ugh, so hard on us! #wearewimps
3. Several of my friends were at the game (Auburn fans) and the said it was so cold in the dome. One friend sent me a pic of her wearing her beanie and gloves during the game. Ha!
4. Thanks for sharing your trip with us. 🙂
Beth
My family was there for the Peach Bowl too…you forgot to mention the best part…UCF won!!!!!
SO much fun!!! We went to Atlanta for spring break when I was 8 or 9! Such a fun trip! Love the aquarium, World of Coke, and that Marriott hotel too! So fun!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed Atlanta! I’m a Texas transplant (Grapevine) living in Georgia thanks to Chick-fil-A. My husband works at the headquarters and they are such an amazing company to be a part of! You hit a lot of the highlights in your short visit!
Our bestie's moved to the Atlanta area several years ago and we have had so much fun traveling back to see them! They took us on one of the little electric car downtown tours and it was so much fun!
looks like so much fun except for AUBURN LOSING!!! BOOO!!!!!!!!!!!! hahahahaha I of course was watching the game since I am an Auburn graduate and huge fan and thought why does everyone still have on their jackets, scarves and beanies? Now I know….. and every time I saw Tab I was like Bert that's Erika's husband you know ..travel agent.. hawaii trip.. he was like ??? hahahhaha he was just into the heart wrenching game 🙂