#56 BNA to HOU.

It has been three years since I have visited my brother in Texas.  In those three years, he has moved from Dallas to Houston, made multiple moves to different apartments, met his now fiance and is now planning their wedding.  I was overdue for a visit.  I was searching flights a couple of months ago, and there were great deals from Nashville to Houston.  I called my brother to see when a good time to visit him would be, and it just so happened that they were planning a couples’ bridal shower for a weekend in July.  Plane ticket was booked; I was heading to Houston.

We always used to tease our mom and one of our nicknames for her was “Missouri”.  Dad called her the ”Show Me State” because she always needed to see everything.  When my husband and I bought our house, we had barely set the last box inside the house and she was down for a visit.  She always needed to check in with my brother and me and make sure we were ok, and many times she didn’t take our word for it until she could see it for herself.  I found myself having those same feelings about my brother; I knew he was doing well in Houston, but I felt that I needed to see his place, meet his friends, and experience a weekend in the life of my brother.

I am so glad I went down for a visit.  It was so nice to meet all of the people that are now a part of his everyday life.  It was great to see him being completely himself, and his friends loving him for being that way.  They understand him, and to know that they treat him like family is reassuring.  It is a comforting feeling to know that your brother is well taken care of, even when you live hundreds of miles away and cannot be there with him.

The bridal shower was absolutely beautiful.  It was held at a friends’ home in their backyard, and Liz and Matt spent the afternoon catching up with their friends.  It was a fun afternoon, and we spent the rest of the evening at their friends’ house long after the shower was over, just chatting and sharing a few drinks.  Here are a few photos from the afternoon:

My brother and I joked that I was playing Mom, and I needed to “see everything”.  And even though we joked about it, I think we both felt reassured that we still have each other for family support.