Day 1-Houston to Venice!

Well yesterday I spent the day packing up my apartment and forcing it all into one big suitcase.  BIG mistake.  My first clue should have been that I couldn't even pick up the suitcase.  I went home to celebrate Dad's birthday before I left today and the first thing we did was weigh the giant thing.  It was only 30 pounds over limit! Needless to say, after dinner, Tory, Wyatt, and I unpacked and repacked my entire suitcase.  Tory and I haven't fought in a while but it was getting awfully close last night--especially when she wanted me to take out my white jeans. That was NOT going to happen!(: We finally got it down to 47 pounds...although I'm not sure how I'm going to survive without my entire closet...

This morning was a fiasco as mom, dad, and me got roughly 3-4 hours of sleep.  We woke up around 2:45 and left the house by 3.  We finally got to the airport only to weigh my suitcase again and somehow it gained 4 pounds overnight...so I sat in the middle of the airport trying to take some more clothes out!  I'm happy to say that it finally made it through.

My flight from Houston to Atlanta wasn't bad at all.  It was a full flight and I sat in regular economy so it was a little cramped but I survived and slept the whole way.  Fortunately, I convinced mom and dad to upgrade me to economy comfort on the way to Italy so I should have a little bit more leg room! My flight leaves at 5:40 Atlanta time, 4:40 Texas time so I'm just hanging out in the airport welcoming every phone call I get! In only 15-16 short hours I'll be in ITALY! I'll try to keep posting and keep everyone updated!