Home Again, Home Again

We are home again. Our guest room with the M family was very comfortable. But, you just can't beat your own bed. Ellie definitely subscribes to that school of thought because she has done little else but sleep since we got home about 6:30 last night. Her current nap is approaching the 90 minute mark.

She was a very good traveler for 5 days, but about the time we pulled into the gate at Midway, she reached her breaking point after 5 days of less than satisfactory sleep. She passed out at the baggage claim and woke up just outside the airport. Then, she screamed the rest of the way home. We stopped at one of the toll plazas, but she didn't want to nurse and being out of her seat for a few minutes gave her false hope that we were home. So, when I put her back in her seat, it seemed the screaming/crying got a touch more hysterical. We stopped to get pizza and true to form, she fell asleep about 4 minutes before. When I got out of the car, she woke up and commenced crying. I can honestly say, I have never been as glad to get home.

While we were in Reno, we took a daytrip to Lake Tahoe (sneaking in state #6, California). We took a gondola up to the top of Heavenly, took in the view, grabbed some lunch, P snapped some pics, then we came down and browsed through some shops before heading back to Reno. The Z's stocked up on hair bows and I bought Ellie some cute tights for fall. I also splurged on a fancy baby bag for Ellie and I. It'll probably do double duty as a Mom bag for years to come since it's not an obvious diaper bag.

Also, Ellie started using consonants Tuesday. She just kind of woke up with "D", "K", and "G" in her vocabulary. Needless to say, P is pleased as punch that she is saying "Dada". And, she can sit by herself for short periods.

I'm sitting all by myself.

Our next big excitement is when Aunt C visits next week. We're looking forward to it!

Our Hosts

Ellie with her BF Zaedin. He was very good with her and could always get a smile from her.

Our family.

Ellie in traveling clothes. Alicia FINALLY got to hold her some on the last day.

On the Road Again

This weekend, we're in Nevada (state #5). We're staying with friends who have three young children. So far, Ellie is loving it. Everyone is competing for her attention. Naps have been irregular, with the majority of the day spent in cars, airports, and airplanes. Ellie was a good sport (as usual) throughout and flirted every chance she got. She took a short nap on the first flight but then didn't sleep until we reached Reno. Then, she went to bed around 5:30. Which, was fine, except she woke for good this morning at 4:30. So, we've been chasing sleep today. We'll probably get caught up with the time difference about the time we go home.

Today, we went to the Animal Ark, which is an animal sanctuary. The kids seemed to like it. Ellie just liked watching the kids and being outside. Most of the animals were sleeping in the shade since it was right about lunchtime, but we did get to see one of the coyotes get a beef bone. P took his camera and got a few photos.

Zamaeris, Alicia, Zaehrin, Pete, Zaedin, Erin, and Ellie.

Lynx

Mountain lion

Unidentified flower with a really sweet smell.

Flower with a bee.

Coyote, Amelia Earhart, eying her meaty snack.

Fetching the meat bone.

Traveler in Pink

This weekend, Ellie went to her fourth state, Florida. Dad was in a wedding for his oldest friend. P bought 2 new suits for the occasion since he's lost 20-30 pounds and all his old suits hang off of him. The new suits look super nice on him. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures to prove it and he won't voluntarily wear one again until the company Christmas Party. You'll just have to take my word for it....

Ellie was a bit of a scene stealer at the wedding. She was very popular with ladies of all ages and grandpas. She did pretty well with a very erratic sleep schedule and tons of extra stimulation. Friday, we woke her at 4 am and left for the airport by 4:30. She didn't sleep again until takeoff (literally the second the wheels lifted off), and then only for 30 minutes. She took another nap at the hotel once we checked in, and then not until we left the rehearsal dinner around 9:30. Total sleep for the day, 8 hours and 22 minutes. The next day, we did much better. She slept till about 7 am, we went to breakfast, she took a nap, we ran to the mall since it was raining and we couldn't go swimming. Then, we slipped in two decent sized naps before the 6:30 wedding ceremony. She got 10 hours that day. Yesterday, coming home, she logged 15 hours, which put her on a better than normal schedule.

The wedding itself was lovely. Ellie and I spent it in the Cry Room. Not because she would cry, but because she tends to be very vocal when she is happy. And, she's a happy child. She especially likes to sing with other music, so I was afraid she might not be appropriately sedate during the soloists and the vows. And, she did sing along for a few of the hymns. Luckily, the only witnesses were a couple other parents and about 7 kids. Toward the end, I put her in her new sling to try to induce a nap. It didn't work, but she did calm down significantly for a while. She got a little feisty when the food came out at the reception. So, we took her out for a little while to eat. After dinner, P took a turn with the sling and she fell asleep.

I learned a few things about streamlining for air travel. We CAN fit nearly everything we need in one medium size bag. Our next trip doesn't require any formal wear, so we should be okay for sure. This trip, we took a garment bag. We don't need a stroller if we have a sling, which packs pretty small. However, I saw a nifty contraption at Midway that attaches to the carseat and gives it wheels and a handle. So long as Rick doesn't mind carrying the carseat, it's not strictly necessary, but would certainly be convenient. I also don't need as many diapers as I took.

So, now that we've got one commercial trip under our belt, we can start planning the next one to Nevada. One thing is for sure though. We all definitely prefer the TBM and would like to be able to fly that way down to Texas next time. Cross your fingers.