Vacation 2008 was a whirlwind and a wonderful one at that. We left Omaha with one baby, two grandparents, two parents and a rented minivan full of junk on a Friday night. We arrived at my grandmother’s house near Annapolis on Saturday, exhausted but glad to be there. The weather was good. The driving was long. The baby did great.
On Sunday Jud took Gideon and my dad over to Virginia to meet Jud’s grandparents and they spent the morning together while my mom, Grans and I readied her house for Gideon’s first, first birthday party. The day went really well, considering that two extended families were smushed into her little place, mostly because it was so nice outside allowing half of the crew to relax in the shade. Gideon was hesitant with the cake at first but eventually plowed through the red icing to sufficiently cover his face. After his bath, he opened presents and declared himself the luckiest baby on the face of the earth (tons of new battery operated, noise making devices, some clothes and a few sacks of cash…everything to keep us sane).
At the end of the party Grans’ adorable little house slipper caught on the back step and she face planted into the step, rolling to the grass. Her face swelled up like a baseball was trying to make it’s way out of her cheek, but somehow she avoided breaking any bones and had a sweet bruise to show off. Interestingly enough, after viewing her MRI, my dad informed her that she was indeed pregnant. Just goes to show you that you never know what a day might hold.
On Monday, Poppy, Jud, Gideon and I went back over to Virginia to see the great grandparents again and we had a lovely time. They loved seeing him and he showed them his incredible food ingesting abilities by eating a piece of chicken, one slice of pizza, two ladles full of beans, almost three dinner rolls and various bites of other things for dinner. The kid can eat.
Tuesday one of my cousins came over for lunch with my aunt and we all pigged out on some Anne’s Footlongs. Those things are delicious and will rot your stomach faster than you can believe. Our little immediate family took a walk in the afternoon down to the water and just enjoyed strolling about in the fresh, pollen filled air. The sneezing and watery eyes were staved off with some Claritin later.
I left my sweet little guy and wonderful hubby on Wednesday when I flew to Syracuse to see Allison. She was waiting at the airport with her mom when I got there and we had an incredibly fun time. There was lots of relaxing and no maxing. She had an opening while I was there that was very well attended. More importantly, she looked beautiful and her art was phenomenal. I couldn’t have imagined how much her work would grow nor how incredible it would be to stand in a room with her thesis show when she was going away three years ago. I can’t even really describe her work to you in a way that will do any sort of justice. You should just know that she may be the most talented artist in this country and is for sure more original and creative than anyone whose work I’ve seen. Eat your heart out art world.
The flight from the Cuse was delayed a bit due to storms on the coast but I waited patiently to discover that I was the only person on the plane for the flight to Philly. Once there, I was one of a billion people attempting to get back to Baltimore. Three earlier flights had been cancelled. My 11:30 flight wasn’t looking good. So Jud, my parents and Gideon flipped around on their way back to Maryland from Delaware and drove to Philadelphia. We got in on Friday night after 2 am. We still beat my airplane. Sidenote: Avoid the Philadelphia airport at all costs. I’ve never been as scared or shocked by homeless people in public before. Enter at your own risk.
We got up the next day and drove back all the way to somewhere in Iowa before admitting that the severe storms had stolen our driving eyes. We all slept well at a fairly nice hotel and made it back to Omaha on Sunday morning. Real life smacked us all in the face this morning, but Gideon and I were the only ones who got to take naps. I love staying home.
PS – check out the Flickr account for the pictures.
Thanks for the giving us the scoop on your trip! LOVED the pictures! Gideon is so beautiful! I’m so glad the traveling went well and that you had such a wonderful time. I’m sure it meant so much to Allison that you were there for her graduation too. We missed you though during our quick trip to the big O!