I have to confess, I don't have any really scandalous stories. Everyone was on their best behavior, SIL (who FIL says is a pill popper--the two of them in the same room = drama) didn't show, BIL's illegitimate kid remains a secret (for now), so we all had a very pleasant visit. DD had a great time, though she didn't sleep for crap, which made things a little volatile at times. Highlights:
1. Minor AW: Tuesday (my last day at work before our trip), DH took DD to the playground and not one but TWO little boys were "flirting with her" (according to DH). One kept pointing at her and saying "Cute! Cute! She cute!" The other said "Mommy, look, she's a cutie pie." So really, it's not just me--two- and three-year-old boys share my opinion of her good looks.
2. DD loved the airport, which is actually sort of sweet. I travel enough that's it's just one more hassle, but she loves EVERYTHING about it: the carts, watching the planes, looking out at the tarmac to see luggage being loaded and unloaded, people refueling the planes, everything. It made things more bearable because she was having so much fun. Whenever a plane took off, she would say "OH!" pause, and yell "BYE!" People were smiling at her as they passed by.
3. She did not love the flight. We tried traveling with her as a lap child, and I'm not exaggerating: that kid squirmed so much that she wore my cords bare in some spots. By the last half hour of our 90 minute flight, I was feeding her her weight in Teddy Grahams just to keep her from screaming and trying to kick the seat in front of her. Which, on a tiny regional jet, is about an inch from her feet. When even a 17 month old doesn't have any leg room, you know it's bad.
4. Much like the advice column C&Ped here last week, we learned only when we were picked up at the airport that we would be staying in a hotel. Which, you know, was fine, it just would have been nice to know. (For example, had I known, I would have packed swimsuits for all of us.) We stayed at a new Hampton, which is usually where I stay when I'm traveling with sales reps, so it was clean and nice and I was happy. Honestly, when staying with family, it's nice to have your own space to retreat to at the end of the day. And I got points for our stay, so bonus.
5. DD got to spend time with her second cousin, who's about a year older than she is. They had a fabulous time together, though she picked up the bad habit of throwing toys after seeing him do it about a hundred times.
6. Oddly, although DH's uncle invited us, not only did he not have room for us, he wasn't there for Thanksgiving "dinner." (I say "dinner" because it was served at lunch time.) We arrived around 10:00 that morning, left at 6:00, and he wasn't there the whole time. He, his son and DIL and their two kids left early that morning to have Thanksgiving with Uncle's girlfriend's mother. So FIL's wife made Thanksgiving lunch for everyone in Uncle's kitchen, and we all sat around the kitchen island and ate. Very informal, not what I'm used to. She and FIL hadn't even showered, they were in sweats. Food was good.
7. No provisions were made for dinner, so after DH and I went back to the hotel, we had to scrounge around to find something to eat. Not many options in rural Arkansas on Thanksgiving night. We ended up with convenience store sandwiches and chips.
8. Friday was better, everyone gathered at Uncle's house and there was a second big meal. We also took a road trip to see DH's sister's grave about an hour and a half away. (I have mentioned before, he was a twin. They were born @ 7 months, he survived and she did not.)
9. The flight home was much easier--we were late boarding, and DD was starting to lose it at the gate. But she was asleep before we even took off and she slept through the entire flight, landing, deplaning, collecting our bags, and finally woke up as we boarded the parking shuttle.
10. Everyone was so happy to be home again. Hope everyone here had a good Thansgiving weekend as well!
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