Work is slow and I was about to pick up a crossword puzzle but, NO, I need to blog about our trip! Silly Kaitlin.
I will start with Sunday, although our trip didn't officially start until Monday. I am starting with Sunday because that is when Caroline enjoyed her smash cake. We had a birthday celebration a day early because we were traveling on her official birthday. We let her open her gifts from us, which was just a few pairs of pants and a pair of slippers. They say one-year-olds enjoy the wrapping paper more than the gifts, so we weren't extravagant with her presents. It's so true, too. She threw her gifts to the ground and walked around the house waving her wrapping paper around. After that, we put her in her high chair, lit the candle on her cake, and sang happy birthday. She, of course, looked at us like we were lunatics and really thought we had lost our minds when we put an entire cake on her tray. She was hesitant at first but eventually smashed the cake. She doesn't like sweets so she got upset when she ate the icing, but she did have fun destroying the cake. Her favorite part was definitely the bath to get the icing off of her :)
Monday was Caroline's first birthday and our traveling day! We got to the airport extra early to make sure we had time to check our luggage/baby items, get through security, and let Caroline run around before the hours of sitting ahead of her. The first flight went great! She was a wonderful girl, was nice to the lady next to us, and didn't fuss at all... UNTIL she pooped... a lot... while we were landing... when we couldn't get up to change her. So there she was, in my lap, with a diaper filled with poop. Suddenly, I feel a warm stream running down my leg when I realize I am being peed on. So there we are, stuck in our seats because we're landing. Caroline has a poopy diaper, I have pee all over me, and we're stuck. As soon as we reached our gate, Josh ran into the bathroom to change her. We looked like quite the hot mess walking off the plane: Caroline was in a shirt and a diaper and I looked like I had wet myself! Luckily, the second flight was AMAZING. We lucked out and had no one sit by us, so we had an extra seat for Caroline. She spent the flight napping, looking out of the window, reading the safety brochures, and watching The Little Mermaid. When we arrived in New Hampshire, we were picked up by a very excited Papa and Nan, and went to their home to enjoy a great dinner (food friend: it was chicken, veggies, and potatoes).
Tuesday, we had a delicious Thai lunch with Josh's mom, Barb. I had Pad Se Ew for the first time in soooo long, and it was great. We then went to the mall to get Caroline a winter coat and a warm pair of pajamas. She had fun walking around, talking to mannequins, and flashing everyone in sight! We spent a lot of time relaxing by the fire and ate some delicious tacos for dinner!
Wednesday... well, I'm drawing a complete blank as to what we did on Wednesday. I know the day consisted of sitting by the fire, Caroline riding around in her box, and some delicious lasagna made by Barb. I know we went somewhere and did something, and I think we watched Pacific Rim, but I'm such an old lady I forgot the details! Sorry, Wednesday; I'm sure you were swell.
Thursday, we celebrated Caroline's first Thanksgiving! We had a delicious breakfast complete with mimosas, breakfast casserole, bacon, and coffee cake! We watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, of course, which Caroline enjoyed (until she fell asleep). We then spent the day hanging out. I helped fry the turkeys and make the gravy, and I had the all-important tasks of lighting the candles and pouring the wine (which was made by Josh's brother Dan and was delicious). The food was all amazing (fried turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, carrots, pumpkin custard). It was a wonderful first Thanksgiving for Caroline and I know she loved every bit of it!
Friday, we went with Steve and Barb to pick out a Christmas tree! It was SO FREAKING COLD outside, you guys. Caroline had fun picking out the tree, but was NOT a fan of the cold. She's such a little Florida girl! Josh, Caroline, and I then braved the Black Friday madness at the mall to get a birthday gift for his mom. I am NOT cut out for Black Friday - too many people, long lines, crowded parking lots. Nooo thank you!
That evening, we all went a delicious restaurant for a sushi FEAST. Feast is capitalized because it was soooooo much food and sooooooo amazing. I had thought pregnancy had made me not like sushi anymore but I was wrong, I just don't like bad sushi. This good sushi was amazing. I mean, look:
When we got back, we had a joint celebration for Caroline and Barb (and me). Caroline sat on the table to open her gifts because she's wild and it was her party and she can DO WHAT SHE WANTS! Anywho, she got some great gifts. She got an adorable singing dog from Steve and Barb ("Violet") and a gorgeous quilt made by Barb, a cute outfit and a Leap Frog book from her Uncle Mike, and her Uncle Dan bought the domain name "www.carolinebrian.com" so that no one can ever steal it from her; perfect! Caroline then ate played with a chocolate cupcake for dessert. We all enjoyed a delicious tiramisu cake. The tree was then decorated, and it was adorable to see all of the ornaments Josh and his brother made when they were kids.
Sunday, we went to the New England Aquarium in Boston! Gosh, I love that city. It's a gorgeous place. Caroline had SO MUCH FUN at the aquarium. She loved looking at the fish, the penguins, the seals, EVERYTHING. She was incredibly the good the entire time, although I don't know why we bothered bringing her stroller in; she insisted on walking everywhere... such a big girl! She loved standing against the glass (often licking it, gross), hands in the air, talking to the fish. It was such a neat aquarium with so many neat things to see. When we got back, Barb and Steve made a fantastic last dinner - surf and turf! It was quite delicious, and the wine we drank complimented it perfectly AND was for a good cause (part of the proceeds donated to a local animal shelter) - drinking for a cause is the best!
Sunday, we woke up bright and early (3:30am for me, ugh) and headed to the airport to catch our 6am flight. Caroline's travel formula made our checked luggage too heavy, so we had to move it all (8 bottles) into the diaper bag. Guys, TSA does not approve of this nonsense and gave Josh the full search. I mean, he felt violated if you know what I mean. They also scanned all of the bottles, Caroline's food, all of our bags, etc. It took FOREVER and we had to rush to catch our flight (the one we had arrived super early to, lame). Once we got on, they had to de-ice the plane, which delayed our flight. This led to our already-short layover getting shorter. Sooo, we get to the Reagan airport, get to our gate annnnd there's no gate agent to let us off of the plane. LOVELY. We sat there for nearly 30 minutes waiting for someone to open the freaking door and let us off. Thankfully, Caroline was being absolutely amazing and playing peekaboo with the girls behind us. When we finally got off the plane, we had to take a shuttle to the other terminal and then another shuttle to our plane. Luckily, WE MADE IT! We got back to Tallahassee right on time! (Interesting note: apparently the main travelers the weekend after Thanksgiving are college kids; our planes were FILLED with college kids. We were honestly two of the oldest people on both planes. Wild.
We got home early enough to grab a great lunch, spend some time relaxing at home, and Josh was even able to get the dogs from the kennel! I should have taken a video of Caroline seeing her dogs. The squeals and smiles were absolutely PRICELESS. I love all of my babies :)
It was a wonderful trip and a much needed break from "real life." It was great to spend time with people we don't get to see often enough and Caroline had an amazing time. Only a couple weeks and we're off again, this time to spend Christmas with my family. WE CANNOT WAIT!!!
