First off, the word "vacation" has quite a different meaning to me now that I am a stay at home mom. Considering that Eli is technically "my job", I can never quite get away from work! So to me, it wasn't so much a vacation, just work in a different location. Although, I never had to make the beds or do chores, so that was fantastic. Going away made me realize how much we thrive on a routine. We don't have set times for things, but we do have a system for naps and bedtime and leaving home really throws things off! Eli slept in a portable crib that I borrowed from a friend. Most nights he woke up in the crib and wanted to come in bed with me. So he would, and spend the rest of the night kicking me in the back or the face (yes, my face). Hitting me in the face with his hands, ugh so I got little sleep on the trip. Which probably explains why I am sick and feeling run down. Traveling is exhausting!
But, let's get down to talking about the fun stuff! We woke up for the trip at 4:30am. Really early. We had everything packed, car running, ready to go before I woke up Eli. I dressed him in his clothes the night before and planned to change his diaper when we got to the airport. I was actually hoping that he would stay awake until we got to the airport. But he woke up as soon as we got to the car. I sat in back with him and fed him some yogurt so he didn't have an empty tummy through all our travels. I also brought plenty of snacks for him to munch on! He did really good on the whole way to the airport and barely made a peep. I was hopeful the trip would go well at this point.
There was a really long line at security, by the time we made it through and to the gate, they were already lining up and about to board. We cut it a little too close for comfort. Eli did great on the plane. Before takeoff, we were looking out the window at all the airport employees. He was obsessed with trying to put the tray up and down. When we took off, I made sure I had a drink ready for him so that his ears wouldn't hurt from the pressure. He didn't seem to be bothered by it at all, I was relieved. I bought some new books, puzzles, little figurines for him specifically for the plane. He hadn't seen them before, so it kept him interested for a while. We also bought a few episodes of Sesame Street and put them on my phone. That didn't keep him as interested as I thought it would, I guess because it was a little hard to hear. Towards the end of the flight, JR suggested we sit him in between us (since we lucked out both ways and had an extra chair for all our stuff). He liked it at first but then he wanted to get down on the floor. It was also time to descend, so he NEEDED to get on my lap. Well, tired and cranky is a bad combination when you want a toddler to do something. He cried on and off for a half hour and then thankfully, we finally landed!
It seemed like a really long time until we got our bags, made our way to the shuttle, got into the car and headed to my moms. Eli also threw a few tantrums along the way. I didn't blame him though. I woke him up two hours earlier than he normally wakes up, dragged him across the country, and denied him a nap until he finally passed out in the car! After a quick nap, my mom, me and Eli headed over to meet Auntie Nikki for lunch. They must have thought he was so different since they hadn't seen him in over 10 months!
Eli absolutely loves my mom's laugh. He would start cracking up every time she would laugh. She started calling him Mr. Giggles. Eli did very well with the Sassy the dog. I was very nervous on how he would react, but he did so good. He loves dogs from a distance, but in the past when they have gotten up close, he's been scared. So I didn't know how it would go. If Sassy came close to Eli all of sudden, Eli would run to me and want to be picked up, but he never cried. He also loved the fish tank and the kitty, Sergio.
We stayed at my mom's house the first night. It was really tough having all three of us in the same room. JR and I sharing a queen size bed, not a good idea. And then Eli came into bed with us at one point so that I could get him back to sleep. I had Eli kicking me in the face and JR moving all over the bed, I literally got maybe a few hours of sleep that night. No good. So we ended up going to a hotel for the rest of our stay. Eli loved pushing the buttons for the elevator. We also let him roam the halls now and then, supervised of course! He always cried when it was time to go back into the room.
We met up with my friend Heather and her little boy Nate one of the days we were there and went to the Phoenix Zoo. I had really been looking forward to this. We went to Einstein's Bagels for breakfast and then headed over. It took a little while to get and Eli actually passed out in the car, which surprised me. There was just enough traffic to give him a nice 20 minute snooze. The weather was absolutely beautiful. Actually towards the end I was a little warm in my t-shirt. I guess I got adjusted to 30 degree weather quickly!
We had a great time at the zoo. My favorite (and Eli's I think) was the spider monkey's! They have an exhibit that you can walk around and the monkeys are jumping all around you. Eli was making little monkey sounds when he saw them, haha! Too cute. It was nice to be out with someone who also has a toddler. We would both stop at random times to get a snack for the boys, or a drink, or to get them in the stroller or out of the stroller, stopping a tantrum, changing diapers, picking up paci's of the ground......:)
Eli loved these fake elephants and other jungle animals, he did not want to leave!
Nate and Eli milking the "cow"...Nate did most the milking, he's a pro!
One day we met up with Grandma Annice and went to breakfast at Butterfield's Pancake House. I had a delicious waffle and shared it with Eli. One thing that kept annoying me at breakfast though was the waitress. Every time she would come to the table she would stand right next to Eli with the HOT coffee pot. It was always within arms reach every time she came. I would hold onto Eli's hand every time but she never got a clue. Guess she doesn't have kids! After that we decided to check out the Phoenix Children's Museum. They had a lot for Eli to do. I think his favorite part was the supermarket. They had little lanes were you could check out your groceries, cash registers, milk cartons, fake fruits and veggies. That was his favorite, the fake fruits and veggies! At one point he would grab a fruit and take it over to one of the girls that worked there, and excitedly show it to her! Haha, it was hilarious! He kept doing this over and over, handing some of them to her. He really was the most social I have ever seen him be on the trip. He also loved Noodle Forest. They basically have a ton of pool noodles hanging from the ceiling and all the kids run through there. I went with Eli everytime and he had a blast. I can't deny that I loved it too. It's great being a parent when you get to do what they get to do!
Noodle Forest!!!!
Eli really loved putting the golf balls into these cups
and watching them go down the ramps to the bottom!
The grocery store at the Phoenix Children's Museum. He loved the fake fruit!
Later that night, JR and I left Eli with Grandma Annice and headed to Morton's Steakhouse. We hadn't been out to dinner since we moved to Oklahoma by ourselves. It was a very nice treat. I was somewhat nervous about how Eli would act with Grandma, but they had a blast together. She was surprised we were coming home already, which is always a good sign. A good sign that things went well.
The next day we met up with JR's buddy for breakfast and then hit the mall. We got a couple of cute things for Eli at an outlet store. I was walking around the mall with Eli in the stroller while JR was shopping and Eli passed out. One of the hardest things about traveling is the nap schedule. He pretty much tried to get some sleep anytime he could. It was a struggle though. When he woke up we played at the mall's child area. Eli liked this one butterfly that you could climb on. He got hurt twice by some bigger kids, so we left after that. They can be so rough sometimes, the older ones.
That day was also my sister Nikki's wedding. The whole reason we were there to begin with. Nikki's friend cancelled on her at the last minute and she was in the wedding party. So I got to stand in for her. Although Eli noticed me standing up there during the ceremony and wouldn't stop crying, so I grabbed him and stepped to the side. When babies are sad, all they really want is their mama! I felt bad to leave my post, but I figured it was better than listening to a crying baby throughout the ceremony. It was a very nice wedding and I am so happy and proud of my baby sister!
Eli in his outfit for the wedding.
It was nice to see our family again. I got a little sad now and then because Eli always seemed so happy to be hanging out with everyone. I realized that being at their homes is something that is never going to be familiar to him. I grew up very close to my aunt and grandparents and have so many memories of their home. It's not how I imagined Eli's childhood, but we'll have to make the best of it. We are very happy here in Edmond, OK and so thankful to have this opportunity.
The trip home seemed to go by faster. Eli did great this time and almost fell asleep on the plane ride home. By the time we got out of the parking garage he was already passed out!
Hope I covered everything, gosh I have been writing this blog for three days! Oh and sorry for the poor quality of the photos. These were all taken with my cell phone.
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