Tucker and I arrived home this afternoon from a 5 day trip to be with my mom on Mother's Day. We also caught up with Mike and Kat in Manchester (VT) and I did my best to stay completely out of their wedding planning. We had a fabulous trip, and exhausted ourselves with all the fun.
The plane was a big adventure because Tucker didn't remember the last time he had flown. He has really gotten a lot more predictable in the last few months, and navigating the airports with him went really well, despite a delayed plane and missed connections. Apparently, planes are really good napping machines. He slept through 3 of the four legs of our trips (counting there and back). Wow.
Today, Tucker even had his first McDonald's meal. We were in the airport and it was pizza (allergic to cheese), Asian food (possible nut contamination), pre-made sandwiches (allergic to cheese and mayo)... or McDonald's. He enjoyed some chicken nuggets with apple slices and (gasp) a sprite. I had my hand sanitizer with me and have been pretty diligent about keeping this trip pretty hygienic... of course, every time I turned around Tucker was sucking on the back of the chair, or putting his straw on the table and then back into his drink. No joke: Tucker arrived home with a 101.5 fever. Ahhhhhh!!!
Tucker is now completely scared of dogs. A month or two ago a miniature poodle jumped up on him, barking in a store, and since then he has been skittish around dogs other than Ben. However I didn't pay too much attention to his new dislike until this weekend when he absolutely freaked out over my Aunt Jackie's beagle... and every other dog we met. Despite his fear, I was able to enjoy meeting Kat's family's Newfoundland named Sierra. Wow. What a dog.
At a last minute extended family gathering on Sunday night, Tucker met my cousin's new baby daughter (4 months old). Tucker kept coming up to her and giving her toys she dropped, and just watching her. It was darling.
At the hotel where Mike's wedding will be in August, we spent about half our lives in the pool. Tucker seemed to be under the impression that he was 8 years old and knew how to swim... he kept trying to climb up the pool steps as fast as he could and then vault himself back into the water. Yes, this was as terrifying for me as it sounds! We made a bunch of different friends (from 5 to my age) that waved at us all the rest of our time at the resort.
Tucker was under the impression that it's swimming weather in Lake Champlain. We put him in his rain boots so he could go in the water... but each time he quickly was in up to his hips. He is in love with the beach and the lake, and splashing, and actually, all of Jo Jo's house (which mysteriously acquired lots of toys since I was last there).
Usually in the mornings we start the day by bringing Tucker into bed to play while we groggily wake up. Tucker would have none of this usual routine at Jo Jo's. I think he spent his night dreaming of all the fun things to do because as soon as I would get him from his crib, he'd declare he was "all done" with snuggling and run towards the stairs. My aunt Lynnie gave him a monkey that claps and sings "If you're happy and you know it...." This was one of his favorite toys, especially in the morning. Needless to say, Jo Jo had some early mornings.
Of course the trip was not all about Tucker. It was fabulous for me to be back in Vermont after a whole year away, and I gathered materials for two new (mysterious) projects. More on that later (possibly a lot later).
Time to sign off this marathon post. I'm impressed you made it this far!
