New Friends & New Adventures

I just got back from the most amazing trip to visit my family. We drove to Idaho which took us about 6 hours. Daddy was frustrated by how long it was taking us but in my opinion, I think he took more restroom stops than anyone (maybe I could lend him a Pampers if he doesn't like to take time to stop, LOL). Anyway, we got in really late and mommy just put me to bed. She brought my special blanket I sleep with, so I felt right at home. But the next morning, but did I have a surprise. I woke up to meet my Uncle Mike, Aunt Ali and Counsin Gabe. They sure were neat people. My first time meeting Gabe, I tried to smile real big and walk up to him to give him a hug, but I think he's been told to be careful of strangers (smart parents!), because he just kind of kept walking backward away from me. I really liked Gabe. He was just a little bigger than me, so I thought we could be good friends and play a lot together. He sure had a lot of toys! Sometimes I tried to follow him around and play with him, but he just didn't seem to warm up to me. I dont think he's used to having little kids like me in the house. It was like he just didn't know what to think of me. Sometimes, he would say my name and look for me. Once in a while I did get a hug. But most of the time, he would kind of do his own thing and if I tried to bother him when he was busy he would say, "Fly Away Baby". Mommy thought it was funny every time he said it. I didn't mind leaving him alone. I pretty much did my own thing while I was there. And let me tell you, I didn't waste one minute sitting around doing nothing! Uncle Mike and Aunt Ali have a big house. There is so much room for me to walk around, and thats just what I did. I went on the most amazing expeditions. Walking through the kitchen I found magnets on the refrigerator that I loved tasting and throwing on the floor. Coming back through the dining room I would sometimes stop and take a look outside through the sliding glass door. Aunt Ali had this very large plant right next to the door. I did try to taste the dirt one time, but mommy put a quick stop to that. I wasn't allowed to go by the plant anymore. The I would walk around the loop that led to all the bedrooms and bathrooms. If I was lucky, someone would leave a door open and I would go into Gabe's room and play with his toys. Funny enough though, I really liked just playing with his door. I liked to close it. Doors are amazing to me right now for some reason. And sometimes I would go into our bedroom. I liked climbing up and down off the mattress that was on the floor. Sometimes I would fall in this canyon between the bed the closet and mommy would have to save me because I would get stuck. Finally as I headed back into the living room there was all kinds of fun. I could usually find something on the coffee table to grab ahold of and play with or chew on. And this is where the t.v. was to watch my Baby Einstein movies occasionally. Cousin Gabe likes to watch some of the same shows as Brother. And the living room is where everyone would hang out. So if I was tired from my trekking, I could take a break and visit with whoever wanted to. And did I mention through this all that I WALKED THE WHOLE TIME. Yep, these feet were made for walking! I rarely crawled around. I would just walk around that large loop in their house a million times a day. Okay, maybe not a million, but mommy says that I would have given any pedometer a good workout.

As for the company, well, I already told you about Gabe. I love my Aunt Ali a lot. I am pretty reserved with who I share my special kisses with, but she got a lot of them. I don't know what it is about Aunt Ali, but I sure liked her a lot. She is really pretty and gives great hugs. I like her squeaky voice and she just has that warm fuzzy 'mommy' feeling about her. Uncle Mike is a big, strong, funny guy. I liked watching him play with the other boys. It makes me want to grow up fast so I can play big boy games with him too, like water guns, pool games like water skiing (I think that's what he called it) and most of all The Pile Driver. That looked like a lot of fun. He's a funny guy to just let anyone run and jump on top of him.

Let's see, I also got to watch everyone play in the pool, play frisbee, ride bikes and went with Daddy to the store a couple of times. The trip home was a little harder. I didn't feel very good and the sun was staring down on me the whole time. Mommy made daddy switch the carseats around so Brother could sit in the sun for a while. He didn't seem to mind as much.

It was nice to see my home and my own bed, but I sure miss all the room I had in Idaho to walk around. As soon as we got home, Mommy put the baby gate up so I would't climb up the stairs. I gave some very disappointing whines and grunts at mommy for doing so. I really don't like that gate. I don't like being limited to where I can go. There is so much for me to do and see. Why can't I do them?

Oh well, I like knowing that when we go to Idaho, good times will happen. I just hope we get to go again really soon. Mommy said we might get to go in November or December because I will be getting a new girl cousin. It'll be nice to not be the baby over there. I'll have to show her all of my trekking routes and things to stay away from (like the plant). I've never met a baby girl yet; I wonder if they taste different. I'll just have to give her the ol' Lance taste test like I do everything else, LOL.