Vacation... How wonderful you were but you went by too quick!

Now this might be a long one so strap yourself in... LOL It all started on Wednesday morning before dawn... I was just too excited to sleep I guess so I got some last minute stuff together and headed to the airport... This was the first time I had parked in economy parking at the KC airport but thankfully I have my friend Rusty who helped me by telling me where it was before hand... So I get there and I try to remember exactly where my car was so that when I got back on Sunday it would be easy to spot. Well I had checked in the day before my flight online so I could get a $2 discount on my checked bag (yes I know not alot of savings but I try to save where I can)... And so check in went super smoothly because all I had to do was drop my bag off and head over to my gate... After the security checkpoint I sat down and realized I had 2 hours to kill since I wanted to be there early enough to not have to stress about it LOL...

Well 2 flights later I land in the great CLT airport lol... They really need to update their stuff I think but whatever... I call my sister as I'm getting off the plane (she and my niece Nila came to get me) I saw them waiting for me by baggage claim so I went and dropped my purse off and Cheri said I could take Nila to go get my bag. So we held hands and got caught up as only an aunt and niece can.. Grabbed my bag and we were off... I decided to sit in the back with Nila because I would probably be talking to her more anyway and this way I could see her better LOL...We killed pirates in the backseat and she gave us both her version of pirate names... Mine was along the lines of Dora Treehornhead or something along those lines... So after killing all the pirates between the airport and my parents house I was ready to go see the rest of the family!!! Saw my parents first and then I saw HIM!!! Walking... Talking... ELI!!! And I was in love... He is the sweetest thing ever!! He's almost two so he needs constant stimulation all the time. That boy wore me out! But I had fun with him...

Some highlights from the conversations Eli and I had:
Every animal on the planet says Moo! "Eli what does a dog say?" "Moo!" "What does a cat say?" "Moo!" I think you catch my drift! LOL

He would get up on the stool in front of the chair I was sitting in and say "Ready... Set... Go.." And jump into my lap whether I was ready or not LOL...Sometimes I even had something in my hand and I knew once he said Ready! I only had like 2 seconds to figure out how I was going to catch him. LOL He's adorable and so lovable and he looks alot like Cheri which is nice because Nila looks alot like her dad's side of the family. While I was at my parents house I got to see my Uncle Larry and Aunt Gloria who I haven't seen since before I moved to Kansas. It was so nice to visit with them and let them know what I was up to... :)

On Friday we decided to give my parents a break from all the kid action and went to Discovery Place for preschoolers or something to that affect... It was so much fun and we were there for at least 3 hours and the kids didn't whine or complain one bit... They had a blast and I had a blast being there with them... Glad my sister and bro in law were there though to help me with the kids LOL... I have a newfound respect for all the single moms out there especially with more than one kid... Don't know how you do it but my hat is off to you! After that fun we headed to lunch where the kids passed out in their car seats LOL... When we got back home we dropped the kids off and took my dad to see Pirates of Carribbean in 3D and wasn't impressed with the 3D effects but the movie was good.

Saturday my parents and I said goodbye to Cheri and her family and headed to SC to visit Aunt Denise and Uncle Dave before heading to cousin Amy's wedding...Loved catching up with everyone and Amy's wedding was beautiful!!! It incorporated Jewish and Christian traditions and was a unique ceremony at least to me... The reception dinner was amazing and the whole wedding just gave me the warm and fuzzies :) After the wedding we headed back to Aunt Denise and Uncle Dave's to spend the night and Sunday morning I got to meet little Helen Havice for the first time (my cousin's little girl)... I had seen Henry a few times but hadn't met Helen because she had been born 2 months after I left for Kansas. She's the perfect Southern Belle in my eyes... Even when she left she was like little Miss Hollywood she would walk a few steps and turn back and wave and then walk a few more steps and wave... It was so great to be able to spend time with them!!!

And that my friends is how my vacation went. I'm glad I could get away for a bit but also glad to be back into a routine :)... If you didn't read the whole thing I don't mind lol This was more for my memories then anything else LOL...