Yay! Alana and I made it safely back from Fort Lauderdale earlier today, and have been resting and enjoying some much-needed time with Rich!
While Alana is napping, I wanted to go ahead and get our photos transferred, edited, uploaded, and blogged!
We had an amazing time with my parents, and while it is always good to come home, we will miss them so SO much.
Rich and I have been married for over 3.5 years, and have managed to never be apart for more than 4 days. So, this week-long vacation topped the charts in terms of time away from each other. We took a moment at the Chattanooga Airport for a quick goodbye picture:
And here we are on Alana’s first plane ride ever! She did very well… and I was thoroughly relieved. She is so incredibly passionate and dramatic that I wondered if she’d “entertain” the passengers with some screams while on board. Thankfully, our flight coincided with her feeding time, followed by some happy wake-time and then a little fussing before falling asleep in my arms. Thank you, Lord!
Upon arriving at my mom and dad’s (still strange to think of them as grandma and grandpa!), Alana and I rested and unpacked a bit. My mom had the house all prepared for us, having borrowed an infant seat, bassinet, walker, and bought a bebe pod. That’s more than what I have for her at our house! And there was a big pack of diapers and wipes for the week! My mom is so thoughtful and considerate.
Here is Alana on the guest bed, blending in quite nicely with the lavender theme! It’s her first time at my parents house and in the house I lived in all throughout high school!
My mom had SO much fun with Alana, talking to her, laughing and singing, and playing all kinds of fun little baby games with her. Here is the mirror game!
And these are some of my favorite photos from the trip! My mom bought this bebe pod for her at Target…and Alana was so adorable in it! She is one strong little three-month-old, so this was perfect for her. My parents laugh and tell me that she is a miniature me. Alert, social, and wanting to do whatever all the big people are doing
I think I am going to have my hands full!
Mommy and Alana hanging out in the “back room”…where we do most of our family time!
More grandma and grandpa time! They got so many smiles and squeals out of Alana over the week!
We are excited to see what Alana will “name” them when she gets a little older. Since she is the first grandchild for my parents, she will probably determine what future grandkids will call them!
I got to meet up with my good friend Lisa with her adorable newest addition to the family, Aiden! Her sweet hubby Matt stopped by to say hi and I grabbed this quick picture. Lisa and I go way back to our middle school days, and have tons of great memories. But the best thing is that we are still friends, now married with kids, and I truly cherish our times together. She listens so well and her faith has come to be such an encouragement to me.
Lisa, thank you for this cute shot of Alana and I!
Then Alana and I had a fun little photo shoot with Jessie and her sweet little Benjamin. Jessie, who works with my mom, told me to bring Alana by so that we could get a picture of them together, “You know, for the slideshow for their wedding,” she said
My mom and I met up almost every day at The Grill, which is the beautiful restaurant on the campus of Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale/Calvary Christian Academy, where my mom is an administrator! Since my mom is such a proud grandma, she’s been talking about Alana for a while and everyone she works with was so excited to meet her! We had so much fun wandering all over campus, introducing dozens of friends to Alana.
We ventured to Mrs. Taylor’s kindergarten room, where she excitedly welcomed Alana to the front of the room for her first math lesson. She learned to sort by tens! Thank you for the fun and educational time, Mrs. Taylor! We love you!
More fun with grandpa! Mom and I dragged dad into the fabric store while he chilled with Alana. They both look rather bored, don’t they?
Then on Friday night we picked Shawn up at the airport…here is a shot of he and his buddy, Ulysses. They are the coolest 14-year-olds that I know. And super sweet, too. They had been on a missions trip to the Bahamas and had an incredible time. Shawn said that he would never be the same because of the trip. I am so proud of my brother!
Ah, we need an Einstein Bros. Bagels in Chattanooga. I love this place, and we have them all over Fort Lauderdale. Mom and I went there for breakfast on Saturday morning and had great girl time. Thanks for the cute pic of Alana and I, mom!
And here is grandpa introducing Alana to the NBA. He and Shawn will be teaching Alana all kinds of sports when she get older…primarily basketball and football. I’m sure they’ll be gentle with her, though!
And here we are on the way back today. Alana did well on the plane again, and even made some new friends.
One of the flight attendants loved Alana so much that she asked if she could hold her. I said yes, and when I handed Alana over, she winked at me and said, “I’m gonna go show her off!” And with that, she was off, walking Alana up and down the aisle, stopping to talk to anyone who wanted to see Alana. I just sat in my seat, laughing out loud to myself. I was a bit paranoid about the germs she might pick up being walked around on the plane, but mainly I was just amused!
Here she is walking back up the aisle to return Alana to me. It was an adventure! We are back, safe and sound, and are looking forward to our next trip down!
Mom and dad, thank you so much for having us down! We loved every minute and can’t wait to see you again!
Thank you for everything…we love you!!!
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