Well, we just got back from Tucson/Vail, Arizona. We made the 14 hour drive, and much to our surprise, everyone did great....both ways!
We went for Jimmy's grandparents 50th wedding anniversary party. Henry and Sue knew we were coming for a visit, but the party was a total surprise! It was so fun to keep the secret all weekend, and surprise them on Sunday night. Everyone pitched in on prepping for the party. Even James did some watering and dog poop pickup. Lorraine and Dirk's (Jimmy's aunt and uncle) house and yard were a beautiful setting for a Golden Anniversary Party. Denise and Darin (Jimmy's aunt and uncle) drove down from Phoenix on Friday night to help with party prep and somehow hid from Henry and Sue for 2 days! During the party Krista, Jessica (Jimmy's cousins) and Travis (his brother) were on kid patrol so Jimmy and I got a chance to mingle. What a treat that was! Travis took James swimming (James is still talking about it!) and he threw James in the air over and over. Travis was so good with James. And James loves his uncle who drives and "ambleance", and he really misses him now that we're home.
We got to go to some of our favorite restaurants including- Brooklyn Pizza, In-N-Out, Nico's, and Beyond Bread. Pretty good for only being there four days =)
We had many visits from Mary Lou, Jimmy's grandmother. She loves that James has red hair because Jimmy's grandfathers' mother had red hair, and Jim always had wanted a red headed grandchild. Luckily, he got to know James before he passed. We're all grateful for that =)
We saw Jimmy's Aunt Debbie, cousins Michelle, Todd, Stacey, her husband Will, and their kids for an early dinner one night and then went to a park afterward to play. The kids had a great time and Todd and Grandpa Bob pushed swings until everyone was worn out and we all went home and crashed for the night.
Sleeping arrangements took a few nights to get right. It started out with James on a cot next to Grandpa Bob and Grandma Sandra. Jimmy and I were on the bed in his old bedroom and Brendan in the pack-n-play at the foot of our bed. That did not work. At about 3:30 am both boys were up and ready to start their day! So, by the end we had Jimmy and I sleeping on a mattress on the living room floor. James sleeping on a pad on the boxspring from the mattress in what was our bedroom. And Brendan sleeping in his pack-n-play in the laundry room. We finally got a couple full nights of sleep! Hopefully as the kids get a little older they'll be able to be more flexible in where they sleep.
James has a special toy that he gets to use at Grandpa Bob and Grandma Sandra's house. His Jeep! It's a red Power Wheel and he lives for that thing! He couldn't get enough of it. He would ride until the battery "pooped out", and wait (only a little impatiently) until it recharged. Then he was ready to ride again. James also invented a game on their pool table called "ball pit". He would call a certain pocket and roll the pool balls with his hands to that pocket. We all would cheer if he made it in, and he would exclaim "dangit!!" if he missed. (note to self: watch what you say in front of James, and Brendan for that matter)
James was so sad to leave "the desert," but we had to go home. We packed up and left at 5:30 am with the sun already high in the sky (Arizona doesn't observe daylight savings). The ride home was great. We were tired when we finally got home (at 9:30 pm), but we had such a good time that we think we'll do it again for the holidays!
Click here are some pictures from the trip.
