back from virginia

So I flew to Virginia to visit Jessica and family on Thanksgiving Day. I did manage to keep the tears under wraps, even though I kept having waves of immense sadness over leaving Britton. And there were a surprising number of people flying, including "Miss Optimism" and her friend, who both complained about the other one complaining from Oklahoma City to Baltimore. Apparently the meaning of the holiday was lost on them. But I got away from Debbie Downer and Laura Loser and headed over to the baggage claim. My suitcases were filled with presents for Jessica and the kids and I absolutely intended to abuse the Southwest deal of getting two checked bags for free. A sneak peak in the suitcase revealed that security did not wish to make an example of me and unwrap all my gifts! I got my rental car and proceeded down 301 to Tim's parents' house for Thanksgiving dinner.

Other than Thanksgiving dinner, not much was planned, and that's the way I like it. With a new baby you can't fill the day with errands, because frankly, getting dressed is a chore. And I volunteered for the early night shift, which meant that I held Emily from her 10:30 pm/11:00 pm feeding until her next feeding, usually around 1:15 am, so Jessica could get some rest. Now, Emily doesn't like being put down, she requires snuggling or feeding at all times, so this was my bonding time with just me and her. And on my last night of duty, Emily decided to eat every hour on the hour, so Jessica and I stayed up and watched "The Family Stone" three times in a row (of the six times TBS was showing it). By the last viewing we were going a little crazy because Emily kept teasing Jessica with falling asleep for twenty minutes, then demanding to be fed once again.

On Saturday Jill, Stephanie, Kristen, Alexandria, and Gavin came to visit. I haven't seen them since I was last in King George in April, so it was great catching up. And on Sunday we met up with Jen to have lunch and bring each other up to speed on our lives. She is due in March with another son and we're pretty sure Emily and Baby D Deuce are going to be an item once they hit middle school.

Here are some of the pictures of our fantastic visit. We took tons of pictures of Emily for Jessica and Tim's Christmas card, but it really defeats the purpose if I post those here. Plus, I'm pretty sure Jessica wouldn't be too happy for spoiling the surprise of her card. So, enjoy Emily as much as I did!





Emily's first bath! She kept it all cool and collected at first, then realized that I was taking photos and threw a fit. Meanwhile, Jessica and Tim just goaded her on by saying how these were the pictures that were coming out for any prospective boyfriends to see.




A cross-stitch picture I sewed for Emily.





Passed out on Cammy's shoulder. I hadn't seen my mom since August (for Britton's first birthday), so this really did end up being an incredible trip of seeing my whole family.




Another round of our favorite game "Where's Emily?"