Flight to PA and our Visit to New York Friends & Cousins

Last week the three of us flew back East in shifts. Drew and I headed out on Tuesday, and then Bill joined us on Thursday night. The reason we went a little early was that I have family and friends that are within a 3 hour drive from Bill's parent's house, but that's a little too far to visit when we're only there for 4-5 days. And since he's been in command, Bill doesn't like to take much more time than that off at one time.

The flights were a little rough. Despite having what I was sure was a fully charged portable DVD player, it wouldn't turn on. Also, Drew was not happy about wearing his seatbelt, especially when it was time to land. Needless to say, I was quite relieved when we finally arrived in Pennsylvania. Standing in line for our rental car I tried to get Drew to put on his winter hat, since the captain had said the temperature in Scranton was a whopping 35 degrees when we landed. He maintained he didn't need his hat, until we walked outside and started being snowed on. Then he quickly requested that hat, saying "Mommy it's raining." Poor kid doesn't even recognize snow!

We spent Tuesday night at Grandma and Grandpop's catching up with everyone, and left Wednesday afternoon for my friend (from Geneseo & Penn State) Rachel's house. We saw plenty of snow on the sides of the interstate but fortunately didn't encounter any snow or ice on the roads. I think the West coast weather has permanently spoiled me.

We arrived at Rachel's shortly before she got home from SU where she works. We gave ourselves a tour and introduced ourselves to Rachel and Jim's two cats: Lucy & Simon. Drew is such a huge fan of cats, but Bill and I are both allergic, so visits with kitties are few and far between. Rachel arrived with ingredients (and wine) for dinner and we had a great time catching up.

Rachel, Simon, & Drew dancing a little

Drew playing on Rachel's staircase. Poor kid misses stairs so much with our one-floor house. He slid down the staircase at Grandma & Grandpop's at least a dozen times.

Rachel & Drew


Since Rachel & I couldn't really ask Drew to take a picture of the two of us I thought I'd post a couple pics from this past February when Rachel and Jim flew out and met us in Las Vegas for a weekend visit.

Rachel & me at Red Rock Canyon


Rachel, Jim, & Drew at the Santa Fe Casino

From Rachel's, Drew and I headed west a little to my cousin Sarah's house outside Utica. We arrived just before 10 and were treated to a mid-morning snack of juice and goldfish (Drew's favorite). After snack time, it didn't take Ava and Drew long to decide that we'd be spending most of the morning playing in Ava's room. First they tackled the blocks, building tower after tower and, of course, knocking them down in between.

Then they moved on to the play kitchen set, which Drew was very enamored with. Blocks we have, but play food, microwave, pots, pans, and a shopping cart were all new for him. Guess we know what's on Drew's Christmas list.

After quite a while of structured play, Ava and Drew decided it was time for some serious running around. They began sprinting back and forth between the bedroom and the living room, and then got the biggest kick out of hiding behind the door to Ava's bedroom. I'm not sure if they were hiding from each other or us, but it thoroughly amused the two of them for about a half hour. I really should have taken video of their giggles.

Finally we decided we should head out to lunch. We went to Ava's favorite: Applebee's. On the car ride over the two cousins were thrilled to be able to sit next to each other in the second row of Sarah's van. They were giggling over every little thing and that continued through lunch. Ava laid down in the booth and proceeded to kick her feet up on the wall and two seconds later Drew did the same thing. Drew dropped a crayon under the table and then he and Ava had a little pow-wow under the table for a few minutes. These pictures are from the end of our meal when the kids were enjoying their ice cream. Drew started spinning his cup around with his hands, and two seconds later, Ava started doing it. They were like two peas in a pod. Couldn't tell they hadn't seen in each other since last summer. Also particularly cute was that Ava continually referred to Drew as "Cousin Drew."

Unfortunately we think we may have waited to leave for lunch for just a little too long, because by the end of the meal both of the cousins were starting to get a little punchy (not listening, talking back, typical tired 3 year old behavior). Both children wanted balloons, but both Sarah and I didn't feel their behavior warranted it, so we tried to explain that to them. Ava seemed to understand, saying to Sarah "Cousin Drew's being fresh with his Mommy", and then Sarah asked her what she was doing. Ava, with a completely straight face and in all seriousness, said "Ava's being a good listener." Sarah and I burst out laughing.

Here's a few last shots of Ava and Drew before we headed back into the car to pick up Daddy at the airport in PA. They were really just too cute hugging each other and saying goodbye.

Though our visits were brief, a short visit is better than no visit at all. We were happy to be able to catch up with everyone.