1st Birthday Trip: Home

Since we didn't get in bed until almost 11pm last night, none of us woke up until 8am. Well Lemon woke up at 6am but we put her back to bed after changing her because that was just nuts.

 A last stroll around the hotel.

This baby and I could not take a good picture together today to save our lives!  And I succeeded in not putting makeup on today (or yesterday) too!  I love summer!

It took us about an hour and a half to shower, get dressed, eat and then get in the car. Ian wanted to stop at the beach before heading out to get Lemon some sand for a bracelet. He's been working with wood, making rings, but he wants to start making bracelets and thought he could inlay some sand from her birthday trip in one for her. All trip he has either given the rings away to people we've met or given them away on Instagram because they are all just practice for now.

We thought since we were going to be in the car all day Lemon night want to walk around on the sand for awhile. And what better way to do it than with her alligators! Everyone on the beach thought she was the cutest, of course, and she didn't want to leave!

We finally got on the road at 11:30 but realized that none of the movies we rented on the iPad had downloaded with the hotel's crappy wifi. 6 hours in the car with a one year old and nothing for her to watch? The horror! So we stopped in Alpine, at a Starbucks, to see if just one would download, it didn't, then we tried McDonalds and I even asked in a Verizon store if they could help (even though we have AT&T). I called to see if I could use my phone as a hotspot and then just cancel when we got home but nope, they wanted to make me change my grandfathered in unlimited data plan, no way. So, we put on the one episode Ian downloaded of Yo Gabba Gabba (thank god) and I swear she watched that half hour show like 6 times and didn't even care. Gotta love the Gabba!

We stopped again in Yuma at In 'n Out to eat some animal style fries and then stopped between there and Gila Bend to nurse the babe. We fed her cheese, gf crackers, puffs and gf animal cookies on the way and she took two 45 minute naps.  (No changing tables in In 'n Out, boo on you!!)

Not happy, doesn't really fit to be changed in the car anymore!

We finally got home around 6:15pm and I had Streets of New York deliver pizza, salad and artichoke dip to us around 6:45. I unpacked Lemon's room first, changed her crib sheet and set up her monitor and sound machine and then put away food we brought home.

It feels strange to be home because we were away for 6 nights. Home doesn't feel like home yet, don't you hate that feeling? Lemon was SO excited to see the dogs most of all and then her toy house, her favorite. She waves at everything lately and spent the whole trip waving at people, plants, flowers, the ocean and of course dogs but said "hi dogs" to every single one, her first mini sentence. She was happy to be home and had to sit on her ladybug rocker first, after I put her straight into a cloth diaper (oh how I missed them!) and then crawled everywhere touching and playing with everything. 

She looks bigger to us now that she's home, like she turned into a one year old overnight. Even sitting in her high chair we both said she looked like a big girl and not a baby anymore. It's funny because she hasn't been here as a one year old yet, so weird.

I had so much fun on our trip and even though we had to charge our hotel and the trailer, it was worth it. Just getting away from fixing up the house, working on the pool, birthday party projects/planning and even Lemon's classes like swimming - was so good for all of us. This time as a family of three was so special and we met so many awesome families along the way.

The people in the trailer park loved Lemon. She would walk up and down the aisles and people would come out to wave and talk to her. Meeting our IG friends Danielle, Justin and Berlyn was awesome and then at the hotel we met the nicest families. This morning when Ian got the wifi password from the hotel person he asked if Lemon was up yet. The owner of the hotel asked about her, saying everyone was talking about her. The family we met, that we watched fireworks with, adored her, two families at the pool and 4 other families/rooms full of people all knew her and stopped to see her and talk to her when she was out.

I have never experienced anything like that in my life and even though Ian and I have stayed at that hotel probably 6 other times, we have never met so many awesome people. Lemon does that, it's all her. Her personality attracts people to us and I've never seen anything like it. If people get too close, she's not so into that, but a crowd? She knows how to work it. She waves, smiles, giggles and performs and if she's walking with her alligators or on her dad's shoulders she's yelling too. If she gets to know you, sees you a couple of times, she remembers and will climb all over you (like at fireworks) just like you're her parents. She knows people, it's truly amazing. When we stop to eat, it's the same thing,  crowd gathers to coo at her and she just eats it up.

I couldn't have asked for a more easy going, happy, sweet and gorgeous girl and I find myself thinking, many times a day, how did I get so lucky.

Happy 1st birthday baby girl. I hope tat we make a trip like this a family tradition because I had a blast with you. This week will get me through every day that I am away from you when school starts and I will spend every day thinking of anyone family trip next summer. This week was everything I imagined, and more, and even though you won't remember it, you will have plenty of pictures and videos to look back on.

I will remember it forever. I love you my sweet baby girl.