Top Ten | Travels @ (Almost) Two

A few of these already made it into my 365 Project, but they're still my top ten for our trip, so ignore the reruns. :) My old camera which was still our only camera on this trip was particularly cranky, so I was particularly thankful for the pictures I managed to capture. I was never certain when I picked it up to take a picture if it would actually take one for me. :)

:::

The big question: What did Matthew think about his plane ride?

Well, the funny thing about plane rides is that you really don't realize you're on a "plane" when you're sitting in your seat. ;) So although I'm pretty certain he didn't quite grasp the whole "plane" concept, Matthew enjoyed looking out the window and reading Harold and the Purple Crayon and playing with his green tractor and playing with Legos and playing with his green tractor and reading Harold and the Purple Crayon and playing with his green tractor and reading Harold and the Purple Crayon and looking out the window and reading Harold and the Purple Crayon and playing with his green tractor ... ;) And Mommy thoroughly enjoyed being able to enjoy all of those things with him--a dozen times over--and not be distracted by many of my normal responsibilities of mommyhood. :)Life definitely got more exciting in Philadelphia. Our original connecting flight was delayed which meant we were going to miss our third connection which was to land us in Syracuse. So, the airline kindly booked us on an alternate flight which took us direct from Philly to Syracuse. That flight, however, was also delayed, so Matthew and I got to know the F-terminal of the Philly airport quite well over the next few hours. ;) Matthew loved watching the airplanes and trucks driving around.

My most interesting (disconcerting?) experience was when I realized that the very courteous gentlemen I had spoken with just a bit in the waiting area were actually plain-clothes officers escorting a prisoner to Watertown. !!! I guess there was a reason I had felt safe around them. (They strongly reminded me of Uncle Pat, which now makes good sense considering that he's a retired officer!)

Matthew was still going strong when we finally took off from Philly around 7:30 ... after having arrived there at 1:00. :)

I may be slightly predjudiced, but I heartily believe Syracuse, NY is one of the prettiest cities at night! We were privileged to fly in on a clear night so that we got to see the lights from the air.

Love this picture of Grandma and Matthew! Love it even more knowing that he climbed up of his own volition. :)

Also love this picture of me and my parents. :) I'm sure my sister and I heard it a dozen times if we heard it once--the family resemblence is quite strong. ;)Matthew and Mommy thoroughly enjoyed our visit with Great Grandma and Grandpa as well. :) And the kids are most definitely enjoying the trucks they sent home with us ... particularly the firetruck. (Kinda funny considering that that's the only one with batteries ... hmmmm ...) ;)

Matthew was definitely enjoying Grandpa more after having spent the last day riding in his truck, but he was definitely of the opinion that wrestling and picking flowers were more fun than posing for a picture. ;)

However, by the time we arrived home late Wednesday afternoon, Matthew was quite happy to cuddle with Grandpa in a horizontal position. :)

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On the other hand, this trip was about family, and the fellowship all around was a blessing. It's been a long time since I've seen most of my Dad's family and it was good to catch up again.

Aunt and Uncles ...

Cousins ...

Our family ...

My Grandma and Grandpa ...

Matthew with his cousins, Sam and Bryce (who happened to be standing on the step above him--the height difference is most definitely not that large!) :)

Thoroughly enjoyed the fellowship and thankful to have been able to be there.