Weekend in Cary

This past weekend Ethan and I took a little roadtrip together and went to stay with my sister and her husband in Cary. I was very nervous about this trip since Patrick had to stay home and work (the downside of having a husband who is a golf pro is that he is crazy busy on the weekends!) Ethan and I left on Saturday morning and I tried to time up our departure so that he would be ready for a nap about the time we hit the road. On the way there he was awake but quietly playing with his toys for the first 30 minutes or so and then he drifted off to dream land. I did need to do the "mom move" and reach behind me into the car seat to retrieve a fallen pacifier once, but as soon as the paci was safely back in his mouth (how I've learned to do this is beyond me - it truly is a mom thing!) he slept soundly until we were about 10 minutes away from my sister's house (shortly after we passed the exit for my mom's house, ironically enough.) I had planned to take Ethan up for a visit with my aunt and cousins over the Christmas break, but his trip to the ER derailed all my plans so this was our first mommy & Ethan trip. This was a pretty quick trip, so I didn't get to see very many people this time, but next time I'm in town I plan to stay for a few more days so that I get the chance to visit with everybody back home.

It was so nice getting to spend some time with my sister. Her husband was suffering from a sinus infection so I felt badly descending upon their home with a baby, but we tried to stay on the go as much as possible so as not to bother him too much. On Sunday we met up with my friend Lindsay and her little boy Graham at the park. It was so good to see Lindsay again. Graham is so cute - he has this thick dark hair that has grown like crazy since the last time I saw him...not even a month ago! Ethan's hair is growing, but he's got nothing on Graham. I also got to see Lindsay's new ride - she joined the ranks of the mini van mamas. I have to say, I was very impressed when I saw it (but no, I do not want a van of my own. I served my time in high school, thank you very much!)

At the park Ethan and Graham made a new friend, Max. Ethan is 6 months, Graham is 8 months, and their new friend Max was 7 months, although you would never know it by looking at him. This child has SIX teeth, was crawling, and was a bundle of energy. I always thought Ethan was pretty energetic, but he was calm compared to this little guy. It was so cute seeing the three little boys "playing" together. They all liked standing by these little plastic steps and hanging on. Ethan kept putting his hands in the dirt and then trying to put them in his mouth. My germ freak tendancies kicked in and I kept trying to keep his hands out of his mouth, and then realized that this was a losing proposition and gave in. Of course I didn't think to bring my camera with me, but Carolyn and Lindsay had theirs so I'm hoping to see pictures sometime soon. Ethan also had his first experience in a swing. He wasn't too sure what to make of it though, and looked pretty confused. Hopefully he'll learn to like it sometime soon, because I plan to take him to the playground a bunch when the weather starts getting warmer.

Ethan has been trying more new foods (every 4 days, that is!) He now has had bananas, apples, sweet potatoes, and carrots in addition to his rice cereal. I'm not sure if we're going to try squash or prunes next. Planning out his foods has definitely made me think twice about my diet and thinking about introducing some new fruits and vegetables into my daily routine.

The rest of our visit flew by and Monday morning Ethan and I were off to make the return trip to Charlotte. He stayed awake for the first 20 minutes or so just playing with his toys and rattles, and fell asleep again and did not wake up until we were turning into my neighborhood. I was so scared about the drive but he did really well! I wish his sleeping while we were on the road was better, but this child knows that the pack n play is not his crib and he LOVES to scratch the sides and play. It was definitely not the most restful two nights of sleep I've ever had, but now that we are back home he is back into his normal routine. Hopefully I'll have some pics to share from our weekend adventure sometime soon.