Once again, my aunt and uncle made it a priority to come and visit us. Leaving the comfort of the dry climate of California, for hot and humid east coast July weather. Little did they know when they purchased plane tickets well in advance, that we would be living in a 2-bedroom condo. So Ryan and I, plus both girls all slept together in the master bedroom. Naiya in her "room" (our walk-in closet) and Alexia in a crib right beside our bed. It was confirmed again, that Alexia is a high maintenance sleeper. She has to cry it out for a couple of minutes before relenting to sleep, which made it a bit stressful when her crying would wake Naiya up, and then both would be crying. Anyway, Grandma & Grandpa Griff were gracious with all of the crying (mostly from Alexia), and it was a trip where all the memories created made it worth putting up with the few hairy moments of lack of sleep and routine.
Most of our time revolved around eating, a rundown of places we went to: Ledo's pizza, Kilwin's Ice Cream (twice), Chick & Ruth's diner, picnic of Potbelly's subs at the downtown park, we grilled out on a boat with friends and took the boat all the way downtown to get ice cream.
Alexia is really into the driver's seat, pushing buttons and doing what she sees her daddy doing:
Naiya with her Grandpa Griff:
Swimming to cool off:
Climbing up the ladder by herself:
Our friends, the Petersons, joined us. It was so fun for them to meet my aunt and uncle, whom I've talked about being a huge role in my life. And Anne Marie was able to check off her bucket list of seeing two major bridges in our area, from the water's view. Here's Anne Marie, and Michael takes his turn driving:
More shots of our time just hanging out at the house:
Aunt Debbi brought a box full of toys, that came out in intervals to surprise the girls. Until Alexia snooped around their room and found the jackpot, and all the remaining gifts were brought out by her. One of the faves was a rocket balloon set. The balloon, after being pumped up and released, would zoom wildly around making a loud buzzing sound. However, a freak balloon experience that involved Alexia being chased out our bedroom door, down the hallway and thus being pinned to the livingroom wall by a balloon, ended the rocket balloon enjoyment. Both girls now hysterically cry and run away from the balloons if Ryan starts pumping them up. But here's Alexia helping pump one up:
And getting ready to watch the balloon go:
And then a "bankie" break:
Avid baseball fans, my aunt and uncle treated us to amazing seats to watch the O's. Although, they lost terribly, it was fun to be in Camden Yards and appreciate its beauty. And of course, ballpark dogs are always amazing. We had them try Boardwalk Fries, which is essentially regular fries with vinegar and Old Bay (seafood seasoning) sprinkled on.
Their trip concluded with a good 'ol Maryland blue crab feast at Cantler's. Here's Ryan giving a lesson on eating crabs:
Watching. Learning.
Ready to rock.
"The best fried shrimp I've ever had."
The happy couple that truly knows how to have fun with one another:
The best part of the trip was watching Alexia be at an age where she interacts with G&G Griff. She attached very quickly to my aunt, and got to do lots of girly things like paint nails, put on makeup, brush hair, and I would often find her having no problem barging into their room to just be with my aunt and uncle. She referred to them as "Papa" and "Ma" (the same thing she calls her other set of grandparents). And after they left, she asked "Papa, go?" and "Ma, go?" Ugh, the heartache. But we love and miss you already G&G!
No comments:
Post a Comment