What's up with the Thomas': Trip to Texas & Louisiana

Grandma's House

Last Saturday, Lane had is first plane ride... it went surprisingly well! We were a little nervous considering that we were flying with an almost 3 month old, but it went great. We sat by a very nice woman on the way there, she was super sweet, telling me not to worry and saying how cute he was the whole time. We all took a nice little nap...

Uncle Brad and Aunt Lara picked us up at the airport and drove us to Grandma's house. We left our sunny and 70 for pouring rain and HUMID - ugh - I hate the humidity, I honestly don't think I could live in humid weather again. We showed up at Grandma's, and cousins Jack & Luke were there to greet us. They were so cute with Lane, shaking his hand and saying "nice to meet you". For the next two days, they would do that and/or rub his head every time they walked by. They were a little disappointed that their new cousin couldn't play with them yet. Needless to say, it was a long day and we all slept very well that night.

On Sunday, we had a houseful. Scott and Melody Boyd and Ms. Babcock came to visit. It was nice to see them. Uncle Barry showed up with Chicken Louisiane - yum. Aunt Lara played with Lane and held him, putting him to sleep a couple of times. Jack & Luke even got their chance to hold you. Aunt Jeannine came to visit and get her cuddles in, too. Oh, and I almost forgot, it was Dave and I's 6th wedding anniversary! It was a fun day spent hanging with the fam.

Grandma happy to be reunited with her grandson.

Jack & Luke excited to meet their new cousin.

Lane eating...

Lane eating... again...

Aunt Lara and the boys playing.

Luke wanted Lane to have the kangaroo - he was so cute with him.

Grandma showing Lane the flowers in her garden.

Lane with Uncle Brad

Me and my big brothers - of course I'm messing with my hair, the other picture was me sticking out my tongue.... oh well.

Aunt Jeannine & Lane

Uncle Barry & Aunt Jeannine

Dave playing with my childhood toy puppet, Rowlf from the muppets.

Monday we went to eat at Fiesta Taqueria (or the Trailer). I had multiple dreams about eating there while I was pregnant, so was very excited to eat here. It was so good. I even got an enchilada dinner to-go so that I could have it for dinner!

Tuesday we went to Houston and did some antique shopping in the Heights on 19th Street and ate lunch at Nico Nico's in Montrose. We had seen it on an episode of Diner's, Drive-in's and Dives. They had obviously expanded since they were on the show, it was pretty good. It also gave my mom and I a chance to argue on how Gyro was pronounced. Then, we stopped to visit my friend Brooke who I've known since we were 9 years old. She and her husband Michael have just built a sweet new home in The Woodlands. It was so nice to catch up a little and visit with her adorable kids Conner, 4 (who I had previously met at our high school reunion in 2009) and Allie, who had just celebrated her 2nd birthday... what cuties! Allie was so cute wanting me to hold her and sit with me. I am looking forward to getting to spend a little more time when we return for Christmas. We also made a stop by Uncle Barry and Aunt Jeannine's so that we could drop off Aunt Jeannine's camera and visit with them one more time.

Shopping in the Heights

Me & my girl Allie

Brooke and I with our kiddos

Lane even caught a siesta on Brooke's bed

We were on the road early Wednesday morning to Lafayette to visit family and friends. First stop, Olde Tyme Grocery for a shrimp po-boy and Strawberry Abita... mmm. Then we went to Aunt Bubbles' house where her and Aunt Colleen were waiting to pinch those cheeks. We were sitting on the porch and Aunt Lynette happened to drive by, so she stopped to visit. We stayed at the Buchanan Lofts downtown, they are really cool. Grandma watched Lane for a few hours so that we could go to dinner (a late anniversary celebration of sorts) with Casey & Justin. We ate at Pamplona, a tapas restaurant, it was so good.

Aunt Bubbles swinging with Lane on the porch

Aunt Colleen feeding Lane

Aunt Bub & Uncle Harry

Us at dinner

Thursday we slept in, if you can call it that when you are up multiple times in the night to feed baby... we went to breakfast at a favorite, Dwyer's, then came back to our loft for a nap. For lunch I took Dave to Judice Inn for a hamburger, and he said it was pretty much one of the best burgers that he has ever had. Supposedly they are going to be listed one of USA Today's Top 50 Burgers. My dad used to eat there in college and whenever we would go to visit family, he would get a sack of them and bring them to Aunt Bubbles' house. I would go there when I went to UL - I hadn't had one in a while and forgot how good they really were. That afternoon, my cousin Heather organized a family get together at her parents' house - Uncle Buddy and Aunt Marlene's. I hadn't seen any of them since my cousin Holly's wedding, which was when I was in high school, I think. It was so fun to meet their spouses and kids. My Aunt Marla and cousins April and Ramey showed up too. Ramey had her two kids in tow - the last time I saw Ramey she was pregnant for Finley, who is 2 and she is now pregnant again. It really meant alot to me to see everyone. After that, we went to Aunt Bubbles' for dinner, she cooked one of my favorite dishes, her brisket. Raegan, Allayna, their kids, and Kip and Michelle were there, so it was nice to catch up with them. We would always stay at Aunt Bubbles' house when we visited growing up, and we have spent many holidays there, so I feel closest to all of them. I loved that they got to meet Lane, and that I was able to spend some time with all of them and their families. Kip and Michelle are pregnant, I can't wait to find out what they are having and meet their baby... maybe when we visit in December!

Friday we decided to stay one more day. I spent most of the day with one of my favorite friends from college, Tiffany, and her kids Amelie and River while Dave went antique shopping with my mom and her sisters. River is 2 weeks older than Lane. It was so nice being around another mom and baby that is close to Lane's age. We drove around Lafayette for a while to make sure that Lane & River were good and asleep, then went to lunch at Dean-O's, they have awesome pizza, one is the Marie LeVeaux (crab meat/mushroom) - so good. Then we went back to Tiff's where Lane and River took naps while Tiffany and I relaxed, re-fueled with coffee, caught up and I wracked her brain with baby questions.. I wish I would have gotten a pic of her and I. That night, grandma babysat and we went with Casey to Downtown Alive for a little while.

River & Lane

We headed back to Huntsville on Saturday to prepare for our return to California. Traveling and vacations are definitely a little different when you have a baby along for the ride. Lane did pretty good considering we were dragging him in and out of cars and he was being passed around by so many people. He was a trooper. We all left with some sinus issues, but other than that, it was a successful visit!