Week 31

Dear Zayde,

This letter is two whole weeks late because I've been "out of town."  I learned that people can travel far from home.  These trips are called "adventures," and I have had quite a few of them recently.  I'll write you a letter to commemorate each week, just like I usually do.  This one will explain everything I learned during my 31st week.

Mommy and Daddy spent most of the early part of the week packing clothes and toys and quite a few diapers into suitcases.  It's amazing how many outfits Mommy claimed I would need for the trip.  And how many of them were pink.  On the big day, I learned around 5:30 am that it is possible for Mommy to wake me up.  I thought that I was performing a valuable service each morning by waking up my parents so that they could start their busy days.  It never occurred to me that they were capable of waking up on their own.  Our first stop on our way to see you was a huge and busy building called an "airport."  I met TSA agents who took my bag of toys and diapers (which was a little upsetting) but then gave everything back.  All sorts of strangers stopped to say hello and tell me I'm gorgeous.  Nothing new there.

Mommy will tell you that most exciting thing we did that day was ride in an airplane.  I disagree.  What's so exciting about sitting still?  For three hours, we did the usual - snack, snooze, and play - but only once did we leave our seats.  That's when I learned that I can have my diaper changed in an incredibly small space.  I had plenty of room on the table, but Mommy looked a bit cramped trying to get my diapers off and on.  (That day she also changed me in a public restroom and in a car.  My tushie saw more excitement than I did.)

When we landed in Boston, I learned that we were in a different state.  I have no idea what this means, but during that week, I visited three new states.  I'm beginning to understand that this world of ours is much, much larger than the distances Mommy drives in her car while running errands.  In Boston, I learned that a rental car is like a regular car but smells like other families.  Then I learned that a "road trip" is when Daddy drives a long distance while Mommy gives him directions.  I figured they had that part of the journey under control, so I snuggled into my car seat and slept through Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and a good bit of Maine.  When I awoke, we were driving past houses not made of stucco and hundreds of trees that didn't look like the palm trees near our home.  The car stopped at a marina, and Mommy declared, "welcome to Maine!" and opened the car doors.  That's when I learned that Maine is a place covered in fog.  There's usually a cool breeze, and it smells like the things that live and die in the ocean.  What is most exciting is that you and Bubbi were there to meet us.  I learned that you and Bubbi are still on your boat.  At first I was really confused: did we just travel for six hours only to end up 20 minutes from our house?  But then I realized that although we were on the same boat, it was not in the same water.  How did you get the whole boat up to Maine?  I doubt it could have fit on an airplane.  Did you take it on a road trip?

Once we were on the boat, I learned that you and Bubbi brought my travel crib and high chair all the way to Maine.  That was very considerate of you, even though I didn't end up using my crib very much.  (More on that later.)  That night I learned that people eat lobster outside on long tables set up under tents, even when it's raining.  In Maine, the people wear jackets in the summer.  I learned that I have many more cousins than the ones I'd encountered in Florida, and some of those cousins are much closer to my age, like Juliet and Blake and Conor.  Mommy says that next year I'll be big enough to run and play with all these cousins.  Do you think she'll let me eat lobster, too?

At night on the boat, I learned that I would much prefer to sleep between Mommy and Daddy than to spend an entire night in my travel crib.  The crib is comfortable enough, but my parents are much warmer.  I had plenty of room in the middle of the bed.  Mommy said something about hanging off the edge all night, but I slept just fine.

On Saturday, I learned that family and friends from Florida, Philadelphia, and even Canada had joined us to celebrate your birthday.  Honestly, it was a bit of a nonstop blur of smiling faces and squeezing hands and the usual exclamations of, "she's so cute!"  Sometimes all the attention got to be too much, and I would complain that I'd prefer to have a quiet hour of playing with you and Bubbi, but the boat was full of cousins to keep me entertained, and we had a busy schedule of parties.  That night, I learned that adults like to dance.  At first I was wary of so many people making so much noise indoors, but then the band started to play, and you hit the dance floor, and I was thoroughly entertained.  I learned that I come from a family of people who know how to bust a move.  We have rhythm!  I also learned how to dance a "slow dance" with Mommy and Daddy.  By 9:00 pm, I was tuckered out, so we returned to the boat for my bedtime routine.  To tell you the truth, I think my parents were more tired than I was.  I could have stayed at the dance and enjoyed a few more twirls around the dance floor, but I didn't want my poor parents to have to go to bed all alone.

That brings us to the next week's adventures...