weekend getaway

This past weekend we met up with Natalie's Grandma and Grandpa Cherry for an overnight so they could spend some time with her and check out how much she has grown. It was our first long car ride and night in a hotel since she's been born, which was a little nerve-wracking. Here is miss Natalie, all dressed up for our trip, with her usual pensive expression:

She was pretty fussy on the car ride, which meant that my big plans to use the trip as an excuse to make lots of phone calls was foiled; instead, I spent the ride in the back seat with Natalie, entertaining her with silly faces and letting her suck on my pinky to pass the time. By the time we got to the hotel, she was pretty well exhausted:

Mike and I were worried that Natalie would be cranky after spending most of the day on the road, but she surprised us by staying pretty cheerful for a visit with her grandparents:

It was so special to see Natalie bonding with her grandparents, who hadn't been able to see her since her first week of life:

She spent the evening falling asleep in her Grandpa's arms while we all visited. Looks pretty comfy, huh?

We fit Natalie's snuggle nest into bed with us for the night, and had a surprisingly decent night's sleep on our first night away from home as a family. In the morning, Natalie was her usual sweet, alert self:

She even graced her grandmother with a few real smiles!

We spent the morning strolling around downtown Dover, NH, doing some shopping and checking out the local sights. It was a gorgeous day, and was such a nice way to end the weekend. Before heading back north on another fussy car ride, we enjoyed an al fresco lunch with Natalie's aunt, uncle, and cousins, who made the drive to meet her for the first time.

Overall, it was a great weekend! Another major bonus of the trip? The chance to do some shopping at a mall, which is a real rarity these days. The best purchase of the weekend was probably this pair of sunglasses:

This trip was a kind of practice-run for our longer drive to New York that we'll be making in a couple of weeks for the Hershberger-Porter wedding (woo hoo!), which will be a longer drive, longer stay, and much busier trip. It was a relief to have survived this first extended excursion away from home just as we are in need of some confidence in our ability to stray away from home base with Natalie. We have been eyeing our calendar for the summer, and this past weekend was the first of about 9 in a row that are booked with trips and visitors, so I think we'll be continuing to get braver and more comfortable with our new roles as parents.