Surprise!

My grandparents and godfather once flew to Arizona as a surprise to watch me receive my master's degree. My father once showed up at our door, nearly knocking me off my feet. Well, recently it was my turn to return the favor. It had been in the works for only 3 weeks, with only my brother and Sarah knowing the plan. I was nervous about flying alone with the baby, but once again, Vincent was an awesome traveler. Cheerios certainly make life easier, too! Here's Vinny on his 3rd cross country plane trip in his first 10 months of life!

My mom's reaction to our surprise was priceless. While I thought there'd be a watershed of tears, there were none. Her state of shock precluded her from processing our arrival fast enough to cry, which was probably a good thing. Sarah and Brian asked my parents to babysit, but instead of carrying in Blaise, Sarah had Vincent in tow. It took a while to register, and when it did, we had a good laugh. Listen carefully for Blaise's contribution, "'Prise!"

Just like at Mommo and Boppo's, Vinny loves to kick it old school in a kitchen sink bath!

Cousin Blaise was so nice to share his blueberry donut with Vinny. Vincent ate quite well this trip. Life is so interesting now that the little boy has teeth and can eat real food. Among some of his new favorites: muffins, pierogies, and apple pie. Yum!

We timed our trip perfectly with Papa's birthday. Dad was in his glory sitting down to a dinner with his two favorite boys. Blaise was precious. In between making the biggest mess the Bugaboo waitstaff had ever seen, he summoned the talking moose to "c'mon, wake up moose." Meanwhile, Vincent did his best to keep up with his big cousin's mess, spilling more cheerios on the floor than into his mouth.

So happy playing with Gramma and Papa!

Vincent with Uncle Walter

No fear!

With Auntie Diane

With Uncle Tommy

Serious eaters...

I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to bring Vincent home for this surprise visit. Even though my parents will be out here for Vincent's first birthday in March, I feel so blessed to sneak in an extra visit with his great grandparents before our next trip in the summer. It's also so great to watch Blaise form a relationship with his little cousin. Even though they live 3000 miles away from each other, it's fun to catch a glimpse of what kind of buds they'll be as they get older.