San Fran Recap Day 1

As usual, the easiest way to recap our trip is to take it day by day. So, Day 1:

A little last minute packing. Cutest helper ever, right?

And then we left P with Mimi (with no tears from him and only minimal tears from me-  yay!) and headed to the airport!

After a few delays, a bumpy landing in Denver and a close connection we made it to San Francisco where we lucked out with the shadiest cab driver ever. Finally at Ryan's we crashed about 2:30 a.m. west coast time.

Our first day in San Francisco was July 4!

Picture taken of store window in Sausalito.

We started the day with a quick walk down (down being the key word) Lombard Street.

Then Keith and I had a Ghirardelli sundae for breakfast. Best breakfast ever.

We quickly burned off all of those calories with a 2 mile walk to the Ferry Building. On the way we passed the America's Cup Village so we stopped for a look at the boats.

At the Ferry Building...

We ate more.


Olive oil tasting

Yummy!

Spring rolls from Out the Door, the faster more affordable option in The Slanted Door family

Coke is always better in a glass bottle.

Then it was off to Sausalito for the afternoon, dinner, and fireworks.

This is a houseboat. Crazy.

Dinner at Sushi Ran. So, so good. Especially these heirloom tomatoes.

Fireworks in Gabrielson Park

From Gabrielson Park in Sausalito we could see the Sausalito fireworks and the San Francisco fireworks. The San Francisco fireworks were my favorite. They were going off from two different locations and were synchronized. While the fireworks were great, the drive home was not. It took us an hour just to get out of Sausalito (and if I had been driving instead of Ryan it would have taken us longer!). All in all though it was a fun day! Happy Birthday, America!

Parker's week with Granddaddy and Mimi

Granddaddy and Mimi here. Keith and Raney took their first trip without Parker and we got to watch him for 5 nights while they were gone. To say that we were nervous is an understatement: “It’s been so long since we watched a baby overnight!”, “What if he’s really fussy because he misses his Daddy and Mommy?”, “Can we keep up with a 14 month old?”. We needn’t have worried – those rusty parenting skills came back (kind of like riding a bike!), and Raney left very detailed and complete instructions that we consulted often to keep Parker on his normal routine. So, what was it like?

Pleasure. We were so honored to be asked to watch the little man, and it was indeed a pleasure.

Action. Whew – that says it all. It’s amazing how much energy a 14 month old has. Having over 2 full days of rain didn’t help. Thursday Aimee bailed us out by meeting her at Best Buy to shop for a new phone.

This picture tells the story – it’s the side of Parker we saw the most!

Raspberries. Keith’s grandfather started this and we used to do this to Keith, and now we get to do it to Parker. Pin him to the floor and blow either on his neck or his tummy making a raspberry sound and he giggles and squeals and wants more – which he gets! So much fun wrestling with him!

Kind. We really believe that Parker has inherited a sweet kind nature like his Daddy and Mommy. When P is eating his cheerios or goldfish, just open your mouth and he’ll gladly put one in for you. It may not be very dry, but he’s willing to share! He shares his toys, and P is also very kind to his big sister who is so good to put up with P’s heavy handed petting at times. And of course P is kind enough to share his food with Darcy, especially when he’s full.

Entertaining. We have laughed more over the last 6 days than we have in a long time. He’s such fun to watch from his ‘ohh’ sounds and corresponding facial expression, the constant pointing, the games he’ll play (putting the TV remote on the table, then turning around and clapping for himself – over and over again), the fussiness that turns off in an instant once he gets what he wants, the attempt to drink water from the running bath faucet, and on and on.

Rewarding. It’s every parent’s wish that their children grow to be happy, well-adjusted, hard-working, responsible adults who find a mate that fits them to a “T”. We have been blessed that Aimee and Keith are just that. Keith and Raney are such wonderful parents, and Nick and Aimee are such a wonderful Uncle and Aunt to Parker. We couldn’t be more proud, and I know that Grandma and Papap feel the same way.

Keith and Raney, thanks for entrusting the care of your little man to us for a few days. Are we tired? A little. Was it worth it? Absolutely! We love you!!

 

Here we go...

Tomorrow we're off to San Francisco! We have so many fun things planned and I'm so pumped, but I sure am sad to be leaving these cuties.

Yes, Keith and I are going to San Fran without Parker. This will be the first time we've been away from this face in his entire life.

P will be in great hands with his grandparents. And so will Keith and I. We have our own personal tour guide lined up (hey, Ryan!). So, here we go... !

Family

We've had lots of family time the past week or so. My aunt, Linda, who lives in the Seattle area was here for 3 days and Keith's grandparents have been in town as well. Linda hadn't been to Nashville since Keith and I got married so we had fun showing her some things she didn't see on her last visit. We went to downtown Franklin...

Leiper's Fork...



East Nashville to eat at The Pharmacy...

and drove under the Natchez Trace Bridge...

Linda's really into music and songwriting so The Bluebird was a must see/do...

She even sang to Parker...

We're so glad she came to visit!



Keith's grandparents have been in town for a couple of weeks so we were able to eat dinner with them a few times. It's always so sweet to see Parker with his great-grandparents. I just love this series of pictures.