Road Trip!

We finally took Daniel on his first road trip over the Memorial Day weekend. We drove out to Maryland to visit his Aunt Jen, Uncle Bob, and cousins Timmy and Sarah. We left Thursday evening and drove until almost midnight before stopping to overnight at a hotel. This was Daniel's first night in a hotel. He woke up when we arrived but thankfully went back to sleep without a problem and woke up at his usual 6:30 am. After grabbing our free breakfast, we jumped back in the car to finish our drive. Daniel did really well in the car, chatting, napping, and watching all the new scenery outside. We arrived at Jen and Bob's house around 2pm.

Friday evening was spent catching up with Jen and Bob while the kids played. We had a great dinner of steak and shrimp, then relaxed for a while before bed. The kids were excited to be together and wanted to sleep together, so we set up a sleeping area on the floor in Timmy's room. That lasted until very early Saturday morning, when Jen brought Daniel down to our room and the other kids ended up back in their beds. Oh well, I guess it was fun while it lasted!

Saturday morning we headed out to Larriland Farms to pick some fresh strawberries. The weather was sunny and warm. We managed to pick 12 pounds of strawberries, with an extra pound or so going into the bellies of Daniel and Sarah!

After strawberry picking, we headed up to the barn to check out the petting farm. We got a close up look at a couple of llamas and a few goats.

Everyone was tired on the ride home so we headed back home to rest up a bit. The adults were ready for a nap, the kids were not. The kids played while the Bob and Randy tried to get a little rest. Bob and Randy then took the kids up to get a Snowball (snow cone) while Jen and I rested up and got ready for our adults dinner out. Jen arranged for a babysitter to stay with the kids so we could go out for a nice relaxing dinner without the kids. We went to a great little place called The County Cork Wine Bar. The food and wine were great, as was the adult time!

Sunday was another beautiful day. Jen and I went grocery shopping in the morning while Randy and Bob hung out with the kids. In the afternoon, Bob set up a couple of wading pools and the sprinkler for the kids. Daniel loved sliding down the slide into the pool and playing in the mud with Sarah.

That evening, Jen and Bob treated us to a wonderful steamed Maryland crab dinner out on the deck. It was messy and delicious!

The kids ate their grilled hot dogs picnic-style before heading back into the yard to play more.

Monday morning it was time to head home. Daniel did really well on the 9 hour trip. He took a morning nap and watched videos most of the afternoon. We had a great time visiting with Jen, Bob, Timmy and Sarah and can't wait to see them all again!