Trip to Northern CA

This is a long post, so put on some comfy clothes, make your favorite beverage, grab your laptop, iPad or Galaxy (I do not play favorites), build and fire, snuggle up with someone you love, relax and enjoy this entry.

I’ll wait ‘til your ready…

Alright, here we go. Brielle and I flew down to Northern California last week (February 15th), for our first mommy and me flight. Thanks to the moms from my moms group at church, I learned that Steve could actually get a temporary pass to escort me through security and to the gate. What a huge help that was (considering I was able to pack both Brielle and I in only a carry on and a diaper bag, so my hands were quite full). Keep in mind, this is only possible when the security alert system is not too high, so don’t expect this courtesy during the holidays or say… WWIII. Fortunately, neither of these events were happening, so Steve walked us through security to our gate to say goodbye.

The flight on the way down was uneventful, and we were picked up by my friend Jess who we stayed with in Fremont for the first few days. I was able to introduce Brielle to so many of our friends there, and all their new babies too. Here are some pictures of the babies we met in Fremont.

Here’s Brielle’s new friend Aria:

They played together so well. They even “spoke” to each other during tummy time.

Here are Brielle’s friends BenJamin and Liam (whose parents we stayed with):

BenJamin

Liam (and Brielle and Aria)

Liam got a little rough with Brielle at one point:

But not to worry, we’ve taught our little girl defensive techniques. Here she is defending herself:

After discovering Brielle to be a worthy opponent, he decided it was best to just be friends.

On this trip, I learned how musically talented our daughter is. Here she is wowing her cousins Ashlyn and Amy on the piano (Ashlyn’s the one with the awesome red hair, and Brielle is sitting in Amy’s lap):

And as if piano wasn’t enough, here she is wowing her other cousins Robby and Amanda and Aunt Teresa on the drums:

Stick, no stick, didn’t matter to her.

Here’s a couple of live shots:

Last but not least, I learned Brielle is a tamer of beasts. See how she subdued this previously ferocious dog into a sleepy state with just a pat on the nose:

Although an exhausting trip, all in all it was great to see everyone, and introduce them to our baby girl.