Christmas 2012

Bel Air, MD  / Cape Cod, MA

We again shipped our little poopers off to Doggie Daycare and headed for the East. This time, it was the North East. Butch and I had not been to Maryland since 2010 and Darius had not visited his grandparents in MA since 2007. As we boarded our plane the cutest thing happened to us. The lady in front of us handed us this little baggy...

How cute is this? This really made me smile! The baby was one of the most beautiful children I've ever seen and she did great!

We arrived in Baltimore in the afternoon and Darius arrived that night at midnight. As we drove back home from the airport Darius asks us, "Does this bring back memories?" To which I answered, "Of Course!" We use to drive that same drive every other week-end to pick up Darius when we all lived in the North East. It felt pretty cool for all of us to be back in our old territory. 

Darius, Butch and I all stayed with Butch's father and stepmother. I must say, the accommodations were fantastic. It was a pretty low-key few days leading into Christmas. We visited, we ate and we slept in. It was just what the doctor ordered.

Butch's father. I'm sure you can see the resemblance.

Hanging out with the family. This is cousin Josh.

The clan, doing what they do. :)

I don't really have any fantastic stories about this visit. We were just thankful to be with family and friends. We did a lot of nothing. On Christmas day I never left the house. 

We took time to visit Butch's bulldog, Sadie. Butch raised Sadie as a puppy and had to leave her behind when circumstances no longer allowed him to travel with Sadie. Butch's brother, Jason is now the proud owner of this amazing dog. Butch really loves her more than I can even explain. She's an amazing animal with a special place in our hearts. 

The day after Christmas we traveled to Cape Cod, MA to visit the rest of the Mendes family. Darius' cousin, Alana, went with us. I expected the two of them to being talking, acting silly and making annoying noises in the car. Instead, this is what we got...

The 1st 20 minutes of the road trip looked like this.

And the next 5 hours looked like this... HA! Teenagers sleep, A LOT!

If you don't think this is hilarious then you just aren't a funny person. HAHA... Kidding but for real, I'm not. Butch and I started this thing where we give a goofy name when they ask for your name at Starbucks. It's hilarious. We entertain ourselves often. :) 

We finally arrived, safe and sound at the Mendes Bed & Breakfast. Staying at Lenny & Lois' is a treat. They really go out of their way to make us comfortable and there is never a shortage of fantastic food. Some things never change either. Within 7 minutes of entering the house G-ma Lois was giving me the third degree about having her some grandkids. Hilarious! I really love all my extended family. It was great to have so much time to visit.

These are on the bedroom doors upstairs. This is why I call it the Mendes B&B.

This is awesome. The last time they were in Cape Cod together and this year. Wow, they've grown so much.

And BAM... This blog post ends abruptly. I totally forgot I never published this post so I randomly posted it and it's somewhat unfinished. That's how I roll.