Memorial Day 2012 (obviously very late)

For Memorial Day, we went to Cape Cod with my family as a belated graduation celebration for my sister, and briefly to Providence for part of my 5 year reunion.  The car rides went really smoothly, which was nice.  On Thursday, on our way up, we stopped in Providence for lunch with my cousin, Alexandra, who was graduating from Brown.  The weather was beautiful, and the boys had a great time running around the Green and getting their energy out.

Then we went the rest of the way to the Cape, and out to dinner.  We wanted the boys to have a night there to settle in before we went away the following day without them.  On Friday, Eric and I went to my reunion.  Here is the only picture of us, at the end of the night:

 When we got back to the Cape on Saturday, we got the sense from my parents that they were pretty much at the end of their rope with childcare.  Asher hadn't really slept at night, and Benjamin didn't nap while we were gone, so Meema and Grandpa were tired.  There was a small carnival going on by the playground, so Eric and I took the boys.  Eric and I were out of money, but the ladies at the ticket booth took pity on us and gave us a few extra tickets so that the boys could get on some rides.

Benjamin is still not sure how he feels about rides

 Then we convinced Meema to meet us for soft serve.  Last summer the boys didn't show much interest in ice cream, but this summer they seem to have wised up.  We got one chocolate and one vanilla, and the boys took it away.

Asher chose vanilla

Benjamin chose chocolate

Mmmm. Kissable lips, especially covered in chocolate

 Sunday we had perfect weather.  Of course, when we were packing, Eric told me not to bring bathing suits, because the water would be too cold. The only person who packed a bathing suit was Grandpa Nick, who is always notorious for forgetting to pack the essentials (underwear, toothbrush).  The rest of us sat around in our clothes, and the boys wore stylish diapers.

Checking out the sand and the sea

Two years + two months old and still mommy's little baby

The only hat Benjamin will wear

Most stylish bug on the beach

 The sleep schedule was kind of a mess.  It seemed like we were finally getting back on track with sleep, and it was time to leave again.  Benjamin has not been napping consistently the past couple of weeks, and I am 100% not ready for him to give up naps, so he better get back on track!  Here is Asher, taking the second half of his nap on the couch in the living room.  The only thing that got him up was the promise of getting to play "beep beep" (pretend driving the car).

Meema reading them "Where the Wild Things Are"

2nd day in a row of ice cream

No more books, on to movies

We left on Monday evening, before dinner time.  We ate in the car, which made me completely car sick!  We made it home in good time, and got home to a sparkling clean house, since our newly hired cleaning woman had come while we were away.

Then we went upstairs to find all the bedroom doors closed, and our cat Peanut hovering outside our bedroom. I knew instantly that Trouble was locked inside- since Saturday morning (this was Tuesday at 12:30 a.m.), with no food, no open windows, in the stifling heat.  I was so panicked.  I sent Eric in to look for Trouble, and when I didn't hear a scream or sobs, I assumed Trouble was alive.

Fortunately, the cleaning woman had left the lid up on the toilet, so he had water to drink, otherwise I worry he might not have made it!  Trouble was pretty disturbed, crying and clinging to us.  Oh, and our whole room stank of cat pee- but he was a good kitty and used only the bath mat in our bathroom to pee on, so the mess was easily dealt with.  He seems to have made a full recovery, and has spent the past two days killing all the mice that our neighbors have sent our way (rather than buy traps they got noise makers to scare the mice at their house, so guess where they ended up?).

We had a great weekend, and I was not ready to leave the Cape at all.  It has made me all the more eager for our vacation there in August.  It was too bad that it ended on a sour note when we got home, but we're all alive (except for those mice).