NY Trip - Day 6 - Family Time

This morning Becca and I visited my best friend, Christy, and her kids. They are family to us and we try to make time for them every time we come to New York. It's always great to see them. They have three young girls, who I call my nieces. Christy's sister, who I am also good friends with, Traci, also came over with her two young kids. Unfortunately I don't get many opportunities to see her, so I called her and asked her to come over for a visit. It was great to see them as well :) We had lunch together and then Traci had to go home with her kids and soon after that, all the kids were down for a nap at the same time. It was nice because it gave Christy and I some one-on-one alone time. We had a great talk. She's like a sister to me. After the kids woke up we let them play a bit longer then me and Becca had to leave. We went back to my mom's house where my stepsister and my two nephews were waiting to see us. We don't get to see them much either. Kids change so much so fast. It makes me sad that I am missing out on so much of their lives :( Anyway, we had a nice quick visit and then me, Becca, mom, Larry (my mom's boyfriend) and my brother Joey took off to my Aunt's house for a big family gathering. About 1/4 of our extended family was there. They met Larry for the first time and I think he fit in quite nicely. I found out later that everyone approves :) It was nice to visit with family I don't normally get to see and have Becca warm up to them. We were there way past Becca's bedtime so she went right to sleep when we got back to my mom's house. :) It did make me miss Eric though, having everyone ask where he was and then seemed disappointed that they didn't get a chance to visit with him because he left so early. It's really hard traveling without Eric and having to do everything myself. It can be done, but it's much more exhausting and not as easygoing.

NY Trip - Day 2 - Preparations for the party

Terrible day yesterday, followed by a terrible night of non-sleep. Went to bed at 11:30pm and didn't sleep well at all. The room I'm staying in has hardwood floors so I kept hearing Max's nails tapping the floor and his chain collar against the floor every time he laid down. (Why I didn't just take the collar off of him is beyond me). But Max slept the entire 13 hour drive in the car, which is why he was awake all night walking around the room, sniffing all the new smells. Then I heard his tongue lapping while he gave himself a bath...very distracting. Becca was up at 5am. I brought her into bed with me and when she started nodding off I put her back in the pack n' play and I left the room so she could get some more sleep. Later that morning Becca and I went to my MIL's (mother-in-law's) house to get ready for tomorrow's party. We chopped onions and tomatoes and, for the most part, visited and talked about plans for tomorrow. Becca and I went back to my mom's for dinner and later that night my aunt and uncle came over to visit. They were unable to come to the party tomorrow so they came tonight to see us. It was a real nice visit and I was happy they made time for us. Every time I come to NY I always go to bed much later. My mom's a night owl. I'm used to going to bed around 10pm at home, but when visiting in NY it's usually closer to midnight. That's okay though, I try to visit and spend time with family as much as possible. That's what vacations are all about right?