It was a looooong car ride. On the Sunday after Thanksgiving we loaded up my parents mini-van with luggage and Christmas gifts and headed up to West Virginia. Luckily there were enough people to split the driving time so my dad and Joe alternated. We also decided to make the drive over two days, eight hours a day, rather than one long stretch. We did get pretty cozy in the good old Honda Odyssey. Here's a pic of Romy playing with the phone:
That night we stayed at an awesome new Marriott outside Charlotte, NC. They had a game room complete with a Wii and a poker table. After a few hands of poker, my parents volunteered to put Rosemary to sleep while Joe and I played some mean games of tennis, bowling and bowling. He kicked my butt, but he was gentlemanly enough to let me win a time or two.
The next day we finally made it to Berkeley Springs. Here's a picture of the stream you have to cross to get to my sister's little chalet on Sleepy Creek Mountain. Her house is absolutely amazing. I don't have any good pictures of it so you'll just have to take my word. It's a little log cabin on 5 acres that she has transformed with her nursery and gardens into a little wonderland.
While my sister and brother-in-law are reason enough to make the drive, the real star of the trip was little Malachite Sky. What a sweet baby boy! While he may not look so happy in this picture of the happy grandparents with their grandkids, this was one of the few times he cried during our two days up there. He is a little dream.
I'm not the only one who feels that way. We dressed them up in matching Christmas pjs and Rosemary did not stop kissing him long enough to get a picture of both of their faces! I think she's a little smitten with her cousin! Could that be a sign to me and Joe that perhaps she's ready for a sibling?
Aunt Terra has a trampoline on her land so we had a little family-time on it. This is one of my favorite pictures from this year and it made it onto our Christmas card.
This is the only picture I got of my sister and I with our babies. I think it's kind of cute!
We did Christmas that night. Terra got Rosemary and I a YogaKids dvd that I really wanted! Now that we're home, I put it in and we do a little yoga after breakfast each morning.
Rosemary really loves her yoga. She set up the teddy bear my brother-in-laws family got her and her Sleeping Beauty doll my mom gave her into downward dog position and then climbed up on the table and joined them. She's a little hoot! But if you tell her that, she'll say "I'm not a hoot, I'm a baby."
We had an incredible time in West Virginia. Berkeley Springs can only be described as a place right out of a Hallmark or Lifetime Christmas movie. A small art and spa town, history is everywhere! George Washington was one of the original surveyers. The small downtown area is adorable. The mountains are majestic. It even has a castle. Joe and I fell in love with it and have been fighting the urge to pack up and move the family ever since we got back. But, alas, timing is everything, and for some reason something is keeping us in Tampa for now. Perhaps that something could be a good job and a house. That whole responsibility thing is kind of a drag. At least we have a reason (or two or three) to go back. I hope it won't be too long before we can see Malachite again. He is precious!
No comments:
Post a Comment