Then I had Brady

In my younger days, (like say, a year ago), long trips were a breeze.  An 8 hour day traveling across the country? No problem.  A great excuse to get sucked into good book and if I've snagged a window seat on the plane, perhaps catch up on some sleep in between chapters.  Car trips are even better.  I'm the world's worst traveling companion...my nose is either in a book or my seat is reclined and I'm sleeping.
And then I had Brady.

My seat no longer reclines because there is a car seat behind it, and even if it did, it would just be a tease.  Last week, we traveled across three time zones for a family reunion in Santa Cruz, CA.  We stayed five days then tacked on a quick trip to Lake Tahoe, a "short" car trip away. 

An itinerary was set for the Howe clan before we arrived to Santa Cruz, ensuring an action-packed week.  Our activities in California included paddleboarding, surfing, going to the aquarium, playing in a family basketball game, watching a family talent show (Eric failed to come through with his unicyle act), biking, and taking a gondola ride up the mountain (in Tahoe).

But back to the not-so-fun part of travel.  I'll set the scene for the trip to Tahoe on Friday.  Eric and my cousin, Tate are driving in the front seat. In the backseat is myself sandwiched between Tate's three-year-old son, Austin and Brady.  Combine that with a four-hour car trip that actually takes over five because of traffic and as Austin so eloquently stated (many times) in between Chugginton episodes, "This day is no fun." 

Between all of our fun activities and meals in Tahoe, I climbed in between those two car seats countless times.  As Tate drove us to the Sacramento airport yesterday (two hours from Tahoe, but on the way back to Santa Cruz where he lives), I asked the guys (above Brady's cries) if they had enjoyed their position in the front seat during the trip.  To which Eric replied, "It's no different from the back seat.  It's not like there is a sound barrier." 

Oh, my husband. 

He's a smart guy but sometimes he says things that are so very, very stupid.  I won't go into the reasons why he is wrong, but trust me when I say there are many.  And strangely, he never offered to trade places.  When you're worn out before you get to the airport to fly back home across the country, you know you're in for it!

But we made it back Sunday night and while I love vacation, the feel of my bed after a week away was like being reunited with a long lost friend.  For the first night in a week, I slept like a baby (well, not my baby).  And when my baby woke up at 6 am (thinking it was his normal 3 am wake-up) and went back to sleep until 8, I thanked the Lord for something called time-change.

What family vacation is complete without pictures?  Below are some highlights:

I love Southwest.  We didn't buy Brady a ticket but went to the very back of the plane each flight, hoping nobody would want to sit with us.  We were right.  Except for a totally booked flight from California to Chicago, Brady got his own seat.

Storytime with Emma.  She is the smartest and most well-behaved 2-year-old I've ever met.  As the oldest, she's ruining it for all her cousins.

More fun things for us to do?

Jelly fish!

18th hole of Pebble Beach

The kid loves watermelon

Eric, Amy, and Hudson

Leo's not so happy

Brady's not so happy

My genius plan was to bike during Brady's morning naptime in Tahoe. I envisioned a trailer coming off the bike where Brady could lie down.  My vision was not realized.  Brady spent the first 15 minutes laughing hysterically as he was bounced around.  The next hour was spent slumped over, looking like his head was about to fall off his body.   Luckily, it didn't, and by all accounts, it appeared to be a successful plan after all. 

Beautiful Lake Tahoe

Don't leave home without your straws

If you don't have straws, sticks work!