last trip for awhile

we returned to work this week after taking three days off last week to go for a long weekend in upstate new york. this is our last major trip (i.e., the last trip involving an airplane) before #2 arrives in february.

the impetus for the trip was to celebrate anne's (our sister-in-law) 40th birthday. we left at a very reasonable time around 11am from the west coast and had smooth and early flights on both legs. greta chose not to nap, which surprisingly, did not turn out to be disastrous for us. fran and mark picked us up from the airport and we were off to their house in vermont for the night. greta fell asleep within minutes and we were off. the only hitch for the night, which thankfully turned out to be minor in the grander scheme of the trip, was that greta got an upset tummy and tossed her cookies two times during the night. all was well the next morning and evan and i got the bleary out of our eyes with some coffee and delicious breakfast at a local place.

we spent thursday in vermont, getting breakfast, visiting some of the family friends that were in town, sneaking out to the outlet mall shops while greta napped, and generally relaxing. that evening we headed back to schenetady and met anne, eric and the girls at a restaurant to celebrate anne's 40th birthday. it was a great meal and even better to get the chance to catch up with them and watch the girls all play.

greta had great fun with riley and hannah and wanted to follow them around and do what they did for most of the weekend. on saturday evening, we were lucky enough to be able to go to hannah's first gymnastics meet and watch her perform. she did great and, of course, we heard all the following week that greta does "nastics" too. following hannah's performance, we all snuck over to eric & anne's friends house where there was a surprise celebration brewing for anne. she was certainly surprised and it was a great way to spend the last night. much of anne's family also came in, making it an extra special surprise.

we departed the party around 10:30 or so and headed to bed to catch the crack of dawn flight out the next morning. travel back was exhausting after getting up so early, but greta napped and we survived. it was a great visit - just the right mix of relaxed and fun-filled.

happy halloween!!!

last night was the culmination of the halloween holiday (except of course, for the eating of the booty). friday was the halloween celebration at camp (aka daycare) and work. greta was quite excited about the fact that she was going to 2 parties in one day.

we got her into her costume without any issues in the morning. this year she dressed as a construction worker, complete with overalls, a hardhat, safety goggles, a tool belt and for evan and my amusement, a sign on her back that read "bay bridge or bust!" (in a tribute to the shutdown of the bay bridge for an emergency fix after a chunk of the bridge fell on the road).

the festivities started with a parade at camp at 10am. the teachers got everyone ready in costume with the help of the parents who came to watch and all the kids walked or were carried along the sidewalk down the street and back. the kids were beaming in their costumes and they all behaved for the parade. controlled chaos is the best descriptor.

in the afternoon they had a party at camp with face paining treats and other fun activities. i picked greta up a bit early to take her to my office, where every year, they have a trick or treat route for kids to go around the office and get some goodies. evan met us there, and greta was a hit. she had a great time.

yesterday, we did our celebration at night. after an early dinner, we went down to san jose and met our neighbors and their kids for a bit of trick or treating down there. greta is a natural. she was a bit shy at the first house, but then caught onto the "trick or treat", "happy halloween", and most importantly "thank you". her favorite line though it turns out was "i want to open it now". so much for the halloween that was about the process vs. the loot - it couldn't have lasted forever. at least she hasn't asked for a lollipop since 7am this morning.

to wrap up the rest of the month, the second weekend my parents were here was mostly low key. evan and i did take another opportunity to go out on a date night saturday night. we headed up to the city for dinner at jackson fillmore (and it was as good as we remembered and were expecting - mmmmm) and a concert at bimbos. oddly enough, neither of us had seen a concert there before. it was a great venue.

we saw jay farrar (son volt, uncle tupelo) and ben gibbard (lead singer for death cab for cutie) who collaborated on an album and were doing 6 shows in the u.s. to promote it. the album is inspired by and takes the words from jack kerouac's novel big sur. it is a great album and we highly recommend it. the concert was amazing. ben gibbard was great and has a wonderfully distinct and soulful voice, but jay farrar just speaks to the soul when he sings. he is amazing. it was a wonderful night to get out, eat well and hear some great musicians (thanks mom & dad for babysitting!!!).

we had great weather to wrap up the month (vs. the 13.5 inches of rain in a day and a half when my parents arrive - and a day and half without power). the last weekend of my parents visit was great for another round of cupcake decorating on the deck and pumpkin carving since "pumpkin face" #1 did not make it the week.

all in all, october was a good, but busy, month.