Finally Back In Rhode Island

Greetings everyone! This posting is being written by Neal instead of Leanna. So don't blame Leanna for any spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, or offensive speech.

After 26 days on the road, we are finally back home. Our house did not fall down while we were traveling, so I guess that's a win. The only apparent injuries were our two plants that we purchased at the farmer's market the week before we left, and forgot to water. However, with some quick thinking by Leanna and lots of water, our patients seem to be recovering nicely.

The trip ended with an abrupt halt (to use Leanna's term we "crashed and burned"). We didn't relish the thought of driving 17 hours over two days with Aviva (she has become a little resistant to long car trips), so Leanna, Aviva and I drove to Midway Airport in Chicago so Leanna and Aviva could fly to Philadelphia to be greeted by my parents.

On the night before we left, Leanna had a "dental malfunction." She was enjoying some caramel trail mix and ended up chipping her back molar.

The next morning, we left Iowa with ample time, however we were slowed down by an exploded diaper and a discarded fleece sleeper (no need to expand here-I promise). Upon their arrival in Chicago, the proof of age that the good people at Southwest told me would suffice was rejected by the ticketing agent, and Leanna was forced to buy a full-fare ticket for Aviva. To make matters worse, when they arrived in Philadelphia, our stroller was nowhere to be found. Our best guess is that someone decided to "upgrade" their stroller to ours (which I guess is somewhat flattering, but a pain in the ass nonetheless).

So poor Leanna arrived in Philadelphia with half a tooth, a loaner stroller, and an exhausted baby whose plane ticket cost double of what Leanna paid for hers. Meanwhile, I was driving across the midwest with a car full of luggage and a dog sleeping on the passenger-side floor.

After a few relaxing days in Philadelphia and two trips to the dentist for Leanna, we were off on the final leg of our journey, with a dog, a cat, a cranky baby and a wife with a temporary tooth. We were concerned that Aviva would be screaming the entire 6 hour drive to Providence, but using some of her toddler ingenuity, she managed to find a way to make the car dark enough for her to sleep (see picture).

I can't tell you how glad we are to be home!