funny story...

so, if you happened to be in the D terminal of la guardia airport on sunday & you saw some crazy new mom SPRINTING with a baby in a sling (picture home alone style running), & a rather tall husband right behind pushing a stroller & holding his jeans up (the belt was a casualty of a rapid trip through security) it MIGHT have been us.

you see, we were traveling by plane with ellie for the first time. we were so prepared for this. i'd read every blog guide on traveling with small children. we checked our bags so we could totally focus on ellie & the ridiculous amount of things she needs to go somewhere. the trip out to indiana was a huge success -- ellie took a nap with her pacifier on the way up for both flights, was awake and adorable for the layover in detroit, & i fed her on the way down each flight keeping her ears popped. we had what we needed, dirty diapers were no big deal & ellie charmed the socks off the people sitting around us with her big grins. we knew the trip back would be a bit tougher, we had a long layover in la guardia (probably my least favorite airport of all time) and with any delays, we'd be pushing bed time boundaries.

the flight from indiana to la guardia went great. we get to la guardia & had a plan -- we traded off getting massages at the little express spa while the other one entertained ellie. (relaxed mama & dad are a good thing in our house) we got some good food for energy. ellie took a fabulous nap in my sling. then, about 40 minutes before our flight was supposed to take off (4:45 p.m.), i suggested we go check out the gate. both our flights were delta & i knew from all my travel for work that there was a us airways terminal & a delta terminal, so we didn't even pay attention to letters, just looked for gate 7. we get there & the flight says it's leaving at 5:59 (what?! when did it get delayed?!). i go to ask the gate agent & she says that was the original time. i look down & see the us airways logo & totally panic. i'd remembered hearing us airways & delta had exchanged some gates at la guardia and washington reagan. i had this sinking feeling we were in the wrong terminal (i then remembered our gate said 7A and realized we were in the C terminal...) & now it was 30 minutes until our flight took off. i look at ryan & say RUN!! we sprint downstairs, talked to a really unhelpful security guard & jump in a cab to get to the A terminal (no time for shuttle). ten dollars & 7 agonizing minutes later -- we arrived at the A terminal -- only to realize it was only for delta shuttle flights to boston & d.c. it turns out gate 7A is in the D terminal (because that makes sense). that terminal is literally on the other side of the airport. at this point it is 4:20 p.m. there is no way we are going to make our plane that is taking off in 25 minutes, needing to get back to the right terminal, through security, and presumably they have to close the door soon. i begin to cry. we jump in a cab & i'm so frustrated at myself, upset, hopeless about the prospects & imagining a miserable four hours waiting for another flight, night in some dodgy hotel with a rightfully screaming baby, etc. ryan sits there cool as a cucumber, says everything is going to be ok, while ellie naps peacefully in her sling. another $10 later, we arrive at the D terminal.

we sprint to security, where the woman takes her sweet time looking at our ids and tickets (miraculously there is no line on a sunday at LGA!). we of course get flagged for a security check. if you're keeping tabs, it's now about 4:32. we finally get thru & i just start RUNNING down the terminal, dodging people & hoping ryan is right behind me. i see the gate & it looks like the door might still be open. we made it about 30 seconds before they close the door. we run down the stairs, baby & stroller in hand (i'm not going to feel better until we are sitting on a plane) & get on board. i literally am incredulous we made it.

we sit in silence a minute, ryan cracks this huge smile (i'm still not amused) & then i announce i'm going to give us grades. ellie clearly gets an A+ for being on her first trip, and yet not batting an eyelash at the whole ordeal. it was as if she knew we were going to make it the whole time. ryan got a B+ because he also remained calm, but can read/ask questions, so alas he also should have figured this out in the over 2 hours we were in the wrong terminal. I sadly get a D-, which may be generous, because i had every range of emotion -- crying, frustration, anger, you name it. the good news is our family average was around a B, thank you ellie for bringing up the curve.

so, everyone told us to be worried about the baby & instead we should have been worried about the sleep deprived parents & ridiculous way la guardia assigns gates... any funny stories from when you travelled with babies? remember this post on the adorable little girl i sat in front of one time?

p.s. traveling with toddlers looks WAY harder than with babies. ellie doesn't even know she can move beyond our laps right now! fun times ahead... 

indiana weekend!

 

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first trip with ellie.

this past weekend we went on our first little trip with ellie. in the coming months, we'll be taking her on big trips to meet family in indiana & new york, so we decided to begin our travels with a shorter trip. this sweet blogger & friend (as well as one of my go-to mamas for advice!) showed us a small getaway with a baby can be a good beginning (it was!).

thanks to an amazing deal on troop swap (groupon for military!), we were able to venture back to the sanderling, a wonderful inn in the outer banks where we celebrated our one year wedding anniversary (check it out here).

photos of our first time with ellie on the beach to come (along with some hilarious stories from all our parenting fails on this trip -- we're still working out the kinks :), but for now, some photos above:

1. me telling ellie about the trip ahead, her looking skeptically at the car...

2. crossing the bridge to the outer banks, collectively taking a deep breath at the sight of a mini-vaca

3. the gorgeous sanderling

4. ellie decked out in her winter beach getaway outfit: her favorite hat & new pjs!

5. morning musts for mama & ellie

6. a breakfast fit for kings, or new parents as the case may be!

7. we'll be back, outer banks!

back with beach photos tomorrow!

homebound!

i am beyond excited to be headed home for a quick trip to indiana to get some good time with my family before our little one arrives. this will be my LAST plane trip before our baby girl arrives (hooray!) & i'm so blessed to get to spend it with my incredible family. more next week -- have a wonderful weekend! xo

p.s. you can find this gorgeous print here!

boxcar goodness in brookyln.

 

a few weeks ago, i was in brooklyn for a day for work. before a series of meetings, we swung by dekalb market for some coffee & donuts. holy moly, i loved everything about this place. the brightly colored box cars, the open seating outdoors, not to mention to eateries! and how perfect was the morning light? they also took me to lunch at watty & meg, which was absolutely incredible!

breakfast at foster's

 

heading to north carolina for sal & niko's baby shower was such a special trip. we wrapped it up by heading to one of our favorite places ever -- fosters market -- for breakfast. seriously. every detail about this place is amazing & there's aren't words for the pancakes and omelettes, oh my! check it out if you're in the durham/chapel hill area!

girls weekend in d.c.

 

 

whew! this week flew by & i haven't even had a chance to tell you about the most wonderful of weekends! it was incredibly fitting that after this post, i got to spend a weekend with three of those girls in one of my favorite places: d.c.

as these photos begin to tell, we had an incredible time. molly planned our restaurant tour and holy moly, i'm now madly in love with posto, ted's bulletin & lincoln! we also wandered around eastern market, hung out at the pool, got our nails done, got sorbet & were talking about 15 hours a day on average (ha!). to top it off, they threw me a surprise baby shower which was too adorable for words! from the top:

1-5: epic brunch at ted's bulletin. we clearly loved the lattes & the homemade pop tarts were worth seconds!

6. wandering around eastern market!

7. my new favorite restaurant in d.c. has to be lincoln! it's american tapas & incredible!! plus, the entire floor is made of pennies, there's a paper mache american flag, the emancipation proclamation in lights -- honestly it's one of the more stunning atmospheres i've ever had a meal in!

8. hot d.c. day means sorbet before we had our nails done!

9. absolutely adorable surprise baby shower -- love, love, love these girls.

back soon! xo

inn at perry cabin.

 

 

 

 

so, these photos only begin to do justice to just how wonderful the inn at perry cabin is (in case it looks familiar, it's actually the house from wedding crashers!). tucked in lovely st. michaels, it has the most lovely rooms, an absolutely incredible pool and truly stunning gardens & grounds.

the pool was my favorite spot -- every morning the baby would wake me up pretty early, so i'd sneak out & go read by the pool or float around, enjoying having it all to myself. in the afternoon, ryan & i would go hang out & read, i'd usually take my requisite nap under one of the umbrellas. it was lovely.

*as you can see, there were two days we were together enough to be showered & have our camera with us for photos, these & the ones included here. by the way, i'm totally in love with these maternity pants from old navy & these from gap.

st. michaels vacation.

 

i'm so excited to fill you in on our vacation! in some ways, we sort of stumbled upon it. we were supposed to go on vacation in may, and we were planning on going to cali to see dear friends & drive up the coast. well, baby y changed all of that! i didn't really get out of bed in may, so flying across country was beyond impossible. we then figured out the only week that would work was one in july. baby y is still not digging flying, so it made sense to drive somewhere and be somewhat close to annapolis for a wedding of dear friends the second weekend ... then, i found the inn at perry cabin. next up is a whole post devoted to that chunk of heaven, but for now i'd love to show you around the adorable town we hung out in for a week!

1. the drive up the coast was gorgeous. this photo was the exact moment it sunk in we were really on vacation.

2-3. strawberry ice cream has been my go to during this heat. it's so silly, because i never ate it before i was pregnant & now i could have it every day. justine's happens to have the best strawberry ice cream in the world.

4. bistro was one of our favorite meals in st. michaels. we also went to ava's twice it was oh so good. we're excited to try 208 talbot when we go back. (cause, we're definitely going back).

5. adorable store front -- this town is filled with buildings just like this.

6. one night after dinner we just drove down this back road, all the windows down, til we hit this little dock. we love being on the water.

7. i'm from indiana -- i will ALWAYS think farm fields in the summer are gorgeous.

8. we spent a fun day at the outlets, complete with my favorite chick-fil-a lunch. (& i found a kate spade diaper bag over 60% off!!)

9. i told you we went to justine's a lot. love that husband of mine.

10. really cute store in st. michaels. such a walkable, charming town.

can't wait to show you around the inn at perry cabin tomorrow!

what we're up to this week.

isn't that the best part of vacation? we didn't even bring a laptop with us (what rebels we are!). can't wait to be back with photos & stories, hope you're having a wonderful week!