The United States was as Awesome as ever. While Connor and I were there for almost six weeks- it still feels like it was a whirlwind! A brief recap- the last weekend of June we flew from Tokyo to San Fransisco and drove up to Sonoma for my cousin Hanna's wedding. On Sunday of that weekend Andrew returned to Tokyo and Connor and I flew with my Mom and Grandma Alice back to Maryland, which was my "home base" for the next 5 weeks. My Mom and her BF Dianna had transformed the basement into Chateau Eich- the living room was turned into a bedroom (pull out couch) for me and the laundry room was converted into a beautiful nursery for Connor! Somehow I managed not to capture any pictures of this room but believe me- it was just beautiful. They hung curtains on all 4 walls and the ceiling to hide any wood and wiring (so it looked very much like a cloud!) and added a pack n play crib/changing table, a rocking chair, a cute baby rug, bedside table and lamp, and a fan for the much needed white noise. Connor was super comfortable in there and slept like a dream. Most days my Mom would watch Connor for me for an hour or so after she got home from work so that I could run to the gym or some other errand-- it was wonderful. Then Gerry would make dinner for all of us- I know- I was totally spoiled. It was heaven. My little bro (currently living in Denver) was in town for a wedding while I was home so Connor got to meet his Uncle Derek for the first time. I think he was a fan. We also got to see my Dad several times while we were home which was great. There were LOTS of day or weekend trips- crabs with my Dad and bro, to NJ and Philly for a Goodman family reunion, 3 days at Rehoboth beach with Jackie, the outlets with Jessica, lunch with Christie, to see Kim and her new baby Caleb on the eastern shore of Maryland, -- just to name a few. Pictures and future posts to come on most of those events. Needless to say, we were on the go a lot. Then on July 17th Andrew joined us in Annapolis. Andrew feared that after being away from Connor for so long (almost a month!)- he wouldn't recognize him, or worse- wouldn't care. But that couldn't have been farther from the truth- as Connor stood at the window watching Andrew get out of his car and walk up the sidewalk he was literally SHAKING with excitement. I've never seen Connor so happy/excited before and it literally brought tears to my eyes! Side note- we've decided that Andrew will never be away from us for so long! Our reunion was short lived- the very next day Andrew drove me to BWI to catch a train up to NY for Annie's bachelorette party in Long Island. Andrew and my Mom held down the fort with Connor until I returned on Sunday night. Monday Andrew and I took Connor to to lunch at the Cheesecake Factory (have the portions always been that ridiculously over-sized?) and then to the Baltimore Aquarium (we love aquariums). We swung by Larisa and Ryan's house on the way home (Larisa just visited us here in Tokyo in June) to see her new house (not so new anymore I guess) and meet her beautiful bulldog Lola. There was a time when I would have given my right arm for a bulldog so this was really exciting for me. Larisa gave Connor a stuffed bulldog as a gift so I guess this will have to suffice. On Tuesday Andrew made a last minute trip up to NYC for work so Jackie came down from Bethesda to hang out for the afternoon. She was nice enough to watch Connor for me so I could get some much needed dental work done (the idea of having a cavity filled over here is too scary for me). And finally, on Wed- the night before we departed for Andrew's parents' house in Michigan, we got a visit from the Emalas (Ashley and Jason) who were home from London for a wedding. They literally swung by on their way from the airport to Jason's parents' house. We shared a bottle of wine and caught up quickly before they had to be on their way again. We definitely look forward to the time when we live in the same country as those guys again! I think that covers our trip to Maryland- there will be another post on our adventures in Michigan!
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