US Trip

Sorry for the delay in getting pictures and commentary up... our laptop was dying and the slowness was too frustrating. It was almost 7 years old, so it was past its expiration date and we're happy to have gotten this many years out of it. Although tempted by an imac... they are so purty... we got a new toshiba.

So, yes, our trip back home. The 7 1/2 hour plane ride over went surprisingly well. The plane was only 70-ish percent full and we got the back two rows to ourselves. This meant we could take shifts entertaining Liam who is a busy bee these days. The weather was pretty miserable overall with only 5 days of dry weather. We just hung out the first couple of days. I found the time adjustment really difficult and was up most mornings before 5 am. Liam and Ollie acclimated straight away... jerks. The first friday we went up to northern New Jersey to visit with a childhood friend, Nicole. She has 2 adorable kids, the older is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer in his sinus cavity. He was so happy and kind and positive that you almost didn't notice his bald head and darkened eyes. Both Julian (8) and Kai (3) took to Liam like white on rice. They were hugging him and playing with toys and dancing around- it was really touching and made me very broody for another baby. I don't have any pictures of the day because I forgot my camera.

Ollie and I headed down to Philadelphia on Saturday for some adult time. We meet up with Lora, Mikey, Wayne, Annie and Kim. We ate at Reading terminal market and did a little pub crawl from 11th and Walnut down to 2nd and Market. It was so much fun catching up with everyone! That's the worst thing about living over here... I miss my buddies so much!

The next day my aunt hosted a bbq for us. Thankfully the weather cooperated and gave us sunshine and warm weather. A few friends from high school came over along with some cousins and family friends. We turned the sprinklers on outside and Liam loved getting wet. We had tons of food, drink and craic with everyone.

Liam looking super cute in his wee sunglasses.

We chilled on the Monday in preparation for our long journey on Tuesday and Wednesday. Tuesday afternoon we headed to upstate New York to stay over my Aunt's partner, Mark's, house and break up the journey. We headed for Amherst early the next day- wanted to show Ollie the first University I went to. It hadn't changed that much since I left over 10 years ago. We stopped into the town for some lunch and to stretch our legs after the 3 1/2 hour car ride. Here's Liam enjoying some pizza at Amherst Brewing Company. They do the best sweet potato fries.

A further 1 1/2 hours brought us to our final destination in Fitchburg. We had 2 rooms at the Marriot there- the rooms were a great size and lovely decor. Pretty nice quality considering it was a relatively cheap night rate. On Thursday I spent most of the day with Rachael and her other bridesmaids- sister Angela and friend Chrystal. We did our nails and had a tan before the rehersal and dinner. The weather was so awful- torrential rain and some localised flooding. We were really worried about the Friday- especially since Rach's wedding service was outside and the reception in a marquee. Thankfully the weather broke and it was sunny and warm.

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Rachael's hair- She added in an additional flower.

They had a bunch of really cute ideas at the wedding. Here's the 'candy bar'. They had chinese take away boxes saying 'life is sweet, thanks for sharing our special day' and a variety of candy. Tasty!

The cake was so yummy!
Rachael looked gorgeous and had a smile on her face all day.

You can see my dress here. It was really nice and I'll definitely be using it again!
Congratulations Rachael and Ian! We had such a wonderful time at your wedding- it was a brilliant day!

After Massachusetts, we tried to take it easy. We went out to Paoli to visit with Ollie's aunt and uncle. I also got to catch up with a very old friend and meet her family. She has 2 adorable kids and a beautiful house in Yardville. Nicole and I hadn't seen each other for about 10 years, but it was if only days had passed.

All in all it was a great trip. We needed another vacation once we got back home to Belfast! Next trip we might head south... get ready Fieldens!

I have some more pictures on another SD card, so I'll get some more up shortly.