Home sweet home

We wrapped up our road warrior session over the weekend with a quick visit to see Stella's grandparents in Milwaukee. It was a very enjoyable trip. As you might imagine, Stella received a final installment of birthday presents, including her very own garden set (wheelbarrow included) as well as a lunch box for the upcoming semester. While we were there, Stella showed Gram how to catch fish and Grandpa and I how to shoot baskets. (Note: the wrap over grandma's shoulders is actually a superhero cape Stella insisted she wear).

The trip capped a 12 day stretch in which we logged about 1700 miles and about 30 hours in the car. Needless to say we were all pretty tired when we got home last night - no one more so than Stella who was in a fragile state unlike any we have witnessed in her post infant life. Very clingy, very crabby and very tired. After having her tell us to "stop looking at her" and to "stop talking to her" on several separate occasions, we concluded an early bedtime was in order. She fell asleep about 5 minutes after we laid her down and did not make a peep for over 12 hours. In her defense, it was a pretty grueling stretch for a 3 year old and she actually held up really well until last night. We're in town for the near future now and will be enjoying the tail end of summer at home.