Annalise's 1st Vacation

Annalise went on her first vacation last month. We went up to beautiful Hume lake and stayed in a cabin. It was really a wonderful time, although vacationing with a baby is very different from vacationing as a couple. Packing is especially different. Our car was loaded down with baby toys and devices. My parents brought her favorite - a jumper that she usually uses at their house. Here she is enjoying it in her new surroundings.


The beautiful mountains and trees and lake were a welcome change. We took long walks around the lake everyday with Annalise on our backs. She seemed to enjoy it and would look around a lot and then nap when she got tired.


My parents joined us in the cabin after a couple days, and they generously watched Annalise so that we could do a few things by ourselves. One time, we went boating on the lake, which was a blast. Don't ask Dave how much I paddled, though.

Dave and my Dad also went on a bike ride down a mountain. It was a scheduled event where they drove everyone up to the top and then the people biked down looking at the beautiful views.

My parents went boating as well.

The first couple days were freezing cold, but then it heated up and was wonderfully warm. In the first picture here we're trying to stay warm at the pancake breakfast. In the second picture we're trying to cool off in the shade down by the lake.

This vacation included the dreaded long car drive for which we bought the new and so much better convertible carseat. The drive was actually not too bad. On the way up we were praising God because she took two 3 hour naps! She really only cried for about 30 minutes at the end of the trip. We did not expect it to be that easy. In between the naps we took a lengthy break - about an hour - to relax, let her lie down and eat and look around outside. The car trip back was not quite so pleasant, but was still manageable. She cried for about 3 hours or so. She cried half an hour at the beginning of the trip and then napped. Then we went through a lot of crying: 30 minutes, stop feed and comfort, 45 minutes, stop feed and comfort, 45 minutes, stop feed and comfort, 1 hour on and off crying as we pressed on to make it home. Home had never looked so beautiful.