We put Liam’s traveling skills to the test again last weekend and he did GREAT!   We drove to the Austin area to do some extensive shopping. The drive was about 7 hours each way and he decided that sleep was optional so needless to say, we are very familiar with the ABC song now!

We traveled in a caravan with our friends Brenda & Barney and Clems & Sophie.   With each of us having small kids along on the trip — Siena being the youngest, at just 4 months old — there were lots of stops for diaper changes & feedings.

Our first shopping stop after arrival on Saturday was at the Round Rock location of our favorite store Ikea.   We didn’t have major purchases to make there this time but we did manage to find a lot of little things. Among them was another suction bowl/cup/bib/spoon set for Liam like the one we bought at the Moscow Ikea.   He had long since tore up the bib from that trip.

On Sunday, we headed out to the Outlet Mall for what was supposed to be a 4 hour shopping event but turned into an 8 hour event.   We found lots of clothes for Liam on sale and he got 2 more pairs of Chuck’s.   He loves those shoes and calls them his Alex shoes because one of the little boys at daycare (Alex) wears them all the time.

We tried to limit our time at the Outlet Mall so we’d have the whole afternoon at the lake to visit with Susan, Randy and Artem.   Since the shopping got in the way, we didn’t get to the lake until about 6:30 P.M.

We had a wonderful time at the lake with Susan & Randy and it is was so nice to finally meet Artem in person.   He is a precious little boy with so much expression in his face and he looks just like his daddy.   As Susan mentioned on her blog, getting the boys to sit still and both look at the camera for a picture at the same time was tough but with us both doing double-time shooting we were able to capture a few shots.



Randy’s mother played a fun game with the kids having them feel how cold the watermelon was and then touch their face.   Here’s a picture of Artem really getting into it:



After the watermelon eating, it was time for a swim to clean up the mess!



I think the boys had a good time with each other and it was wonderful to reconnect with Susan & Randy again.   Thanks for the invite!

We headed back home on Monday but not without stopping off for some more last minute shopping along the way.   I found the perfect Halloween costume for Liam but you are going to have to stay tuned to find out what it is; I’m not ready to reveal yet.   Liam was the perfect little traveler again on the way home but I think he had enough.   We didn’t get home until 9:30 P.M. Monday night and as we were turning off the interstate towards our house, he said all done with the car now, ready for home.   ;-)
 

Labels: holidays