Monday, May 14, 2012

Good morning, America, how are you?

I woke up on Thursday morning in Barcelona.  I went to bed Thursday night in Denver.  It still amazes me that this is humanly possible.  Even more so, that Keane and I managed to make it through the entire traveling experience with minimal meltdown moments, and jet lag induced freak-outs during our stay here.

Upon landing in Atlanta for our connecting flight to Denver, I was amazed (as always) at the friendliness of everyone around us.  Maybe it was partially because I was toting the cutest baby in the world, as well as dragging an enormous red suitcase behind me while simultaneously pushing a stroller teetering with my diaper bag and purse.  But I tend to think that Americans are just pretty much friendly and helpful people for the most part, and as we made our way through customs, finding our new gate, and boarding the second plane, everyone we encountered seemed to want to lend a hand to help us out.  Same upon our arrival in Denver.  For some odd reason, in this airport, you must take a train three stops to collect your baggage.  Odd.  Anyway, people were quick to make sure we were able to enter and exit the train with a minimum of discomfort, and a myriad of folk smiled at my sweetly sleeping infant snugly strapped to his mama.

Our time here in Denver has been short on quantity but full on quality.  We came for my cousin's wedding on Saturday, and were able to see relatives from California and Colorado that I had not seen since my own wedding.  My mother is one of seven children, and most of my many cousins managed to be here, and we tore up the dance floor until they loaded us on the buses to head home.  The ceremony was beautiful, at a gorgeous farm outside of Denver, the food fabulous, and every single detail perfect.  And to wrap up the night, some Bon Jovi and Def Leppard dance time while my parents thoughtfully kept an eye on a lightly sleeping Keane so I could have a little free time.  Of course, alcohol was not on the menu for me this time around, so I was a bit more reserved on the dance floor at first...but 'Pour Some Sugar on Me' has the tendency to loosen up the moves, and it was a fabulous evening.

Shopping was another key highlight of our time here, as nothing quite beats Walgreens, and I am not embarrassed to say I made my parents take me there three times during our stay.  Which pretty much means I made a Walgreens run every single day.  Bless you, Walgreens, you have everything I need, and you are not enormously exhausting like Wal-Mart.  I wish we had you in Spain.

Tomorrow, we will be back on the plane to NYC and on to BCN.  Hopefully, my little man will give a repeat performance of total awesomeness on the flights home.  I can't wait to give my little Monkey Lou a big hug.  And sleep.  Lots.

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Dress disaster

So I have this perfect go-to dress for weddings, black with this cute kimono sash.  Great length, can wear a normal bra, and has a v in front so I can feed Keane without having to retreat to a bathroom and haul my whole outfit over my head.

And it has disappeared.

It is not to be found in any of our closets, nor in Jordi's parent's house, where we store a lot of our clothing during the off season.

Keane and I are heading to Denver next week for a wedding and I was really counting on this dress to be my outfit of choice...seeing as this was not to be, however, the only other alternative was to go shopping.  Despite trips to three different shopping malls, I did not find one single item that fit the bill.  I managed to purchase something at a Mango store, but upon trying it on at home, I found the length far too short to be appropriate for a family wedding, and this problem was only compounded when I added heels to the ensemble.  Much more appropriate for working the pole, if you know what I mean.

So I reached out to a few teachers at school, and have managed to find a few suitable options for  next week, thank goodness.

With a nice pair of Spanx, I might just manage to look respectable...even while whipping the gals out so that Keane can have his evening meal (though it might actually be his breakfast since I plan to try to keep him on Barcelona time while we are away, since it is just four short days...we'll see how that turns out!).