Just Checking In... And Then We're Off Yet Again

It has been nothing short of chaotic since our arrival on the East Coast. After boarding the dog at a kennel in Washington, DC, and dropping off a majority of our bags at another State Department Agent's home, we packed up the kids and the car (this time an SUV) and made our way up to our friend's rented beach house in New Jersey. The ride was relatively painless, albeit expensive (the tolls cost about $20), and around 5:30 pm we were met by our dear friends, who were also our neighbors, from our last two posts in both Oman and Israel. The kids were greeted with tons of hugs and kisses and quickly ushered into the house to cause havoc and mayhem as only five best friends could.

We spent the evening catching up, noshing, chasing kids, drinking a few cocktails, and taking a lovely 9 pm stroll to the beach, about a mile from their home. It was still so warm out, the kids all walked in their bathing suits. After an ice cream and quick bath, we put the girls down in the same room; two to a bed. In theory it was a fabulous idea, though the execution left quite a bit to be desired. The girls were so giddy to see each other again that little sleep was had, and they didn't crash out until close to midnight.

After an early morning visit from two very sleepy girls, we all got up, got ready, and left the house for a morning at the beach, followed up by an afternoon at the boardwalk. We ran the kids around until they were so pooped that they were asking to take naps. With a quick change, and many hugs and kisses good-bye, we bid our adieus and headed on the road again to our next destination... Darien, Connecticut.

Another almost $20 in tolls over interstates and bridges, we made the quick jaunt to stay for the next two nights with Matthew's family's very close friend, the wonderfully hospitable Englishman, Mr. P., who says words like slobberchops and drinks warm beer. A truly amazing host, Mr. P took the time to read through my post about items we sent in our consumables shipment and then went to the stores to have enough goodies in his house upon our arrival. He went so far as to have Puffins cereal for the girls and Frappuccino's for me!

We spent the afternoon today in Matt's old stomping ground with Marie and her two children, one of Matt's closest girlfriends from high school in Stamford. The girls had an absolute blast from the minute we walked in... there were all different kinds of toys for them to play with. They played inside, they played outside, they got pooped out (and so did I). I was quite overheated and exhausted, still not quite acclimated to the minor time change. We left before dinner, and after a nibble at a pizza place in Darien, we had the kids in bed by 7:30 pm, just in time for some much needed rest!

Tomorrow we're packing up our bags and heading onto my cousins house in Westchester County, our last accommodations for the weekend. We have another packed few days too... we're taking the girls on the train into New York City tomorrow, their first trip there, where we'll be meeting more of Matt's friends. Then we're heading back to the 'burbs for dinner at my cousin's house. Saturday we have lunch with Matt's great aunt and uncle, tons of cousins, and his brother, followed up by a late afternoon play date with another one of Matt's close girlfriends and her family. We conclude the festivities on Sunday morning with a trip to a bagel shop, a stop at Starbucks, and the long drive back down to Washington, D.C. for our final week in the States.

Try to keep up with us... we're fitting a heck of a lot into a short amount of time!

Sheridan, Riley, Kit, and Gabby together again ... ~ ... Attempting to go to sleep

The kids hanging in the sand at the Beach Club ~ The adults all in need of a SERIOUS shower

Matt and the girls hanging out at Marie's with her kids Rose and Michael ~ A Family photo!