Soren is a Big Boy

Soren finally got his first haircut! He didn't want me to take his picture this morning, so this is the best I could do:



He was a very good boy throughout the whole experience, probably because we kept plying him with lollipops. When the hair started sticking to the lollipop juice that was all over his hands and face, it was time to go.

This momentous step toward big-boyness took place in Jacksonville, where we met up with Chelsea and Brady at Erica and Michael-Paul's house. It was so much fun! I haven't been able to spend that much time with Erica and Chelsea since I left home (and I didn't really want to hang out with them back then anyway), so it was really nice to hang out, play Wii and let the cousins get acquainted. I don't have any photos, since I didn't have my camera with me, but Erica and Chels took plenty, so I'll post copies of theirs.

I was worried about flying alone with Soren, especially since he was sitting on my lap the whole way, but he was a complete angel 99% of the time. We sat next to a couple different women who were very gracious about playing with him (which mainly involves saying "Bless you" after each of his fake sneezes), and nothing untoward happened when we ended up sitting in the same row as the guy who informed us that A) he was on his way to detox; and B) he had been drinking whiskey and Coke for the past six hours. Gotta love those Southwest flight attendants! They'll serve anyone!

Anyway, the flights were fine. However, we almost hit a major snag last night, during our connection in Philadelphia. We had a layover of less than an hour, and we had to go to a different terminal to catch our next flight -- and, because there was construction going on, we had to go through another security line to reach said terminal. Of course, since one really only plans on going through security once per travel day, I had already celebrated our entry into the secure area by tying my shoes extra tight with triple knots, buying three gallons of expensive water, and opening up my quart-size Ziploc bag in order to spread the various liquid containers throughout my luggage. I hate you, Terminal E of the Philadelphia airport. Anyway, we made it just fine, since our flight to Providence was delayed-- they'd had to drop off an unruly passenger in Baltimore en route to Philly (so THAT'S why Baltimore is full of unruly people!).

Next time: fun stories about our time in Florida!