turkey and cheesesteaks

Well...wow. It's been a hectic week or so in Simonton-land. We had a great Thanksgiving, marked by copious mimosas, football, and feasting at Jen & Dan's house. Avery, Sophie & Sadie were angels---aside from a little hair-pulling and toy-grabbing, everything went smoothly---a monumental feat considering we were there for almost 15 hours. The girls ate their requisite sweet potatoes and went to bed early, allowing the adults to hang out (like adults!) for a while. Next thing we knew, it was 2:30 in the morning and what we were most thankful for was that we live only half a block away. Aaaah, good times.
Two days later we departed for Pennsylvania on a redeye flight through San Fran. In theory the redeye seemed like a fabulous idea: we would board just past Sadie's usual bedtime, she would sleep the entire flight, and when we landed in Philly at 7 am the following day, we would be exhausted but she would be just fine. The reality of it was that we didn't sleep, she didn't sleep, and although she didn't really cry either, we were all crabby and sleep-deprived when the plane finally touched down.
And thus began the bizarre sleep cycle that she's been keeping all week long. Go to bed at 9 pm, wake up at 10 am (or noon!), little to no naps, and repeat. The lack of any real schedule combined with the constant shuffling to and from various family member houses has all of us completely drained and, worse---sick. Sadie has a monster case of the sniffles. It doesn't seem to be bothering her too badly, except that she can't really breathe through her nose, which means she can't really suck her thumb, which in turn means she has trouble soothing herself to sleep. Poor little girl, this trip has been rough on her. If she never sees her carseat again I'm sure it'll be too soon.
All the sleepiness and sickness aside, it's been a wonderful visit---we got to spend a few days in Philly eating cheesesteaks and going to a Flyers game; a few days in Scranton showing Reid and Sadie all the landmarks of my youth (and the more recently famous landmarks from "the office" TV show); and finally, a few days in Bethlehem where we'll go to my cousin's wedding and experience what has to be the most beautiful city in the US at this time of year (as you can imagine, Bethelem really embraces the Christmas holiday). We'll return home on Sunday totally exhausted, looking forward to at least a week's worth of staying inside and ordering takeout.
For what it's worth, this vacation has taught us all sorts of things about traveling with an infant. If I had to narrow it down to one piece of advice, it would be: find a house that's relatively baby-proof, make it your home base, and let everyone come to you. Not that you asked.

Pictures to follow upon our return...