The trip was mostly good.

The driving was long, but not impossible. I made it there in a record 11 1/2 hours, and not because I was doing 90. Mostly because there was a heck of a lot less traffic than I'm used to since it wasn't a holiday weekend, the weather was good (so the roads were clear and dry), and I kept my stops to a minimum (we usually don't eat in the car).

My sister Julie was duly surprised, the secret having been faithfully kept by my mom and other sister.

Landen is TINY. 6 lbs of itty bitty person -- smaller than Christopher was. I didn't hear him really *cry* at all... he fussed now and then, but didn't really cry.

Aiden is spoiled and mischevious, but adorable. He can talk a bit, but usually points and makes wordless noises when he wants something, and often gets it. He readily accepted me as a caretaker, most of the time, which was endearing.

Monday, I was supposed to spend the day at Julie's, but she called and said she had to run some errands, so I sat about watching birds and reading. Went over in the afternoon, which was fun but hard -- her lazy-ass bf was there, and I had to bite my tongue a lot to keep from saying what I really thought of him. (He just *sat there* for a couple of hours -- there was one point where I was holding Landen and Julie was cooking, and Aiden tripped over himself and fell, and started crying -- her bf just sat there while I struggled to pick up Aiden with my free arm and comfort him. And he complains *constantly* about everything, including the trailer, where he's living because my parents let *Julie* live there -- meaning it wasn't given to HIM, and he hasn't had to earn it in ANY WAY, yet he doesn't have any gratitude at all, let alone do a damn thing to help fix it up. But anyway!) Then I went back to my parents' house for dinner, and my brother drove up from K-zoo to visit.

I spent most of Tuesday with my mom, doing her eBay stuff, blah, blah, blah... we stopped at Uncle Larry's, and I realized I hadn't seen him in *years*, let alone my cousin Eric -- I didn't even know Eric's voice.

In the evening, I hung out with Jenni, which was one of the best parts of the visit. First we took the kids to McDonald's, where I took LOTS of pictures because we had the playland to ourselves for a bit. Christopher was a lot more friendly to me than he had been, and he makes talking noises, though I can't understand him much. Emily's a doll, of course... After bringing them back to their dad and grandpa, Jenni and I went clothes shopping until the stores closed. Then we went back to her place, then Jenni suggested that we go hang out at the gaming center, so we did, even though it was closed, 'cuz Curt owns part of it, so he can go there whenever. (:

Wednesday I wound up going shopping by myself for several hours, which was fun and not. Some of the stores I used to like are gone... So many things I don't remember...

Then I went home, Julie came over with the boys, we played, watched TV (I watched more TV there than I had in the last few months), etc.... And today I drove home. Took me slightly longer since there were some construction issues (the worst of it being RIGHT at M's exit in PA!), and now I am home.

I'm still a bit weird from the caffeine, and exhaustion, and I think I'm finally starting to succumb to the cold I've been fighting for a week or so -- I had a headache on and off during the visit, and my throat is starting to get sore, and got worse on the way home.

I suppose I should rest. Soon, I shall.