The plane had two seats per row hence Chris sitting behind us. Originally it was only going to be my dad & I but at the last minute, Chris decided to join us. My grandma was thrilled. Also, thanks to flying a whole lot in 2012, I was able to redeem my True Blue points and fly free! ....with the exception of a $5 tax fee, lol.
That morning, it was raining and visibility was practically 0%. I think it took 45 minutes to actually take off because the runway was backed up. Then, when we were trying to land, we had to circle around the sky a few times because the runway at CLT was also backed up! We landed shortly after noon. Getting home only took an hour and a half!! It was like night and day. (Ironically enough, flying home was at night.) But getting back to the flight to Charlotte....I am sad to report I actually had to use the barf bag for the first time ever on a flight. The turbulence just sent my stomach into a bad state. My lovely dad did a favor and covered me with his sweater, haha. I should note I had been out drinking for a friend's 30th the night before and had only 3 hours of sleep, hence the stomach problems. Never again do I recommend doing that a night before a flight! I ended up going to bed at 9:30 our first night, which is extremely rare for me, lol.
The visit itself was nothing short of wonderful. I am so happy for my grandparents. They went from a tiny apartment in Jackson Heights, Queens to this gorgeous house in NC.
This was the adorable guest room I slept in.
The first day, we went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse which did not disappoint. Afterwards, we went back to the house to relax and called it an early night. The second day, Sunday, I got to visit both my uncle Mark's house (he had just moved there a few months ago) as well as my uncle Scott's house, who has lived there for many years now. My little cousin Sierra gave me the grand tour of the house. She and Christopher, her older brother (who will be 10 this year! Time flies!) are such great kids. I managed to get a quick picture of Sierra in her room.
Mark and I share a love of Starbucks so of course we made a trip to the nearest one with baby Brandon as well as MB's mama, my aunt Lyn.
It was an extremely sunny day, haha. Isn't he the cutest?
I mean...seriously!!
In this last one, he saw his own reflection and made this face! I could eat him up!
Later that evening, I was able to spend more time with the kids at our grandparents house, just hanging out. Sierra & I had a blast with the bubbles in the yard.
The backyard space is huge!
We flew back to NYC Monday evening so that we could have the majority of the day with them. I am so happy to see my grandparents are doing well. They have a beautiful home in a beautiful city, their family nearby and the bonus is their other grandchildren around them so it's just a good thing. There is a big age gap between me and my siblings with Christopher, Sierra and Brandon but it just means the kids can enjoy Grandma & Grandpa now the way I got to enjoy them growing up. :-)
This is definitely my favorite picture of the trip: my grandparents & their boys. All that's missing is my aunt, Chrissy!
L-R: Grandma, Uncle Scott, Grandpa, my dad and my uncle Mark
Hard to believe it's already mid January...so much stuff to do before the month is over and on the 25th, we hit 9 more months to go...wow!
Awww this seems like such a wonderful family trip! I'm so glad it was such a nice time...their house is beautiful and so are the children..what cuties!!
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