There's no place like home

We made it! Home! I have no words, so how about a nice re-cap?

Friday: Morning meetings, peppermint hot chocolate* from Starbucks (*aka "crack in a cup"), laundry, hit the road in the late afternoon. Late night dinner and drinks with friends, crash up at Scotts' uncle's house.

Saturday: Breakfast at Rosine's, a cruise through Wharf #2 in Monterey with Uncle, hideous crampage, laughing through pain at a group of seagulls battling a sea lion for a huge chunk of...something that looked a bit too much like a giant chunk sashimi for me to analyze it over-much. Hit the road, stop over to see Her Cheek-ness (our neice) and company.

Saturday p.m.: Stop in the city at a friends' cool store, purchase adorable "Ugly Doll" for Her Cheek-ness, make it to Berkeley with voracious appetites for crepes a la Nutella. Joyfully re-unite with the SightSpeed guy and lovely SightSpeed Wife, adorable (and hardily recovering) Raisin. Husbands sample stout, sample more stout. Husband whispers that I'd better help him sample stout, or he will be asleep before party guests arrive. Dutifully assist, have a nice walk downtown for some last-minute items (I just now realize that I've left grilled chicken curry in your fridge, Pete...you're welcome to it!) and Thai. Guests arrive, descend to basement for dance party, drinks.

Sunday: Lounge, take Raisin on a long, wet, squirrel-mocking/vanquishing walk, eat in.cred.i.ble. breakfast/brunch in Berkeley - I actually covered all the breakfast carbohydrate items: Waffle, biscuit*, delectable grilled potatoes (*Crack as flour-y pastry) in one meal. Lament over not coming up/down more often, reminisce, catch up on old Bay area friends (Scotts') and family (mine), promise to get together soon. Hope fervently this comes true and it doesn't take another long time to actually fulfill promises. Hit the road, back to Her Cheek-ness and family, visit Egyptian antiquities museum. Follow amazing museum experience with an incredible dinner (the Suffering Bastard is my new favorite mixed drink, no, not because of the name) courtesy of generous family at Trader Vic's. Attempt to not fawn absurdly over the baby. Fail spectacularly and end up in a game of clapping and peekabooing with said baby, end evening with her sleeping on my chest.

Monday: Skip breakfast in lieu of extended clapping game session with neice and husband in bed & Starbucks. Follow this with mall expedition, purchase one pair tights, one tiny chocolate brown stocking cap with blue/orange argyle detail that makes neice look like a tiny, round-cheeked snowboarder. Attempt not to squeeze her thighs, fail. Enjoy downtown San Jose and Blowfish resturant, family. Visit Japanese-style gardens where portions of Memoirs of a Geisha were filmed, tote baby over hill and dale as tiny workout/lame attempt to make up for the food and hot chocolate that have been inhaled in the last three days. Tear selves away from family and head home. Write incredibly boring blog entry, pet cats, drink champagne.