Thank you por coming!

The unexpected passing of our dear friend Rafael brought us home to CA a few weeks early. While he shared many gifts with us in the years we knew him - his joy for life, eating well, and all things Tico - a most
valuable gift he gave me this past week was having the courage, and the flexibility to travel with two small kids. Andrew was already out in SoCal for the week, so the boys and I embarked on an adventure to meet Andrew in Davis, so we could all go say our goodbyes to Rafa. The kids were again, amazing travel buddies! After a whole day of travel, we got to spend a relaxing day in Davis, before a whirlwind weekend in NorCal.  This weekend also happened to be Aunt Patsy's 50th birthday, so on Saturday we were able to visit with the (almost) whole Keane family.  Then on Sunday we were able to attend Rafa's celebration of life party.

Arjen excited for take off! (Also, thrilled to be  holding the new motorcycle, or "ding ding" that Gma Cherie gave him)

I was lucky to have the whole row to myself and the kids, so I could free my arms for a short while.  Gus didn't seem to notice.

Instead of flying back to Wisconsin solo with the kids again, we all flew south with Andrew on Monday, to stay in Irvine for the week, then fly back to WI at the end of the week. I gotta say, whether it's living
with grandparents or in a hotel, I'm starting to feel spoiled in this homeless life of ours! I haven't had to cook or clean in months!

It's hard to see in the photo, but Arjen is "on the phone" in this pic.  I was at first shocked that he even knew it was a phone! I'm pretty sure he's never before seen an "old school" phone like this.  He definitely noticed it quickly once we were checked into our home for the week.  No sooner had I unplugged it to avoid unwanted calls, and Arjen was walking around calling Dada, Baba, you name it! 

"A picture is worth a thousand words"  - well, this picture is a fun story.  I had the pack n' play for Gus at the foot of our bed in the hotel room, and after a day or so, Arjen had figured out he could climb up onto the bed (which is no small feat! It had to have been at least 3 ft off the floor).  He was uber determined to climb up there, because he figured out he could then lower himself down into the pack n play with Gus!  They spent a fair amount of time playing in there together, but the sweetest moment was this one, when Arjen brought a book for himself, and one for Gus.  

Arjen carrying his carry on luggage.  He was great about it too!  Didn't want to lose that precious cargo (ding dings, jeeps, john deere catalog...)!

So, thank you Rafa, for coming into our lives.  We will miss you dearly.