Meet Me in St. Louis

We just returned home from our first vacation as a family of three! What a GREAT time we had! We flew to St. Louis, MO for Mike's cousin Nathan's wedding. We figured since we were going all the way up there, we would stay a few days and make a trip out of it. Boy am I glad we did. This was one of the best vacations I have ever had. We had so much fun that I hated to see it end.

This trip was filled with so many firsts for Ryan:

1. Ryan cut his first molar while we were there. It's his upper left first molar.

2. First McDonald's Happy Meal.

3. First time facing forward in the car seat.

4. First wedding.

5. First zoo.

6. First time on an airplane.

7. First hotel.

Ryan wins the super traveler of the century award!! He was a wonderful little boy on both flights. He played quietly in our laps and napped on both planes. He only had a little meltdown on the way up because it was way past naptime and he was worn out. He eventually gave in and went to sleep. Thank goodness for his LAMBY! We even got to upgrade to First Class on the way home. I had never flown up there my whole life so that was an extra special treat for us all!

We made a trip to the St. Louis Zoo and it was the most incredible zoo I have ever been to. This picture was taken in the Children's Zoo. The guinea pig Ryan is petting is identical to our beloved Rocky that we lost 3 years ago this fall. We had an amazing day at the zoo. Ryan especially loved the elephants, hippos, and all the "big cats".

This is Ryan & Daddy with Grandpa & Grandma Williamson at the wedding. What a great family picture!

Ryan & Daddy enjoying the view from the top of the Gateway Arch. What a crazy day this was! After a very loooong wait and a million toddler meltdowns, we made it to the top of the Arch. Whew! I am glad we did it though. It only took me 6 trips to St. Louis to get up there!

We waited 2 hours after we got tickets for our tram time. We 'attempted' lunch in between this, but the restaurant we went to was horrible and it took an hour for our food and we had to pack it up and leave. At least I had food for Ryan and he got to eat a little food there and some on the run. We didn't get to eat at all. We had to throw our food in the car and race back to meet our time at the arch. Talk about being HUNGRY! But we made it and all was well after it was over. We salvaged what we could of lunch and headed for the mall. We made up for it with some Johnny Rockets in the food court. Ryan sure loved his chicken strips! Ryan got some new shoes at the mall and we called it a day after a little shopping.

Our family waiting for the tram at the top of the Gateway Arch. Ryan grabbed my hair and PULLED just after this was taken. OUCH! He was way beyond tired and had been such a trooper. I guess it was his way of telling me he wanted a NAP!

Safely landed in Orlando....First Class is the way to go! I wish we could fly that way all the time. A baby could get spoiled this way ;-)

Enjoy the rest of the vacation pictures in the slideshow.