Keep your seatbelts fastened when the seatbelt sign is on

How to ensure that none of your fellow passengers on an SAS intercontinental flight will smile at you during the post-flight baggage claim gathering:

-- Three days prior to flying, make sure your five-month old baby learns how to emit a high-pitched, eardrum-piercing screech.

-- Two days prior to flying, make sure said baby will emit the screech as an expression of any emotion -- happiness, anger, frustration, etc.

-- Board packed Stockholm to Chicago flight with said baby and his 7-year old brother.

-- Smile sweetly at every passenger who stops to say hello to said baby during first three hours of the 8.5 hour flight. Baby smiles too -- while screeching (it's cute for a while.) Tell your baby he's not supposed to sleep more than 2x15 minutes during the flight.

-- Crawl under your seat while baby screeches for remainder of flight, with the sound increasing in intensity when the flight crew turns off the lights to help passengers fall asleep after the meal. Baby ensures no one in the entire economy section arrives in Chicago feeling refreshed.

-- When the plane lands and the seatbelt sign is off, put baby in baby carrier, grab 7-year old by the hand, and smile sweetly at all of the tired passengers (who are no longer cooing at said baby) as they disembark. (Baby still manages to greet each and every one with a smile and a screech.)

******************************************************************************

We're in Chicago on Nicholas's first trip to the US and having a blast! It was great to see my parents at the airport and we spent our first evening here at Grandpa Hennip's having Easter dinner (one day late, I know). Ham, pasta, meatballs, sausage, salad, vegetables, sweet potatoes, bread, fruit salad and cake. As always when Grandpa cooks, it was delicious and I was stuffed! Lucas insisted that he wasn't tired that evening despite the long trip and the time change, but he ate one meatball and a few pieces of pasta, and then fell sound asleep on the couch. It was Nicholas's first meeting with his Great-Grandfather, which was a moving experience for me.

Mom had booked me in for a pedicure yesterday, which I enjoyed completely. Now my toes are ready for their contact with the Caribbean sand in a few days. Mom took care of Nick and Lucas while I was being spoiled. We then went on a shopping spree at Target, where Lucas and I filled the cart with goodies.

Grandpa spent the day with us today. We walked up to the local nature center and working farm, where Lucas petted the horses, chatted with the turkeys and had a look at one enormous pig who reminded me of Wilbur except he wasn't pink... or cute. We also chanced upon a group of gardner snakes (is that what they're called?) who were lying in the sun.

I've got plenty of photos to share but no way of uploading them at the moment. Text will just have to do.

Until the next Chicago update!!!