I really feel like I am some sort of high flying exec sat her 36000feet above the atlantic typing away in word but what bursts that particular bubble is Reagan and Mommy snoring away in the seats next to me . Our holiday has begun but it doesn’t feel like it at the moment because I feel so tired and as yet have not really relaxed since the alarm clock RIPPED us from our sleep at 04:55 this morning and our hectic day started. We said to each other when we first turned the alarm off that we could not bare to be woken like that every morning and were thankful that I have never needed an aid to wake up I just naturally awake around 7am.

Dad was picking us up at 05:30 and we knew he would be on time so I showered then mommy then we got Reagan up who quite frankly wondered what the….all the commotion was, oblivious to the fact that such a huge adventure was about to happen in her life!

As expected dad was 5 minutes early and found a very sleepy Reagan (and if I am being honest mom and dad too) eating breakfast and was keen not to hamper any plans we had but he shouldn’t have worried as the only thing on our minds right then was being alert enough not to forget anything!

As I write this I don’t think we have but I suppose time will tell? The journey to the air port was littered with small talk but fantastically uneventful by that I mean we drove straight there without any delays and bid me dad bon voyage! I think Reagan is warming to him now as not only did he carry her to the car he held her and kissed her lovingly as departed and she gave him one of her new open mouthed slobbery kisses lol.

My nervous panic was in full swing as we checked in as it always is when passing through the official part of the airport with security waiting for us to slip up “they’re not I know but I get panicked”
Once through we had a bit of breakfast in T3’s food court and when I got the bill I thought I’d bough the court itself the dirty robbing….

Then we went to a deserted Gate 55 and allowed Reagan to crawl walk climb and generally wear herself out with the view that she can sleep as long as she wants on the plane but until then she stays awake! The plan went perfectly with Reagan crawling for miles around the terminal loving the freedom and the attention from the few that were scattered around but with three hours before depatrture still there weren’t many for a long time. By the time the gate opened Reagan was beat, desperate for sleep and quite literally falling asleep standing up! Not able to understand why we were’n’t allowing her to?

I would like to thank Beryl from American Airlines at this point as she went out of her way to get us 3 seats in a row allowing Reagan a seat to herself which she is using to full effect still as I continue to write snoring away although mom is sat by the window reading from her Kindle now!

With the luxury or three seats it been a whole lot easier up to this point but as always with long haul flights I just want to get off, we can see Canada out of the window at the moment and its 16:12gmt and 11:12est so we’re not too long away from meeting Grandma and Grandpa in Chicago!

The in flight entertainment was unusual to say the least but very very funny! There was a guy in the row next to us with three seats to himself so he was laying full lengh on his side facing the seats in front, and had been there for a couple of hours when he rolled over wedging himself in between his seats and the ones in front couple this with his shear panic of trying to work out where he was I have to say was THEE funniest thing I have ever seen and had Jamie and me crying with laughter. He played the getting back on the seat and pretending it didn’t happen card but we know different lol!!!

On arrival at O’Hare a mix up with gate numbers meant we were in one part of the airport and Cliff and Pam in another which was eventually sorted out with a text fest as our Blackberry IM and internet on our phones doesn’t yet work?
We finally met up after 20minutes and Pam’s fears were soon vanished when Reagan was holding both of them mesmerised with her cuteness and was soon being walked around the parking lot by Gradma and tickle bumped to sleep by Grandpa. I say sleep, Reagan slept for the and a half hours on the plane and then briefly on the journey around Chicago but she is still awake now and we are on the interstate heading west towards DeKalb to see cousin Troy and his family and its 00:30 back home and she’s wide awake still?

Anyway I digress we headed of down into Chicago for a site seeing drive past the sky scrapers Lake Michigan Tramways above the road like in the films etc We made our way slowly around downtown Chicago eventually stopping to eat at a tiny Chicago red hot shack where we all ate hot dogs fries and cokes except Jamie who at last fulfilled her first craving for Raspberry Iced tea to wash her Chicago red hot down!

Back to the interstate I mentioned earlier and yes Reagan is still awake.
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Every night we sit and eat tea together which Jamie and I really think is important family time and a very important meal because its when we all eat the same food. Reagan is so observant and realises eating with a fork is what mom and dad do so she wants to eat like we do too, so we have been encouraging her to eat off her new fork she got from her bezzie cousin last week.

Her enthusiasm really makes me smile when you hand her the fork with food on it and she takes it from you in her right hand and then passes it to her left hand (I think she may be lefthanded) while studying what food is on it then she very carefully puts it in her mouth and begins to eat it….at this point she hands the fork to me to be reloaded and then joins me in a round of applause for the best most cleverest little daughter we have but the applause soon stops when she realises I am not reloading the fork quick enough?

She now eats all her food like this only resorting to fingers when dad doesn’t securely load the fork properly and the food drops off 🙁 She is starting to try and stab food herself but I think that may be a little way off yet so we just encourage her and let her try (she hates you trying to help lol?)

Towards the end of the meal she had some mash left and a few carrots so I got some mash then stabbed a carrot and passed it to Reagan who promptly removed the carrot and ate the mash from the fork and handed it back to me. So I stabbed the carrot again and handed it to Reagan who again removed the carrot and lean’t really far forward and handed me the fork again…..mommy and daddy fell about laughing sorry Reagan!

She ate all the meal except the carrots from a fork but then when there was nothing else left except carrots she ate them too but with her fingers…she really loves to eat and its always worrying when she goes of her food. I don’t think a diet of vegetables by the bowl full will do our Reaganator any harm, I’m sure if we served up junk food she’d be in trouble and so would we I suppose?

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