Thirteen Weeks

Our little traveling man has gone international! This picture was taken 2 days early, because Luke went on quite an adventure this past week. We headed to Canada so Jacob could be a groomsmen in a good friend's wedding. We knew it would be smart to break the long drive up, so Luke wouldn't get too upset being cooped up in the car. We also knew it would be important to have bottles of milk on hand so one of us could sit in the back seat and feed Luke when he was hungry. So, I spend many hours on the road pumping and pouring milk into bottles so we could keep making progress toward our destination. It turned out to be a very smooth ride!

Our first stop was at my sister's in Mahomet, Illinois (about 5 hours from Columbia). Luke slept the first 3 hours in the car, then drank a huge bottle (almost 9 ounces) and slept until we arrived. He had a great time playing with his cousin that evening.

The next day we headed to St. Joseph, Michigan. First, we ate at a local pizza place, then we visited a giant carousel. We sat and enjoyed the beach at Lake Michigan, where Luke felt his toes in the sand for the first time. It has been so hot in Missouri that we were relieved to feel a nice breeze coming off the water. 

We continued east across Michigan and stopped for dinner at Arcadia brewery in Battle Creek.

We crossed the Canadian border and arrived at our hotel in Windsor, Ontario by about 9pm. Luke looked like a little angel in his swaddle blanket sleeping in our hotel room.

The following day was the wedding rehearsal and dinner. It was rainy that day, so Luke was glad he brought his hat.

On the wedding day Luke and I explored downtown Windsor with some other Missouri friends while Jacob attended to groomsmen duties. Here we are with Detroit in the background.

Mr. Handsome is all dressed up for a special evening. I made the outfit by ironing a bow tie on a onesie, and I used mitten clips and ribbon to make the suspenders.

The wedding was held at a beautiful winery that overlooked Lake Erie.

That night Luke slept the longest stretch ever, 8 hours. I guess all that partying at the wedding really wore him out. On Sunday we headed over to Niagara Falls, which was only 4 hours from Windsor. We stayed on the Canada side for better views. 

That night we stayed out to watch the fireworks over the falls. Luke slept the whole time, even through the booms.

First boat ride! Monday morning we boarded the Maid of the Mist to see the falls up close. Luke got to ride along in my wrap and wore a hat to stay dry. 

Monday afternoon we headed back across the border toward home. We drove through New York and  Pennsylvania to get to a friend's house in Akron, Ohio for the night. It was great to have an excuse to visit them for the night. Tuesday was filled with a drive across Ohio and Indiana back to my sister's in Illinois. A week later we ended up back home. Luke has now been to 8 states and 2 countries. What a great first family vacation!