Welcome to The Rock!

Porter has finally made his way north to his Mama's homeland - Newfoundland, Canada. Dada dropped us off at RDU on Saturday afternoon, and Mama went through security with the BOB stroller like a champ. Yup, the stroller fit through the xray machine WITH the tires on (for those out there wondering, as I did!). His first plane ride was perfect. We sat next to a kind African American gentleman, named Calvin, whom Porter loved! He kept handing him his sippy cup as a token of friendship. The take-off and landing were uneventful, and Porter loved looking out the window at the wheels as we zoomed down the runway. We were a bit late getting into Newark, but it was long enough to get a bathroom run in, then we were on a big plane to St. John's. After reaching our cruising altitude of 40000 ft, Porter went right to sleep - for the whole trip! Here's the only pictures I got of our plane adventures (it's hard taking pics of a lively baby on a plane). Oh, and during this leg there was an empty middle seat; perfect!




Unfortunately, we were in the back of the plane, therefore the last to get off, so we were at the end of the customs line in St. John's. But, I was only standing there for about a minute when one of the customs officials (I swear he was about 20 years old) came over and asked "Are you traveling alone?". I answered "Yes. Why?", and he says "Wanna take a shortcut?". Yes please!!! I guess there are a few advantages to traveling with a baby by yourself. I was whisked to the front of the line and was promptly asked "Do you have a letter of permission from the father allowing you to travel with the baby?". ????? Seriously?! I looked at the customs official, another youngin', and pleaded ignorance, stating that I didn't know it was required (which, honestly, I didn't). She thankfully says that it's not mandatory, but it doesn't hurt to have. "Very well, I'll be more prepared next time", I say. Our passports were stamped and off we went to get our bag and meet with Mike. Here's Porter's first introduction to Uncle Mike (Note: it's a bit past his bedtime so he's a little cranky). Mike's first reaction was "He's some cute!" Very sweet!

We stayed at Uncle Mike's house that night, then left for Twillingate at lunchtime on Sunday. The drive was interesting, since it was blowing 100 km/hr with fog and rain. Uncle Mike did an excellent job driving! Porter slept all the way to Gander, while Uncle Mike and I watched the line of traffic heading back to St. John's from the KISS concert in Grand Falls-Windsor. We stopped in Gander for some Tim Hortons:

While sitting down at Tim's, Porter was doing his people-watching, and the gentleman next to us looks at me and says "Hi Jacqui." Cripes. It's no surprise that you'd see someone you know as soon as you hit the island. Of course, I couldn't recognize him, and made an ass of myself, but he introduced himself as an old family friend, and wanted to know how the Little Man was doing after his surgery. It seems that Porter's trials and tribulations are known the island over, and everyone is rooting for him! Very sweet!

We made it to Twillingate for a cooked supper and Porter made himself right at home. He was laughing up a storm at Nana and Pop within an hour of our arrival. Yes, I think he'll get along fine up here! Nana got a bunch of toys at a yardsale, and a few other items were borrowed from friends. Thanks so much to Dawn and Jane!!

On Monday, Nana gave Porter his first haircut. That was interesting! Luckily, no one was injured and now Porter really does look like a little man:

After the haircut we went down to big Back Harbour beach to see the yellow dory. For those of you that don't know, Porter has a woven mat of Newfoundland on his nursery wall with a yellow dory, which he points to, so I thought it appropriate that we get a picture of him sitting in a real Newfoundland yellow dory!

Family and friends have been visiting everyday. Here are a few shots with some loved ones:

Cousin Chrissy

Poppy Ben and cousin Chrissy

Nanny Beryl

Tonya and Sarah Hayes

Big Pop Jenkins

Today (Thursday) the capelin are rolling in down Wild Cove, so we went down to get a couple of buckets. Pop and Mama threw the cast net, and Porter had his first taste of capelin - literally. He picked one out of the bucket, and put it directly into his mouth! And he liked it! His Dada would be so proud!

Here are some parting shots of REAL grass.

--Jacqui