Last Day in Tucson

Seth wakes up Aunt Bubba...

...to say goodbye before she heads off to summer school:

(This picture actually makes me really jealous--he rarely gives ME kisses anymore!)

Then it was off to see the Scorpion!

 

This is my Dad's baby--it started out as an automated car for a DARPA competition.

Now they're hoping to get the military to pick it up.

In the meantime, we get to play with it!

Seth would only sit in it while it was off.  "Too loud."

Then it was off to lunch at a local microbrewery.

Because that's how we Mikesells roll.

Princesses don't sit in high chairs.

They sit on the table.

Seth, however, elected to play pool instead of eating:

He didn't regret that choice for a second.

Mikesell Family in front of the Scorpion

(Garth & Linda & boys, Kenna & Brian, us, Stephen & Marah, Mom & Dad)

And then it was time to say goodbye:

Mom drove us to the airport for our afternoon flight. 

Seth was fine with the whole thing until he realized that Grandma wasn't coming with us.  

Then he burst into tears.

(At which point Mom burst into tears, then me--Jon and Catherine just pretended not to know us) .

Luckily, we reached a compromise.  When Grandma 'gets rid of Aunt Bubba' (she graduates next May), then Seth with come and live with Grandma 

'and you will be my new mommy and Grandpa will be my daddy.'  

Yep, he threw me under the bus, just like that.  He's dead serious about it, too.

Seth at the airport, still crying because he misses Grandma.

Luckily everything went perfectly smoothly with our flights home.  Seth even perked up enough

to design his own Scorpion out of dollar store K'nex:

Catherine, on the other hand, was in charge of quality control.

Much to Seth's dismay, none of his Scorpions could survive a Catherine attack. 

Then it was back to Maryland and humidity and boring old Mom at home.

One month later, Seth still sighs and says things like, "Why am I not at Grandma's house?"

Here's to Thanksgiving!