We’re home from a near perfect trip.  Glory’s first plane ride, 2nd Indigo Girls concert, first beach experience.  She slept through everything but woke up between the hours of 2am-7am to make sure she didn’t miss the moon.  I tried to remember how different it would be to travel with a baby but because she’s still sleeping so much, it was more like having a large bag attached to me at all times.  In a good way, of course.

We dined and walked and shopped and rested.  It was perfect.  We hung out with jbeeky for a bit before the concert and then, of course, she danced and sang right next to me all night long.  I decided that San Diego IG fans don’t hold a candle to SLC fans.  (except for jbeeky)  There was far too much sitting and I think we were the only people who actually knew the words.  But the venue, Humphrey’s, is indescribable and I suppose that any concert there is amazing.  This is us at the concert.  Again, she slept through the whole thing…

We spent a whole day in Coronado and the beach there is emmaculate.  No surringes so my dear friend J could really enjoy the sand between her toes.  There was a nice breeze that made it cool under the umbrella.  & watching the kids (sans mine) play, couldn’t have been more beautiful. 

Here’s my family and jbeeky’s family.  It was amazing to finally meet baby Ellen – she is everything I dreamed her to be!  & Mylo, while highly disappointed that Cristy wasn’t as playful as he’s known her to be (that’s what a lack of sleep will do to a middle aged girl) was wonderful and smart and funny and full of energy.  I miss you all already.

This is J and her creation.  I think she was trying to scare the children…

Our best girls…

And here she is, in all her glory…

But after a few hours of being there, I noticed something was missing.  My stunning, favorite, most cherished piece of jewelry was not on my finger.

Remember this?

I started to panic but then remember I had taken it off right before we left the hotel room to lotion up the baby.  I knew I left it one of two places so it’s not like I had lost it in some random patch of sand or something.  Either way, I asked everyone if we could leave because I knew I couldn’t relax until I had it back.  But it didn’t happen.  When we got back to the hotel, our cleaning service, laundry service and maintenance service had all come & gone – and one of them left with my ring.  It was gone just like that. 

I filed a report.  I met with the police.  The security at the hotel was wonderful and I know they’re doing their best to find it.  They also said they’d file a claim if the investigation doesn’t go anywhere.  But I know it’s really gone and it breaks my heart that my new ring won’t be that ring – from that day.

I left my heart in San Diego – all 1.7 carats of it…