Pink Bunny Goes Home

It was finally time to go home.  With Red Shirt Bear and Blue Shirt Bear safely tucked in my suitcase, Pink Bunny and I headed off to the airport.

We had breakfast at the airport.  I let Pink Bunny order.

We made a pit stop on the way to the gate.  Had to keep Pink Bunny safe!

Pink Bunny wanted to take a cart to the gate, but his feet wouldn't reach the pedals.

One last look out the window...

Then safely in the seat.

A few hours and two flights later....

....Pink Bunny was reunited with the girls.  And that was when I learned that "he" was a "she", and I'd been calling her "him" all week.

Pink Bunny Meets Another New Friend

Pink Bunny and Red Shirt Bear were having such a good time in Seattle!  They had even more fun when they met another friend - Blue Shirt Bear!

(You didn't think I'd come home with only one new bear, did you?)

Pink Bunny goes to Dinner Again!

We made a visit to Cheesecake Factory for dinner.  My coworkers were used to Pink Bunny by now, and played along quite willingly -- sharing toast and artichoke dip...

 ....and beer...

....maybe too much beer!

And Pink Bunny helped pick the cheesecake!

After dinner, a little shopping at the Disney store!

Pink Bunny goes to the Space Needle

The seat belt keeps Pink Bunny safe in the car.

Pink Bunny got to go to the Seattle Space Needle!

By this time, my coworkers had embraced the Pink Bunny adventure.
Sort of....

The lady running the elevator was really nice!

Pink Bunny got to check out the view from the top of the Space Needle.

The view was really something, but it was awfully cold.

Pink Bunny Meets a Friend

Pink Bunny made a friend at the conference.  He met Red Shirt Bear in the gift shop at the hotel.

  They get a long very well.  After all, Red Shirt Bear didn't share my interest in the conference either.

However, they were both very well behaved together.  They even joined me for breakfast!

They didn't act up during the general session, either.

Pink Bunny Goes to Dinner

Pink Bunny behaves in the car, on the way to dinner.

We went to Ranier Restaurant, a Vietnamese restaurant in Seattle.  Pink Bunny even got into the action, starting with some hot tea!

The restaurant has some....interesting....foods.

 Pink Bunny was not very amused.....

So we ordered with care.

 And Pink Bunny stuck to the fried rice.

Pink Bunny Hanging Out

Pink Bunny was well taken care of on his trip.  He had plenty to eat, and plenty to drink.

Pink Bunny even tried to call home!  (I did help him video call home to talk to the girls.  He got to introduce his friend, Red Shirt Bear, too!)

Pink Bunny did some work while at the hotel room, too.  Always helping me out!

And he sat with me while I worked, too.

Pink Bunny was all worn out!

Conference

The three-day conference had a lot of really good sessions.  I found it to be quite educational and enjoyable.

Pink Bunny, of course, doesn't share my interest in ERP systems and accounting software.  He did, however, attend with me and behave himself quite well.

My coworkers didn't quite embrace the idea at first.  (But it's difficult to pretend there isn't a Pink Bunny sitting with you.)

Pink Bunny enjoyed riding the elevator at the hotel.  It was nice that the conference was in the same hotel that we were staying -- made it a short walk and a brief elevator ride from room to conference.

Arrived at the Hotel

I was given an unusual room.  It had a conference room table, wet bar and a guest bathroom.  And a doorbell.  Luckily, no one used it.  Well, except for me.  (Had to test it out, you know!)

But no matter how nice the room was, there was no denying that we were tired.  Pink Bunny beat me to bed!

I assure you, I was not far behind.

Send-off to Seattle

Since our 5 year old twin girls would be staying home with daddy while mommy traveled on a business trip that would span 5 days, I wanted to engage them in the trip in a positive way.  I took a page from a former sales manager teammate's book

I asked the girls to pick a small stuffed animal to make the trip with me. Now they had no idea what to expect and were a bit confused at the request. Kayla summarized it by asking, "it's so you'll remember us while you're gone, right Mommy?"
After explaining I would remember them no matter what, I convinced then to pick an animal.  After several near decisions, they finally agreed on Pink Bunny.  After hugs and kisses, Pink Bunny went into my carry-on bag.

This was the start if Pink Bunny's Seattle adventure.

Pink Bunny made his first appearance at the Wichita airport.  I was early for my flight, and sitting at the gate.  There were only a couple of people there, so I took advantage of the opportunity to bring out Pink Bunny so he could wait for his flight.

The plane was small, and my side of the plane had only 1 seat in it. 

 I'm afraid Pink Bunny's view wasn't so nice, as he stayed in my backpack, which was stowed in an overhead bin for the flight.

It's always interesting when you look down at the clouds.

Maybe next time, Pink Bunny will get to see it!