The kids and I had an especially fun weekend last week. My brother and his son, who is five, flew in from Arizona late on Thursday night. The next morning we woke up and hit the road for Michigan. The kids did awesome in the car, and Ben was so good to meet all of their needs while I drove. When we stopped for lunch a man thought we were married and talked to Ben about buying a house in Gary, Indiana. :)
We got to my Grandma's house about 3:30 that afternoon. We briefly went inside and then spent about the next two hours outside. The weather was gorgeous and warm (though my brother from AZ wore his coat!) and the kids ran their hearts out. They popped bubbles courtesy of Uncle Ben and Aunt Michelle and played soccer. It was a great afternoon.
After dinner at the bowling alley, which is becoming a South Haven tradition for me, the kids got to try out Great Grandpa Toney's tractor and then we moved inside for bird watching. Who knew a simple robin could be so enthralling. Bridget is still fascinated with robins a week later!
That night the kids and I slept in a hotel while Ben and Benson stayed at my Grandparent's house. I was both nervous and excited for this night, but the kids did great. I have to record a funny thing here. While we were driving to the hotel that night Marshall asked me if this was a fancy hotel. I replied no as I had booked the cheapest hotel in South Haven. He was so mad at me for not getting a fancy hotel. When we pulled into the parking lot though he caught a glimpse of the lobby and told me he thought it looked pretty fancy. I told him I was glad he liked it. When we got up to the room the kids went bananas. They seriously thought they were in the fanciest hotel in the world. Marshall was enamored with the lights and Bridget exclaimed, "Look Mom! They gave us two garbage cans!" We were also in a handicap accessible room so the bathroom was huge, which the kids also thought was just amazing. After just a few minutes Marshall told me, "Mom, you had no idea what you were talking about. This is the fanciest hotel." Ha! I was happy to be so wrong!
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| My bedtime buddies. This picture cracks me up. Obviously while we were taking these pictures the kids could see them self in my phone. Rachel initially had her binky in, but after a few pictures realized what Marshall and Bridget were doing, ripped her binky out, and opened her mouth. We all cracked up. She has the biggest mouth of them all! |
The next morning we went back to my Grandparent's house and Marshall, Benson, and Ben got ready to go to the Wild Kratts Live Show! Benson is obsessed with Wild Kratts and he was over the moon about going. My awesome sister-in-law made sure that all three boys were outfitted appropriately.
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| Marshall and Benson wrestled the morning away. These two boys only have sisters. I am so glad they had a weekend together! |
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| Bridget had her first Barbie experience courtesy of Great Grandma Toney. She was in heaven...especially after I put Rachel down for a nap and she didn't have to share anymore. :) |
I picked the boys up after the show and we made our way back to Milwaukee. The kids were great travelers again and I told Ben the weekend had proved to me we were both ready to have a fourth child in our respective families. He reminded me we were not traveling with a baby so that's why things were so easy. :) He has a point.
The next day was Sunday and we had stake conference at 2:00. Though I loathe 2:00 stake conference, it gave these kids the entire morning to play together. All we did was feed them breakfast and they entertained themselves the rest of the time.
After church and a quick dinner we said good-bye and I took Ben and Benson to the airport. It was a wonderful, wonderful weekend and one we'll remember forever!
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| This was completely unprompted. We told them to say good-bye and it resulted in at least a 15 second hug. |
