We just got back from our "world tour," as we liked to call it. 7 states, 11 days, friends, family and a bunch of firsts. Our first stop was Albuquerque. Noah did sparklers on the 4th of July for the first time and had a BLAST!!! Him and Nathan (who are 6 months apart) played so so so so well together - they became the best of buds! Emma got to meet Parker (which they are exactly 1 month apart) and was quite smitten with him - but really, it's hard not to be. ;) We also tried to do a photo shoot with the "cousins." Yeah. Didn't turn out so well - but the picture is priceless! ;) These are our people and we desperately wished we lived closer to them.
Next stop: Oklahoma City! Not sure which of the boys had the better time at Owen Field. ;) We also hit up the local Walmart and filled a shopping cart full of OU things - gotta stock up while you can, right? Greg, Noah and Emma all walked away with a bunch of good stuff.
Next stop: Texarkana, Texas (was where we spent the night before crossing the border into Arkansas). You're probably wondering why we would stop around there, right? Well.... we were supposed to go to the Crater of Diamonds State Park and dig for diamonds.... but the morning we woke up to head over there, it was pouring (and we mean POURING) down rain. And the closer we got to the park, the harder it rained. We were SO disappointed - especially Noah. Because what little boy doesn't like to dig in the dirt and find treasure? Plus, Jen was just SURE she was gonna find a 10 carat diamond. ;);)
So.... off to Arkansas we went. We went and visited Jen's Grandma in her new home for a few days and picked up a table Jen had been wanting for our home once we finish the basement. Her little city just opened up a new outdoor pool and rec center, so we took the kids swimming one afternoon. (Noah enjoyed it more than Emma did) ;) We also took a walk one night to a cotton field and showed Noah where/how we get cotton. It was a nice and relaxing stop for us - and we sure couldn't get enough of all the fried green tomatoes, sweet tea, southern accents and cicada's! ;)
Next on the agenda? Topeka! The kids got to meet Greg's Grandparents for the first time and we sure enjoyed our visit with them and catching up. It had been such a looooooooooooong time!!! (We were supposed to spend a couple of days at the Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City before this, but after much consideration, we decided to cancel that part and go when Emma is a little bigger and can fully enjoy it. Noah was bummed he missed out on the super fun KidKamp Suite we were booking, but he thinks it'll be more fun when Emma can enjoy it with him.)
We're back home now. Greg still has the rest of the week off, so we're running errands, going to appointments, catching up on our to-do lists and just enjoying being together and having a little down time. Can't believe how fast the summer is going!!
Here are some pics of our little miss from the last month:
