Family Reunion

We had a wonderful time visiting our family out in Kansas City, MO over the Mother's Day weekend. The primary reason for going out was to attend Kevin's brother Dan's graduation from Park University with his BA in Communications: Journalism. It was a VERY special day for Dan, his wife Kristie, and their two kiddos, Olivia and Elisha. Kevin, Aaron and I flew out Thursday afternoon, and Dave, Jerri and Andrew flew out Friday morning. Aaron had a hard time on the flight, but it could have been worse. He is so full of energy and really wanted to get down and run, and/or climb the seats and play with all those fun buttons overhead, esp. the one that calls the flight attendant. :) It's very hard to discipline in those situations, and we found ourselves several times trying to "bribe" our child, something we very much disagree with and try so hard not to do. It was a humbling plane ride and we survived.

We were so happy to finally arrive and spend some quality time with Dan, Kristie and the kids. Friday was a fun day, we went to lunch at Red Robin and then made a big Wal-Mart run. We stayed home that night and hung out, getting ready for the big day ahead.

Relaxing and figuring out how to "share" things



Waiting for Nanna, Grampa, and Uncle Andy to arrive. Could barely contain themselves when their car pulled into the driveway!

Graduation day dawned sunny, breezy, and a little chilly. We all made it in time, despite some parking glitches. The kids did really well, age and all things considered, during the 2 hour ceremony. Aaron being the youngest, sat quiet for about 45 minutes, then I took him out and he ran all around the halls of the event center while we waited for the ceremony to end. I was a little bummed to miss the big moment of Dan getting his diploma, but so thankful his wife, parents, and brothers could see the whole thing. Aaron was in a great mood and SO full of energy, so running around for him was a good thing. We took pictures outside afterwards, ran home to change, then spent the afternoon eating, visiting and relaxing at Kristie's parents' home in Blue Springs, MO. It was a nice afternoon, and we all headed home to get some rest that evening.

Mother's Day dawned a little more overcast, but still mild weather overall. Some of us slept in, and we all took the morning slowly. The guys went out in the afternoon to do some shopping and spend some good brother/father/son time together, while the ladies and kiddos took turns napping, relaxing and visiting. As every place in MO seemed to be booked for Mother's Day dinner, the guys picked dinner up for us, and we had a nice time eating at home, then watching a movie together after the kids went to bed.

We moms/Nanna all felt very honored by the kids and our guys :)

Uncle Kevin horsing around with his niece and nephew

A rare moment with Kristie and Mary are in the same picture together :)

Monday was a combination of packing, visiting, touring Dan's campus, eating a late lunch, having a 2 hour flight delay for us, then finally arriving at the airport and departing. Aaron literally ran around the terminal (with supervision of course) for 2 hours before our flight. He was SO punch-drunk-tired at that point, we were laughing hysterically at him. Kevin and I took turns watching the stuff while the other chased Aaron around. I unfortunately came down with a cold Sunday night and though finally got some meds for the flight home, was feeling pretty tired and sick by the time we took off. We PRAISED and THANKED the Lord that Aaron fell asleep about 15 minutes into the flight, and only awoke crying twice before falling back to sleep both times after just a few minutes of crying. It was a huge blessing, esp for me at the end of the flight when my ears were hurting so badly from the pressure I literally thought my eardrums were going to burst. I still can't hear very well today, but the pressure has relieved some. Our dear friends, Stuart and Lauren, picked us up from the airport at 10:30 PM last night when we got in, giving up precious sleep when they both had to work the next day. We were so thankful to them. :) We miss you all already and can't wait for the next visit!

Oh sweet bliss, a sleeping toddler!