Normally my family gets together in Gatlinburg for the week of July 4 every year, since that's when the sawmill is shut down. But with the economy the way it is, and the need to save a little moolah (for all of us!), we decided to have sort of a "stay-cation". Well, it was a stay-cation for the rest of my family, we just had to get to Indiana to start ours! We had a busy, but relaxing week this year. Here are the highlights, followed by pictures: - Kylie's softball game in Indianapolis - we went straight from the airport and it must have been the hottest day ever. Brad thought he would die from the humidity. Even Nolan made sure to find the shade when he was playing. These native Coloradans just aren't used to the high humidity!!
- Nic's baseball game - he had a few really good hits! It was an exciting game that they almost pulled out at the end.
- Swimming - thanks, Aunt Peggy & Uncle Bill!
- A slip-n-slide in the backyard - lots of fun even though it "ruined the yard" for Dad - with good ole' Uncle Brad leading the way (check out the video)!
- Brad was able to go golfing a few times at a few different courses. He even talked my Uncle Richard and cousin Elliott into joining him.
- Nolan and I met up with my friends Sarabeth and Susan and their kids Emily (6), Sam (4), Lucy (1 1/2), Kaitlyn (5), and Kendall (1) for a few hours at Deming Park in Terre Haute for a picnic and playing. We don't get to see each other often, but it's like we never left off when we do. We had a great time catching up!
- Brad, Nolan, and I got to meet up with two of my other friends and their families on Wednesday night too. We drove to Martinsville to see Mandy and Eli (3), Laura & Andy, Abigail (4), and Hannah (1). Mandy made a wonderful dinner and we all got to enjoy each other's company while the kids played. Same thing - it's like we never left off!
- We got super lucky with the weather - all through the week it was breezy and not too hot - perfect for vacation!
- Good thing Nanny/Nurse Polly have connections at the doctor's office.... ;) Nolan was not himself after playing at the park so we took him to see Dr. Schuld as the last appointment of the day. Another ear infection!!! But we got him some antibiotics and he was fine after that. At least it was all straightened out before we got back on the plane.
- Friday we all headed up to Turkey Run State Park to hang out/picnic/hike for the day. We usually do this when we're in Gatlinburg and everyone has a blast. Mom and I went up early to grab a good spot and then waited for everyone else to get there. (We both got some good reading in!) We cooked out, took a short hike (that even the kids did well on), and just enjoyed each other for the day. Again, we totally lucked out with the weather because the next day it poured!!
Our flight back was on July 4, and it had literally rained all day long, so I was glad that we hadn't intended to stay until Sunday to see fireworks because we wouldn't have gotten to see any! The plane wasn't full, so we got an extra seat to let Nolan roam around in between us....always nice when it's free! Before this trip we got a portable DVD player for him and it definitely came in handy on the way home. He wasn't bad, but he sure didn't plan on sitting still for too long! He did watch a Blue's Clues video and read some books, but was mostly back and forth between the seats the whole time. I can't complain too much though - at least he was screaming the whole time! As usual, we had a great trip and it was so nice to visit with everyone. And as usual, there were people we wanted to see while we were home and couldn't. But don't worry! We'll all be back at Christmas, so hopefully we'll be able to visit with everyone then. I've already booked our flights using our frequent flyer miles (now that we'll have to start buying three seats instead of two, it's coming in handy!) and we'll be home for 2 weeks. Well, the kids and I will be home for 2 weeks, Brad will be home for the last half of that. I'm braving an airplane with a 2-year old and an approximately 2-month old BY MYSELF. That's right, I'll be hauling the boys to Indiana on December 12 and Brad will join us on the 19th. We all fly home together (thank goodness!) on the 26th. I'll be on maternity leave, but Brad only has so many vacation days.....and he'll be using a majority of that time when "Bobby" gets here!
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