We started the trip by leaving extremely early in the morning to make a St Louis Cardinals game by noon. We went with Michael's parents and brother and sister-in-law, John and Janet. I would say we had a great time...but there was one HUGE drawback to the trip...the heat! I think the regular temperature in the stadium was about 99 and the heat index was well above that with no breeze. Hot, hot, hot!
Thankfully they gave out free ice and water, but I hope to not be in that kind of heat again anytime soon - especially pregnant. After that trip I had to take off my wedding ring because my fingers have stayed so swolen and I jumped a shoe size. Ick!
The arch is really fun to see though, and it was a little bit cooler in the underground part beneath the arch.
Michael and his family left us in St Louis (wait...doesn't the song say MEET me in St Louis - not leave me there) and the kids and I headed to see some of my college friends in Ohio. Our first stop was Rosie's house near Dayton. The kids had fun playing in the backyard. I can't believe how big Rosie's kids are now and am so glad we were able to catch up. I'm just sad that we didn't get any pictures of the grown-ups. Oops. I guess we'll just have to get together again so we can get some pics. :)
Rosie - thanks for letting us stay with you and hang out. You have such a fun (and beautiful) family.
Next stop, Sarah's in Columbus. Again, Sarah, why didn't we get any pictures of us? These pics came from a quick trip with the kids to the Columbus Zoo. It was definitely a quick trip because the zoo was not really kid friendly and it was quite difficult for me to take them around by myself. (when they wouldn't allow strollers inside the buildings, etc.) Oh well.
Sarah - I'm so glad we got to see your new place and hang out with you. We're sorry to make you take time away from your work. :) I can't believe I actually have a friend getting a phd in anything remotely associated to math - you are amazing!
Next, we headed to my brother's house near Cleveland. We got to spend a few hours at the Cleveland Zoo with Denise and her cuties!
Denise - our time was way too short. You are a mom with her hands full :) - you amaze me!
We had a couple days to hang out with Andrew. I think he was a little sick of me and my mamarazzi obsession (although I absolutely love the picture of Andrew and Emma below). He is a super fun uncle to the kids and we only wish he lived closer! We got to see him in action with the youth group...and they got a crazy glimpse of Emerald who decided to 'stand' in a new way...it was kind of weird. :)
Our trip ended in Indiana for Jonathan's wedding (see the post below for actual wedding pictures). Michael and my whole family (minus two - we missed you guys!) met us in Indiana and it felt almost like family camp. We had fun on the lazy river and waterslides of the Ol' Swimmin Hole, playing ball around the grounds, and relaxing.
It's hard to get family pictures of us because I'm always the one with the camera. So I set it up and let Andrew snap away for a few...but our timing was terrible and Emerald was napping. I haven't gotten to edit these pictures yet (I'm going to take out that ugly grate over the bridge opening), but at least you can see 'part' of our family.
Overall, it was a very fun trip...although I'm not anxious to spend that much time in the car (especially by myself) for a while. It was wonderful to catch up with so many old friends and family members and we hope to see you all again soon!
beautiful pics!
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