We've had a couple of very exciting weeks around here. Last Tuesday, Angela, Cameron, and Caleb flew up to visit us for 5 days. The kids were SO excited that they could hardly stand it. We made a paper chain with links = number of days till The Day, and they were very diligent about making sure a link got taken off every morning until The Day. Josie actually jumped up and down and yelled, "I'm so excited I can't stand it!" Roy took me to the airport to pick them up (I still hate driving to the airport) and it was all very surreal when they got here... I don't know why. Angela thinks it's because we've always known each other (well, she's known me since she was 4 months old, and I've known her my entire life) and yet she was never an actual part of my life here - or at least she didn't know what my life was LIKE here. Anyway, the boys and girls got along famously from the very beginning... we were expecting that they'd get tired of each other, but nope. They played and played and played some more. On Wednesday, we had a beach day (which was also Adelaide's very first "play in the sand" at the beach day. She tried to eat some of it, but she mainly wanted to walk out in the water until it was up to her nose. That night, Jesse bravely babysat all 5 of them while Angela and I went out for sushi and a night on the town... it was the first time we'd been out ALONE for YEARS, and it was great. My favorite part was sitting in the cheapo massage chairs in the mall, watching people and making fun of ourselves and the pickle in the floor next to my seat.
On Thursday we went to the zoo with an entourage of people - Becky and her kids, Sarah, Aunt Cindy, Grandma, Melissa and Caroline, Jessica and Haley... the list kept growing and growing! But it was fun. Hard to stay together, but fun! The giraffes were a big hit (they came right up to the fence) and the dinosaurs were too (for all but Caleb - he was not impressed).
We took pictures of him with Ireson, and the similarity was AMAZING. I've been saying all along how much they look alike, but having them stand right next to each other was really weird! Later we went to the "Mariachi Band's House" for supper and then over to Mama's house. On Friday, we stayed home all day then went to the Village Market for facepainting (again, Caleb was not impressed - he got a balloon penguin instead... but I was called an Old Lady for the first time by a 7 year old) then we headed to Beth and Roy's house for Teagan's birthday party. Angela said that hanging out at their house was probably her favorite part of the trip - I think it's so cool that she likes my Ohio family so much. :)Saturday we left on a very long, somewhat eventful car ride... Caleb and Cameron got the carsick gene from their parents (Angela was AWFUL in the car when we were growing up... I still point out places on the side of the road when we're in NC - "Oh, hey... there's where Angela threw up once!") and we had one 'incident' on the WV Turnpike; of course, those curves could make anybody sick. Anyway, we stopped 4 times, we ate, we went to the bathroom, we cleaned up the car, we took our time. It took 11 hours to get home, but I used some meditation techniques and didn't get all freaked out. :) Plus, the kids really were very good for the most part and Angela and I got a lot of talking and "Millionaire" playing done.
The week in NC was fun... Chass and I had a birthday cookout, Grandma fed Adelaide so much that I found biscuit crumbs in her belly button, we got to swim in Papaw's pool, Mamaw told a gazillion stories to Sadie (Sadie just cannot get enough of her 
stories - Sylvia's going to have to write a book!), Adelaide was scared of Bayleigh at first but then Bayleigh gave her a toy and said, "Here go" and Adelaide said, "Taint Tu," and they were big buddies. Grandma took us out for a birthday lunch, we ate chicken and dumplins', played with Kimmie, Noah, Dalton, Hailey, and Lauren, went up the mountain and visited the cheese factory, Daddy worked on my car for me, and my Girls (not the kids...my grown up girls) took me out for my birthday, where I proceeded to get cake smashed in my face by a bunch of laughing Hispanic waiters. Ahh...good times.
