The first day with family was filled with lots of joy and some big concerns. We are hoping that the doctors are able to find a way to help Great-Grandma through all of her new struggles. We are so happy that we could be there this morning and that she was able to finally meet Brendan in person. The boys got all dressed up in their snappiest outfits and spent some time with her.

The boys all held hands to go through the parking lot

At Gramma’s house, Brendan wanted to rock his new cousin Rhys

Lunchtime chaos! Ashley and Kayla and Aunt Heather arrived. We were just one cousin short of a full pallooza! (Rhys was present, just not pictured here)

The threesome played a lively melody on Gramma’s piano

Caleb and Trevor wore their new tool belts from Gramma and went out on the deck to help the guys building

Hammer high five! Twice, Caleb and Trevor tried to give each other a hug and both times they fell over and bonked their heads on something. They were good buddies today though. 

They are really helping

We brought Gramma a piece of the landscape from Arizona. She has to figure out where to put it. It isn’t fully unwrapped yet, but it is a rock that looks like a meteorite. 

Rhys really likes Aunt Heather!

If my boys were already 3yrs old, I could call these guys the three-by-threes. We wish Kieran could have been here already for “flying time” and ring-around-the-rosie. 

CUTE!!

On your mark… get set…

GO!!

Swinging with Ashley and Gramma

Splashing Ashley with hot tub water

MORE CUTE!!

Mr. Caleb-Cutie-Cake! Trevor wanted to use the flowers like hammers

Rhys climbed up in to the recliner to play Brendan’s iGuy while nobody was watching.

Ok, so he was sleeping, and being seriously handsome while doing it!

We did bubble baths in Gramma’s deep Jacuzzi bath tub. 

Maybe a little too deep….

The boys were all clean and in their jammies for the drive home to the trailer, and as I hoped, they fell asleep in the car. I carried two little rag dolls and plopped them into bed without so much as a sigh or a blink. They were out cold!! We are full of gratitude for all the work and planning done by Gramma and Aunt Heather to host and feed everyone and for everyone that helped wear out the little ones tonight!

It was full-of-crazy today, but it was wonderful being with the whole family and seeing everyone again. Li’l K and family will be coming soon to complete the total pallooza!

I truly am surprised at how well the boys have handled this long trip. They were amazing and patient in the car with hardly any squirming or crying. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I rode the whole way in the back sitting right in between them so that they could hold my hand and I could get them anything they needed without stopping the car. It worked really well. Of course, that left Bill to do 100% of the driving. He did a great job too, and we arrived right on time!

There isn’t much to see through southern Illinois except for corn. The only stops we made were for gas and diaper changes. This could be Anywhere, USA at a gas station. It is like every one we stopped at along the way.
The boys stretched, walked around, and played with their trucks for short stops.

We had some PB&J and Cheetos and some more play time.

We hit just a minor delay for construction on the Des Plaines river bridge and a very short burst of traffic, but otherwise we made perfect time. We got set up in the RV park just in time for about 25 minutes of hard rain. This is called a “camping resort” but there are mostly permanant neighbors.

We suffered about 40 minutes of epic meltdown from tired boys again, but it is a small price to pay for such a great driving day. Now that we can get settled and they can play with cousins all day, bedtimes should get better!

Wi-fi available at this RV park means that there is a painfully slow connection only available in the public area by the pool and pavilion. I am sitting under the pavilion now getting eaten alive by mosquitoes and enjoying the burbling sounds of a steaming hot tub that is closed for the night.

We can’t wait to see everyone in the morning!

I have trouble coming up with the right words for days like today. I will start with the positive things.

Our good friends moved from the Denver area and bought a beautiful country home right on our trip’s path. It was like they planned it that way, the perfect stop for a break in the travels.

The boys were thrilled to be able to play hard and not spend time strapped in to a seat. They got to giggle wildly at the cutest puppies.

Brendan was figuring out how to drive a quad

He decided to upgrade.

They were going to play tug-o-war over who got the Jeep

Little drivers

Trevor is saying, “Brendan doesn’t fit. He needs to go in the back”

There is the house overlooking their own private pond

The second pond

Our “spot” for the day

The boys got a tour of the property in the back of the Jeep.

Swinging the Brendan

Trevor loved the big porches

Worn out Brendan gets the whole bed to himself

These geese were cared for like pets by the previous owners. They came with the property. They hang around and beg all the time.

The puppies keep them in check

Trevor watched Susan scare away a goose with a stick, so he waved it around and said, “You go away gooses”

We ran around and caught fireflies and we launched some fireworks by the pond. The boys were exhausted. They have been staying up late and getting up early, I hope that they spend some time sleeping in the car tomorrow.

We are very concerned for Great-Grandma and hope that she gets some answers tomorrow and sees some improvement.

We also received some tragic news today about the passing of a family member and a very loyal blog follower, Glenna Kleinsmith. She was on our list of people to see while we were in Illinois. Our hearts are with all of her loved ones tonight, we are glad that we will be able to deliver some hugs in person.