Playing with Sarah and Chris

So on our trip, we got to spend some quality time with Sarah and Chris, which was so fun. I can't believe my baby sister is all growed up and married and stuff! Well, I guess I can, but it is weird sometimes to think about how much we are all grown up. I'm glad that we have been able to move from the s/he's touching me! to being able to just call and see how we are all doing. But I digress...
Chris was a very good sport and was pretty willing to play games with Keith and Rachel just about nonstop. They played Sorry, Wii, and Memory and Memory and Memory. Then on Sunday night, we also played Sleeping Queens and Yahtzee.

Sarah was content to just hold Thomas and get to know him a little better. Sarah was so sweet. The night that we stayed at their house, in the morning when she woke up (I had been up since the wee hours of hte morning with Thomas who was sick), she told me I could go back to bed. That was so nice. Then she offered to take all the kids to the park later so I could just have the day to myself. The thought was so nice, but I ended up taking Thomas to the emergency care place and having him checked out. Turns out he has bronchiolitis- which Tyson gets occasionally. So she and Chris just had Keith and Rachel until Thomas and I showed up after I had gotten his prescription filled.
At the park, they have a splash park area that the kids got to play in. By the time I got there, though, they were splashed out. Apparently the water was not that warm. Not to mention that the kids were getting pretty worn down. Rachel just kind of wanted to sit and cuddle. Good thing Sarah was so fun to cuddle with!








Awww, don't they make a cute little family? Sarah and Chris kept Thomas while Keith, Rachel, and I went on the merry go round- I mean the carousel. The kids had fun, but I remembered why I never really liked playing on the merry go round when I was younger! But when Sarah and Chris are blessed to parents, I know they will do a good job.








While we were there, Chris had a birthday. We were there for his special birthday breakfast- which was delicious. Then we came back the next day and had dinner with them and their friend Gary, who had made a marvelous dinner. All of Chris' favorite things, and then other things for everyone else! Shrimp scampi, deviled eggs, meatloaf, mac and cheese, green beans, salad, and strawberry shortcake and rice pudding. We ate very well that night. Then Gary insisted Chris have his birthday spankings, so each of the kids got to give him his swats with a spatula. He was a good sport, and I don't think they swatted him too hard.

We had lots of fun with Sarah and Chris and were so grateful they let us borrow their car while we were down there- and their GPS! I love having a GPS! It made me feel so much more secure about finding my way around. We hope that they are able to make it up later this summer to come up here and visit. We miss not being able to have all our family around. And Robert and Bethany and family are coming back, and although Becca and Shawn are gone temporarily, they will be back at the end of the year. And I suppose we will excuse Jonathon until he comes home from his mission, but it is nice to have family close by. And we love and miss those that aren't able to be with us lots!