Trip to WI and Nauvoo

Keith was lucky enough to have FIVE days off of work over the 4th of July weekend--the plant does an extended shut down twice a year and this was one of them. We headed up to Wisconsin to see Grandma Relf and my Aunt Peggy and her family. We left Friday and drove through cute little farm towns (some were very small--poplulation 14.5, did you know you can have decimals in your population count? Neither did I.), and past A LOT of corn fields. We heard that the guage they use is 'knee-high-by-July' and it definitely was. We spent the weekend just visiting and catching up. Alex had a great time chasing my gma's dog around the house (the dog didn't appreciate this at all), playing with a play kitchen Gma had borrowed from a friend, sitting in Gma's lap reading stories, and enjoying Aunt Peggy's back yard full of sticks, bugs, dirt, grass, and best of all fenced in so we didn't have to stay right on his tail the whole time! We were there all afternoon and into the evening Saturday and Alex spent almost the whole time playing in the backyard! I can't wait till we have one of our own!

We're especially glad we made it when we did because just this last week Gma fell and broke her knee cap!! :( We were glad when we found out we were coming to Cedar Rapids that we would be close enough to drive up for a visit--we hadn't seen Gma since she moved last July.

We drove back Monday so we could have Tuesday to recover (it was nice to have Keith home to help do laundry andunpack, etc). We drove a different way  home and got to drive along the Mississippi River for over 50 miles. It was fun to see the different river towns and to be totally awed by the size of the river--it's huge!!! And this is the upper Mississippi!!

Tuesday we did sparklers and 'magic growing snakes'--Alex really liked stomping on the sooty ash that's left after the snakes stop their growing--by the time we went in, he was covered from head to toe in black sooty smears!! He looked quite wild. Then we had some ice cream cake Keith made. It was a nice low-key 4th of July celebration. Then this last weekend we headed down to Nauvoo to see the pageant and visit some of the historic sites. It was a really neat experience to get to go and feel the spirit that was there. As soon as we entered the town, there was something about it that really drew me in and touched me. You could almost feel the echoes of the children that used to play and the people that gave so much to build their homes and their beloved temple. Ending the day watching the pageant (we were blessed to have the kids do really well considering it didn't start until about 8:30 and went till about 10pm), and remembering all that was done there, just to have to leave it behind. They were there for about seven years--and during the brick making presentation we learned that the average length of time they got to live in their houses once they were finally build was 90 days. I thought it was a bit ironic that as you entered the pre-pageant fair area there were anti-mormon demonstrators at a memorial of the people who were driven out by anti-mormons!! Alex's favorite part was in the field where they had all the games and activities there were areas they used sand to fill in holes and old tire tracks so people wouldn't trip--he found heaven with each new sand pit. He was rolling around in them, kicking his feet through it, finding sticks and rock and digging in them. He would've stayed there all night playing in that sand!

Keith is headed off on a trip this week with the other interns to visit a couple plants in Illinois. He'll be gone Wednesday through Friday :( I'm glad he has the opportunity to go, but I'll miss him. We are watching the weeks slip by quickly. It's hard to believe we only have a month left before we head back to Provo!!

Alex crashed right before we left--it was tricky getting him in the car without waking him up too much. Luckily he went back to sleep quickly and took a good nap in the car!

Corn Fields

It is so green!!

Mississippi River--this doesn't even do it justice!

The ice cream cake that Keith made! Happy B-Day America!!

With limited kitchen supplies, I use my pots for all kinds of things. The only problem with making banana bread in a pot? Remembering that the handle is HOT!

Bagpipers--you could hear them playing up until the pageant started--they played for over an hour and a half!

Alex was playing in this sand when a fiddler came over and played just for him, he eventually put his face straight down in the sand--He likes to hide from strangers! Crazy kid!

Beautiful Nauvoo Temple

Our beautiful little girl!

Superman!! As soon as he put it on he wanted to go 'Fly'--who taught him that a cape means you fly? I think it was Sesame Street--thanks Super Grover!! Or maybe it was Super-Goof on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse--either way he was pretty cute flying around before bedtime last night!

He got this sock puppet at the fair before the pageant, he wears it all the time!