Leah, Ally, Jayce, & Evan arrived from Idaho Falls late Saturday night. We were so glad to see them and so thankful that they had made their long journey safely. It was nice to have them at church with us the next morning. I tried taking Evan out during RS, since he had let me hold him and seemed comfortable with me. As it turned out, he only was comfortable with me as long as he could see his mommy. I thought I could distract him by taking him outside, but I think he thought I was about to kidnap him! I really thought he was going to have a melt down, but I repeatedly told him we were going back to mommy and we hurried back inside. Whew! That afternoon, Matthew's family came for a visit and all the kids had fun playing together. Even though it had been a long time since they had seen each other, they picked up right where they left off. Kids are very good at that. They were all very interested in seeing Pa's beehives, and somehow or other, I only ended up with one pic from the afternoon.
On Monday, Joe went with Leah and the kids to visit G'ma Moffitt. Here are the pictures he took while they were there:
In the meantime, I was at
Little House getting things ready for our sleepover there with Ally and Jayce the next night. Our resident geese kept me company once again.
On Tuesday, Joe went with the Andersons to David Smith's farm to see the goats and
THE dog. It was a blustery/drizzly/chilly day, but I don't think they let it hamper their fun too much.
We couldn't let Leah be in TN without at least one meal that featured pinto beans (some made by G'ma Miller so that they would be sure and taste great). So, that's what we had for a late lunch on Tuesday. Afterward, we headed out with Ally & Jayce for our Rocky River sleepover. We stopped on the way at Hasting's so each of them could pick out a movie.
Jayce had reminded me several times to not forget the hot dogs and marshmallows. We were afraid that it would be too windy for a campfire, but thankfully, it was a very pleasant evening for such. While Joe got the fire ready, and I took care of things in the house, Jayce & Ally had fun exploring and playing.
It turned out to be a great evening to sit around the campfire - and Joe and I learned that Ally & Jayce can really put away the s'mores. Wow!
When we went inside for the night, A & J helped get their inflatable bed ready and then got comfortable for a two-movie-marathon.
The next morning (Wednesday), we went to Bino's in Rock Island for breakfast. Jayce was excited to get to have sausage again and wanted to order that with a side of bacon. Joe convinced him that a side of scrambled eggs would be a better choice. I ordered a side of bacon with my pancakes and slipped Jayce a piece. He rewarded me with a BIG smile :) Here is a picture of them in front of the stone fireplace there:
After our BIG breakfast, we thought a hike would be in order. We made our way down to the Rock Island Gorge and traveled farther than we had originally planned. It was such a beautiful day that we didn't want to turn back - not even when we saw a snake. We did hike a little more cautiously after that, though, and when Joe noticed the poison ivy we had another reason to proceed with caution. After that, A & J were fascinated with trying to spot poison ivy.
When we got to this point, Jayce turned around and said, "Nonna, take my picture right here and it will look like I am holding Twin Falls in my hand." Oops!
One of the reasons we were able to hike so far into the gorge was because the water level was so low. It had been about three weeks since we had had any measurable rainfall. Neither of us had ever seen it that low. Joe decided that maybe the reason for the low level wasn't so much because of a lack of rainfall, but perhaps because of the work that is being done on the Center Hill Dam. This picture at the Sandbar really shows how low the water was:
And one more pic before leaving the park:
When we got back to Little House, we noticed several people down at the bridge. That could only mean one thing: the river had been stocked with trout once again. Leah and Evan were waiting for us at the house. After Joe revived the campfire, we all headed to the bridge to see what we could see. There were some folks fishing - we talked to them some, and spotted several trout in the water down below the bridge. When we got back, we had a light lunch / snacks, sat around the fire, and simply soaked up the warmth and beauty of the day. (The geese were doing the same thing). After a while, Leah and company left for Oak Ridge for a couple of nights.
On Friday, Leah and kids returned, and Lori and the boys came to visit/play. It was another nice spring day and the kids had a lot of fun riding bikes and scooters and other misc. things. They also had a lot of fun flying kites. I did, too. I love kites :)
Oh, and Pa Joe took them for a ride around the place in the truck. They were all smiles for that! We had made Evan's gkid brick earlier in the week. We made one for Jack that afternoon. They were both very cooperative when it came time to put their hand print into the cement. We're still not caught up, but we're getting closer :)
We had BBQ & sides that evening for dinner. In addition to Lori and the boys & Leah and her kids, the rest of Joe's bunch were here except for Holly's fam & Shawn. Joe built a fire in the firepit and as the sun went down, it became the favored place to be. Before it got too dark, we had another (belated) Easter candy hunt for the kids. Our backyard was full of kids & treats! I only got one picture that night of Jayce and the birds' nests. It just gets too hectic when it's meal time and there are that many folks around.
Betsy & her family spent the night and after everyone else had gone to bed, she and Justin & Joe and I sat around the fire for a while. Don't you just love a campfire?
At 4:00 AM, Justin, Betsy, Elizabeth, Mikayla, Joe, & I hugged and kissed and waved goodbye to Leah, Ally, Jayce, & Evan. So happy they were able to come to TN and so thankful they made it safely back to ID. It had been a great week full of family, food, & fun!
