We've finally recovered from vacation- isn't that the way it always goes?- and I wanted to post some pictures of what we've been up to.

Our first stop was at my grandparents' house in North Carolina.  My grandfather's family always has their reunion on the Sunday before Memorial Day, and I really enjoy getting to catch up with everyone.  This year, though, I really missed my "little" brother, Morgan.  He's definitely not so little anymore, but serving in the army and sweating it out in the California desert.  He's always so much fun at family gatherings, and I really missed having him by our side this year.  We love you, Uncle Mo Mo!

Here are a few pictures from our time in the mountains!


This is the view from their front porch- breathtakingly beautiful!


This is my mom (yeah, who would have guessed, huh?) with Kate.  She has so much fun with the kids, and they sure do love their Nana!


One amazing thing that my family did for me was to instill a love of reading from a very young age!  I was thrilled to sneak in a couple of pictures of Papaw and Mamaw doing the same for their great-grandchildren. 


From North Carolina we drove straight on to Texas!  It was about an 18-hour day in the van, and we drove through 9 states!  They had been getting quite a bit of rain down there, but thankfully it let up enough for us to take advantage of some outdoor fun!

Tuesday morning we went to the Frontiers of Flight museum at Love Field.  They had some amazing exhibits- truly something for everyone.  The boys, of course, are always fascinated with anything that has a motor.    I really enjoyed the odds and ends pieces, such as the radio operator's stool from the Hindenburg, and Admiral Byrd's parka from the North Pole expedition.  They also had lots of hands- on activities for the younger crowd.


Here's Jonathan giving Kate a piggy-back ride- I think she enjoyed it much more than he did.


These seats were just perfect! 

On Wednesday, another storm came through in the morning.  We hung out at Mema's house, and she opened up her "beauty parlor" to keep the girls occupied.


That afternoon the rain finally cleared, and we took the kids to the Wiggly Play Center, where the kids had a blast.  I didn't even try to take any pictures there!  The kids wouldn't stand still long enough!

On Thursday and Friday they hit the pool at Uncle Chris and Aunt Karen's house.  Kate would not let go of Grace, or "Geesie," as she's renamed her, and Jackson tried to teach Benjamin to swim.

 
He was much more interested in getting his picture taken!


My silly Lily!


Kate just enjoyed hanging out around the edges and watching everyone.

Friday night we were invited to Grace's 10th birthday party.  We all had pizza and hot dogs, then watched Night at the Museum in the backyard.  It really was the perfect ending to our trip!  We left for home early Saturday morning, and didn't get back until after midnight.  After such a long time in the car, we were very glad to be back home.