The Arizonians Visit Iowa

At the beginning of June I was graced by this lovely lady and her 3 adorable, cute, lovable, sweet kiddos - for 10 days!! It was a great time- playing from sun up to sun down- and with Jess around, well of course there was a lot of laughing.

Logan was thrilled to have his cousins/siblings eat lunch and go to recess with him on his last day of school.

After recess, we hung out with some horses up the street

This Tanner boy is about the sweetest kid I've ever known. I just can't get enough of him. He picked me flowers and swept me off my feet the whole time he was here.

Thursday morning the kids woke up to "school's out!" treats on their beds. It was perfect timing to get waterbottles, slip n slides, waterguns and popsicles.

I love this next pic. I think this is the pic that best describes the trip for the kids. First of all, I was so impressed that for being together 24/7 for 10days that they never fought. It was beautiful!

Second, I was so happy to see how Tanner and Carter- who have incredible imaginations- rubbed off on my kids. Let's just say there was magic in our backyard.

Mariah was so caught up getting reaquainted with the boys the first day that she hardly seemed to notice Cali. But from the 2nd day on, this is pretty much all she cared to to...

The kids were so content to work on projects in the backyard, ride bikes, and play with neighborhood friends that they really didn't need to leave the house.

But because the mom's needed it, we had a few outings....

The Beach:

These two played so well and have so much in common...

...even career goals!

Backyard Camping and Wrestling with Uncle Tyler:

Mariah's Grand Ballet Performance:

The Science Center and the Movies:

The Zoo:

And for my birthday (Hello! thanks for all the incredibly nice birthday comments) we enjoyed Le Mie pastries in the morning and a picnic dinner at Big Creek Park

Jess and I had fun chatting and chasing the kids around but decided that this trip was definately about the kids- which is the way it's supposed to be. They are creating great memories together and that's what we wanted.

But next time we are meeting at Martha's Vineyard and hanging out - alone! :)

Thanks to Tyler we did get to sneak out every couple evenings and it was so nice. We did some shopping, went out to lunch, and hit the Farmer's Market. Man, I miss her already!

Saying good-bye is never fun. Especially when you have 2 sad boys crying because they have to leave in the morning. I went down and visited and hugged them for a while and said our prayers together. That was one of the sweetest moments with them.

Isn't family wonderful?