There's no place like HOME!

For me (Kristy), there is no place like home (i.e. Kansas). It's always a great trip and I often have little responsibility for cleaning, laundry or dishes. It's such a nice break from my every day routine.

This year, we left Wilson's and went straight to Kansas. It was a short trip with a stop at a park and a surprise stop to meet up with Nana and Papa!

While we were still at Wilson's, I was online looking for a park on our way to Nana and Papa's house with a picnic area and a restroom. While I was naming out loud some of the options to my Sister-in-Law, my niece, Kaelyn, suggested we stop at Electric Park. She was curious what an "electric" park might be like. So, Kaelyn, thanks for the suggestion. It was a really great stop for us!

 

 

After lunch, we had a short drive to an outlet mall to meet Nana and Papa for a little shopping, eating frozen yogurt, and playing in this fountain. By far, this fountain was the highlight of the stop for Joshua. See the last picture? Joshua's saying, "Where did the water go?"

We visited the zoo and Nana held an alligator so Eli (in green) and Micah could pet it. The alligator didn't like the extra attention, but the boys thought it was great!

Eli and Micah's Star Wars obsession was really just beginning this summer. When they found Papa's Star Wars Monopoly game, they had to learn how to play! They actually did a great job with all the math and Paul said, "I think if we have Star Wars, we could teach them anything!" He may just be right!

 

The boys' favorite stop in Kansas is always the children's museum. There's so much to explore and do, and with 4 adults with 5 kids, they can all go their own directions, so there's little compromising. It's really a win for everyone! 

Here are Joshua, Eli and Micah outside the museum.

The 5 grand kids!

Amory, Nevaeh, Eli, Joshua, Micah

The "big kids" decided to hold hands and walk in together. So sweet!

I also love how Amory and Neveah had matching shirts, so Eli and Micah chose matching shirts, too! These boys really love all of their cousins!

Painting the wall is everyone's favorite activity.

Amory and Joshua had lots of time together exploring and playing, 

while Eli and Micah were building cars with Paul in the construction area. 

One evening, Taylor and Roxy came over for dinner. Joshua took a real liking to Uncle Taylor and now when he sees a picture of Taylor, he says, "Tay-Tay." :-)

As always, we had a great (and much too short) visit with our family in Kansas. Because of #4 (or Mac, as Uncle Taylor now calls him), we won't be making another trip until next summer, but we're already looking forward to it!