And Now Brothers

After we left my sister's house, we headed first to one of Ryan's brothers and then another. 

We had so much fun that it is about time I shared it. 

 First we were introduced to Amish Country, where we tasted some really interesting cheeses. 

 We also just got to relax in a house with no children and a fun cat. 

 I also got introduced to a scroll saw and made these nifty little elephants all by myself.

Sadly we only spent a day at their house but it was a lot of fun to see them again. 

Last stop was Ryan's oldest brother's house. 

We picked these flowers for the table from the front yard in prep for Easter.

 Neil wanted a special ham for Easter and I must say it was the best I have ever tasted. 

Very sweet thanks to the man's special way of raising his pigs. 

We had lots of time to play and be entertained by the kids. 

Could there be a better smile. 

Go Fish - Uncle Ryan won. 

They took us to the local museum that had a dress up section. 

Doesn't he just look so much older like that. Very cool. 

We saw some interesting novelties at the museum. 

We also had an adventure of going out to a goat farm to see all the new baby goats. 

 They liked to eat and to but heads. 

 Easter Fun

We finally did a few real Easter things like dying eggs and an Easter Egg hunt for the kids. 

Last but not least they took us to the Arboretum which was pretty even if it was took early for anything to be in bloom yet. 

On our drive home we got a very good view of the St Louis Arch.
Next time we will have to plan it in to go up it. 

What a wonderful trip. We were sad to leave but very happy to get home to our own beds. 

Sisters...sisters...There were never such devoted sisters.

So I know it has been a while since our trip but I do want to finally share all the fun we had visiting my sister and Ryan's brothers the week before Easter. 

We left in the wee hours of the morning.

 Our arrival was highly anticipated.

If you look at the calendar carefully you will see a heart on the day we arrived and a broken heart on the day we were going to leave. 

 The next day the girls took us around the property and part of the neighborhood on a lovely Sunday walk. 

We were accompanied by a stuffed animal for each girl. 

These sisters quickly discovered how much fun Uncle Ryan can be. 

 They began calling him Uncle Rhino pretty quickly. 

 Their mom and I had to just accept that he was the favorite playmate. 

Although one morning I did have the fun to realize that this little cutie an I were sort of a matching set. I actually bought these pj's when this sweet girl was still a baby. 

Every time the women in my family get together we have to have music time.
I find few things as special and enjoyable as singing songs with my siblings. 

And then Croquette...

 The mallets were a little large for either girl. 

For the man...we went to Cabellas. 

The token moose - for Rachel.

What a cute family of ladies. 

The girls took us black light miniature golfing and I got a little dizzy by the end but the girls loved every second. 

 The big craft project...

We spent almost an entire day on this project and everyone got to participate. 

Salt dough eggs that we painted to hang as ornaments on an Easter Tree. 

 We even got Ryan to paint a couple and I am continually impressed by the girls artistic skills.

Each girl painted a self portrait; can you find them?

Sadly enough the day came we had to leave as we said goodbye to the girls.

Uncle Ryan got 2 hugs from each girl. 

But I promise I wasn't jealous at all of how much they love their uncle. 

Because I love him too.

A Visit Home

 I know it is a few weeks late, but Ryan and I had the chance to go to Louisiana and spend some time with my lovely family. 

We did crafts...

Played games...

The boys wrestled with Ryan...

In several ways...

But they also enjoyed seeing what it was like to be Uncle Ryan's height. 

How many of us have tried to touch the ceiling?

Watching shows...

Showing love...

And we also got to go swimming twice but I didn't dare bring my camera for that. Wish we could be there more often. 

Nothing Better Than Family - Day 3

Last but not least we gathered for photos. 

How else will we remember our trip.

 All my Nephews and Nieces are adorable and so I decided to share the fun and cute photos that show a little personality as well. 

These two may be the youngest but as you can see they have just as big of personalities.

 The two who made it all possible - aren't they cute. 

Individual family photos...

Grandpa tried to keep the kids entertained while we got set up for the group photo.

 

Nothing better than this

Sad to leave but great memories.

Can't wait to do it again.