spring break

For our spring break adventure this year, we chose to visit some dear friends in Baltimore.  They have four kids like us which makes them familiar with chaos so what's four more kids added to the mix?  Somehow we got lucky with some seriously amazing travelers.  They have notebooks to work on if they want, books to read, and we listen to audio books and fun music but they're also content to just sit and stare out the window.  We don't do movies and they don't even care.  We love our road trips.  

It was so neat watching our kids play together with the Kuhls.  They did so well and made having 8 kids in one house seem like a breeze.  

The boys got to play plenty of basketball in the living room since it was cold.

Jason and Declan had some deep conversation.

These two got to have a sleepover and they were the cutest.  They met when they were babies and have seen each other a couple times since but they barely know each other and had a blast together.

These two were just hilarious and cute.

We finally got to visit the church they planted several years ago and hear Carl preach.  That was a highlight for sure.  One of the most applicable sermons I have ever heard, so many take aways and it helps when you know and love the pastor for sure.  It was such a sweet visit hanging out with all the kids and then having a chance for grown up talk at night after they went to bed.  We were all sad to say goodbye.

We continued our spring break adventure by heading to Washington D.C. which we figured just made sense since we were so close.  It was quite an adventure with so many new experiences and surprises like the snow storm that came to the city in the middle of our time there.  

The subway experience was definitely a favorite.  The kids had never done anything like that before and they thought it was the coolest.  Riding with them with so much fun.  

We did have the one subway experience that Jason and I would like to forget but never will.  The subway was so crowded and we had four kids and a stroller so it was tough getting on quick enough when the doors opened.  One time we had too many people in front of us and we were newbies so Mia & Violet hopped on and then the doors started closing before any of the rest of us got on.  We stood there screaming while they stood there staring at us and crying.  It was horrible and scary...until Jason literally pulled a hulk move and opened the subway doors back up.  It was seriously a miracle that he was able to do that, it was crazy! He barely made it in and almost got a foot stuck in the door.  I was completely freaking out as they rode away in the subway with the other 3 of us just standing there watching.  We kept in contact, thank goodness for cell phones and we were reunited soon after.

We visited the air and space and american history museums.  The kids thought it was all amazing for a short time until they got too tired.  We had completely worn them out with all of our walking and exploring in the freezing cold.  So we took it easy and slowed down to give them time to rest.

Our favorite was definitely exploring the sites and memorials.  So much to see there and Jason and I had not been in so many years.  We dressed as warm as we could and made the most of it.  

We especially had fun at the Washington Monument...lying on the cold ground just to look up and running all around it.

Exploring in the city with our people was awesome.

And my mini me brought her camera along too of course.

And how lucky is it to find a penny when you are in the Lincoln memorial.  I mean that is the coolest.  The kids were pretty convinced people drop those around there on purpose just so sweet little kids can pick them up and get super excited.

Hotel time is always a hit with our crew.  They could not wait to swim of course.

Another surprise was that we weren't ready for it to be over so we stopped in Huntington, West Virginia not the way home and had the best time.  We found a great cheap local bowling alley and so we all got to bowl which was awesome.

It took so long for Violet's balls to get down the lane but she was so stinking cute waiting for it.

And they would always celebrate together when it finally made it down to the pins.

Daddy with the win obviously.

We had some extremely worn out kids when we began our trek back home.

We couldn't go all the way home until we made a pit stop in Kentucky to visit Sara, Mark, and baby Jonah.  It was so worth going off route for those baby squeezes. 

So many new experiences, old friends, smiles, and sweet memories.

on the fourth of july

We had a sweet little fourth of July celebration with friends this year.  They invited us over and made yummy grilled food while the kids took over their backyard with their shenanigans.  We have been friends with Erica & Doug since before we had kids and they are special friends.  They are the kind of friends that would do absolutely anything for you and not think twice about it.  We love them.  And our kids love their kids.    

Their neighbors have a little playhouse that they let them use whenever and our girls did not want to leave that little house.  How cute is that little porch swing?

Tyson is always happy to have a boy to play with and the water gun wars and soccer playing made him so happy.

I was planning on taking a little fourth of July photoshoot of the kids before we left but ran out of time so as it got a little later in the evening and the lighting was just right, their yard was the perfect backdrop for few fun photos.

And since Erica & Doug are so awesome and thoughtful, they took a few family pics of us too.  This one was my favorite.  Our little goof troop.

And I just adore these pictures of all the kids together.  So sweet.  We have pictures of Avery & Evan as babies together so it is fun to watch them grow.

Jason even got in on the red, white, and blue without any prompting from me.  He just knows the drill at this point.  Such a good man.

We brought some sparklers along and were excited because our kids had never experienced them before.  They thought it was awesome.

We thought we had covered all the bases on safety with sparklers but apparently Mia didn't catch that you don't put them near your mouth.  I am not sure what she was trying to do but thankfully, no harm was done to those sweet lips.

Violet was not sure about the whole sparkler thing but she was content to observe and hold the box.

This picture makes me laugh each time I look at it.

I did not get a single good photo of them watching the fireworks but I still love this blurry one.  We just drove over to a local high school next to Kings Island and watched their fireworks from the parking lot along with a ton of other people who had the same idea.

It was totally worth keeping them up late. And they even slept in the next morning which was nothing short of a fourth of July miracle.