Until Next Time...

We had such a memorable summer and beginning of fall in Salem. It was very bittersweet leaving, but it was time to head back to Jordan. We came to IL to help me have a healthy rest of my pregnancy and safe and smooth delivery of Eliza, and we did just that. We are so thankful for how lovingly Mark and Betty opened their home to us, served our family, and poured out their love into all of our lives, and bonded with the boys and Eliza. We enjoyed the time together, spending time with friends, and making new friends. 

Another unique thing about this trip is we had lots of celebrations. We celebrated Caleb's 7th,  Nathan's 38th, Benjamin's 6th birthday, and our 9 year anniversary!

On our last night in town, we went to Dairy Mart ice cream, which was the perfect way to end our trip because a LOT of ice cream was eaten by all of us this summer (except for Eliza of course).

I love this picture of the boys. In addition to all of the ice cream eating, the boys did a lot of bike riding up and down the street, to the airport and back, and on many different trails. We are so thankful  they had this opportunity to ride in open spaces and we are missing it already...

We are so thankful for how the remainder of my pregnancy went, and for how smooth of a delivery I had with Eliza. She has been such an easy going, sweet, cuddly baby girl, and we are loving each day with her. She is the perfect addition to our family. We had no idea how sweet a little girl could be.

She changed so much during her first 6 weeks of life, and she is growing so fast. This swaddle blanket does not fit her anymore at 2.5 months!

She is so alert and curious about the world around her, and I love how she looks like Nathan and her brothers.

Another thing I loved was seeing the change of seasons. When we arrived mid-June it was hot and humid and Betty's zinnias were not blooming. We got to see them open up, bloom, and die. We saw the bean and cornfields grow, turn brown, and be harvested, and we got to experience the weather go from hot and humid to cool and damp. I really loved experiencing the seasonal changes, since we are usually in Salem for a short time of any given season :).

The boys loved running through the cut down bean field behind Mark and Betty's house...and it was good exercise for them!

We loved our time in IL. In addition to Eliza's safe arrival, we are so thankful for the time we had together and fun things we did. Mark and Betty made a list of those things as a memory, and it was long and so fun to read. Here's to more outside playing, bike riding, ramp building, water sliding, ice cream eating, road tripping, swimming and diving, going to camp, tourist attraction visiting, movie watching, parade attending, school going, soccer playing, dud throwing, museum visiting, Big Foot searching, bug catching, and hot dog eating (this is the abridged version). Thank you, we love you, and we look forward to next time!