A Southern Spring Break

Once we returned home from Idaho, we had two weeks to squeeze in as much work as possible and to prepare our home for the 4 adults, 4 kids, and 1 dog that were about to knock on our door.  This was a visit one year in the making.  Chris' older sister Kaylyn, had asked if her family could come visit us over Spring Break the year before, and of course we said yes.  We love visitors and felt so lucky that they wanted to come hang out with us for a week.

Well, not only were they coming for a visit, but then Chris' parents said that they were coming down too!  We had quite the full house, but we all had a blast being squeezed in so close.

Kaylyn had given us an idea of the things that her and her family wanted to experience while they were here, and of course "Southern" things filled the list.  So we spent the next week crossing off items on that list trying to ensure that they got the experiences that they were hoping for.

We originally had plans to go to the beach a few times, but while the rest of the country was being hit by huge snowstorms, Alabama was being hit by a huge cold front.  It was perfect, shorts and short- sleeve weather the day they arrived, but the next day was absolutely frigid and so incredibly windy.  We scratched the beach idea, but to help with some of the disappoint the kids felt we took them to Mobile Bay to play in the sand and dip their toes in the water.

The following day we all jumped in the cars to spend the day in Louisiana.

Learning all about the Louisiana swamps on a swamp tour.

We then ventured into New Orleans and visited the French Market.  They got to try frog legs and alligator.  Kaylyn was a trooper and tried it but I don't think it's something she really enjoyed.  So then we walked on over to Cafe Du Monde and I can honestly say I have never seen a group of people enjoy those powdered sugar delights more than this family.  They gobbled down the beignets, licked the powdered sugar off their fingers and plates, and then ordered another round.  When all was said and done they were covered in that white powder from their heads to their toes.

The next day, after a little shopping, we got to go to a local alligator farm.  Our niece Mya came along and her and Maycie were best friends from the moment they met. 

Yep, we all got to hold a little alligator with bunny rabbit ears.  It was a few days away from Easter and they were feeling very festive.

As the week went on the days started to get progressively warmer.  On Thursday we all decided to split up.  Some (Chris, Stuart, Gordon, and Akazia) went fishing out on the ocean, some (Linda, Kaylyn, Maycie, Laikyn, and myself) went to the beach and played in the sand, and Charlie decided to venture into Mobile on his own.  The fishers caught a lot of Sheephead fish so we had quite the feast when they got home.  It was so good.

Gordon's one and only request the whole trip was to go to the firework store and light off some fireworks.  So once night fell they put on quite the show.

On their last day here we were all able to go to the beach and enjoy what we could of the water.  It still had quite the nip to it so it took some courage to actually get in the water.  It was fun though just being able to relax with them, and watching Laikyn consume more sand then any baby should.  That girl loved eating it and didn't have much interest in much else.  

Like us, I'm sure they were exhausted when they left here for home.  We managed to squeeze in a lot activities and had fun every step of the way.

Wedding Bells and More

Late February/ early March we found ourselves back in Idaho to see my little sister get married.  We were there for 2 weeks.  During those two weeks most of my days were filled with wedding things.  Between the dress fittings, bridal shower, rehearsals, and then the main event, my time flew by in the blink of an eye.  Everything went off without a hitch and between the tears that were blurring my sight, I was able to watch my sister marry the man of her dreams.  It was a beautiful wedding.

Me and my little sister.  She is so pretty.  And yes, I'm pinching her bum.  I was told to do something funny and it's the first thing that came to mind.  She wasn't too surprised.  That's just how we are.

The newlyweds.  They are too cute.

Speaking of cute...  I have the best husband in the world.  Dancing with the little girlies.  They loved Chris.

Between all the wedding activities and when Chris took a break from snowboarding we still managed to find other ways to occupy our time.

Target practice 

 and snowmobiling with my Grandpa Sam.  

Once all was said and done we had to hurry back to Alabama to squeeze in a couple weeks of work before our next round of fun was set to begin.  We had visitors coming to town and we couldn't wait!