One Way Out

This is awesome! So true!

Illinois Country

The kids were so excited to pack and get going to Grandma and Grandpa Peel's house.

Ashlyn made sure to not forget her brother and sister (both inside the suitcase).

This is the view I had the whole way.
Such a handsome back of the head.. :)

Isaac's happy face

All the kids were really good most of the way.
Ashlyn's thumbsucking. -Comes in quite handy.

Elizabeth.. she pretty much made up stories with her toys the whole time.

After getting to the grand ol' country we set off for Safety town.
At Safety Town they have lights and roadways the kids can ride their bikes on.
The best part about it -it's free.

Trying to ride the trike, but not quite getting it yet.

Pretty much the whole time we were there, Brett had to carry the Babe while Isaac rode.
I think they might have to get a little older to fully appreciate this place.
It was fun none-the-less though.

Isaac riding down the hill.. He kept stopping himself so he wouldn't go too fast.
Isn't that the point of going down a hill though? ;)

Miss model girl..

A handsome daddy with his big boy.

Silly kids!.. er.. man.

Aww.. I love them. ♥

The kids had so much fun with Grandma!

You just knew I was going to include this one, Mom, right? ;b
Look at how youthful that smile is.

Um.. this one's just weird.

Here's another big smile.

Fun crafts with Grandma.

Looks like a comfy spot..

Pose for us, brother Jonny.

What a kiddos.

Aww.. Michelle and baby Colten.
He's just the sweetest thing.

We went to the Peoria Zoo at the last hour they were open.
It was raining too.
But despite being rushed and wet, it was fun!

Ashlyn was showing us what was interesting to see.

Ooh.. tigers! My favorite!

And a turtle.. Daddy's favorite!
I love how Isaac's just hangin' over the fence.



Good family picture eh?
I look pretty sleek as a lion.

Playful prairie dogs.
Now the question is, which one's the prairie dog?

Stay tuned for part two..

The Last Half..

Hangin' with the Meachams in Indiana..

(Staci's Sister's family)

Daddy took care of the kids while Mommy went
garage sale shopping with the girls.

Kidses kidses everywhere!

Lydia and the Babe -These two hung out the whole time.


While these two are the same age.

Rachel and Elizabeth

And the boys.. they enjoyed the computer the whole day.
Isaac's kind of crowd..

Some more of the girlies..

Shantelle -How could I not post this?

Usn's

Hey, where's Sierra?

Hee hee

Zack and Isaac

Grandma was good at showing Ashlyn the wonders of.. wonders..

and Grandpa was good at watching. :)

Sisters

The drive to Carthage..

We saw brother Kevin, Dawn and family.
Unfortunately, we didn't take any pictures while we were there.
But the kids enjoyed being with their cousins.
After we got home, Isaac said, "My cousins live far away." -With a sad face.
Poor kidlets..

How do babies bend their necks so far? Ack!

After Carthage, we headed through Missouri.
That day it was supposed to be a severe thunderstorm day,
but instead it was nice.
When we got to Adam-Ondi-Ahman, the weather was perfect and sunny.
You know what I love about that place?
Every time I go there,
there's this amazing bubble that surrounds you.
The birds chirp, but everything is hushed or serene.
It's like an outdoor temple. I love it!
Even the kids knew there was something special about that place.
We explained some things to them before we got there.
Isaac loved it so much he wanted to go back when we left.



The view


Elizabeth enjoyed looking for flowers the whole time we were there.

Ashlyn enjoyed crawling all over the rocks.

And Isaac enjoyed looking at the big field.

I was pretty sure I found the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. ;b
Seriously, this tree looked old and the leaves were very different.
I know, I'm sure it's not, but it's still fun to imagine..

That night we stayed in Independence, MO.
We wanted to plot out our piece of land..
No, but we visited the temple site.

And here's the Community of Christ temple across the street.

And of course, we had to stop at the Visitor's Center..

It was a LONG journey through Kansas and Colorado..

Pretty mountain passes though.

After coming through the mountain pass in Utah (on highway 6),
FINALLY, we were home sweet home!

We had a fun trip,
but we're so happy to be home now.