A Visit From the Utah Moore's

We were blessed to have my husband's parents come out for a visit for a whole week!  It was one action packed incredibly busy week, but we had a lot of fun while they were here.  I picked them up on Tuesday afternoon from the airport and thanks to Skype, Grayson recognized them right away.  He was really excited to see them and he really loved being at the airport.  

We had a fun first evening together and had fun planning what we were going to do.  The next morning, we went to Earlyworks Children's Museum.  It is all hands on and just for kids.  Grayson had a great time.  There is a section especially for toddlers called Biscuit's Backyard and he had a blast.  He spent about 90% of the time at this cool water table.  By the time we left, he was soaked on one side of his body, but he was so happy.

The first thing he went for.

Doing some gardening with Grandpa.

The new cashier is pretty cute.

After we left Biscuit's Backyard, we went to explore the rest of the museum.  They have a huge state map of Alabama on the floor and the inside is set up with different buildings for the kids to explore.  There was a store, a log cabin, a river barge, a mine and some other fun things.  The kids could dress up and so I had to put a coon skin hat on Grayson, and surprisingly he actually put up with it.

They also had a talking tree that would tell various stories about Alabama history.  At first Grayson was a little leary when it started talking and he backed up a little bit.  After he got use to it though he really liked it and kept coming back to it to hear more stories.  He would walk around looking for it and saying "tree, tree" it was really cute.

The last section we went to had a bunch of building blocks and a train table and Grayson was in his element.  When we had to leave he was really upset, but I guess that is a good thing because he was having a lot of fun

Trains with Grandpa.

After the museum, we met Trevor for lunch near his work.  We had a delicious lunch and Grayson really liked being able to see his daddy during the day.  After Grayson's nap we went swimming at our apartment pool which was a lot of fun.  

The next day was my father in law's birthday so I made some sourdough pancakes for breakfast and we enjoyed a relaxing morning.  After breakfast we headed off to Scottsboro so we could go to the Unclaimed Baggage Center.  Trev's parents got tired of hearing how wonderful this store is and they wanted to experience it for themselves.  Let's just say they were true believers by the end of our visit.  It is always a fun lace to visit because you never now what you are going to find.  Due to a little car trouble, we ended up spending the afternoon at home.  In the evening thanks to my wonderful mother, we met up with Trevor downtown at the Farmer's Market.  Unfortunately, it was a slow day there due to weather but we still had fun looking around. Then we headed to our favorite BBQ place for a celebratory birthday dinner.  We had a delicious meal as we always do at Greenbriar and Grayson thoroughly enjoyed all the food especially because he got to try some of everybody's food.  There was a little girl about his age at the table next to us and they had a great time making faces at each other and flirting, it was pretty cute.  We were all stuffed to the gills by the time we left, but it was a good meal.  When we got home, we had time for birthday cake and then watched a movie.

Friday we went garage sale shopping and out to lunch.  Then while Grayson was taking a nap, Trev's parents went to some antique stores with my mom.  We had a fun evening of playing games as a family.

The next day we drove to Chattanooga, TN and spent the day at the aquarium.  We had so much fun!  The aquarium is the best I have ever been to and we had so much fun.

Stingray bay!  We got to pet some stingrays and it was awesome.

A butterfly landed on my hand and Grayson got to hold it.

Grayson loved the penguins!!!

This is as close to a shark I ever want to get.

After we went through the salt water aquarium, we went to the IMAX theater and saw a movie which was really good.  Grayson did a great job and enjoyed his first theater experience.  He even put the 3D classes on for a few minutes.  After the movie we went to a restaurant nearby for lunch before heading to the fresh water aquarium.  Grayson was worn out and fell asleep immediately when we got to the restaurant.  

Having a rest with his new penguin buddy.

Enjoying a delicious lunch.

Then it was on to the fresh water aquarium!

Grayson wanted to pet this snake multiple times.  I thought it was funny.

Father's Day we went over to my parents' house for a big family dinner after church.  We ate and played games, it was a good day.

On Monday we spent the day in Tennessee again, but a little closer to home this time.  We went to Falls Mill, which is a still functioning historic water wheel mill.  We took a tour of the inside and the beautiful grounds and enjoyed the store upstairs.  We bought some tasty pancake mix and other grains that we are excited to try.

They had an old player piano that Grayson really like, he wanted to hear it over and over.

Behind the mill.

Dancing with grandma.

After we left the mill, we headed to my parents' cabin and enjoyed the afternoon there.  It was a beautiful day to sit on the dock and chat.  We also took the paddle boat out for a spin too and had a great time.  After Grayson woke up from his nap, he played for a while and then we headed back home.  

On their last day, we went to the Huntsville Depot Museum.  Grayson loves trains so he was in heaven here!  They have old train cars that you can walk through and we got to explore each one.  

When we got on the engine, the first thing he went for....the puddle of water left there by the rain.  He was crawling around in it and got soaked but in the Alabama heat he dries pretty quickly.  He had fun ringing the bell of the engine and then we moved to the other cars.

Sitting in the caboose.

There was an old fire engine and the first thing he wanted to see was the stuffed dog sitting on the fire engine.

Blowing the horns and whistles!

Next we headed to the 'Little Toots' area.  We were the only ones there so Grayson had free reign to play with all of the cool toys.

Driving a truck.

He was giving the baby kisses, I hope this is foreshadowing of his behavior with any future siblings.

It was a whirlwind trip, but we packed in as much fun as we could.  Grayson sure loved having his grandparents here.  He would run into their room as soon as they would open the door in the morning. It was partially because of the air mattress (man did he love playing on that thing), but it was mostly because he loves his 'papas.' That's right he still calls both of them papa, but hey it works.  How lucky we are to have such wonderful family!

Day in Decatur and Beyond

We spent a day in Decatur hanging out with my sister and her kids.  My friend and her family was able to come too and we had an awesome day.  We started out at the splash pad which of course Grayson loved.  He loves playing with his cousins and they were so great to keep an eye on him.  They showed him all of the fun spots and helped him reach some of the higher toys and water.  I love watching him interact with other kids.

For some reason, Grayson thinks my nephew Trent is the funniest kid in the world.  He laughs hysterically whenever he sees him.  It is pretty entertaining.

He saw the boys under the water and he just laughed and laughed, but he would not venture in himself. He didn't like the taller water features that would get water on his head, but this splash pad was great and had lots of varieties so he had a great time.

After lunch and a nap for the littler kids, we went to Cook's Natural Science Museum.  I went to this museum a lot when I was a kid and it was so much fun to be able to take my own son.

He ran right up to these bears and started jabbering away.  He was very fascinated by them.

This alligator scared me to death when I was a kid, but my tough boy just wanted to pet him.

Watching the fish.

He was very determined to pick up this meteorite.

I went to the Huntsville Botanical Gardens with my mom on morning and we had a great time.  I hadn't been in a long time and I was really impressed with everything they have done over the years.  They have a children's garden which is awesome!  There are tons of water features that the kids can play in, a butterfly house and so much more.  We visited the butterfly house first and Grayson loved all the turtles they had there.  He even got to pet a few.  

As usual, I had to hold him back to keep him out of the water.  I felt bad, but we were meeting some friends for lunch at the Botanical Garden's cafe and we didn't have a lot of time.  He did get to play with this little frog fountain, so at least he was able to play with some water.  

Grayson has started to dance and it is so cute.  He likes to dance with a partner too, mostly he likes to spin around.  When we turn music on he will start to dance.  Sometimes he even asks us to turn some music on.  

Grayson got to play with some worms while my mom was gardening and he was very interested.  We had been doing some digging and he was also loving playing in the dirt too.  After the end of that afternoon he was absolutely filthy.  He would go from the water feature to the dirt in the garden.  Things are just as they should be, little kids should get dirty and play with bugs, I love seeing my little man exploring the world around him.  He can't get enough of playing outside.

Green Mountain Nature Trail

One Saturday, we decided to go to the Green Mountain Nature Trail which is only about 10 min away from our house.  It was good weather, not too hot or humid and there was a nice breeze.  We walked to the covered bridge and stopped for a while to feed the turtles and fish.  There were tons of turtles there as always and Grayson had fun watching them.

Grayson would feed the fish and turtles for a while and then stop to eat the bread himself.  I guess he needed a snack.

We took the trail all around the lake which was about 2 miles and Grayson walked most of the way by himself.  He did get tired towards the end, so he got to sit on his daddy's shoulders when he got too tired.

We stopped and fed Grayson a snack when we got back to the lake.  It was a lot of fun.  There was a troop of cub scouts too, but we managed to stay ahead of them and had a very peaceful hike.  I guess we wore Grayson out too, he fell asleep as soon as we got in the car.  

MaryBeth's Birthday and the Cabin

My little niece MaryBeth turned 5 in May and since I was actually in town for it, I got to make her birthday cake.  She wanted a pink Minnie Mouse cake and I did my best to accommodate.  It never fails, whenever I make a cake I always end up procrastinating and starting the process late.  We had a Memorial day picnic with my family and then I went home and started a cake.  After I got the cake in the oven, I realized that I had no baking racks here, so I jumped in the car and drove to my parents' house and borrowed some really quick.  After I got the first round of cakes out of the oven, I realized I didn't have enough cake mix, so my wonderful husband ran to the store for me and picked up more cake mix.  I was able to get the bulk of the cake done by about 11 pm, not too bad considering all my set backs.  I finished the details in the morning and then drove with my mom to Decatur to celebrate my niece's birthday.

I always take a picture of my cakes before transport just in case.  We stopped at a fast food place on the way to grab some lunch and of course I had the cake sitting in my lap.  The lady at the drive through was calling people over to the window to look at the cake, it was pretty funny.  

When we got to my sister's house, my little niece almost knocked the cake out of my hands when she very enthusiastically opened the front door.  She was so excited about her cake.  The first thing she did when we were going to cut it was to take off the bow and lick it.  

Grayson had fun playing party games and coloring with all the other kids.  My sister did a great job throwing a fun party and got all her kids involved which I thought was cool.  Each of the siblings were in charge of a game and they kept the party goers entertained.

Rocking the mouse ears!

We went to visit my parents' cabin in Tennessee with my mom one day when she needed to go up.  Grayson loved the cabin!  I had to keep an eye on him on the dock because he wanted to get in the lake.  This kid loves the water, but he thinks any body of water from a puddle to a raging creek are fair game.

Exploring the dock.

We had a fun afternoon playing with toys and enjoying the beautiful weather and scenery.  I always love going up to the cabin.  It is so peaceful.

The Adventure Continues

We have been staying very busy still and are hardly ever at home.  I am trying to get as much family time in while we are here and Grayson absolutely loves being able to see his cousins and family so much more.  He even started saying 'grandpa' this week.  Of course, it is collectively referring to my mom and my dad, just as I am still also daddy.  He even called Trevor's parents 'grandpa' today when we were Skypeing with them.  He is learning a lot of words at a fast rate and often repeats words that we say.  I can always tell he is very proud of himself when he learns a new word because then he often goes around the house repeating it over and over very loudly.  It is pretty cute.  

On one of our less buys days, I decided to take Grayson up to Green Mountain.  It's a nature walk and picnic area on a mountain near my parents house.  We got to feed some ducks and fish and saw lots of turtles.  He really enjoyed himself and I had a hard time getting him to leave.  The geese followed us around the lake, I guess we didn't bring enough bread with us.  Little Grayson kept waving at them to come closer and when they came up on the trail we were walking at by the lake, he yelled, "quackie" and tried to run and pet them.  Needless to say, the geese were less then thrilled with this and went the other way.

He loved playing with the rocks on this trail.

It never fails, when we go outside, Grayson has to find himself a stick and carry it around with him everywhere.  He also loves to collect rocks and I have started a treasure box of some of the things we collect while we are on our adventures outside.  We didn't walk too far on the nature trail because I wasn't wearing the best shoes for it, but we did walk a short way to the covered bridge where there were lots of fish and turtles to look at.  Then we headed back to the pavilion and enjoyed the view of the lake from the beautiful rocking chairs.

The next day, my sister was in town and I hung out with her and here family all day.  It was so great!  My niece Anna was a great helper with Grayson and kept an eye on him when we went to the playground.  She was so sweet with him and made sure he stayed safe and had fun too.  

Grayson and Anna posing for a picture!!

Anna and Emma were sure to swing the tire nice and slow so that Grayson could be on it with them.

Grayson discovered this bouncy bridge and he was hooked.  He just ran back and forth for quite a while.

After the park, we went back to our house and I attempted to put Grayson down for a nap.  The older kids played on the Wii and when I realized that Grayson was way too excited to have his cousins around to sleep, he got out to play with them.  We went outside to a playground at our apartment complex and the kids had a great time there.  Then we came back for a picnic dinner inside the apartment.  After dinner, my sister and her family headed out.   Grayson was worn out and slept well that night.

Then that Saturday (we have had very busy social calendars) and we spent it in Decatur where my sister Decia and her family lives.  They were having their annual Jubilee festival and it was a lot of fun. There is an antique tractor show and they have tractor games (we weren't really sure what was happening but it was still fun to watch). 

Tractor games of some sort happening.

Trevor's favorite tractor.

Grayson loved this tractor so much, he got really mad when we tried to take him down.  The owner said we needed to buy him his own tractor.

Grayson thought this little toy tractor was pretty cool.

Grayson loves his cousins!

We headed off to see the car show next.  My oldest niece Katelyn took such good care of Grayson.  He liked walking with her and of course being carried, so my little niece MaryBeth took advantage and got a ride in the stroller.  She didn't mind taking a break.

Grayson loves cars!  He is his father's son.

Trevor was in heaven and the car show was huge!!  They had some really awesome cars to see and we all had a good time.  Finally, we went to the craft show and then looked at all the vendors and games.  Trevor, Grayson and I got lunch at a tasty, local hot dog place called Downtown Dog and then  headed to my sister's house.  We hung out for a while and then headed home to get Grayson to bed at a decent time.  I got a little sunburned, but at least no ant bites this time.  We had such a good time.

MEMORIAL DAY!

All my syblings and their families came over to my parent's house for a Memorial Day BBQ!  It was a delicious BBQ (my awesome husband made and grilled some delicious hamburgers and hot dogs) and we had so much fun.  My nieces and nephews played outside for hours after lunch.  My parent's have a water feature in their backyard with rocks that spray water.  The kids went back and forth from the kiddie pool and the water feature.  And my little Grayson was right there beside them having a great time.   

Playing in the little creek with cousins.

After a fun filled afternoon, we rotated putting the kids in the bath so they could clean up and get ready to go home.  We started with the two youngest, my little man and his cousin David.  They had a fun time taking a bath together and warming up after shivering in the sprinklers.

Having a fun bath with David!!

Enjoying a movie after baths and dinner.

I cannot begin to express how wonderful it is to be able to spend so much time with family again.  I haven't lived this close to my family in ten years and it has been such a joy.  We are so blessed to have such a wonderful family!