Des Moines fun.

Kley had to take some CLE (continuing legal education) classes in Des Moines last week, so we all went along! (Granted, he didn't HAVE to take them in Des Moines, but it was a win-win because we could tag along to see my family, and he found two that actually would be really beneficial to what he needed credit for, so it worked out nicely!) My parents ended up having to leave for the weekend because they went to St. Paul to help my sister/BIL move into their first house (because their closing date got moved up), but it was nice because we got to see my parents Wednesday/Thursday, and then got to see other people Friday/Saturday. We had a good time!

Norah loves going to Des Moines and it's so fun to watch her interact with family. Our girls sure do have the best grandparents and uncles/aunts on both sides! So thankful for positive, interactive, and encouraging family with our girls- a huge blessing. I feel like I hardly see Norah when we are there because she is so busy playing with everyone else!

Friday morning I got to see a friend, Kayla, from high school, and for supper my good friend, Lauren, and her family (Stephen and Reese) came over for supper. They used to live in Denver, but now are back in Des Moines, so it's a nice treat to be able to see them when we are visiting! We hadn't taken a picture together in a long time (not since Norah and Reese were babies), so we had to get an update. We tried to use the automatic timer setting for the first time, and it worked great, other than we didn't zoom in enough. Oops.

We also got to see my brother, Keaton, and SIL, Rose, a few different times too, which was wonderful! We love that they live in Des Moines! We are so excited to meet their first baby in a couple months!

My sister, Kayla, was also home on spring break, so we got to see her a lot too. Unfortunately, she was gone the night I got my camera out and I forgot to get one with her later. Thankfully, she goes to college in our town, so we can get one later.

Saturday morning, we headed to the Science Center with Brett and Elizabeth (Kley's sister). It was a fun morning! Norah loved it. She wasn't particularly fond of the big dinosaur exhibit where the room was dark and they had computer generated dinosaurs that roared at you, but other than that, she had a great time! She loved this play grocery/house area!

It was nice to spend time one-on-one time with Brett and Elizabeth! Big family gatherings are fun too, but we don't often get to spend time with just them, so we enjoyed it.

It's so interesting to see the differences in Lucy and Ellory's personalities already. Lucy seems more outgoing in social situations and willing to go to other people. Ellory is pretty laid-back at home, but gets more nervous in big groups or new places and wants to stick really close to Kley and I. We really noticed it at their first birthday party, and again at the science center.

"Mom, do not let go of me. If you're not going to hold me, I at least need to touch you." Also, her tiny ponytail sticks straight up and it's so cute.

Norah unloading her grocery store haul.

Milking a cow.

Bubbles!

This is the best group picture I got. I was so sad about it later, but didn't realize at the time that my camera accidentally got switched to manual instead of automatic, so all the group pictures were all blurry and out of focus. Ugh. Oh well. This would have been so cute if it was clear!

Dinosaur bones!

Dinosaur eating Norah's head! (Another camera mishap where the flash should have been on. That's what happens when I'm trying to keep track of three kids/hold one and take pictures at the same time. I really failed with the camera errors this trip. A for effort, right?)

Lucy was in heaven in this soft block room. She loved them!

Ellory sat in the same spot the entire time and watched with the most serious expression. It's not that she was upset, because she definitely will let you know if she is, but she was just serious and taking it all in.

Exploring the water dam building.

Throwing their balls in!

There's Ellory again, holding onto Kley's pants.

Lucy was very excited to find a ball.

How can I stand up but not let go of my ball?

Space room. 

This can blow my hair too!

Norah's been requesting braids in her hair a lot recently. I need to practice my french braid game. That would be fun.

Checking out the snakes. You can tell how much Elizabeth likes it. :)

We had a fun few days in Des Moines! So glad we have the opportunity to visit family fairly often!