A Visit from Grammy, Pappy, Heather, and Lonn

At the beginning of June we had a wonderful visit from Grammy, Pappy, Heather, and Lonn.  The girls relished in all the fun and attention and we had a lot of laughs catching up with everyone and just being together.

Eliana enjoyed playing catch with Pappy AND having Grammy cheer her on!

 We had a fun impromptu kickball game with everyone in our basement!

 It was wonderful to see Lillian warm up so quickly and hear all the giggles with Pappy...

...and Lonn.

We took the time to divulge in some yummy Chicago-Land cuisine!

Hylie was Auntie H's shadow the entire visit.  She LOVED doing anything and everything with Heather.

 Lots of time was spent outside on bikes and in wagons...I'll let you guess who's doing most of the work in this pic!  ;)

Happy Father's Day 2018!

We were pretty excited to celebrate this handsome man on Father's Day!  We showered him with yummy food, hugs and kisses, cards, and a few gifts--one of which was a shirt for his "Tough Mudder" event in August.

He's been training hard and I know he'll have a lot of fun and do really well in the race!

All the girls in this family really love this guy!

I also go to speak in Sacrament Meeting on Father's Day.  It was a good experience for me to reflect on how I have been significantly blessed by my father, grandfathers, father-in-law, and husband.  The focus was on small and simple acts of service and how they bring great things to pass.  I was overwhelmed with how many 'small and simple' things these men have done in my life that have made a huge impact on who I am today, how loved I feel, and has helped me better understand and appreciate the role family plays in the plan of salvation.  Thank you to all the men out there who take their role of father and priesthood bearer to heart.  We are all blessed because of you.

Shedd Aquarium with Family

We went to the Shedd Aquarium and despite the crazy crowds, we had a wonderful time!

Hylie was super patient and after about 20 minutes of trying, finally got to pet a sting-ray!

We stayed at the aquarium until Eliana and Lillian wouldn't stop crying...that was our cue to go, but this also meant it was time for good-byes.  Hylie was not ready to let Auntie H go, after we got in the car, Hylie bawled uncontrollably for 20 minutes.  :(  Luckily we have another visit from Auntie H and Uncle Todd in August!

Starved Rock, Illinois

We ventured up to Starved Rock for some amazing hiking and beautiful views.

Hylie and Eliana were troopers and walked every lick of our hikes--no strollers were allowed!

Lillian didn't think this hiking thing was too bad at all!  Ha ha! 

Heather encouraged Hylie to go above and beyond and hike through the water to get this spectacular view of a waterfall.  Hylie LOVED it!

Enjoying lunch with Lonn while Hylie dried out her shoes from the water hike.