Sept. 26, 2011 - IL visit part III

Riley and Ivy checking each other out.

Riley liked petting Taz.

Cousins

Riley, Daddy, Mommy, 2nd cousin Ivy and cousin Sarah

Aunt Betty, Ivy, Sarah and Uncle Dale

Wow, there are life-sized trucks and tractors in Grandpa Leon's yard!

I love the huge tires.

Grandpa Leon showed Riley how to get the soy beans out of the pods.

She wouldn't eat them but she was happy to feed them to Grandpa.

Its a tough climb to get into the combine.

She made it!

Off for a ride

Combining!

Walking the tracks; this picture is a good reminder of how flat Illinois is.

Reading with Grandma Cheryl

Hanging out with her grandparents on a rainy Sunday morning

Freeses!

We spent our last few days in IL with the Freese family. Friday night we had dinner with Aunt Betty, Uncle Dale, Chad's cousin Sarah and her 3 month old daughter Ivy. It was so nice to catch up with them and meet the newest member of the family. Riley was fascinated by the baby and even put off eating dessert so she could watch Sarah change her diaper. However, she was not happy when I was holding Ivy and kept asking me to hold her instead. Things are going to get interesting in November!

Riley had a fantastic time with Grandpa Leon and Grandma Cheryl. She likes playing with trucks and tractors and was amazed and how enormous real ones are. She was a little nervous about climbing up the combine but really enjoyed the ride. Riley has also been interested in trains lately, so walking along the tracks near their house and finding a spike was exciting for her. Inside she loved playing with Grandma Cheryl's baby dolls; feeding them, putting them to bed and getting in their beds herself. Chad and I enjoyed relaxing with his parents and Grandma Annetta. Chad was especially happy to have some down time after a long work week.

Saturday night we had dinner and watched the Illini play ASU. It was really fun to watch the upset surrounded by other Illini fans. We're hoping for a good season!

The plane ride home was uneventful. We landed at 7:30 pm CA time, but Riley was still on IL time so she got a little restless and tired. We kept her entertained and she did really well despite the late time and long day. We had a really wonderful trip but it felt good to be home again.