Thurs. Sept. 22 - IL trip part I

Riley fed Grandma Cathy cherry tomatoes straight from the garden

There were so many she needed a basket. She did a pretty good job and there weren't too many green ones in her basket when she was done.

The girls relaxing outside

Riley hanging out with her Great Grandpa John

Playing trucks with cousin Sophie and Great Grandma Charlotte

Jen and Chad

Sophie taught Riley how to jump rope

Of course she wanted to do it all by herself

She loved chasing the bubbles Great Aunt Maggie made for her

A belated birthday gift for Grandma Cathy

Great Grandma Charlotte, Mommy, Riley and Great Grandpa John

Walking with Grandma Cathy through the children's garden at ISU's horticulture center

Digging in the sand with her spade

Riley also liked rubbing the sand onto Grandma's arm; its exfoliating!

The children's room at the Normal Public Library was very entertaining. I spent a lot of time in this library and was happy to have the chance to visit it again and show it to my daughter.

Peeking out of the crooked house.

Reading a story with Grandma Cathy

We had a great trip to IL last week. I took 165 pictures, so I'm going to divide the related posts...looks for parts II (and maybe even III) in the coming days.

Riley was excellent on the plane ride despite a 4:45 am wake up call. We brought lots of entertainment and took frequent walks up and down the aisle (good for both of us, my OB told me to get up and stretch frequently) and survived the 4.5 hours on the plane and 2 hours in the car to Mom's house. Once there she was happy to have a back yard with a garden where she could run around, play and burn some energy after sitting all day. My grandparents, Aunt Maggie and cousin Sophie were all able to make the trip to Normal so we could visit. I'm so glad we got to spend time with them, I just wish we had been able to see everyone! Riley really enjoyed playing with her energetic cousin Sophie and is still asking when she will see her again. I try to explain that Sophie had to stay in IL and go to school, but Riley thinks she should just go to preschool like her.

Chad left for Champaign on Sunday to recruit U of I's brightest engineers to work at Clorox. On Monday I got the text, "Everything is fine but I'm at the Carle ER..." He dislocated a finger while playing football after a long day at the open house. He had dislocated this finger before and stayed calm while trying to convince his co-workers to help him put it back in. They were squeamish and he had to go to the hospital. The good news is, it is healing very quickly and he's already gained almost full mobility.

We had some fun outings in Normal, including a trip to ISU's horticulture center and the Normal public library. The town has expanded and changed so much I can barely find my way around. It was a wonderful start to our trip!