St. Louis - Dec 2015

We took a road trip to St. Louis and had lots of things to celebrate...first and foremost was the arrival of our new niece, Nora Anne Clayton!  This sweet little girl was born on December 4 and we blew into town on December 10.  We were also celebrating my Mom's retirement from Brentwood Dental Group, where she had worked for most of her professional life.  Finally, we had our family Christmas celebration.

We left after lunchtime again and drove to Richmond, IN where we spent the night in a hotel.  The kids did pretty good and we knew not to expect them to stay alseep while we checked in and got settled.  After some excitement and bed jumping, we finally all settled down and had a good night's rest.  The next morning we had breakfast, took a little swim, and then hit the road again.

On Friday, Jack got to play hooky from Kindergarten and we went to Creve Coeur park to throw rocks in the lake, check out the waterfall and do a little exploring, and play on the playground.  That evening, we headed out to the Claytons for our retirement celebration.  Jason smoked some prime rib and it was a delicious meal.

Cutest little doll

Graham LOVED watching their train and just sat contentedly with his hands in his lap

On Saturday afternoon, we watched Jack's indoor soccer game and then Greg and I met up with friends for dinner.

part of Jack's cheering section

On Sunday, we hosted a brunch for all the extended family so we could see Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins while in town.  That night, we went back to the Claytons for our Christmas.

On Monday, Jason took Greg fishing so we took Parker, Charlie, and Graham to a bounce house place, called Pump It Up.  Video courtesy of Grandma:

We had one last dinner together on Monday night and then hit the road on Tuesday, stopping in Cleveland to spend the night.  

Parker sure does love her cousins.  Charlie and Parker play so well together and just completely click, it is so great to watch.  Jack was so sweet with Graham, playing him lots of special attention and knowing just what would make the little guy happy.

The time with Grandma and Grandpa is priceless.  My favorite picture from the trip is of Parker taking a nap with Grandma...