Hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa

Some of our favorite times on our trip were the times when we just got to have fun with Grandma and Grandpa around their apartment.  Saturday afternoon we went out to the fountain by their apartment and played in the water.  Grandma kept throwing in coins for the kids to find.  A few other kids even joined in on the fun!  It was such a nice afternoon!

Gabby

Quincy

Grandma encouraging them to get WET!  Grandpa had fun as long as we let him read.

Gabby, Quincy, Bump, Corban, and Grandma.

Jamie and Me

We also got to go out on the paddle boats that are in the lake behind their apartment building.  Gabby and Corban wanted to paddle so Bump and I got to have a nice relaxing ride.  The kids got tired and wanted to stop.  We told them that they wanted to paddle and so it was up to them to keep on going.  They did a pretty good job and pushed through the pain!  :)

Jamie kindly volunteered to help Quincy paddle their boat and Grandma got to relax.  Jamie was a good sport, and Quincy worked hard at paddling.

Every night ended in some kind of game.  The kids loved playing Chicken Foot with Dominoes as often as they could get someone to play with them. Grandma was happy to play with them!

We had some fun laughs introducing Grandma and Grandpa to Snap Chat.  Grandpa makes a pretty good looking pirate! Maybe after his mission Grandma will let him grow some facial hair.

Washington DC

When Bump got into town we spend a day visiting the National Mall.  We saw the White House, the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, the WWII Memorial and some of the Smithsonian Museums.  We did a lot of walking!  I can see why people say to rent bikes to get around.  Bikes would have been nice!  Especially since they were setting things up for the 4th of July fireworks and events, so many paths were fenced off.  It was still really great to see everything!  We packed a lot into one day in Washington D.C.!  

Jamie was with us too!  I had to add proof that she was there!  :)

Catching Fireflies with Dad

A definite highlight of the trip was the kids experiencing fireflies for the first time! They first chased them in Nauvoo and they got very good at recognizing and catching them even when they weren't lit.

When Bump got to Baltimore the kids had to let him experience the fireflies!  Bump was very nice to let them go out each dusk to look for them and see how many they could catch. He took some pretty great pictures.

They also got to feed the ducks on the lake.

My parents apartment is just to the left of those trees behind that restaurant on the water.  Just out of the picture frame on the left.  They get to live in a very beautiful area.