Our very dear friends Scott and Holly were in town from Houston for a conference, so we had the great opportunity to hang out with them as well and talk about the upcoming arrival of their son Anders.
We also got to visit our friends Ryan and Kari at their new (to us) house in a National Park. Ryan and Kari have been good friends since Jonathan and I started dating, and unfortunately life has kept us from returning to visit for a couple of years. That means we met their nearly 2 year old son for the first time. It was great to pick up right where we left off and hear about all of their adventures as the family of a Park Ranger. Josiah was crying and refused to turn around for the photo. Such is life.
On Tuesday we continued our journey to Tulsa by way of Memphis, Tennessee. My cousin John David lives in Memphis, and fortunately for us, Tuesday happens to be his day off! We had the privilege of finally meeting his fabulous wife Jessica and spending time catching up with them as well. They are doing some amazing ministry in the heart of Memphis, and we were sad to have to end our time with them for the road ahead. From Memphis we continued the journey to our final destination, Tulsa, Oklahoma!
This is a photo of Josiah "hanging out" on their porch. It seems a rope with a carabiner is too appealing for boys.
Josiah was very aware that we were going to Oklahoma, and he could even tell anyone that asked. We wondered how he would tolerate the 13 hour journey at this stage of his development. He did fantastic. I had a huge bag of toys, books, and a DVD player for emergencies. We pulled out 4 books the entire time. He had a great time just watching the scenery pass us by, chatting about what he saw, and eating his weight in clementines. Seriously, he might have come close. He had blown through 4 of them within 2 hours, and if we had let him he probably would have kept going at the same pace for an undetermined length of time.
Every year we travel to Oklahoma to visit with all of my dad's side of our family. It had been a year since Josiah saw Grandpa Grady, but he didn't forget the great times they had last year. They picked up right where they left off.
Grandpa Grady as the helicopter landing pad.
My cousin Eli is the closest thing I have to a brother, so it is always a big treat for me to get to spend time with him.
Thanksgiving in our family is very structured. These are the parameters that it must meet: overwhelming amounts of great food for days, doing a puzzle, playing card games, staying up into the wee hours of the morning, and laughing a lot.
Josiah didn't want to miss out on any of the fun. This photo was taken in the middle of the living room where all of the action was taking place.
Josiah had a fantastic time conning all of the family members into playing with him. He had different tasks for everyone. Eli was the conductor, and Josiah insisted he be pulled around in the "train." Eli certainly didn't ask for this new profession, but my child has a convincing way about him. Honestly, it didn't really take too much convincing...everyone very willingly participated in Josiah's fun.
They even threw him a birthday party. At first Josiah was confused as to why it was his birthday again so soon. He asked me, "And now I'm 4, Mama?" We reassured him he would be 3 for quite some time, but this was an extra party. He was fine with that idea---and the abundance of amazing birthday presents he received. Good thing our car wasn't packed to the brim on the way there, because we needed the space for Josiah's new loot. They purchased his birthday cake from the same bakery that used to make my dad's birthday cakes. That was special.
I'm always awful about remembering to pull out my camera on Thanksgiving Day. I guess between the kitchen, the snacks, and all the fun I forget...or don't want to interrupt our time to go grab the camera. As we were leaving I realized I really needed some photos. Unfortunately, most of our family had already departed. Maybe we will capture everyone next year. Here are a few, and they are special!
As always we were so sad to leave. We are already counting the days until next year!
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