Mom, Dad, and Ella drove down to Nashville to visit this weekend. It was a quick trip, and we didn't really do a whole lot, but it was still fun to have them here. I find that it's hard to do a whole heck of a lot with a 2 year old in tow. Ella is such a handful right now! She is very cute, and extremely funny, but still a handful.
Our current apartment, with its lack of doors on the bathroom and minimal hot water, is not really conducive to hosting houseguests, so they stayed at a hotel. Saturday morning they came over to check out our apartment, and then we hit the mall to do some Christmas shopping. One good thing can be said about where we live right now- we literally live within 5 miles of any store you could possibly want to shop at.
At the mall Ella was a bit distraught when we walked by the carousel and wouldn't let her ride it...but we made up for it by letting her take a ride on the Christmas train they had set up by Santa. There were about 7 kids on the train, and when the ride ended, 6 kids happily exited the train. One little girl was left sitting alone, refusing to exit. Ella was not ready for the train ride to be over, so I had to literally pull her out of the train car. The picture says it all- she was NOT a happy camper after that.
After the mall we met up with Sue, Pete (Will's sister and brother-in-law) and their kids at Chuck E Cheese's so the kids could play. Luke, Olivia, and Avery were all very sweet with Ella. They had a jungle gym that Ella wasn't quite tall enough to climb up alone, so Avery and Olivia helped her up--every single time. And I'm pretty sure that they climbed this gym about 20 times. It was hysterical to watch. They were being so helpful, especially Avery, but I'm sure she was exhausted by the end of the afternoon. Avery is about 8 months older than Ella. I think she enjoyed having a younger person around that she could look after, especially since she's used to being the baby. She followed Ella all through the jungle gym making sure she was OK. The kids brought Ella a present, too, which delighted Ella. She loves to color, so her new Crayola paper and markers will surely be a big hit.
Saturday night we headed down to visit with my Uncle Bobby and Aunt Jeanne. I had no idea they lived so close to me! It's nice to have family nearby. We enjoyed some tasty spaghetti with homemade meatballs and sauce, and, of course, Ella entertained us all night. Uncle Bobby as it turns out, is quite handy. He brews his own beer and has made a lot of furniture that was in their house. I was very impressed- the furniture he made is beautiful!
Sunday morning they hit the road after church. I am looking forward to seeing them again for Christmas. It really is nice to be close to family again. Quick weekend trips are always nice.
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