Illinois Trip

My sister-in-law Valen's shower, hosted by my Mom, my sister Rachael, my sister-in-law Laurie, and I, went really smoothly. The food was excellent, and she received many beautiful gifts. I think everyone had a wonderful time.

I was really thankful to my cousin Beth, and my Aunt Anita for helping me watch Kate & Moriah while we were at the shower!

The next day, My Mom, Kurt, Valen, Anna, Lanae, Ethan, Levi, Kate, Moriah, and I, all went downtown Chicago to spend a relaxing day at the zoo. We had such a wonderful time!

The kids loved looking at the animals!

The monkeys were by far the best animals to watch though. They were so active, and there was even a cute little baby monkey that was swinging around in there and snuggling with his Momma.

After eating some lunch on a blanket outside of the zoo, we walked over to the lakeshore. Levi & Kate just couldn't get enough of the water! It was so hard keeping Kate from getting wet, that finally we decided just to plop her down in the water. She loved it!

Levi loved looking at the sailboats and speedboats out on the lake. He kept saying, "Look Mom, look at that fast boat!"

My Mom had a wonderful time as well. She keeps very busy when she's at home, so it was good for her to get away for a day, and just relax!

One afternoon while we were out in Illinois, we got together with my Mom, Valen, Anna, Mom Van Egdom, my sister Rachael and her two boys, Grandma Boer, and a few of my Aunts from Michigan. It was so nice to see all of them, it had been at least 3 1/2 years since I'd seen my Grandma Boer and my Aunts. I hadn't realized how much I missed my Grandma, until I hugged her. She is such a wonderful lady.

We had such a wonderful time, and it was so nice to see family and friends, but it was also a relief to get back home and see Joel and also to get back into a routine. Kate hardly napped while we were out there, so she was completely exhausted by the time we got back home!