Grandpa in Town

This weekend, we were blessed by a visit from Marcus's dad, Grandpa Don. He and his wife spent a few days here in Birmingham and had a lot of fun with Marcus, Wendi, the boys and me. On the first night, Grandpa Don took us all out to our favorite Greek/Italian restaurant, where we all ate way too much. The boys were very obliging and behaved impeccably the whole two hours we were at the restaurant. Marcus and I couldn't believe our good luck :)

The next morning, we went hiking at the Moss Rock Preserve, one of our favorite hiking spots. Caleb and Ethan made us proud as little "hiking boys." They held up great for the 2 hours we were out walking, and Ethan only had to be carried for the last 20 minutes or so. And they were so worn out from the long morning outside that they again behaved very well at the Thai/sushi restaurant where we ate lunch. After lunch, I took the boys home for nap time, and the four other adults went to visit the hospitals where Marcus and Wendi work. I think they also went to a museum and out for ice cream as well. When they got back, Marcus and I and the boys went to our Sunday night small group meeting for the rest of the evening.

The third day was Monday, and Marcus and Wendi were working, so the boys and I met Grandpa and Rene at the McWane Center and spent a quiet afternoon there. Marcus was going to try to come over and meet us, but he couldn't get off work on time, so we headed out when the McWane Center closed at 5:00 pm.

We all decided not to push our luck with the boys by going to a third restaurant, so Grandpa, Rene, the boys and I went to Publix and bought the fixings for one of my favorite meals: marinated salmon on the grill, corn on the cob, and fresh fruit salad. When we got home, Grandpa and Daddy manned the grill while Rene prepared the fruit salad, I steamed the corn and set the table, and Wendi entertained the boys. The food all turned out perfectly, and we let Caleb and Ethan eat in front of the TV so that we could enjoy uninterrupted adult conversation. After dinner, Grandpa and Daddy put the boys to bed. (Rumor has it that Grandpa broke out a story about getting lost in the woods when he was a little boy.) After the boys were asleep, we sat around and answered questions out of Marcus's favorite "If..." book until everyone was too tired to talk anymore. It was a great visit, and everyone agreed we should do it again soon :)