Toys Boys Love!

I didn't get a picture of the boys shooting guns with Rick but this is something they really enjoyed almost on a daily basis. Rick taught Ethan how to drive the little motorcycles and then Lexi and Morgan would give the kids rides on the four-wheeler. The little boys all loved riding the go-carts as well and thought they were quite grown up. Ava girl would hitch a ride whenever she could!

Bundt Cakes Galore!

Poor Elena! Just a few days after our arrival, she had to go to girls' camp and speak to all the girls (in several different groups). The very next day she was in charge of providing dessert (and center pieces) for 200+ women for a conference that Brad Wilcox was speaking at. So before heading up to girls' camp she made several bundt cakes and then turned the rest over to me and Mother Goose. We had fun baking them off together and were quite proud of the 22 cakes. Elena and her friend Ginger put cream cheese icing and red, white, and blue crepe paper decorations in the middle of each cake. They were amazing!

The Boys' Birthday Bash

Oh my goodness! The kids were sooooo excited for Caden and Blake's birthday party. They knew Elena and Rick were going to rent an inflateable water slide and could hardly stand waiting for it to arrive. Caden and Blake are completely different little guys and you would never know they were twins-right down to their choice of dessert for their birthday. Caden loves marble bundt cakes with cream cheese icing and Blake loves his plain glazed donuts! The day we celebrated their birthdays happened to be Ginger's (Elena's best friend) birthday as well. So we had a most delicious carrot cake to enjoy too. I have no idea why Elena and I both gained weight during this vacation!

The "Train Park"

After going to Cracker Barrel, we drove to the "train park" and let the kids jump and play on all the fun equipment. They had a good time for about 20 minutes and then decided it was too hot to play outside. We knew the housekeepers would still be at the house but figured it would be okay to go back and let them all swim. Everyone was very grateful for the pool!

Cracker Barrel

We decided to take the kids out to Cracker Barrel for breakfast while Elena's housekeeper was cleaning. We had a good time but spent way too much for the toys and knicknacks at the store. The highlight for the kids was the little syrup bottles that came along with their pancakes.