"but my cousins said..."

This was Jack's mantra for awhile. (it's now changed to "but the monsters are coming right now!", but that's another story) Matt's brother, Preston and his wife, Rebecca, and their four kids came to visit a couple weeks ago. Jack (and the rest of us, but especially Jack) absolutely loved it! Cole went from crying at the sight of anyone new to being happy with everyone. We tried to do something fun everyday, and then get naps in for the younger kids (and parents) in the afternoon. We went swimming, to a baseball game, to the local science and art museum, blueberry picking, played at various parks and ate lots of good food (and I ate a few too many cookies). Matt had to work (of course) for a lot of the time, but was able to come for some of the best stuff. "Aunt Babecca" was kind enough to put her photography skills to work and take pictures the whole week. (I, knowing she had superior skills and equipment, didn't take a single one) Thanks for coming guys, you can come back any time. Jack keeps telling me "my cousins are coming back tomorrow". He also can't decide whether to call you all cousins, friends, or brothers.

I just love these pictures of Jack and William. Aren't they just too cute? They really did play amazingly well together!

Cole has always liked to swing pretty well, but this day it gave him the giggles. We need to swing more often, I think.
And another fave...Rebecca just needs to follow us around so I have good pictures!

The Dow Museum of Science and Art. Not a huge museum (that's not a dinosaur, just a mastadon), but fun for the kids. They have some fun temporary exhibits throughout the year.
The museum had a Lego exhibit going and, at the end, about a thousand sets of legos to play with. The giant ones were the biggest hit and the kids had fun building little forts.
Cole was there, too, but he just watched. He has a little orange carrot nose because I got a little carried away making carrot baby food and he'd been eating some with every meal. At least it goes with his hair! (we did run out that week and I haven't made them again yet)
Little Preston told me that blueberry picking was his favorite thing we did all week because he learned that he likes blueberries. Sorry we never got around to making blueberry coffee cake...next time.

Look! Cole isn't in the stroller! We went to a local splash park, ate lunch and got wet.Rebecca claims she is not a photographer. But we are definitely not models, and half of us are under three. So, if she isn't a photographer, I really don't know how these pictures came about. Thanks so much for being willing to shoot these! I so understand why you don't love doing family portraits, but I love how they turned out... there is an 8x10 hanging on the wall that looks fantastic.
Is it safe to let Matt throw him that high?