Weekend in Des Moines

Allan's nephew, Ross, had a baseball tournament in Des Moines this weekend and Iain and Julie invited us to come watch. They live in Minneapolis, so this was a good meeting point for a much-needed visit. Allan's parents also went. It took us 6 hours and 45 minutes to get there. I was pretty nervous about the drive because Harper doesn't like to be confined in her carseat and isn't really into videos yet. Delaney is a great traveler and a video fiend, so I didn't anticipate her being a problem.

We lucked out and Harper fell asleep within 15 minutes for a 45 minute nap. For the remainder of the trip, I was basically turned around in my seat offering her books, snacks, and toys to keep her occupied.

My sweet baby. She liked having this pillow on her lap while she slept.

In spite of all the noisy toys, laptops, play phones, etc, that I brought, the thing that kept Harper occupied most is taking the crayons and markers out of their baggy and putting them back in. The blue marks on her face were worth the 20 minutes of entertainment.

Ross's first game wasn't until 11 on Saturday morning, so we were able to hang out for a while after breakfast. This is my best attempt at getting a picture of all the cousins.

Corinne and Delaney hanging out by the indoor pool. We swam there in the afternoon, but I didn't get any pictures of it.

Not very good quality, but the only picture I captured of Papa Paul playing with Harper. Mama, Papa, Aunt Julie, and Corinne were so helpful in keeping the girls entertained at the games!

Ross at bat. He is 10 and was invited to play on an 11-year-old team for this tournament which is quite an honor. We're so proud of him!

Corinne and Delaney played at the playground during every game. Is it totally inappropriate for me to point out Delaney's pole-dancing skills in this picture?

Allan took this picture of Mommy and Harper.

Corinne, Delaney, and Harper playing in the dirt. We didn't discover this spot until the 3rd game. They had a lot of fun there.

A rare moment of Harper sitting still on Aunt Julie's lap. We bribed her with her snack cup. When Delaney was watching the game, she was a great cheerleader. She knows more about the game than I do!

Ross is an excellent 3rd baseman!

A cute picture of Delaney sleeping on the way home. She only slept for 45 minutes, which was not nearly enough, and ended up having a melt-down that lasted 35 minutes! It was resolved when Allan offered her some licorice - go figure.

Overall, we had a really fun trip. Both girls slept great in the hotel once they fell asleep and they were so well-behaved at the games and restaurants. It was so nice to be able to visit with our family and we couldn't have asked for better weather!