Our color tour

The four of us took our annual October trip to Michigan to visit family, see the fall colors, and make us really appreciate the warm NC sun. We had a really great visit and had the pleasure of seeing friends and family, and eating really great food with friends and family, too! :) 

Our travels there were PERFECT. 

Which should have made us wary of our travels home, which were NOT PERFECT. 

Here is a picture of Gavin on the way there, listening to the IPOD and playing with his new plane (which he proceeded to crash into his seat over and over again, much to my horror).

Have I mentioned that Gavin is a little obsessed with Star Wars? Well, a nice trip to the farm didn't exactly cure him of his obsession. Especially since Grandma and Grandpa Bud pulled out all the old-school original Star Wars toys from David and Jon's obsessive days. A few small ones even made their way back to NC. . .thank God we flew.

Merritt's little snarky personality captivated all, except maybe Scully dog, who still did a good job tolerating the little man.

Look! I am in a picture! Here are Gav and I with the prairie grass over our heads - so beautiful to walk the farm and see the fall colors, a few deer, and pheasants (also good to eat a few of those pheasants thanks to Grandpa Bud and David).

My handsome husband. It was nice to have a week with him on the farm.

We met friends at Uncle John's Cider Mill in St. Johns. Before indulging in too many donuts and cups of cider, the kids played outside for a while.

Here is Merritt hanging with buddies Ty and Cole.

Carrie, Ben, and fam came up for a few days of chaos and memories. The kids had a blast being cousins and ruling the farm.

Merritt doing what he does best - pointing his way around a room and getting exactly what he wants from everyone (maybe especially Grandpa Bud).

Grandma Bud and GGMa - so wonderful to spend time together! A special thank-you to Bob and Betty for that delicious brunch (and allowing us all to invade their house!).

Don't worry - no eyeballs were injured in the taking of this picture.

Grandma Bud and Merritt reading. . .the Calorie King Carboydrates, Fat, and Calories book.

Gav, Teryn, and Delaney all lined up to catch leaves. . .

Did I mention the wind???

Daddy's old stomping grounds.

More layers than he has ever worn.

Still Henry and Joe, after all these years.

Colorful art from the garden.

Fall colors, seen from a higher vantage point.

Uncle Jon, in a rare moment with both kids smiling and sitting still (you should see the other 8 shots!).

Reading with Grandma - probably a Star Wars book!

Hayride time! 

Thank you to everyone for welcoming us home and making us feel at home! These are all memories we will cherish forever (and if our memories get foggy, we can look at the 650 pictures I took to remind us of all we did!!!!). Another great memory of the trip? Seeing MSU beat U of M at the big house - GO SPARTANS!