A quick vis to STL to pick up Nesi

A quick vis to STL to pick up Nesi

Nesya went to St. Louis to go to school and spend some fun times with our family there.  She flew by herself!!!  Overall it went really well (you can some cute airport pics in this post) but she was starting to get homesick by about day 5.  So the morning after driving back from our intense trip to Panama City (the AF base) I took David to STL to pick her up.  Thankfully active duty military dependents can get really good rates on SW Airlines so it was only $117 each way!  Made last minute planning a breeze.

We didn't know how long we'd stay in STL because I was feeling pretty worn out and had to see how David would manage.  I came with literally a backpack on my back and a stroller.  LOL.  Oh, and David's rolling Dora suitcase!  He wants to be like the other travelers at the airport.

I knew we'd have fun and rejuvenate with a little time with Tammy, Mark, the four cousins, Lisa, and Marshall.  We laid low and sorry to say, saw only a few friends while there.  It was really hard to leave them all and I just needed to hunker down and relax with the amount of things I was dealing with.  It would be nicer to visit when I felt a little more composed!  Meanwhile, Robert and Adira had a quiet yet fun week in Atlanta!  Nice for them to have time together, too.

We enjoyed a couple impromptu meet-ups with some special friends (again, SO sorry couldn't see everyone!!!  Can't wait to next time on a normal trip.)  This time we enjoyed dinner at the Cohen's, Kaufman Park with the Zitins, Pumpkin Land with the Greens, and Gokul with the Jacobsens, plus several long family hang out sessions at Mark and Tammy's.  So thankful for their wonderful and generous hospitality and warm TLC for Nesi, absolutely rising to the occasion to help her out.

I'm so glad we got to spend time in STL and again, am looking forward to a more normal visit :-P

Pictures of the times...

eating out and homework time with ATF+RJF

David getting excited to go to St. Louis.  Yes, he walked through the Atlanta (coca cola headquarters!!) airport looking just like the big travelers!

So fun to be back with the cousins!  This is at Shaw Park near Clayton HS.

And who did we run into there?  Zaida!  (Marshall)
OK, to be honest, I had guessed he may be there and when Tammy dropped us off there to go drive carpool, I texted him and asked if he was there.  Sure enough!!!  It was so sweet how David ran to him.  He walked us all the way back home later.

"SIT HERE!"  is David's command.  He usually wanted at least two couch-mates, often three.

NOOKS!  He yelled as we approached the store from Delmar.  He KNOWS this town!!!  What a smartie!  (And a free cookie lover...)

Irv Zeid Park- spinning on the spinner.  I love when David wants to ride on my back but he sometimes likes to bite me then.  Good thing for the hoodie as a deterrent!

Sweeties!!!

Theis Farm - Pumpkin Land!!!  
One of my all time favorite St. Louis activities.  There's nothing like being surrounded by the orchards, vegetable and berry rows, tons of haybales and awesome feats of engineering, all for the sake of play!  Long slides, corn maze, three haymazes, obstacle courses, two ziplines, etc.  We had a blast.  I was sooo sad Adira wasn't here for this!

They don't just stop at all the above.  They also provide a whole bunch of kiddie John Deer riding toys.

Yum yum Tutti Frutti

Goodbye hugs- all together now!

This picture may look fun but I really recommend NOT getting a gel manicure because you have to have a UV light to dry it and removing them is sooo difficult! I did get some simple pleasure in life from having the great looking nails for a couple weeks though. 

As for removing it...couldn't have done it without ya, Tammy!

#thatsallfornow