Buffalo Trip

In August of this year we took a vacation and went to visit my family our first stop was Buffalo. My Dad, my sister Caity, my step-brother Andy, and my Grandma along with my aunts, uncles and cousins live there so our major priority was to spend time with family. My Grandma hadn't yet seen Caiden and hadn't seen Ayla in almost two years. It was great to be there for a few days and see my family. My Grandma is a marvel of Heavenly Father's engineering. She is 85 years old and in great condition! She could probably outrun me if we were to have a foot race. I hope I inherit those genes. Here are some pictures of my kids with Grandma or Gi Gi as she had requested that they call her. Since Lucas's Grandma is also Gi Gi we now have Gi Gi Meyer (my Grandma) and Gi Gi Forsythe (Lucas's Grandma).

We stayed with my Dad and were very comfortable. My Dad has a finished basement where we put an air mattress, and another room with a TV and living room furniture so we almost had our own little apartment. The kids were fantastic. I really couldn't have asked for them to be any better. Ayla went almost the entire week without getting a nap and she was always happy and polite and on her best behavior. Here is a picture of my Dad and my kids.

My Dad's dog Riley loved Caiden. It was really cute. I've heard that dog's get really protective of babies and I saw it first hand with Riley. If the baby was around Riley was always right there next to him. He wanted to sit by him and watched him to make sure that he was alright. If Caiden cried Riley would get a little upset. On the other hand I don't think Riley was too crazy about Ayla. The first day or so Ayla was a little apprehensive about having a dog around. But after she warmed up to him she wouldn't leave him alone. The poor dog, if Ayla was around she was constantly trying to play with him. She would chase him around and around the house. After awhile he would hide when he saw her coming. She also liked to play with his toys. He has a toybox full of doggie toys and she decided that she would play with them more then the kid toys that she had.

My step brother Andy is 18 and a senior this year. He is really a good kid and we enjoyed spending time with him. He and Lucas became good buddies swimming together and playing video games almost every night. My kids also loved him. Here is Ayla with Uncle Andy.

My Dad has a pool in his backyard and we spent a couple afternoons swimming. Ayla had a great time. Lucas and Andy also had a great time making waves and having Ayla "surf" them on the innertube.

One of my favorite things about Buffalo is the food. It's sooooo good! Not necessarily good for you, but DELICIOUS! The first night we were there we ordered Bozanna's pizza and Duff's chicken wings! Ummmm!

One of the things I miss about Buffalo is the parks that they have with swimming areas for kids. While we were there we went to Amherst rec center and let the kids have fun in the water park. It's a really cool little water park perfect for little kids. Ayla loved it and we spent most of the day there.

We spent an evening visiting with my Aunt Lorrie, ( my mom's sister)my Uncle Gary and my cousin Danielle. We spent another evening with my Aunt Cheryl (my dad's sister). The next morning we went to visit with my Uncle Mark and my cousin Ashley none of them had seen Ayla for years and hadn't seen Caiden at all so it was great to visit them and spend time catching up. I miss all of my relatives and wish we lived closer. Hopefully we can get together more often. It was the first time I'd been to Buffalo in two years and also the first time since my sister Kari and her family moved. It was weird for me to be there and not see Kari and her family. I miss them a ton! It was so nice though to be with my family in my hometown. I like living in Virginia and I love being close to Lucas's family but I really miss Buffalo and my family. I'll always be a Buffalonian at heart.

GO BILLS!