Minnesota

The day after school got out we packed up our car and headed to Rochester, Minnesota, to visit some of our best friends.  The Jaeger's have lived in Rochester for a few years now because Chris is a resident at Mayo Clinic. We have always wanted to visit them but our crazy summer time schedules from previous years just made it too challenging.  So this summer we were determined to make it happen!  

It was so fun to spend time together with Chris, Sara, and their two kids, Lakin (almost 3) and Bennett (coolest baby ever).  We played hard, ate great meals, did some shopping, and enjoyed quality conversations.  Chris, Sara, and Tom have known each other since high school and we all went to Mizzou together.  There is something special about reuniting with friends that you have so much history with. 

Here are some pics of our time together.  If you follow us on Instagram you will recognize a lot of these photos.  We kind of blew up Instagram while we were together...! 

Headed to church.  Holding hands is a must. Lakin was such a good friend to Everett.  She was always so willing to help him out.  They were great little buddies! 

Maybe one of the highlights of the whole trip was going to the zoo!!! There is a free zoo close to the Jaeger's.  It isn't a very large zoo, which actually made it perfect for toddlers.  Everett and Lakin ran from one animal to the next.   They found it so exciting.  

Tom and I both enjoyed showing Everett so many of the animals he has seen on TV or read about in books.  Out of all the animals in the zoo guess which animal scared E?  It wasn't the bear...it wasn't the cougar...it was the pony.  That is our son for you. 

The Jaeger's have a park within a short walk.  How cool is that?!

The boys in their diapers. 

Pre-bedtime popsicles! 

Another highlight from the trip was seeing DJ, a friend of our's from GSIS.  He lives in St. Paul and made the drive to hang out with us for an evening.  It was awesome to reunite with him. 

The most tiring and epic part of the whole journey may have been our trip to Ikea.  Tom and I had never been to one and we found it AMAZING.  What was a bit less amazing was trying to take Ikea in while wrangling the kids--mostly our kid who was especially whiney during the trip through the store.  As you can see, the Jaeger kids were quite adaptable at the store.  Ben took his bottle on the go like a champ. 

I'm pretty sure Ikea dominated us rather than us dominating the store.  Totally worth it though. 

"Tom, will you read me a book?" Lakin and Tom became buddies too. 

It's always important to show your Costco ID card when you enter the store. 

Lakin loves to play dress up.  Everett wasn't that into it until this happened.  This picture cracks me up.  It was all done on his own accord. 

Rainy day pillow pit. 

All three kids paying hard together. 

Everett rarely lets us comb his hair, but he let Ms. Sara give him a post bath do after seeing Lakin getting her hair brushed.  Peer pressure is powerful. 

Before we knew it, it was time to put on our shades and head home.  This was a great little road trip to warm us up before we go on a two week trip to Canada at the beginning of July.  

Thanks Jaeger's for being such great hosts!