Good Times

For our little mini vacation this year, Ben and I decided we would load up the baby and spend a few days with my aunt and uncle in Tremont, IL. My Aunt Barbara is my dad's sister (his only sibling). Kara and I are very close with her, and growing up everyone thought she was my mother when we were together (we look a lot alike).
My Uncle Don owns a funeral home (Davis Mortuary) and their house is attached to it (creepy for me, Ben loves it). The home part is beautiful and inviting, Barbara has great decorating skills.
Our first afternoon here, Wednesday evening, we were all hanging out watching Thatcher zoom around the kitchen in his little car walker. The "Amish" family across the street pulled into their driveway so Barbara and I dashed to the windows to be creepers and watch them unload into the house. Reason being is that there are 6 kids, 1 boy and 5 girls, and they do not wear shoes in their house. So one by one big brother carries all of his little sisters into the house on his back from the van. It was so interesting to watch when they were all finished I exclaimed "This is better than TV!" Maybe you had to be there...
My 27th birthday was yesterday. Weird. I had a very hard time with 25, 27 just feels weird I guess. (Before we left for Tremont Ben gave me my birthday gifts from him, 2 beautiful dresses from Hansen's in Manhattan! (Good job Ben!))We went to the pool in town and did water aerobics in the morning, which was hilarious and fun (Kara, her bf Nick, and my dad had come down for the day. The guys hung out with the baby at the side of the pool, they did not join in the aerobics). Then we played with Uncle Don's new Harley (riding on the back with my dad makes me feel like a kid again) and his old go cart in the afternoon, then we went for dinner at Gil's, this fabulous little country restaurant in the middle of no where. It was a wonderful day. I missed my mom, but she is in Brazil at the moment on a missions trip with church.
Tonight is our last hoorah here, I'm sad to go tomorrow, it's been so nice spending time here. Another highlight was going to the little town grocery store, it was so quaint and charming.
Sunday I take Ben to O'hare because he's going to Texas for work for a week, boo. I asked if Thatcher and I could come, he said no. Hmm. :)