Amusement

Last Sunday after church, we ventured to an amusement park -- a first for Irina.
Our coaster loving Daddy had the date planned for several weeks. After having just returned from the
 Empowered to Connect conference the night before, I was hyper sensitive to it being a bad decision for Irina.
This is one of those times when I'm glad I was wrong. :) They all had a wonderful time, including Daddy. 

Irina's first coaster ride. 

She's still smiling. Notice the huge grin on Ethan. It is no surprise that he is 

following in his Daddy's footsteps in his love of roller coasters. 

While these four definitely have their less desirable moments as siblings, they truly are good friends. 

Of the four kids can you guess which one carefully observed all the traffic lights and signals? Hint... he is not pictured. Of the four kids, can you guess which one struggled to keep their car going straight and on the right side of the road? Hint... it's the one who kept shouting for Mommy and Daddy's attention and waving "hi!"

Does this photo above classify as trauma? I know one kid who might think so. ;) 

This picture made me fast forward 8 years. Oh my! I'm definitely not ready for Ethan and Aaron to go out riding in their monster truck. Do you think I ever will be? A beautiful day and a great first experience at the amusement park for all the kids. After lots of walking,  everyone settled into a good nights sleep. I think Darin got the award for smiling the most.