Belated recap of a really fun visit

    My grandma came to visit last month..  It was the first time she met my husband and son.  It was also the first time she came to stay at MY house instead of just MY PARENTS house.  Family visits have always taken place at my home while I was living with Mom, Dad and my brother Evan, and so it was quite a novel thing to have her as my very own guest.  We ate banana bread, drank mochas, took walks, sat on the balcony, and visited a few of my favorite places in Salt Lake.  Lincoln was very comfortable with her right from the beginning, which I found adorable.  She's my ideal house guest because she's comfortably chatty, with a lot of intriguing stories to tell, but also asks the right questions to get me telling my own.  Plus I never really had to worry about whether she was enjoying herself, because it was obvious she was!  So all my hostess anxieties were put to rest.

   I really wanted her to meet Tyler's family, so we all went hiking to Timpanogos Caves the day after Grandma flew in.  The trail was really steep, but everyone handled it quite well, even Mr. Linc.  He refused to ride in the Baby Bjorn I brought (which, I know, is ridiculous for his size, but technically he's at the very end of the weight limit.)  Instead the little guy marched up that hill like it was nothing.  Going down was a little less fun; he kept turning around and hiking back up the trail!  Easier on the knees, I guess.  I loved the friendly vibes we had going in our group.  Our families are awesome!

   Here are some pictures:

Four Generations!  Out of age order, but as pictured here's Lincoln, my mama, my grandmama, and me!  I think we all have similar smiles.  And I KNOW we all have similar sweet tooths.  :-)

Unfortunately Dad wasn't able to come along, but here's my husband Tyler (love that man!), cute mama again, Evan  who I thought was looking especially handsome that day, me and Linc, and of course his Great Grandma Brown.

And the Metcalfs posed, too!  My father-in-law Bill (probably the friendliest, funniest guy I know), Kaitlyn-- the girl I pray my own daughter will be like, mama-in-law Lori who runs marathons and was actually recovering from knee surgery during this hike (but you wouldn't know it!), us three, and Nic, who might as well be Lincoln's personal court jester.  Just the sight of him makes Lincoln burst into giggles.  

The inside of the caves are really cool, and this picture hardly does them justice.  A tour guide is required.  Ours was a little goofy, but nice.

Seeing pictures of our little family always makes me think of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.  

"Could be

we three

get along so famously cuz

you two

have me

and I have you two, too!"

Grumpy Face!  Really, he liked Grandma holding him and carrying him down the steps, but I just didn't capture the right expression.  This is at Memory Grove.  I wanted to show my grandma where Tyler and I were married, and happily it's a pleasant walk from our apartment.  I go there often and stand in the exact spot I stood as a bride.  Having traveled a lot during my childhood, I find it special to be able to point out a meaningful landmark and say that it's a party of my own history.

Lincoln only chooses to be couch buddies with really super-duper cool people.  And I guess Great Grandma Brown fit the bill.  He sat there for quite a while, too, close and comfy!

I'm wishing that big pile of laundry wasn't there, but if you excuse the eyesore, you can sense the relaxing, sunshiney mood of our balcony.  

Thanks for the visit, Grandma!