Quality Cousin Time

 Wednesday night we picked up Madelyn & Zachary and had them overnight which was way fun.  Em & Layne had the chance to have a few days to bond & rest with baby Lucy and we had the chance to love & dote on their other kids.  Gray loves having them and so do I.  They keep him entertained, help me with Beckham, and are old enough to do many things for themselves.  We chilled and watched a movie that night and then got up early Thursday to pick up Jeffrey.  We headed to the zoo for their & my boys first time.  Aunt Doll joined us (thank you again doll!) and we had a great time.  Because it was half price Thursday, pretty much every mom & child in Boise and the surrounding valley was there...but it was still okay.  And honestly, it was hot.  It got hotter really fast.  We got there & left at probably the best times because we didn't get too overly hot...and even more honestly, the Boise zoo is unfortunately nothing to write home about.  Half the animals didn't even come out of hiding and I wondered if they were really in there (panda, bears, lots of monkeys, etc.) and the ones that were out we can see from our street (llamas, goats, ducks, etc.)!  Doll and I thought it was kinda lame, but the kids really seemed to enjoy it so I was happy with that.  The zebras, giraffes, lions, tigers, and porcupine were pretty neat too.  Grayson loved the whole experience.  Each cage/fence/pen we stopped at he would say, "Wow, that is so neat!"  Even when it was just grass & weeds!  Love the excitement of kids!

After we left the zoo, we headed to lunch at Sonic which the kids also seemed to enjoy.  We were all pretty worn out by then and headed back to our house for a lot of Rockband playing and resting.  We spent the evening watching "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" which was pretty cute and crashing for the night. 

 Friday morning we chilled & relaxed for a while, played more rockband, read books, played outside, and then after lunch headed to the pool.  Grayson was much more brave and willing to let me hold him in the big pool and then liked playing in the kiddie pool by himself while I laid out.  My mom kindly watched Bex so he wouldn't get too hot.  The kids had a blast and it was fun to take them & to get a little sun myself.  We dropped them off at Grandma & Grandpa's afterward and Gray, Bex, and I headed home.  The kids are so fun to have around and again, I'm grateful my kids have their cousins close enough to enjoy on a frequent basis & the influence for good they are on my children.