The LAST Day

Our last full day in Utah was spent at the Smiths and on a Sunday.

Brooks thought it was REALLY ironic how I would pack ALL my things for the 20 day trip in a carry-on and then decide to pack this HUGE dress for Everly to wear. I couldn't resist. #worththespace

After church two families full of cousins were going to come!!!! It felt like it was taking FOREVER for my kids so Brooks pulled out a little RLC game to play (stands for "Right, Left, Center".) Normally you play with chips but Brooks thought it would make it more interesting with each person starting with 3 Oreos. The winner gets all 18. Emerson ended up winning them.

Then Brooks decided to up the ante and gave everyone two chips and one dollar ($6 total). The smiles on ALL their faces are priceless just KNOWING they might get the money.

Bronson WON!

Aaaaaaaaaaand Royce didn't take it too well.

Kellyn just kept asking when (Aunt) "Jodi" would get there.....and she FINALLY did. 

I loved Bo's cute little photobomb.

Iris and Emma........inseparable.

A quick kickball game in the field and then ice cream from the neighbors. I'm sure they didn't mind 16 extra kids getting ice cream from them at ALL!

This girl-cousin-cuteness is just too much.

These two just melt my heart. Two-year-olds just two months apart.

Then the older kids and some of us adults went in the basement for a little "Around the World" in ping-pong.

 After that the COUSINS all played a little RLC with three quarters each for the chips. And the lucky little rascal, Bronson, won all the money again. Must've been this lucky kiss he gave the dice.

I ran Iris and Aleeya over to my sister's house who so GRACIOUSLY invited my girls over there for a girly-sleepover. (However, I was personally grateful for two less littles around while I tried to get everything packed)

I loved the pics my sis sent me.

 Xbox, matching outfits, doing hair and a fashion show. 

 They seriously had a BLAST!!!!! #aleeyasearrings

The day we left Aleeya and Iris were still at my sister's and Brooks took Bronson, Camden, Emerson and Royce to Lagoon to meet up with cousins.  I stayed home and packed while the babies slept. When I dropped them off Emerson got back in the van.... he was BURNING up with the constant fever sickness that someone had almost the whole time we were there.

They were a little late in getting out to the van when I picked them up so we were really rushing to the airport to get our bags checked in. Brooks shows the guy his license and then checks our bag and golf clubs in here.

"Mom take a picture of me with my suitcase"

I doubt ANYBODY noticed us walking through the airport.....we were like a stealth ninja family......Not.

All was well until we get to the security and Brooks does NOT have his license. He JUST used it to check in our bags but now did NOT have it. I went to the gate with all the kids and I could see some of the kids just stop and drop their heads to pray that dad would be able to fly on the flight (THAT WAS ALMOST LEAVING) with us. I wasn't so formal, it was just a constant replay of praying in my mind.

The plane started loading and no Brooks. He called me and asked if I could bring a check book and a credit card with Brooks' name to the security people they will let him through. I left Bronson in charge of some kids and I took the others and ran back to security....then RAN back to the gate.

Seeing Brooks running towards the gate was probably the best thing I saw all day!!

They held the plane for us and we were the last ones on....with all our carry-ons in every part of the plane. I just looked at Brooks and said, "I don't feel as settled going into this plane ride."

I should've known that was a sign. 

We had switched seats because of Iris' BEGGING to sit my Everly (HUUUUUUGE mistake, she can't keep her hands off her)....meaning Everly didn't sleep and kept demanding to get out. Not only THAT but we had her HUGE carseat taking up a ton of space. At one point we just stuck Royce in it.

It felt like musical chairs the WHOLE plane ride.

Well, except for Emerson, who was feverishly napping the whole time.

I pulled out EVERYTHING I could. Snacks, coloring, play dough, stickers, raisins-FOR-DAYS!!!, barbies, Legoes, stick-on-window things....

Everly was STILL antsy to get out and she is SO loud. Not crying, just loud. Brooks was walking up and down the aisle with her and I was sitting in the bathroom with her just so she could play with the water coming out of the sink (THAT'S how desperate I was). Once again we got comments from people on how good my baby was. WHAT THE HECK?!?!? DID THEY NOT SEE THE TORTURE I JUST WENT THROUGH?!?!? 

By the time we landed, Brooks and I were both SO stinking exhausted with JUST EVERLY!!!! (Man, am I grateful he made the flight!) I basically wanted to run out and kiss the nasty humid South Carolina airport ground.

Brooks ended up finding his license in his CHECKED luggage pocket (lovely) and then he took Everly (I was kinda done with her) to the hotel to grab the Yeti and come pick the rest of us up. It was 11 pm, but the kids still had PLENTY of energy to play around.

Except Emerson......obviously.....

When we got in the Yeti I couldn't BELIEVE how much I missed it.

It was SO nice being in our van with a AC THAT WORKS!!!!! And cool leather seats and SPACE!!!!  (We took out the bench RIGHT behind us so there's us, HUGE SPACE and then the kids. They can't hear us, we can't hear them in the loud Yeti. It works out great.) We got home at 2 a.m.

Unanimously it was HANDS-DOWN the best family vacation ever......but honestly, there is 

NO PLACE LIKE HOME!!!!