The first weekend of March took us on a last minute weekend trip!

If you have been here for awhile, you already know about our little weekend trips we take to Illinois and Indy!

We LOVE this trip!

Because it takes us to see our extended family!

We left on a Thursday night after Blake arrived home from work.

Tate and Eliza were part of our travel team this time, and we headed to Peoria, Illinois, and straight to our hotel for the night.

We are becoming friends with the folks who own this hotel!!

They remember us and we spend a lot of time chatting with them.

When it is just Blake, Tate, Eliza and I, we only need one hotel room – which is really nice – but limits my early morning self to have my quiet time and coffee in the bathroom of all places!

I did not want to wake everyone else up!

This time I had a very good reason to be up early anyway as I was sneaking out of the room to go and visit a friend at seven o’clock that morning.

We had the BEST visit that was WAY too short!

Please note the temperature as I headed out that morning!

It was so freezing cold, but that changed before the weekend was over.

Once I was back with my crew we finished getting ready and headed over to see Ross and Lilli.

It was SUCH a sweet morning and afternoon with them!

We took them out for lunch and found this wonderful deli that had many gluten-free options.

Eliza loved it so much she got a second sandwich!!

It always makes me so happy when the kiddos can get out and do things like just eat a sandwich that is safe.

Mid afternoon we headed to Morton to meet Blake’s Mom at our favorite coffee spot – Four30 Scones.

It was another opportunity to let the kids have a treat!

It is so fun to meet there to visit and have treats together!

Tate asked the owner what she was making someone who had come through the drive through, and so she brought him some of it – a shamrock shake.

Yes, he ate that all too!

We also got some scones to take to my Mom and brother.

Early that evening we hit the road to head to Indy, which is about a 3 1/2 hour drive from Morton.

When we got to our hotel, we ran into some friends from many years gone by!!

And they had some friends who were also in the area that were coming to see them there, who were also our friends from years gone by!

It was SO FUN to stand in the lobby and chat with everyone!!!

What are the chances???

Then we headed to our room and got settled in for the night.

We had a wonderful suite with a kitchen, but only one bed and a pull out couch.

We woke up to a beautiful Saturday morning, devotions in the bathroom again, and soon headed to see my brother and my Mom!

My heart is stretched SO much on these short trips – as they are NEVER long enough – but I know that we would always rather do them more often than stay for a whole week at at time.

My brother took us to all of our favorite stops!

More coffee treats, grocery shopping for lunch, and Chipotle and ice cream for dinner.

He always buys the kids treats before we get there too – like Izzy pop!

We had a WONDERFUL visit and got to meet one of my Mom’s new caretakers who we love.

We spent Sunday morning with my brother and Mom too, and then headed out for the long drive home right before lunch time.

It is a LONG drive on the Sunday’s that we do this!

But super duper worth it!!

The weather that first weekend of March ended up to be crazy warm!

Just look at the temp on the dashboard as we headed home!

Home will always be my favorite place to be.

How I wish home also had all of these very special people right next door.

I picture it in my mind ALL the time how special it would be for them to be a part of our everyday lives!

I do know that this shapes the conversations we have with our own children about our future and how we will always do our best to stay close by to each other, Lord willing.

They see the need for this vision too!

When we turn down our road after that long drive I get teary.

Teary for the fact that we made it back home safely.

Teary for the fact that I cannot be in all the places I wish I could be.

Teary for the fact that time with our most precious loved ones is always WAY too short.

Teary for the fact that it gets harder to say “see you next time” every time we go there.

That’s the way it is for right now.

And we have plans to go back again already very soon.