No, we aren't desperately homesick, we realize we were just there in June, but think about it:
--The entire Babbel family was planning to get together (except for us)
--Tara and Evan were arriving back in the USA after 2 years of living in Slovenia
--John gets to take up to 5 vacation days in August
--We hate to miss a family party
--We found a cheap flight
Anyway, since our nearest family member lives 1500 miles away from Milwaukee, sometimes we just need to grit our teeth and buy plane tickets if we want to see our family. And it was absolutely worth it!
We had a "Welcome to America" celebration for Tara and her family. We asked if it was bittersweet for them to leave Slovenia, and Tara said, "just bitter!" They really fell in love with that country. Evan retired from working for the State Department, and so their next stop is Vanderbilt (in Nashville) where Evan will get a PhD in Political Science.
No trip home is complete without a Phillies game. Cole was very pleased that his namesake, Cole Hamels, was pitching.
Yep, that's Mike Schmidt! The best Phillies player ever, and probably the greatest 3rd basemen in history! (Wait Dad, am I right when I say that?) A bunch of the retired players came for an alumni program before the game, and we were actually punctual enough to see it!
Here's my mom watching the game with Quin and Alistair.
Synchronized Swimming by Caleb and Quin. We spent a lot of time in the pool since it was *perfect swimming weather all weekend! (*Translation: It was so hot you could grill a cheesesteak on the sidewalk.)
Zaya was born with a confident model walk, a winning smile, and even a head tilt! This girl is going places.
Evan taught Quin how to swim in the deep end this weekend.
The Lego Maniacs. John, Caleb, Alistair, and Quin.
We went to America's First Zoo to check out the the 2 week old baby giraffe. You can't help but say "awww!" when you see it!
The zoo was fun, but sweaty. I've never been jealous of polar bears before, but they looked so refreshed and happy swimming in their tank. Here's the zoo crew: John, Chase, Benson, Elise, Caleb, Mom, Cole, Me, and Tyson.
A few bites of corn on the cob, and Quin lost a tooth! The Tooth Fairy must have found Quin's forwarding address, because she managed to get a quarter under his pillow even though he was in a new house. (This was a concern.)Well, there you have it! What a happy weekend with the 16 Babbels.
(6 originals + 3 husbands + 7 grandkids.)
There are no pictures of my dad in this post because he always managed to dodge the camera! But he was there. Sorry to any of my Philly friends who I didn't call or visit-- I just laid low this time and spent every minute with my family.
2 comments:
What a fun getaway! I didn't know that Tara and Evan are now done with the state department--sounds like they're embarking on an exciting new adventure. I love all these pics.
Looks like a nice little retreat! I miss that pool! You will need to let me know when you come to Nashville to visit Tara...we live just south of her!
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