Grandpa and Grandma Smith

We were so grateful to have Grandpa and Grandma Smith come for Paige's baptism.  They really are two of our favorite people and it was so much fun to have them come stay with us for a week.

Paige's new scriptures from Gpa/Gma

Fortunately, their visit also coincided with parent/teacher conferences, so the girls had a few days off from school which gave us some time to play.

On their first day here, we took the grandparents to Cantigny to see the tank park and visit the First Division Museum.  This place is a real gem and I don't think it disappointed Grandma and Grandpa either.  We were all dazzled by Grandpa's extensive knowledge about military history, weaponry, etc.

It was a beautiful Fall day and the trees on the grounds were a brilliant gold, it was a great time to visit.  Afterwards, we had some tasty Chicago-style pizza from Giordano's--you can't come to Chicago and skip eating pizza!

Later that evening we went to see the movie Puss N Boots.  After this full day, we came home to relax a little and play some card games.  The girls LOVE to play cards with Grandpa and Grandma!

The next day, Saturday, was the day of Paige's baptism but we started with a morning service project at Feed My Starving Children.  We packed lots of food for needy children around the world.  It was fun to get to work alongside Grandpa and Grandma.


Feed My Starving Children - work crew.
This is not a very clear or good picture,
but it's hard to look flattering in a hair net!

 We also spent one day in downtown Chicago.  We went to the Field Museum and had a great time.

After spending all day at the museum and a stop at the Bears' Pro Shop, we went to Big Bowl for dinner.  We ate a huge family style Asian dinner of Chinese and Thai dishes...yummy.

The next day the girls went to school so Dave, his parents and I went shopping.  Grandpa and Grandma bought all our Christmas presents and then we had a big finale dinner at an Irish Pub with the girls that evening.

What a nice little vacation in the middle of our busy lives.  Of course, the best part was having Grandpa and Grandma come visit us.  Because we live so far away from each other, the time that we do get to spend together is precious, especially for our girls.  But no matter the distance, we always feel their love and are so grateful for all that they do for us.