Our 21 hour flight turned into 36 hours. When we landed, we picked up our luggage, picked up our car, and headed to my sisters house. Aunt Kim wanted to take us to the grocery store. She told everyone that they could pick out 2 cereals and 2 bags of chips! The kids were so excited and at times a little overwhelmed with all the choices!
This was the damage :)
The kids loved riding with Aunt Kim in her car. The little ones are still getting used to seat belts and Lauren has been confused because we have two homes...one here and one in Asia.
Getting gas....Katherine (and Grandmommy) is so serious trying to figure out what her daddy is doing.
All the cousins (my brother, sister-in-law and his 5 kids and my sister and her 3 kids) went to eat at Chic-fil-A. Yum! My favorite! It was delicious!
We all went to see Monsters U together. Lots of fun!
I went out to refill the popcorn. My dad also saved the day by buying me a long sleeved shirt. America is COLD indoors! We have not gotten used to the AC yet.
The crew....it was so good to catch up with everyone!
Benjamin and his cousin Peyton
Lauren and cousin Paige
My brother, Michael and his wife, Shelby.
Benjamin was beside himself when he realized that his Uncle Mikey was a police officer. His uncle talked to him about all his gadgets.
Aunt Kim took us all to Six Flags over Georgia.
The kids rode their first roller coaster. Katherine was the most excited, but didn't really like it too much. Lauren got off and was so excited to do it again.
Aunt Kim took the little ones to ride a boat ride while Jonathan and I took the big kids to an "adult" roller coaster.
Aunt Kim said that she would buy super hero capes for all the kids who road a roller coaster (big ones or small ones) I think it's the only thing that got Benjamin on one. He really wanted Batman cape :)
They had a big day and a fun day.
My and my big sis
I was so proud of this girl. She wanted to ride an "adult" roller coaster so bad, but she was scared. She waited in line with us and decided to do it. I screamed the entire ride and she just sat there like she was watching a movie or something. She was so serious. She got off and said, "That was AWESOME!!" I now have a riding partner. As we were leaving the park, we got this picture . The coaster behind us is the one she road.
I told Jonathan that is was the scariest roller coaster I have ridden so far. This was the first drop on Goliath. Still can't believe that this was Regan's first one. She picked a doozie to start with. I guess it's all or nothing :)
My sister had a cookout at her house and my brother's family came and so did my cousin, Rob. Again, a lot of fun.
We finally made it to Knoxville and got into our home. It was such a sweet surprise to find that many people had helped fill our pantry and made sure we had essentials to start off with. It was nice not having to worry about going to the grocery store as soon as we walked in the door.
Granddad and Regan
Best friends made a surprise visit!
It has been a long time coming to see these two girls together again. After we snapped the picture they disappeared into Regan's bedroom and just talked and talked.
The kids have been waiting for this moment....Build-A-Bear. They each made one animal that they are all sleeping with every night :)
Lauren adding her heart
Benjamin's police dog/
Regan and her stylin' bear.
More best friend reunions!
Auntie Em getting a massage? Not sure ;)
The kids are loving the front yard.
Our little house has a Tennessee orange rocker on the front porch. The girls love it.
Auntie Em is here!
visiting Ma (Jonathan's grandmother)
Swinging out front of Ma's house
Benjamin and Emily in the swing....and Lauren in the background trying to steal the show
One of the cultural things the kids are loving....sidewalk chalk!
The kids discovered lightning bugs when we went to a friends house for dinner. It was the funniest thing I have seen. They wee so excited.
A trip to Market Square in downtown Knoxville.
Water fountains....another cultural hit! I couldn't keep these girls away from them. So as you can see, we arrived and hit the ground running. The kids are just so excited about every little thing. It's fun to see them experience (and sometimes remember things that they had forgotten) every day. We are finally over jet lag and settling in. Lauren is still wondering why their are no Asian people in America. I told her we just haven't found them yet :) I look forward to seeing what new things they see tomorrow!
