Surprise visit

All day Friday we anticipated my parents' return from there little jaunt two states away, to visit some of my siblings over the last couple of weeks. Finally at about 5:15pm, just as Ben was helping me clean up his toys so we could get started on our bath-/bed-time routine, we heard a knock on our door.

It wasn't my parents' usual knock, though. It was a softer knock. Marc looked at me curiously and asked who it could be. I wasn't expecting anyone (other than my parents). He answered the door and in walked this little girl:

That's my niece, Audrey. (That's her at her home, two states away, where it's very cold and snowy right now. There's no need for her umbrella here, or the sweater for that matter, in our 76 degree weather.) Following her through our front door was her brother, Lucas:

Unbeknownst to me, my sister made some very secretive plans to make the 13+ hour drive with my parents (and her two little ones) to spend a surprise week with us.

(I got all of these photos off my sister's blog, since I haven't gotten any photos of them since they arrived. Maybe tomorrow I'll finally remember to charge our camera battery, so it's working again.)

I was so stunned. I think the first words out of my mouth were something along the lines, "Nuh-uh!" I had just talked to Mandi on the phone less than two hours before, wanting to know what time my parents had left her house that morning, so I could get an idea of when they might be getting into town.

She was so, as the Italians say, furbo. (Which basically means sly, but it describes how she was better than just saying she was sly.) For the last couple of weeks, she's known about her plans to come and never gave any hint that she was coming, even during our phone call, just moments before they arrived.

It has been a fun weekend. I mean, how could it not? Pancake breakfast, cousins getting (re)acquainted, an afternoon playing on the swings and the slides at the park, the three boys (each five months apart) playing with the ball air popper toy, a crazy day at church (four adults with four little ones - I'm sure we provided some good entertainment), a delicious steak dinner with these amazing potatoes that my sister made (I have to get the recipe!), more playing on the floor with the kids, hide 'n seek, and good-night kisses.

The good news: they're here ALL week!

The bad news: time flies when you're having fun. Saturday is going to come much too soon.