Missouri - Part IV: The Inbetween

There are a few other things worth mentioning about my trip, but I'm trying not to blog a million blogs about this trip, so I'm going to cram it all into one :)

A few quick notes:
First, I'm convinced that people in Missouri are hiding dinosaur eggs away from the rest of the world... I think they are plotting a real life Jurassic Park.  It wasn't only the picture below that makes me think this, but I'm doing further investigations before I can talk about it too much!

Second, there was some thing flying through the air while we were at the gas station... it was a Praying Mantis!  Have you ever seen one of those?  I hadn't and was damn excited to be seeing one:

Third, I had some obnoxious pain (pretty sure it was a pinched nerve) in my back, just under my shoulder blade the entire drive down and made for a very interesting first night sleep... I went to the Chiropractor on Friday and he did some very interesting things to me... and I felt better throughout the day.  I'm still weirded out by what happened in that office!

Fourth, I found a fork!  This fork stand 35 feet high... I'm thinking a full set of utensils through photography.  MN has The Spoonbridge, MO has a Fork... now to find a knife!

Last and most important to me is Renee and her family.  She has a wonderful husband, Phillip, and 3 lovely kids, Jacob, Kaitlyn, and Tyler.
Jacob is the oldest and I found myself often forgetting he is only 13 and speaking with him like he is an adult.  He is such a stud and will no doubt be a heart breaker once he gets to that point in his life.  He is such a good kid and stays out of trouble.. unlike most 13 year olds.  I had a lot of fun trying to make him blush as often as possible!

Kaitlyn is the middle child and, while she craves attention like most little girls, she isn't all middle child about it.  By that I mean she doesn't get jealous when the attention is focused on someone else.... at least that is what I noticed.  She speaks like no child I have ever met, takes the time to enunciate all of her words, and puts such thought and emotion into what she is saying.  I fell in love with her the first time I met her in a Vegas hotel room last fall... that love only grows with each moment I spend with her.

Tyler is a little spitfire!  I don't know how Renee does it... he is a handful and I imagine he will only be more of a handful each day older he gets.  He likes to test people and see what he can get away with.  It cracks me up!  He also has the cutest little speech impediment, he says his K's like a T.  He doesnt like to be teased about it, as any person wouldn't, but it just makes me want to grab him and pull him close!  He also says the word "Willn't" instead of "Won't" - which if you think about it makes a whole lot more sense!

Phillip and Renee have an amazing family and I feel so lucky that they have welcomed me into their home many times over.  I love observing them and how they work... they have it down!  I want to thank them so much for everything they did for me this weekend and everything they have offered me over the past year.  I'm truly blessed to have people like this in my life, I only wish they were just around the corner!  I miss them all so much already.