Christmas in Iowa

We traveled to Iowa for Christmas this year.  We left Monday morning, the day after Christmas, and made it to the farm just before supper on Tuesday.  Both kids travelled well -- Graecyn is a great traveler always and Cody is getting so much better.  We attached a mirror to the back of the seat he faces (his carseat is still rear facing) and I think that was a huge help.  Often when I assumed he was sleeping, he was just sitting there staring at himself in the mirror.  We had to stop a few times to let the kids stretch, but overall, it was one of the best car trips we've had so far with both kids.

Graecyn was fully over her stomach bug and back to normal, which was great.  Unfortunately, a few hours after we got to the farm, I came down with it.  Fortunately, it was short lived and I was feeling normal by the next evening.  Eric and Cody never got it, but Colton and Camden had it by Thursday and my Dad had it by Sunday.  It was a bit of a crazy, germ-filled week because on top of the stomach bug we were spreading around, Eric had a sinus infection, Danielle had strep throat, and Will and Theo had tonsillitis.  We still made the most of our time there and both Graecyn and Cody had a great time playing with their cousins.

While we didn't get to do everything we had hoped to do, we were able to squeeze in a movie (Mom and I took Graecyn to see Sing) and a birthday celebration.

On the way home we made it to the hotel in time to let the kids swim.  The pool water was freezing cold (Graecyn's lips were blue), but they still had fun and were able to burn off some energy.  Both kids favorite part of the hotel was riding on the luggage cart!