Back in early July, we spent a week visiting James’ parents in Columbus, Ohio. William was about 7 or 8 months the last time we went so we were definitely overdue for a visit.
This mama, of course, was a little nervous about traveling with an active 2 year old but he did really well (thank you iPad). We had very short layovers in Dallas both ways and William loved riding the SkyLink. I also highly recommend Starbuck’s oatmeal for breakfast on the go. Both our flights were fairly early in the morning so being able to grab that and then get on the plane was easy. The only hard part was explaining to William that he couldn’t feed himself. I really didn’t want to clean up that mess.
We actually arrived in Ohio on James’ birthday, so that evening we had dinner with family and his mom made him a cake. It was a nice start to the trip. Amy also pulled out a lot of James’ old toys from when he was little. I loved seeing William playing with them.
The week was pretty low key. I really wanted to keep William on his normal schedule so a lot of outings were done in the morning. Trips to the park, like this one were a lot of fun. I know William loved them.
This little cutie attached herself to William for a good while and did everything he did. She definitely matched his energy level!
Helping Oma and Opa in the kitchen was one of William’s favorite things to do. Mixing eggs or helping Opa with his smoothie.
I love the yard surrounding Mark and Amy’s house. It’s so green and lush compared to Austin in July. The weather was pretty wonderful while we were there.
A trip to see Opa’s bus and take a ride was a definite must. I don’t think William knew what to do being so up close and personal. Looking at the pictures now, he just loves them! I’ll have to make some larger prints for his new big boy room.
They had to do a bus check prior to taking a ride. Walking around, checking the fluids and tires.
Then it was time for a ride!
This child has a growing school bus collection. I think he’s up to 6 or 7 now. He really does love them and has an eagle eye for them when we are driving around town.
Another pool day and keeping Daddy and Opa cool.
Amy’s office hosted an event at the Columbus Zoo while we were there so we spent the morning checking out some animals, riding a train, a comodo dragon and a boat through Dinosaur Island. William did not want to get off the boat. The dinosaurs were lifesize and I thought for sure he’d be afraid but he loved it.
An almost family photo. Oops!
Sunday morning while James and his mom had breakfast, I went with Mark and William for donuts and to another great park. This is the biggest donut he’s ever had and he only wanted it for the sprinkles, which he ate off the top. He also ate the whole donut save for a couple bites. Good thing we went to the park afterwards!
How cute is the wagon! Also one of James’ old toys.
More family time and a friendly poker game. Aunt Jenna and William opted for some Lego and Sophie time instead.
Our final evening, a new family photo was a must. Even new baby #2 kind of made an appearance (baby bump)!
You can also visit my Instagram feed and scroll back to July to see a few more photos of our trip.
Elizabeth Hafner 