West Des Moines, Iowa...

Scott and I came up with the greatest surprise ever! With help from our sister-in-law, Annie, we were able to surprise his brother with a Labor Day Weekend Extravaganza!

Scott had some extra time off of work, and we both had larger paychecks than expected, so off to embark on an 18 hour roadtrip to surprise his brother. On the way there we actually drove through the night (the boys slept all night and we made some great time!)

Carter and Brax did so well in the car...at every stop though, Brax would have to get out and "drive" the car while Scott took Carter into the gas stations to get treats.

I can't complain at all about the boys... they were so good and really handled being in the car for that long so well. It was precious seeing them sleep, there's nothing more relaxing than driving a car with sleeping kids in the back.

We arrived in PERFECT time, because Steve wanted to come home for a few hours before his next shift, so we all loaded up in the van and headed to the hospital. Scott, Carter and I hid in the parking lot and when we saw Steve walking out, Scott yelled "Hey Dr. Morris" When Steve saw Scott walking toward him he was in complete shock...PRICELESS!

Carter also got to surprise Hunter by picking him up at school. Carter saw Hunter walking out and ran over to him and gave him a big hug (Carter's not the "hugging" type so this was really cute to see) Hunter was really excited once he realized that cousin Carter was there!

It was so fun enjoying the little moments with all the cousins.

Like bath time... And playing at the beach...

Braxton has never been to a beach before...so he was extra surprised by this! He played in the sand, tried to squeeze out sunscreen everywhere and walked along the shallow water.
It was really nice that day (a tad windy, but very nice) and it was really fun to hang out with everyone...

Annie planned everything and I have to give her praise because it all worked out so well. It's a big deal planning for 4 kids and 4 adults to stay in one house, eating, sleeping and playing. It's nice "planning" things with another "planner." :) We all made creepy crawlers...the boys LOVED this!
Overall, it was the best family trip yet! It was relaxing, enjoyable and priceless to see the boys together.

On the way home we did the drive in 2 days and stopped at the Birthplace of John Wayne. Scott was in heaven, and the boys really liked looking at everything there.

Scott could have stayed there all day!

It was such a great trip for many reasons. I'm really glad we all got to hang out again, and Scott and I had some "bonding" time with the boys in the car for many hours. Though it's a long drive, it was worth every minute!

When we got home, we came home to a very nice surprise ourselves....the Sister Missionaries had planted over 45 flower plants in our planter box that's the length of our house! It's been on my to-do list for some time now...and it was a great surprise to come home and have it done!