Go West, Young Man!

Our Family Vacation of '09 was a trip west to Omaha, Nebraska. The absolute best part, hands-down, was getting to spend quality time with Jim. He has made Omaha his home and was an excellent host. We were warmly welcomed into his new home. We had a great time enjoying the cool breezes on pleasant sunny days with NO GNATS in this beautiful city! We can't possibly share with you all that we did, but we thought we'd try to share a few highlights.

All Packed up and Ready for an Adventure!

Thankfully, the many miles passed quickly below us.



Hannan enjoyed his first plane ride. Considering that he is only 14 months old, he did very well. He only grabbed the airline stewardess on the behind once, the lady sitting next to us only had to hold him a few times, and he pooped only right before exiting our last flight...our little way of getting everyone off the plane quickly!

The kind man behind us proclaimed that Hannan must have "filled up his britches", so as to help answer every one's question..."What's that smell?".

Hannan loves being outside almost as much as he loves playing with balloons and spending time with our dog. He thought it was awesome that Uncle Jim's neighborhood had a common area lawn and a nice park, not to mention his own big back yard that we were able to enjoy.


These are a few pictures from our time at the park.











Fun times with his uncle!

AND boys will be boys...no matter what their age!

Nebraska Furniture Mart was a girl's (building a new home) dream come true!

This incredible store had EVERYTHING you could ever imagine to build and furnish your home. It is America's largest home furnishings store and had to cover a few blocks!

Hannan enjoyed driving around the aisles of fun!

The Old World Market is tucked in the heart of downtown Omaha. It is a quaint little stretch of brick paved streets with eclectic restaurants that serve savory food and whimsical shops to browse.

We loved eating lunch at
Omaha's Best Restaurant of 2008...Twisted Fork!

"American Food with a Cowboy Twist"

The Henry Doorley Zoo
was definitely a favorite of Hannan's!

More pictures from the Zoo to follow soon!

Grisanti's Italian Restaurant was one of Jim's favorite in Omaha. We enjoyed the buttery bread dipped in Marinara sauce and the house salad! Mmmm...my stomach is growling for it again!

Village Pointe provided not only hours of shopping enjoyment, but also a much loved Ball!

It couldn't be all play...Hannan still had some work to do. He helped clean for Uncle Jim.

A little lake time for HanMan!

Hannan attempts to swim...and actually does pretty good!

Jay trying it out after a few years! He skies like an old pro!

Mommy and Hannan watch from the shore.

Jim shows us how it's done.

After all the water sports, we enjoyed grilled chicken on the patio.

A bonfire on the beach with Smores ended our sweet night.

Looking back over our week, we knew God had given us some precious gifts. Conversations full of love, lots of laughter, brand new adventures, and great memories to last a lifetime.

Thank you, Jim, for a wonderful time in Omaha, Nebraska.

We loved our travel West!