C-i-n-c-i-n-n-a-t-i

The morning after we moved (which I'm still going to write about, I promise), we headed to Cincinnati, Ohio for the weekend with my family.  Methenys are known for being big St. Louis Cardinals baseball fans, so we went there to go to a game.  My brother (Gwen and Zach's dad from my previous post) flew out for the game, and then to take the kids back home with him.  My sister, brother-in-law, and their baby, Noah, drove up from Virginia.  Also there was my parents, and my sister and brother-in-law from Indiana.

We all arrived in Cinci, hung out at the hotel for a while, "ooo'd' and "aww'd" over adorable Noah, and then ate lunch at a pizza place called Mellow Mushroom.  Lunch took for-ever, so by the time we were finished it was time to head to the ballpark for the game!

My brother, Ryan; nephew, Zach; and Dad

My sister, Rebecca, and niece, Gwen

Eli didn't go to the game (he stayed at the hotel with my mom and Noah), but he was still decked out in his Cardinals gear (Thanks Becky and Kyhle)!  This was his first time staying at a hotel and he LOVED it!  He and Grammie had fun pushing the desk chair in the hallway, reading books, and playing with his baby cousin.  Even though he slept in the same room as us, he did great and never woke up once!

We made it to the ballpark about an hour before the game started (that's how my dad likes to do it), and let me just say it was HOT.  Blech.  David only brought $6 with him for the whole trip (Ha!), so we shared a strawberry chiller.  : )  The game moved along pretty quickly because NO ONE had any runs!  Amid all of the non-excitement it started to rain.  It seemed pretty crazy to be sitting in the rain watching a game where nothing was happening.  We debated leaving but stuck it out.  Finally several innings in there was some action, and the game actually went into over-time.  Unfortunately the Cardinals didn't win (although I slept through the last couple innings.  Moving is exhausting!). : (

There was a beautiful view of the city and Riverboat Row as we walked back from the game, with a huge rainbow stretched across the sky.

When we woke up the next morning we ate a delicious breakfast (and stuffed some in our pockets for later), and then we drove over to a playground that was nestled in a GORGEOUS neighborhood next to a golf course.  This gave the kiddos a chance to play for a bit.  Afterwards we ended up driving around downtown for a very long time, as the leader of the pack was trying to scope out the area.  We eventually stopped and ate lunch at Naked Chopsticks.  As we were eating there was a huge downpour, which continued on even harder as we left.  My parents, brother, and his kids had to get home to take them to the airport, and the other group was staying to go to the aquarium.  We drove ourselves and would have liked to stay and look at the fun shops, but Eli was overdue for a nap and since it was raining so much we just decided to head home and get to work on the massive amount of unpacking awaiting us.  : /

Stuffing a cheerio up his nose...

He ate three cups of yogurt!

Went down all by himself, and on his tummy!

Walking back to the car with Grammie

Holding sweet Noah.  Isn't he so precious?! 

Noah and his mama, my sister, Emily

Eli was getting REALLY restless at the restaurant, and I was doing everything I could to keep him entertained.  The last thing I pulled out were these little stuffed animals.  He immediately started playing with them and was so cute to watch.

Even though the trip didn't go quite as we had hoped, it was still awesome to spend time with my family and just enjoy being together.