ST LOUIS

Photo OVERLOAD!!!! The first time I ever flew on a plane was also Naveya's first flight. She was 3 months old and we came out to meet the Hoefelmann side of the family in St Louis. There is this scene in my classic favorite movie (How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, ha!) where the girl goes and meets her potential boyfriends family. After spending time in his hometown and meeting his family she gets all emotional and says,"When your mom hugged me today...she REALLY hugged me. For winning a game of Bull Shit." THAT was exactly how it felt meeting Danny's family for the first time. They instantly embraced me as part of the family. Especially grandma Norma Jean who makes each of her grandchildren and great grandchildren feel like they are her favorite. She has this way of creating a special bond with each of us, including me. That sweet lady is in so many ways the woman I hope to be someday! 

The main goals of our St Louis leg of the trip were simple; see grandma everyday, eat as much Ted Drewes frozen custard as possible, go to the City Museum, and up in the St Louis Arch! Outside of grandma's house, the City Museum may be my favorite place in The Lou! It's like an art museum where you're encouraged to touch and climb on everything! We had been before and stayed in the toddler areas last time, but now that Navy and Dax are a little older we got to explore so much more of the museum! We walked through a cave and slid down 3 and 5 story slides!! Of course, after the museum we ended the day with Ted Drewes. Navy and Dax ordered their sundaes in Arizona Diamondbacks hats. Which in a baseball city who loves the Cardinals, it was pretty funny seeing the cashiers face when Danny ordered and asked for D'backs hats. Haha! 

We had such an amazing time with family. Staying at our sister Laurie's house meant late night talks and waking up to cousins running around the house. We had multiple family BBQ's. I watched as grandma fed the kids ungodly amounts of sugar and play with toys Danny probably played with when he was their age. St Louis will always be a special place for us. Every time we go back to visit I hear more stories about Danny when he was growing up in downtown St Louis. Getting to take our own kids to the same places he loved as a kid is so fun for me, knowing what it means to him. Love my boy from The Lou and our great, big, loud, there for each other family!