Fourth Anniversary and Counting...

Our actual anniversary was June 29th, but we were able to celebrate the Saturday and Sunday after we left the beach. My parents took Liam home with them (he didn't even cry!) and we went up to Lancaster City for a quick overnight getaway. We'd thought about staying down at the beach, maybe in Cape May, but decided to go somewhere more on the way home and where we didn't have to stay two or more nights like some of the places down at the beach. 

We chose a newly renovated hotel, the Cork Factory, on recommendation from my cousins who live just outside the city. It was beautiful and we really enjoyed staying there. 

The Cork Factory hotel. It really is a renovated cork factory

The whole hotel and our room had lots of exposed brick and high beam ceilings. 

It was fairly close to downtown Lancaster so Saturday afternoon we walked through funky shops and enjoyed the historical atmosphere of downtown. It's one of the oldest cities in the nation and it shows in the architecture. Living in Indiana, we simply don't have that kind of history! It really is a lovely city and we had fun poking around. Saturday night we had a nice dinner out at Character's Pub and then breakfast out again Sunday morning at Rachel's Crepeire. Yum! I didn't know what to expect, but the breakfast crepe was delicious and filling. Rob enjoyed a breakfast crepe and a nutella crepe. He can't pass up anything with nutella! 

In downtown Lancaster

Rob found the oldest tobacco shop in the nation (founding fathers shopped here!), but unfortunately it was closed indefinitely. He was pretty bummed because from the windows it looked fascinating. 

Of course I had to order a drink named "The Great Kate" 

My cousins recommended the apple cobbler with salted caramel sauce for dessert...amazing...

I look strangely orange in this picture, but again, just our little camera...not a fake tan 

Enjoying my breakfast crepe 

As we spent time together over the weekend talking we kept saying how it's hard to believe that we've been married for four years already. Watching our wedding video again and helping my sister-in-law Lauren start to prepare for her wedding has brought back so many good memories of our special day and the years after. I wouldn't trade this life with Rob for anything in the world. I'm thankful to be able to look back and see who we were when we got married and by God's grace alone, where we are today. I'm thankful to see growth and pray for much more growth as we go forward for years to come. 

After our reflections and resting we headed back to my parents to collect our most valuable baby and spend a few days there. We had fun playing and shooting "hoops" as Liam called basketball. 

We did miss this silly guy! 

And who can pass up a family trip to Costco where they have giant everything, including lifesize stuffed bears? 

On Tuesday we drove home eleven and a half hours, of which Liam slept 45 minutes and I got carsick from turning around to read to him...but we made it home in one piece and it was so good to be home. 

Our garden didn't miss us as it grew like crazy while we were gone

We were home for Wednesday and then drove again to Cincinnati for a visit with some of Rob's extended family and an engagement party for his sister Lauren and her fiance Ryan. We are thrilled for them and are even more excited that they are getting married on our anniversary next year! Everything comes full circle I suppose or maybe they just want to be cool like us. :) Either way, we are happy for them and I'm already having a blast helping with wedding plans. 

Life has slowed down somewhat since we got home Saturday night and we are attempting to go on vacation detox (three mile family walks in the early morning are helping) and spending time with friends here before we leave again on July 12th for our Bedinghaus family trip to Kiawah Island. Our summers never stop, but we love it and would probably be bored if we had to stay in Bloomington all summer! 

And now with the sound of our neighbors lousy fireworks outside and the reminder that many things will be stopped tomorrow (including the shipment of diapers I'm waiting for...), I wish you all a happy 4th of July and goodnight!