Mia's Grandparents Visit Arkansas

One of the highlights from our summer in Arkansas happened a few weeks ago when Ryan's parents came out to visit. Those lucky ducks were actually able to visit both of their boys and both of their grandkiddies this summer, which was no small thing.

This meant that they first flew from Portland, OR to Austin, TX to see Tyler, Jessica, and baby Makayla. This was Stan and Nancy's first time seeing Makayla since she was born just over a month ago on July 3rd.

From Austin, Stan and Nancy drove 610 miles out to Harrison, AR to see us. I'm not sure how they felt, but I remember feeling very isolated as we snaked our way through the Ozark Forest and found that the directions suddenly ended leaving us in Harrison, AR - AKA the middle of nowhere!

We had a great time showing them around Harrison (it didn't take long). We also went to Eureka Springs for a little entertainment. This eccentric little town is on the National Historic Register in honor of the 19th century Victorian style homes that have been preserved. Here's a little shot of us walking down one of the streets:



We also took them hiking through the Buffalo River National Park to get a good feel for the Ozarks. It was ridiculously hot and humid; we were all soaked after only 5 minutes of hiking (and that's not because we're not all in excellent shape). Mia stayed relatively dry as she enjoyed being carried in turns by the rest of us. The hike was one of the few times that this mama's girl let her grandparents get a good chance to hold her!



After their fun adventures here in Arkansas, Stan and Nancy drove the 610 miles back to Austin to be with Tyler and Jessica for Makayla's baby blessing. (We were disappointed that we couldn't go too). Then it was back on an airplane headed home to Portland. That's a lot of traveling! But, Mia sure thought it was all worth it.

She sends out a big THANK YOU to her grandparents.