Backwards...

Something has changed in Blogger and it is uploading photos in a different order than it used to. So, rather than try to figure it out right now, or reorganize the pictures, I'll just be doing this blog in reverse chronological order. Here we go...

A couple days later, my kids were still wiped out.
Mom and Clara had a little bit of a picnic out in the backyard, Clara kept trying to eat the grass (or "salad" as Henry likes to call it). And then we got back in the car for another long drive after another too-short weekend.
This is about as much as I saw of my dad the whole weekend- my fault for being so busy. He was helping Rob install some sort of ice-melting system in the gutters. Hi Pop!
The next day I got to spend a few precious moments with my favorite niece. Check out her shirt and jeans. She's so hip.
At the end of the evening Mom came to pick up the kids so Pete and I could hang out a bit longer. Look how cute she and Charlotte are, still wearing their name tags!
Henry and Jeff spent some time rocking out. Jeff managed to be in a good mood, even though the Tigers (right?) were getting stomped by Texas (I think).
Clara and Papa relaxed on the couch.
Charlotte and Jeff were serving up some yummy margaritas to go with the Pagliai's and other assorted treats. Check out this sweet couple, still chipper even after all the attention and small talk.
After the shower several of us headed over to Charlotte (Amber's mom)'s house. It's always been a place to gather, and now we're introducing it to a new generation. Liam, on the right there, is three days older than Clara. He's the son of my good friend Matt (from high school) and his wife (also my friend now!) Lisa. It was great fun to see Liam and Clara, and how similar they are in size and milestones.
Here are the adorable soon-to-be-parents! We made them wear name tags that said Mommy and Daddy.
Even though Ellen couldn't be there in person, she was totally there in spirit. And her mom helped out tremendously. Thanks again to Barb for serving plates and utensils and helping set up the food and making the delicious lemonade and just generally being awesome.
So our reason for another trip to Iowa City was to throw a baby shower for Amber and Jeff. Ellen and I planned the shower and were fortunate to be able to hold it at Deluxe bakery on Summit Street. Amber worked there for a while about 5 years ago- when she and Jeff were living in ICIA, and she remains friends with Jamie, the owner. Jamie, by the way, made these adorable and delicious little alphabet-block petits-fours, along with other cute treats.
Oh, I guess we also had a chocolate malt, you know...to really prepare us for car napping.
Then we stopped briefly for a quick sandwich before hitting the road for ICIA. Clara had had enough of photos.
So, last Friday Pete took the day off work and we gussied ourselves up and headed to the city to get some professional family photos taken. Henry found himself in the window of Jake's studio. We did several indoor and outdoor shots. You all will just have to wait to see the results... It's so hard for me! I'm so used to the instant gratification of the personal digital camera. Jake insists we got some good shots, though.