Hot Dog!

We went to Cincinnati Ohio this weekend to visit some dear friends of ours.  He was the worship minister in our church back home.  We have known him for seven years.  While serving in Illinois, we watched him graduate from college, date, get married to a WONDERFUL woman, and have their first child.  Who, I believe, is the sweetest baby boy in the world at the present time.  :)  God called him to another church in Ohio and they trusted The Lord and went where He called them to go.  We had already moved to Michigan, but it was still hard on us knowing that when we came home to Illinois to worship, he would not be leading us on Sunday's anymore.  :(

This weekend was our big trip to drive down to see them.  We have not seen them since Christmas Eve service at church so we were soooooooooo  excited to spend time with all of them.  And, to kiss and snuggle and hug on their little fellow.  Who, by the way, has grown way to big in the two and a half months since we saw him last.

They wanted us to experience Cincinnati's top spots.  We first went to Ikea to shop for a bit.  Oh how I like that store!  If only we had a bigger vehicle....  Hee hee.

Then, it was time for lunch.  And we went here...

Not bad.  They said it was a different taste in chili.  Cocoa, Nutmeg and Cinnamon are some of their secret ingredients I was told.  Sounds like something that should be in a cookie or cake...not chili.  But, it was good.

The two fellows quite happy with their chili.  My hubby is the in red.  He looks very happy with his chili.  :)

Oh my, they really like their cheese down at Skyline.  This was the beginning of my arteries clogging! 

For snack....we stopped here.  Graeter's Ice-Cream.  Oh yum was this good. 

Here is the little hot dog himself.  Oh how I love him!!  He was very happy getting fed by everyone at the table.  He had the best seat in the house.  He got to try everyone's ice cream! 

My two big girls with their ice cream.  Everyone said it was the best ice cream they had ever had.  And this crowd has had a lot of ice cream!  :)

Later, we played WII Fit to burn off some of the mass quantities of food we had already consumed.  Have you ever watched someone playing hula hoop without an actual hoop around their waist?  Quite funny to say the least. 

Daughter #2 giving it a try.  She was full of advice for her younger sister while sitting on the couch.  But, when it was her turn to step up and try...it was a bit harder.  Isn't that the way life works with lots of things in our lives?  Just a thought....

The three fish in the pool together.   They even made sure we got a bit wet as well. 

Probably the biggest thing I was looking forward to besides seeing this sweet family, was to go to church on Sunday with them and to hear him sing again and lead us in worship.  I walked in and heard the band doing their sound check and had to fight back the tears.  To hear his beautiful voice praising The King and the familiar sound of his gifted voice to my ears.....oh.....I could just bawl right now thinking about it.

And lastly, here is our little hot dog.  We call him that because he loves to sing this song.  It is quite catchy, so be careful or you will find yourself humming it in your head all day!  :)

This morning, my daughters were getting ready for school.  I could hear both of them singing the hot dog song in the bathroom together.  It brought a smile to my face and heart.  They were remembering a good time that we all had together this weekend and some very special people that God brought into our lives.  Oh how thankful I am for that!