To Arkansas and Home Again

On May 31st we began our adventure to Rogers, Arkansas. Our friends, Clint and Jessica Alexander, moved down there over a year ago and we thought it was time to check out their new home. It was great to see them and their church, where Clint works as a Children's Ministry Leader and Jess helps out in the offices of the youth ministry. Here is a little about our journey to Arkansas and back.

May 31
Traveled to Cedar Rapids, IA for insurance business and stayed in Kansas City, MO for the night. Asher did not do well sleeping in the same room as us and we attempted to separate him from us with a "blanket wall." But it didn't work too well.

June 1









Arrive in Rogers, AR and tour the church. They had a huge rocking chair in the foyer of the children's building. Jonathan and Asher look so small in it. Clint's auditorium was decorated for "camp". Asher liked the little tent. Clint also played some of his kids' favorite praise songs. They were a lot of fun!

June 2
We visited a park and played on the swings. It was the first time Asher was big enough to really enjoy the swings. He was so cute in the swing! He fell on our way to the car and got a rock "stuck" in his forehead. That evening we went to the "Catfish Hole" for dinner. They are known for their fried catfish and hush puppies. It was really good and we met Clint and Jess's friend who have a little boy named Asher. He's about 6 months younger than our Asher. And they dressed up like Batman and Robin for Halloween too. It was bizarre. Oh, and they just let their church know that they are expecting another baby in January...and we're due in December. It's crazy! Also, at dinner we found out that there were two Jessica's, two Asher's and four Jon's. And only four other people with different names. It was really funny.


June 3









On Sunday we went to church and visited Clint in his true element. It was great seeing him interact with the kids. He did a wonderful job. In the afternoon, we went to Andy's for frozen custard. It was delicious. Asher and I shared a straw-ana sundae. He mostly just picked out the strawberries and bananas and didn't eat much custard. Then later that evening we went to the lake. It was beautiful. Asher wasn't scared of the water at all. He just walked right into the lake with his clothes on. Mom was right with him, but it didn't stop him from getting all wet. He just loved to splash around in the water.

June 4
We visited the Springdale Aquatic Center. It was amazing! It was $4 for adults and children and $2 for children 4 and younger. They had 2 regular water slides, 2 other water slides, a high dive and a low dive. They had an area for swimming, and intermediate play area, and a toddler/baby area. We spent most of our time in the toddler/baby area. The water is only a few inches deep and there were little fountains and things that squirted water. It was cute to watch Asher play. The sun was warm, but when it disappeared behind a cloud, the breeze was really chilly. After the pool, Asher went to Randy and Pat (Clint's Dad and Mom) and we adults went to play mini golf. We played an 18-hole round at Lokomotion and then two 18-hole rounds at Gator Golf. Jessica V got 7 holes-in-one and Jonathan got 6. It was so much fun to play mini golf at great outdoor courses. We would love to have mini golf like this in Ames.

June 5
We headed back to Ames. We had a great time in Arkansas and it was so much fun to see our friends again.

For more pictures of our trip, you can click on the picture of Asher in the right hand column. There are pictures in our family album and our friends. Check it out!