Ohio visit at last...

:: the quaint town of fredricksburg ::

(where we smiled to all who passed and stared)
Maria and I... strangely similar...
( note the background "texture"... great taste Shan.:)

:: And so as this photo shoot progressed, we scampered back

in extra far to explore this neat old shack,

awesome, except for the poison ivy ::

:: "so expressive" and they were great entertainment ::

:: Hungry? Try Troyer Cheese ::

We were already stuffed full of ice cream

but it was just too good to pass up

:: Rich, creamy sweetness, dripping with gooey chocolate...

yes~ A Walnut Creeek Cheese Sundae ::

This was a fast planned visit and a shocking surprise to the girl above who gasped and staggered at my sudden appearance late Saturday night. What these pictures don't depict is what a blast the busy-ness, fun, and ruckus of 12 kids on a farm can be. Of late into the night chatting, of Sunday mornings rush to church with a line of little boys who need shirts buttoned and shoes on, of water dripping off a curly 3 year olds hair, of shirts burning off bigger boys who stand too near the stove, of dinners clatter and conversations and brotherly in 'salt' ments, the mom who laughs that the boys devoured all the cookies before the ride home, climbing through truck windows in order to visit the older brother, perfect backgrounds and timing when the camera and tripod are across the street, the hundreds of shots to get one half smile, company coming and a trip to town for 8 half gallons of ice cream, popcorn covered floor swept too often to count, Clay's quick toddling steps following the crew, and a day out shopping, hitting 3 thrift stores and countlless other cute shops along the way, plus getting the scoop from 'her side' of the newest courting couple, it was great! Thanks for the awesome visit guys!:) ( To see the rest of the story see the Yoder Family blog on our sidebar )