Home

We still have a few boxes hanging around, and most rooms don't have anything up on the walls, but we are slowly getting there. Here are a few peeks at some of my favorite spots around our house. January is always a nice time for projects and organization since it seems like time slows down so much after the holidays. Our winter hasn't been too cold, but it has definitely been wet so we still spend most of our time inside!


And Legos, of course I had to include the Legos that are always spread all over the floor. :)

Baby

Last week seems like a bad dream. At my 13 week appointment, the doctor was not able to find a heartbeat or blood flow to the baby. We were completely shocked and devastated. I had surgery a few days later, and finally feel like I have a minute to wrap my head around everything. We have had much help and love from friends here, and have felt a lot of peace and hope. It has been very hard, but I know that we will be okay. I am grateful for Matthew and Anna and their steady faith. I'm grateful for people that become our family when our real family is so far away. I am grateful for the things I know and feel that carry me through hard times like this. We feel much joy and hope for the future.

Happy New Year and Happy News!

Happy New Year! 2013 was pretty exciting with our big move to England, but it looks like 2014 has it's own excitement in store. We've been waiting patiently (and sometimes not-so-patiently) for quite a long time for another baby to join our family, and we are thrilled to announce that a little one will be arriving in July!!

Matthew and Anna are excited and have promised to be big helpers. I get a little nervous sometimes since we are definitely out of baby-mode. I haven't changed a diaper in almost two years, we have no binkys, sippy cups, or high chairs laying around our house. Our kids sleep through the night, dress themselves, and feed themselves. It definitely feels like we are starting over! But I can't wait for a lot of one-on-one time with this little babe since both Matthew and Anna will be in school soon after it is born.

One of the best things about this is that my sister, Robin, is due with her first baby on EXACTLY THE SAME DAY. We are so excited for them, too!

London

We finally made it down to London last weekend! We only live about an hour away, but this is the first time it worked out for us to head down! We lucked out with a beautiful, sunny day, and we had such a great time. We really loved all the cool architecture. We stuck to the area around Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, and the London Eye. We know there is so much more to see, so we are excited to go again soon. We can only imagine how beautiful everything looks in the Spring and Summer.

We just finished reading both the BFG and Peter Pan to the kids in the last few months, so it was fun to show them some of the places we read about in the books. Oh, and it was awesome to find a delicious burrito restaurant for lunch since we've really been missing Mexican and American food! Until next time, London! :)

Christmas Eve

Merry Christmas Eve! Our kids are already tucked into bed in their new Christmas pajamas, and all of us are so excited for Christmas morning. We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas, where ever you are!

Christmas Time

We've been busy getting packages and cards ready to send to the states, decorating our house, and going to lots of fun Christmas activities. We are really looking forward to some time off of work and school!

*** Next time we'll do face painting after the Santa picture. Ha ha! ***

The distance always seems farther when we are away from family during the holidays, but we are hoping to have a relaxing Christmas with our little family, and fit in a few adventures here and there. Merry Christmas to all of you!!

Thanksgiving in Belgium

We got to spend Thanksgiving weekend in Belgium! It was such a fun trip, and so exciting to make our first visit over to Europe.

We rode a ferry across the English Channel from Dover, England, to Calais, France. We had beautiful views of the white cliffs of Dover as we sailed away. It was a nice way to break up the drive.

Then we drove through France and into Belgium. The countryside was really pretty, and Joseph did a great job switching back and forth between driving on the left and right sides of the road! :) We spent a day in Bruges enjoying the waffles, Christmas market, and great views of the city. It was such a cool place.

Our hotel was just a couple blocks from the beach, so we visited a couple times but it was freezing cold and windy. The kids were such great travelers and had a fun time running around and exploring. It was a great trip, and so neat that we are only a few hours drive away a different country!