A visit from the grandparents!

We have had such a busy past couple weeks, which is not something I am used to saying! Ragnar's Oma passed away at 97 years of age. We are all sad, but I think she is probably pretty grateful to finally be on the other side. Ragnar and I will be flying out to the funeral for a couple days to remember her. On to happier things.... One of the things I wanted to document was our visit with Ragnars parents Hellmut and Ursula. They came here last week for a visit and the kids were so excited. Cavin would wait on the stairs in the middle of the night saying he needed to see Oma and Opa. I think next time we won't tell him so early that they are coming! A couple months is an eternity to a child! We were able to have a nice time, and here are some of the things we got to do.

Friday we met with Ragnars Aunt Brigette and her husband Kent and their daughter Laurie and her family, Cade, Benson, and Connor along with Ragnar's parents and our family. We went to the Rainforest Cafe downtown and had a nice dinner. Cavin was a little nervous about all animal noises, but he warmed up after a few minutes! It was fun to visit and catch up with everyone. We were celebrating 4 birthdays within a couple weeks!

Speaking of birthdays...... Saturday was Ragnar's 33rd birthday! He is getting so old! This is a game called Tip Kick that he used to play when he was a kid that his mom got him. He LOVES it!

The kids are decorating a poster for dads birthday.

Opening presents after donuts for breakfast!

We went to the pool and had fun splashing!

Oma enjoying the sun.

Cavin and Ella

We also went to the zoo on Monday. The weather was REALLY nice which isn't a normal occasion in Houston. The kids were even chilly when we got there (hence the blanket)!

Watching the sea lion show in which Ella was so disappointed that they didn't do tricks on their nose with the balls like in the picture!

Waiting for the show.

Ella was calling to the monkeys to look at her!

Here is our family at the zoo.

After we went to Chili's for lunch!

Back to Sunday.....Ella participated in her very first primary program and she was so excited to sit on the stand!

She said two words "Be honest", but she said them very clearly and loud, so we were proud of her.

Both her sets of grandparents and Aunt Natalie were able to be there to support her and she was excited.

And as always, Cavin was there to support.

We had a great time with them, even if some were tired and not feeling well, and some were a little crazy :) We are so grateful that Hellmut and Uschi took the time to visit. Thanks for coming! We look forward to seeing you again!

The Small Things

It's the small things in life that make you happy. For me, a carb-aholic, that is fresh warm bread that you finally got right just from scratch. Even happier for my mom, I used the wheat grinder in the process! Now, I hope it tastes delicious for my in-laws tomorrow!

Labor Day Weekend!

Labor Day weekend came and went. It was a relaxing one, but not too eventful because it rained pretty good the whole weekend. Saturday we went and hung out with my parents because my kids had been asking to play over there for a couple weeks, so we relaxed, watched football, and played. Sunday was Sunday...church as usual, then meetings. Monday we were supposed to go to Galveston to hang out at the beach, but there was a flash flood watch, and the weather was thunderstorms everywhere, so we went out to eat with my parents, sister Natalie, and my brother Corey's family. We had a nice time. We ate, and then we went bowling which the kids were very excited about. I am grateful I live close to some of my family. I only wish we lived close to all of them.... on both sides!

Here are the kids "pretending" to play with the buttons.

Aunt Natalie and Ella

Cavins turn to roll the ball!

After a good round, John is going to get his high fives! We enjoy our family, and had a nice weekend. I was just so glad that Ragnar didn't have to work. Yay!

Pre-School

Her brother is missing her already!

Ella started "pre-school" today and was SO excited! We are doing a little "joy school" this year with 4 other little girls and she is very excited about it. Each week a mom takes a turn teaching the lessons and that way since there are 5 girls you only have to teach every 5 weeks. I was a little nervous about it, because I really don't want her to grow up and I like having my two little munchkins home, but she really wanted to do it. She said she had a great first day and she loved making new friends. When I asked her about it when she came home, she said, mom it was really fun, we did TWO crafts! She loves them! When I asked her what she learned she said " Mom I didn't learn anything! (with a REALLY big smile on her face!) I am sure she learned something but was having too much fun to notice! As for Cavin and me. Well, we undertook potty training a week ago, and this kid is doing awesome! He really wanted to and has done great. He goes when he says he needs to and understands really well. Now, we ALL know potty training is a process, not a task you can just check off, so he still has a long way to go before I am not hyperventilating at the store, but so far, I can't complain! (we still have to figure out the #2 thing, right now he just decides not to go for a few days!) Anyway, it was weird having him all to myself, but he is my buddy and we had fun! I can't believe my kids are getting so BIG!

It's FOOTBALL Time!!!

Saturday night Ragnar and I were given some tickets to the Texans vs. Cowboys game! That is one of the perks of working in the sports industry, you can trade tickets or have easier access to getting tickets and these were free so all the better! We ended up getting four tickets so we invited my brother Corey and his son John to come with us. Ragnar and John had never been to an NFL game so we had a fun time just being there. The game wasn't so great. The Cowboys, who Ragnar LOVES, played horribly so he wasn't too happy about that, but Corey and John were excited about how well the Texans were doing. As for me, I tried to stay mutual on this one and just cheer when a good play was made!

Here we are!

Reliant Stadium is nice, and it was especially fun having a "Morgan Freeman" (as Corey called him) look-a-like in front of us who kept us entertained!

Here are the boys! It's a good thing I love football too!

Thanks for a night out Rags, and thanks for coming Corey and John, and a special thanks to mom and dad and Natalie for watching the kids (especially since Cavin is potty training :).

Saying Goodbye!

It's always sad to say goodbye to a phase of your life. Whether it is good or bad, it defines who you are. On Monday we officially signed all the papers and handed over the keys (or our neighbor did). We were so grateful that after 2 years and 5 weeks that we were able to finally sell our home, but it is bittersweet. We loved having a townhouse as our first home. We loved these pictures as we watched it being built. We loved the people we lived around, the memories of children that were born and brought home there, the very beginning of our life together. We have been very blessed and feel EXTREMELY blessed to have been able to live there, and been able to afford to pay for both homes during this difficult time of trying to sell. We are so grateful for our neighbors, the MacNairs who so willingly took care of things after three realtors couldn't do their part. We will never forget this first home, but look forward to the many memories we will make in our next. Goodbye Smithfield, Utah, Goodbye CastleView Manor.

Austin Fun!

This week I got to go up to Austin with the kids to see my two great friends. I spent the nights with Stacey, Ben and their two girls Gabriella and Madilynn. We had a great time playing and visiting, but I also got to see my great college friend Kristen who was in Austin for a wedding. It was so nice to catch up. The kids and I had a great time!

Here is Kristen. I so miss hanging out together in college!

The rest of the trip was just Cavin and the girls :)

We went to a play place at a mall because it is TOO HOT to go to the park!

Here are their silly faces :)

Then Cavin and Ella went on their first carousel ride. Ella loved it, Cavin not so sure (as with anything :)

Riding the giraffe

Madi, Gabi, and Stacey

We went to a little pool to play!

Check out these amazing goggles! WOW...Babe magnet!

Madi chillin (had to have a picture of the sweet little girl)


And.....the princesses. Ella and Gabriella love to dress up and they sure look cute!

"Friends"

We really enjoyed getting away for a minute. Of course it would have been fun to have Ragnar along too, but we had a great get away. Thanks so much for hosting Stace and all the amazing dinners. Kristen thanks for taking time away from the family fun! I have great friends!