Europe 2022

Its been 5 years since we've crossed the ocean as a family and visited Ragnar's family. Due to corona and all the mess it has caused we missed our trip two years ago and felt like we really needed to go this year. Time is running out as his parents are getting older and Ella is only with us a couple more years and then our family will forever change. So much has happened this past year that has made me and Ragnar realize that we need to invest our time and energy into family that does want to spend time with us and have us be a part of their lives. 

We flew out on June 23, 2022 from Houston to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

We got through security quickly and had a smooth flight to Amsterdam. 

The kids did really well on the flight, but didn't sleep much. 

They were so tired when we arrived at 7 a.m., but had to stay awake until bedtime, so they did their best. We checked in to our cute Bed and Breakfast and took an uber to downtown Amsterdam and toured the city. 

We went to the Anne Frank house. We didn't go inside as tickets are really hard to get, but it was still cool to see where she lived and see the history there. 

The city is filled with beautiful architecture.

We went to the Dam and looked at the center of Amsterdam. 

We passed the Rijks museum and it looked amazing. 

This man really looked like a statue but wasn't.

We then went into the Van Gogh museum which was a neat experience. 

We got food and Cavin was asleep waiting in no time. 

He could not stay awake!

The next morning I went for a short run in the beautiful town and then Ragnar met me for a walk around the B&B.

His sister Pamela and Tobias were kind enough to come pick us up and take us to Lekkerkerk where we toured the Kinderdijk and saw all the windmills and Naomi's home. 

It is a pretty area of the world. 

Glad we got to see both of his sisters, even if it wasn't for as long as we would have liked. 

After a small town tour, and some fresh stroopwaffels, we headed to the church for a lunch before the baptism. 

These cute girls are only a couple years apart. 

David's baptism was wonderful and he looked happy. He has the cutest dimples when he smiles! I'm so glad we got to be there with family for his special day. 

After the baptism, we headed to Duesseldorf, Germany to hang out with his parents. 

We went to church with Pamela, Tobias, Jared, and Mia as well as his parents and spent time with them before they headed home. 

It is beautiful weather in Germany. It was strange how late it got dark and was light again. It wasn't dark til 11:00 p.m. and was already light again by 4:30 a.m.

The next morning we went to do a fitness class in the park. It was fun and the girls thought it was kinda hard ;)

We rode the bus to downtown and got Ragnar's favorite meal! 

Currywurst and Fries! Food always makes him happy ;)

We shopped and then went to get ice cream and see downtown Duesseldorf. 

I love how old everything looks there. We stopped by the famous t.v. tower.

Tuesday morning we headed to Berlin for a couple days. 

The kids were excited to go on a long train ride. It was about 4.5 hours. 

We got there and checked in to our hotel and dropped off our luggage and hit the ground running. 

We saw the Wilhelm cathedral. 

Went to the Victory column. 

Then to the Brandenburg gate.

We saw the memorial for the murdered jews. 

Saw Checkpoint Charlie.

The government buildings. 

Then we took a bus to see Ragnar's friends Anja and Matthias and had dinner with them. 

The hotel we stayed in was super old and definitely interesting, but it made for a good memory ;)

The next morning we saw Dome inside the Reichstag and took a cool tour to learn some history and see the view of the whole city.

Then we went and saw the longest section of the Berlin Wall. It was really cool and just thinking of everything that is in the history of Germany is fascinating to me. Ella loved all the graffiti.

Cavin and Ella took some cool pictures. 

We took lots of trains and busses through the city.

Deacon loves the public transportation. 

We then went on a boat tour which was nice to see all the other places we missed. I love being on a boat on the water. We headed back from Berlin and then made it to Duesseldorf just to leave the next afternoon to Frankfurt to go to the temple.

This time we got to rent a car so that was nice. 

The temple is in a cute little town and I'm glad we got to go. 

The visitors center is pretty. 

So grateful for this family of mine. 

We had a great experience with Ella and Cavin doing baptisms. The temple president took a lot of time with us explaining some symbolism and letting us see the oxen under the font. 

We walked over to a little restaurant afterward and had a nice meal. 

We stayed in the temple hotel room and in the middle of the night a fire alarm went off and so we had to leave the building. It was so cold waiting in the storm, but right by the temple doors there was a break from the wind. Thankfully everything was ok and we were able to go back in to sleep. It was a nice little jaunt to Frankfurt. 

We went back to Duesseldorf and Channing and Ragnar got to take more bottles back to Aldi, which Channing loves. 

We went to Neuss and went to play soccer golf with Ragnars friend Kris and his son Tom. 

The kids had fun and did well. Of course, Ragnar won :)

Afterward we went to a greek restaurant to eat together. It was a nice, cozy setting. 

The girls made jam with Oma. yum! 

Sunday we went to church together again. 

Then we went over to the Wildpark to feed the animals. 

The kids (and I ;) were tired and hungry from fasting, but it was nice to see the animals. 

We went home to eat and play games. 

Monday we headed to Phantasialand. It took a while to get there, but it was a fun day! 

His parents were great sports in coming with us to spend the day. They even rode on the swings and a rollercoaster with us!

The kids LOVED this water ride we did as a family. We rode it several times and got very wet. 

Our favorite ride was the Fly and the scariest that me and Cavin and Ella did was the Taron. 

The kids really had a fun day and Phantasialand was one of their favorite days. 

Several nights we just got to enjoy the cooler weather in the backyard. I loved just sitting out there. 

Opa and the boys with the trains! They are fun and I like watching them go around. 

The next day we packed and headed back to Amsterdam to catch our flight. 

The trip had so much waiting, flights, bus riding, train rides, and waiting some more, but the kids did really well and hardly complained at all. They just went and did. We had a really fun trip together and I am so grateful that things went smoothly and we made some memories, saw some amazing things, and got to spend time with Ragnar's family. So grateful for the memories and for Hellmut and Ursula for hosting us. 

Shakespeare Camp!

Ella and Cavin participated in the "All the World's A Stage" Shakespeare camp hosted by 4 women who we adore. JeriWyn, Eva, Sharlene, and America all worked together to provide a wonderful opportunity for the kids. They practiced acting, auditioning for plays, fight scenes, did readers theatre, made delicious meals for their lunches, practiced for their scene performance and so much more. They had a great time and were excited to go each morning. Ella did it last year and was excited to do it again. I however, never anticipated Cavin wanted to participate. He did a great job though and has really come out of his shell the past year.

Cavin played Leonine in the scene from the play "Pericles" He was asked to kill Marina and couldn't bring himself to do it. 

He looks handsome and held himself well. 

Ella was Beatrice in scene from the play " Much Ado About Nothing"

A lot of her part was many facial expressions to make the scene funny. We have seen those facial expressions many times! haha

I am glad they enjoy being together and doing things together. They are great at encouraging each other. 

My parents and sister came and supported their efforts. 

Our actor Cavin

and actress Ella

We had a great time watching them and seeing them memorize their lines and put on a show! These two are so fun to see develop into their own. 

Church Camps!

Ella was able to enjoy girls camp at Tipis on the Guadelupe in New Braunfels, Texas the first week school was out. There were 48 young women and 12 leaders who joined in on the fun! They stayed in tipis that were air conditioned, so it wasn't too hot for them. Their camp theme was "Girl on Fire"

These were the youth camp leaders who went. Ella was one of them.

These were some of the girls in her tipi.

They got to swim in the river, kayak, and play volleyball. 

They also went on a hike and got drenched with rain on the way back, which was welcomed she said as they were so hot. 

They did a service project at the site and painted their fence.

She even practiced and performed a couple dances for one of the evenings. 

They had a great group of young women. They had testimony meeting and devotionals and overall Ella said it was a great camp and was so glad she went. 

The next week Cavin and Ella got to go to Stake Youth Conference for three days. Their camp theme was "Trust In The Lord." They had team building activities, dinners, and a dance. 

They went to a service project and cleaned out a community center. 

It was so hot both days, but the kids said they had a great time. 

They really enjoy just being together and the youth in our stake are wonderful!

The last day they got to go to an adventure park and zipline, rock climb, do ropes courses, and axe throwing. They had a blast. 

I'm so grateful for the leaders who put so much time into our youth. They love doing church events and I am so grateful they can be in a place where the spirit resides and they can enjoy youth who uplift them and help them choose the right. 

Can't Forget Deacon!

Last, but certainly not least, is our Deacon. He was busy being the little brother all week cheering on his siblings. He got his award in his class as the "Math Wiz" He loves math and does a very good job at math and reading. His teacher always commented that he was always the first one to finish his work and she had to find more for him! ;) haha. She mentioned she has never seen a more competitive child, and he sure is. He likes to prove he can do anything! Every recess he would play soccer with his friends and really enjoyed school.  He was the "secret student" the most in his class, 11 times this year. The secret student is the most well behaved. He loved when he was chosen.

He is so excited for next year because he will get real grades finally like his siblings. He is a great kid! Way to finish 2nd grade Deacon!