Long time...

As I'm sitting here in a quiet house with kiddos tucked into bed (yay! Me time!), I am also thinking about how amazing it is that Heavenly Father knows us so well. While I was in AZ a few months ago doing a training for Let's Play Music, I stayed with my good friend April. It was an especially tough time for me then, and her husband David gave me a Priesthood blessing. The details are too personal and sacred to share, but I will share that I felt an incredible wave of His love and how much He hurts when we hurt and how much He truly does know EXACTLY how we feel. Because of this, He knows EXACTLY how to comfort us and what we need when we need it. Sometimes it seems that we are all alone and that we are stretched to our very limits (or even past them!), but then is when that light, that comfort, that "just enough", comes. When Joseph Smith was in the Sacred Grove, praying to know which of the churches to join and was overcome with a darkness so much so that he was unable to speak, when he was stretched past his limit and he "was ready to sink into despair and abandon myself to destruction" (JSH 1:16), "I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me. It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of the them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other, This is my Beloved Son. Hear Him!" (JSH 1: 16-17). Joseph was overcome and unable to speak, ready to give up, when the light appeared and he had an incredible experience in which Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ, appeared to him. Now I don't expect to see a vision like that when I am at my limit :), but I DO know that when I am at my limit (or feel that way), He will provide the light that I need in whatever form is best for me, whether it be a scripture I read that day, a friend who stops by, a phone call, an email, or a lucky call of "I'm on my way home early and I can take the kids to school and you can get a nap" from my husband, He will help me because He loves me and because I am precious to Him and He knows what I need. One of my favorite parts of The First Vision is that they called Joseph BY NAME. What a blessing it is to have a Heavenly Father who knows us so well that He calls us by name and comforts us individually, sharing in everything we experience in this life. The Spirit testified to me again through my experience in AZ that He had been there, holding me, crying with me, and comforting me when I thought I was all alone and just couldn't keep going. He knows and loves me and is always there even when I may not think so.  I know that is true and I am grateful for the "stretches" to my limits as they have helped me come closer to my Savior and to striving to become the person He wants me to become. 

Crawling and other news...

Benjamin turned 10 months old this past week (April 3) and the day after, he started crawling! He was so proud of himself. I was sitting down with him and asked him to come to me and he just got right up on all fours and crawled. It was the cutest thing! I can't believe he is crawling. Already I have had to get things off the floor and childproof many things. He is into everything! He often goes after something, turns to me and smiles, then continues to go for it. It's pretty funny.

I am excited for him that he learned this new skill, but it's also been hard on his bedtime and naptime. He wants to move around so much that it's hard to get him to settle down for bed. I put him down and he just rolls over, sits up, looks at me, and smiles. That kid is going to be trouble ;) Before he falls asleep, he gets super silly and starts to giggle---he loves it when I nuzzle him and his little giggle is contagious. We both start to laugh and giggle and go on for a few minutes before he gets really tired and drowsy. It is absolutely adorable!

Benjamin has started clapping and signing "more" when he wants more food or to do something again. He also has started shaking his head "no", although I don't know if he realizes what he's saying yet. The other day, he scooted over to me and said "MaMa" as he pulled up onto my knee. I so wish I could get all of these moments on video! I have gotten a few, but the little stinker doesn't repeat things when I want to get it on video after it happens the first time. Ha ha. Ben has also started reaching for me when he wants me to hold him and has started to crawl towards me as well as pull on my pant leg when he wants me to pick him up. He now has 4 teeth on the top and 3 on the bottom. 7 teeth already?! What?! Stop growing so fast :(

Our little guy is getting so big---he has smiley eyes, loves people, laughs a TON, is into everything, is very curious, loves cords and strings, loves food (his favorites are meatballs, sweet potatoes, pears, peas, yogurt, smoothie, zucchini, chicken, bread, and grapefruit), loves to cuddle, loves his fuzzy blankets, and is an all-around happy baby. He brings such joy to our lives and I look forward to seeing his cute little face every morning when he wakes up and smiles at me. He melts my heart and I love him so much. I never imagined I could love a little person as much as I do this little guy. It's crazy to think he has only been with us for 10 months---I can't imagine my life without him!

Family Pics and Menu Plan

So we got new family pics taken just in time for Christmas cards...and yikes. Another thing to add to the to do list...but it will somehow get done. I am also working on a Christmas stocking for Benjamin and it's a lot more work than I bargained for; we'll see how it goes :) We got pictures taken by Carrie Elton again and she did a fabulous job. We got them taken at our house and it was a fun session.

Things have been pretty crazy around here and I am just now getting back to meal planning, so thought I'd post the menu plan for the week. Enjoy!

Monday

Crock Pot Lasagna
Green Salad
Breadsticks (Our Best Bites)

Tuesday

Shepherd's Pie in the Crockpot
Fruit Salad

Wednesday

Homemade Pizza (Our Best Bites has an awesome breadsticks recipe that I use for the dough here---I double it and make breadsticks too: http://www.ourbestbites.com/2008/04/breadsticks-and-pizza-dough/)
Green Salad
Smoothies

Thursday

Meatballs with Cream Sauce
Peas
Rice
Sweet Dinner Rolls

Friday

Ham and Pasta Skillet Dinner
(I use turkey sausage in this instead of ham---delicious!)
Mixed Veggies
Fruit Salad

Saturday

Breakfast for Dinner
Pumpkin Waffles w/ Absolute Best Pancake Syrup
Scrambled Eggs (I just whisk the eggs, add milk, garlic salt, and cheese)
Orange Juice

Sunday

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
French Bread Rolls
Green Salad

Benjamin Birth Announcement

Ten Little Fingers Boy Birth Announcement

Announcements for every life event: graduation, wedding & baby.

View the entire collection of cards.

Life with 4 kiddos...

How is life with 4 kiddos, one of those a 7 wk old, you may ask? Well, I would answer that it's an interesting ride. That's probably the best way to describe it for me. A ride with ups and downs and little moments of joy that make the other not so joyful moments more bearable. Not completely blissful, but more bearable :) It HAS been especially difficult since Benjamin was born and there have been many tearful days, but I will say that I know this baby has been sent to us at this time for a reason and that he is meant to be in our family, and that is one of my moments of joy. He is a light to all of us---the way the kids get so excited about any noise he makes and anytime he smiles and the clothes he wears---you name it, they love it. They adore him and that is another moment of joy. The way Jonas asks how Benjamin is doing every morning and how Vera and Anna dote on him like little mothers. Moments of joy. He is such a little joy to me in his cute little smiles and laughs and the way he just coos when I come get him up from his nap. Maybe I could do without the poopy laundry and sleepless nights ;), but I can handle it better knowing my little guy recognizes me and knows who his mommy is. I mean, when you see this every morning, how could you be unhappy???

 Yep. That's my boy. I adore him. I admit, I have had MANY days where I just want to throw in the towel---or maybe even shower!!!, get back in bed, and let the kids fend for themselves. Many times where the time outs, the not listening and invisible mom syndrome, the crazy behaviors that I don't understand and that drive me nuts, and the tantrums and attitude are just too much. Oh. My. Goodness. Yes. Those days I feel like I'm just surviving...and they tend to be very frequent :) However, I am slowly learning that there are some things I just have to let go and to let be in order to have those moments of joy. I am learning that I can't do everything and don't have to in order to be a good mom and wife. I am often told and reminded to allow myself to not do it all and see what happens. I can't say I've learned and applied that completely yet, but I have recognized when I start going down that path of doing too much and...well, recognition is the first step, right??? Ha. I still constantly have moments (um, this morning!!) when I think I'll run away to Australia or Jamaica or some place exotic and tropical and just relax, and then come back when I am normal and rejuvenated again (is that possible?!!!). Sheesh it's a crazy ride. I have learned to appreciate so much what my parents did in raising the 9 of us. I HAD NO IDEA. Even getting ready to go in the morning is an incredible feat for me. Making sure the baby is fed, dressed, diaper changed, diaper bag ready, in the car seat, and the other kids are dressed (I am starting to let go of having to have clothes match---some of the time ;)---baby steps right? John would be proud), and I'm showered and ready---not to mention getting everyone in the car...OH GOSH. How did you do it, Mom?? So...in a nutshell, being a mom with 4 kiddos is a challenging ride and I'm going on no sleep and am grumpy a lot of the time, but there are moments of joy and I hope to be better at finding them. Here's to finding moments like these:

 

Benjamin's Birth Story

Welcome Benjamin John Winkler! I can't believe I actually have a little one who grew inside of me for 9 months. He is beautiful and I'm so grateful. Here is the story of how our precious Benjamin was born:

So as Benjamin's due date approached, I considered a birthing plan and how I wanted to deliver. I talked to lots of people about their experiences, whether going natural or with medications and intervention, and wanted to do what was best for me and baby. I read up on Hypnobirthing and natural birth and was pretty convinced that's the way I wanted to go. I continued reading those books and using the practice CDs and decided I wanted to let my body do it's thing and not have any medication during labor and delivery. John and I took a birthing class and I explored different positions and practiced relaxation exercises we learned there to help prepare me. John was very supportive in whatever I decided and we talked about exactly what I wanted to see happen in the delivery room so that he could make sure the nurses were on board as well. I wanted to go natural, but also was open to and had researched all of the options in case things didn't go as planned.

I was getting really impatient as my due date came and went. I was due on May 31st and had been contracting for the previous two weeks and NOTHING. John had been off for a week and nothing. I would contract for hours at a time and feel like maybe this was it and then wake up in the morning and...just kidding! This baby was taking his time :) The contractions were not really painful, but just tight and made me tired. We went into the hospital two times in the same week---at first he wasn't moving and then they thought I had symptoms of pre-eclampsia and both ended up being false alarms and all was fine. I felt like I was taking the "walk of shame" each time I left the hospital and the doctor said "Well, we're sending you home" and "When did we last see you?" Ha. I was so disappointed! I was grateful that everything was ok, but wanted the baby out!

I did lots of things that were "supposed" to induce labor---even mopped the floors on hands and knees the day after I was due. Let's just say my knees paid for it :) I remember how frustrating and disappointing it was to pass my due date and still have no baby. Everyone kept asking "so has he come? Any news? " I kept thinking "believe me if he comes you will know!!!" I wasn't even sure what contractions were supposed to feel like or what it would feel like when my water broke...so I was basically on edge anytime something happened. After the 2nd false alarm at the hospital, though, I told John there was no way I was going to the hospital unless I was ABSOLUTELY sure I was in labor and going to have that baby. Everyone said that I would just know when it came and I was hoping that was the case! 

I had just labored the Saturday night (June 1) before for 8 hours and then everything stopped. I was talking to my friend Julie about it at church the next day and she said she felt the same way with each of her babies when they were late. I was really angry too because I felt the pressure to have him since John was off work until Thursday and it was Sunday. Ugh. It was awful waiting. I was tempted to get induced and my doc had offered to schedule it that week, but I really didn't want to and felt he was going to come before that. Sure enough, the next morning, I went for a walk with Anna, and then we all walked to school and I started contracting pretty consistently. As I continued to do things around the house, I timed the contractions and they were 5 min apart. John makes fun of me because I made bread while having contractions (only in the bread maker mind you, so nothing fancy :) ) I called the doc and they told me to go in. We checked in to the hospital at 12 pm and the nurse, Lori, was amazing. She checked my cervix and said I was a 4 so I could be admitted. Yahoo! I couldn't believe this was actually happening! I was having a baby!!!! Then contractions stopped and I was pretty disappointed. When was my body going to keep going and have this baby??? Lori said my doc offered to break my waters and speed things up a little bit. I decided to do it.

The doc came in an hour or two later and as soon as she broke my waters, I started having some really intense labor. I started sitting on the birthing ball, moving my hips around, breathing deeply, and getting to a place that was peaceful where I could focus. Each time I had a contraction, I thought and said to myself "that's one down. I did that much" it was empowering to think I was actually doing this without any drugs. I kept using the words "relax", "breathe", and "open". I felt pretty strong though in a lot of pain and unsure how bad these contractions were going to get :) I started moaning as the contractions got stronger and couldn't believe that sound was coming out of my body. Who was this person? And why was she moaning like some sort of elephant? 

The next couple of hours were some of the most intense of my life. Each time I had a contraction, amniotic fluid would gush through me and I would feel intense pressure and pain. I tried to just take deep breaths and keep myself calm. I was having a hard time breathing deeply because of the pain, but the nurse was impressed that as the pain level shot up I was still breathing deeply and rolling around on my birthing ball. I used the birthing ball for most of it and just moved my hips around and leaned over the bed, moaning and groaning, but breathing :) John was super supportive and massaging me and telling me I could do it and that I was doing great. I really needed him there! I started to feel tingly and like parts of my body were going numb. It was so weird, so John just encouraged me to breathe deeply to make it go away and I did. It helped a ton. Then the contractions got more intense. I never knew I could feel so much pain and pressure. Wow. It was insane. The nurse checked me in between contractions and told me I had progressed to a 6 in an hour and a half. What? Yay! This was good. The baby was coming, but wow, so was the pressure in my body. Next thing we knew, they had to move us into another room because the monitors were not working in the first room. At that point, there wasn't much of a break in between contractions, so we had to hurry, otherwise the hospital floors would become a river of amniotic fluid :) 

As soon as we got into the next room, there was a shift change and we got a new nurse, who I didn't like as much as the first one. She got there as I was really experiencing pain and ready to push. I then had more and more intense contractions and tried to use a birthing bar, but that didn't work either, so I basically squatted on the bed for a bit. I told John at one point "I don't know if I can do this. It hurts. It hurts. Ow. Ow. Ow." It was like this surge inside of me started low and squeezed up through me, causing some intense pain. The squatting helped, but after that contractions kept getting worse, and I felt like I had to push. John was totally surprised and couldn't believe it. In between my moaning, I said "I need to push, I need to push" so he got the nurse, she checked me and I was past a 10----I had dilated from 6 to 10 in an hour!!!! She told me I could push all I wanted, this baby was coming!! So they rushed to get my doc and she and John got ready to deliver the baby. I pushed and pushed and pushed----it was intense and exhausting. Each time my doc told me to push, she counted to 10 and then told me to breathe in and count to 10 again while I pushed.

It was so weird feeling the baby move down and come through. I could feel him move closer and then move back and it was kind of frustrating because I wondered how long this would take. It felt like each time I was taking steps back and I was SO exhausted! Finally the doc and John said they could see the baby's head and to keep pushing, John kept encouraging me and telling me I was doing amazing, to keep going, and that I was strong and could do this. There were many times I really didn't think I could push one more time and said so, starting to whimper and cry a little bit, but my doc kept saying it wasn't a question if I could do it, I was DOING it and was GOING to do it. That really encouraged me and I tried to focus on the end reward---my little baby boy.

So at that point, my doc said I just needed to push one last time and he was right there. I just gave it all I had and may have screamed just a little bit! Ha ha. Ok, I moaned and sounds came out of my mouth that I had never heard from myself before. It HURT!!! As I pushed those last few times I could hear the baby's heartbeat slow down and the doc say his head was stuck and that I was too tight. She had to do an episiotomy. I was so focused on pushing and getting him out that I barely realized all that was going on. All was a blur and then I pushed as hard as I could and felt his head come through (burning!!!) and the rest of his body (just plain weird, but cool). After an hour of pushing, Benjamin John Winkler was born at 6:35 pm and weighed 7 lbs 9.5 oz and measured 19 1/2 inches long. My baby boy was here!

As soon as he came out, they put him skin to skin and on my belly. It was one of the most beautiful experiences I have ever had. He was beautiful and he was my baby-mine and John's. What a miracle!!! I just held him and cried and John kissed me and I just couldn't believe he was finally here. They cleaned him off a bit and weighed him and then let me hold him again while my doc sewed me up. I had prayed during my whole pregnancy that the labor and delivery would go well and that it would be a spiritual experience for both John and me and those prayers were answered. 

He is amazing and perfect in every way. He is truly a miracle! Heavenly Father gave us this opportunity and I can't believe I have the privilege of being this little guy's mother. 

37 weeks and counting...

Here I am at 37 weeks. Almost there!!!

33 weeks

So I can't believe it is getting so close. Here is baby boy belly at 33 weeks!

27 weeks and Valentine's Day!

So just a short update...I am 27 weeks and 2 days today! Can't believe it. This baby is kicking and is definitely a mover and a shaker (what does that mean for the next few years of my life????) and we're so grateful he is healthy. I have my glucose test on Tuesday and am hoping I pass! I've been really uncomfortable when I sleep and am definitely waddling, but that's cute, right??? ;)

It has been a crazy month and a good one. John surprised me for Valentine's Day by getting me Belgian chocolates (my favorite kind of chocolate :) ) and a dozen beautiful roses and...drum roll please...reservations to this hotel I've been wanting to go to for months called the CliffHouse. It is in Manitou Springs (close to the Garden of the Gods) and was built in 1874. The rooms are decorated after different famous people who have stayed there such as Teddy Roosevelt, Charles Dickens, and other fun characters. It was a beautiful weekend and we had a very romantic dinner that night at the hotel and just enjoyed spending some time alone. We also discovered a local restaurant that served Mediterranean food---we ate chicken shawarma and falafel. Yum! It brought me back to when I went to Israel a couple of summers ago. Delicious! I sure love my husband!

I 've been wanting to decorate and create and do all sorts of organizing around the house, so I finally finished painting, making, and decorating wooden letters for each of the kids' names and putting them up in their rooms. I was pretty proud of myself for how cute they turned out! ;) No expensive online letters done by someone else, thank you very much. I'll save a bit of money and do it myself :) Other than that, just preparing for baby to come. We're getting the nursery ready little by little and I can hardly believe he's coming so soon. I've been asking myself what this little one will be like and if he will have the Wall genes (i.e. toehead) or look more like a Winkler or a combination of both? No, these questions don't keep me up at night (though the lovely kicks, aches, and pains do :) ), but I guess we'll find out soon enough!!

I also got to train for a music program called "Let's Play Music" which is specifically set up to help kids ages 4-7 prepare to take piano lessons. I'm so excited to start teaching in the Fall! Here is a picture of all of us at training.



Happy March!

Hello Blog!

Our first look at our baby. Can't believe what a miracle life is.

Me at 18 weeks!

Hello Blog! It's nice to see you again. The past couple of months have been crazy with the holidays, being sick, and getting back into a schedule, but I can say I finally feel like a semi-normal person again. Being so sick with this pregnancy for so much time really made me appreciate feeling good. I can actually eat food again and it doesn't sound awful or make me want to throw up! Ha. It's a miracle! Although spinach and artichoke dip still makes me want to gag. Such a sad day. I used to LOVE that stuff.

Here's our little guy at the 20 week ultrasound!

We also found out two weeks ago that we're having a baby BOY!!! Yahoo! We are really excited. Anna told us that she "changed her mind and now I want a boy." Well, good. Glad we can make everyone happy :) I've been trying not to go too crazy over the million and one things we still need for his arrival, but I will admit that Target clearance has become my good friend lately :) It's insane what is needed for a little one when you're starting from square one. Now every time I walk into a store, I head straight for the baby stuff. I haven't really bought much, but I sure love looking. I have mapped out the nursery (now Anna's room) and how I want to decorate. I am really excited and will most likely add some decor to the other kids' rooms too. Little by little, I keep telling myself. I still can't believe there is a little being growing inside of me. It's so surreal. I look at my belly in the mirror and think, "Wait. What? This little body is coming out in a few months. Of me. Whoa." I know. Deep thoughts are had inside of this pregnancy brain these days. What can I say? ;) Not many thoughts stay inside of this pregnancy brain these days, actually. Ha. It's incredible how quickly I will forget what I was thinking just seconds after thinking it. I feel like the dog Doug from the movie...Squirrel!!

22 weeks!

Anyway, the baby has started to kick and move a lot and it's the strangest, yet coolest feeling. When we saw him in the 20 week ultrasound, he was breech and we're hoping the little guy moves around to come out head first. We still have a little time :) I have already started becoming uncomfortable at night and having trouble sleeping, which I'm told isn't supposed to happen yet. Ha. Well, folks, it is happening, and I guess I ought to get used to it, eh? I have strange, strange dreams and am often too warm, so I'm sure that's contributing to it all. Despite the uncomfortable nights, strange dreams, and increase in appetite, making me feel like I'm eating enough for three ;), I'm so incredibly excited for this little guy to make his appearance.

An Announcement...

http://smilebox.com/playBlog/4d7a4d354d7a59774e44453d0d0a&blogview=true

This week and next week's menu!

I know, I know. It's unbelievable that I am actually blogging almost TWO WEEKS of menus, but, well, here they are. Enjoy! (I'm pretty sure we will ;) )

Tuesday: Lasagna Soup
               Garlic Bread
               Green Salad
               Mango Lassi (yeah, I know, it's Indian and we're doing Italian tonight, but gosh, it just sounded good! I replace the sugar with honey)

Wednesday: Crispy Chicken Wraps
                    Green Beans
                    Fruit Salad

Thursday: Chicken Pillows (I am making Homemade Crescent Rolls and also homemade cream of chicken soup---super easy--as well as homemade chicken gravy--- both for the sauce on top).
                 Spinach Salad with Dried Cranberries, Almonds, and Homemade Poppy Seed Dressing
                 Berry Smoothie

Friday: Movie Night!
            Turkey Burgers
            Homemade French Fries
            Broccoli

Saturday: Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches
                Carrots sauteed with butter and onions
                Fruit Salad

Sunday: Baked Chicken Chimichangas
              Black Beans
              Rice
              Guacamole, Sour Cream, Cheese (I love fresh cilantro and lime in my guacamole)

Monday: Pizza Bites
               Caesar Salad with Homemade Croutons
               Peach Mango Smoothie (I just use Greek plain yogurt and add some honey to sweeten it a      little bit)

Tuesday: Crockpot Cashew Chicken
                Rice
                Zucchini

Wednesday: Creamy Fettuccine with Ham and Peas
                    Garlic Bread
                    Green Salad
                    Honey Lime Fruit Salad

Thursday: Thanksgiving at the Winklers!

Friday: Chicken & Zucchini Stir-Fry
            Rice
            Mango Lassi
                    

Happy Halloween and other pics...

Here are some pics of our Halloween adventures. Didn't get any pics of the pumpkin carving this year. Oops. Enjoy!

John put an eye bandaid on Anna's eye and here is the result...

Anna does some silly things while Jonas and Vera are at school. This was one of them. "Please take a piture of me"

She loves babies.

Happy Halloween from Darth Vader, a wizard, a fairy princess, and a regular princess ;)

Trip to DC!

So John is wonderful...that is not news ;) but just one evidence of that fact came in him buying me a ticket to go out to Washington DC to "my old stomping grounds" and to see family and friends out there. I was SOOO excited to go and really needed the break. Jessica came down with her family from PA and we were able to go to the temple while Tim watched the kids and then all of us went to the National Zoo. I loved getting to know Jess' kids a little more and her oldest, Chet, wanted to hold my hand the whole time. I was so honored :) I told John he's got a little competition in that 5 yr old. Ha ha ha. Jess' kids are so adorable and we had a ton of fun. It's funny, though, that even though it was a break trip for me, I was thinking as we were at the zoo, "Wow. Jonas, Vera, and Anna would LOVE this." Ha. Yep. Still in a bit of mommy mode even on vacation (maybe always??) Anyway, it was awesome to get to have a conversation with Jess that was longer than two minutes :) and just enjoy spending time together. She and I have been through so much together and any time I get to spend with her is pretty precious! There's just nothing like getting to see your best friends and spend some quality time with them when you live in opposite parts of the country!

I also got to see a lot of my friends when another close friend of mine, Jessica (the Jessicas in my life are AWESOME!), threw a party for me. It was a fun chance to get together and see some friends I hadn't seen in a while. I had SUCH a wonderful time. I feel very blessed to have the incredible friends that I do!! I just wish I had taken pictures!!!

Hannah and I had a blast together. I just love her! We had lots of fun going for walks, talking, and just hanging out.  I have missed having close friends like her around and just being able to go over and have a nice chat. I also couldn't get over how cute her toddler Gideon is. He kept wanting to hold my hand in the grocery store and when we went for walks (there seems to be a theme here---John really has some competition ;) ha ha ha) and on the last day, wanted to give me kisses (he puts out his bottom lip and turns to the person he wants to kiss. It was absolutely the cutest thing ever! See pics below :)

I got to stay with Chris and Jen for part of the time and it was SO good to see them. We grew so close while I lived in DC and I just felt like it was still that way when I visited. I got to go to church with them, go to soccer practice, go to the temple with Jen, see pics of their most recent family trip, and just spend some quality time. We went to an Indian restaurant and my friend, Diana, met us there. It was SO good to see her and for her to make the trip out to see me in crazy DC traffic. I sure love her too.

Hannah got a bunch of our former co-workers from Nysmith together and we went to Red Robin. It was so good to see Prianka and Cathy. We had such a fun time! I've missed you guys!

I felt so rejuvenated when the trip was over...it was hard to leave, but it's also hard to not want to come back to "Mommy, I missed you really much" and "Mom, I feel so much better now that you're home" and "Mommy, I love love love you". I missed John and the kids so much and it was good to come home :) I feel much more ready to take on the day to day and am so grateful for an inspired husband who saw the need and surprised me with such a great trip!

Here are pics from the trip...

Jonas, Vera, and Anna would have loved the National Zoo!

Cute little Sari. Oh that's my finger in the picture on the side, not Jess' forehead :) Ha. Oops.

I love the DC temple! This was the best one we could get.  Chet unfortunately DIDN'T want to hold my hand that this point ;)

Gideon's kisses

And more kisses

The Great Panda

So fun to see Han!

Kimodo Dragon---it's tongue was the grossest thing...

At Red Robin with Cathy, Prianka, and Hannah. I loved it!

On a walk with Gideon

He just grabbed my hand as we were walking. SOOO cute!

9, 6, and 3!!

Here are the photos we got taken of each of the kids for their birthdays (a little late for Jonas and Anna, but at least they got done right???) Ha. Enjoy!

Love this pic of him.

Soo cute!

Our photographer said she's 6 going on 16...not sure how I feel about that!!!

 We had a great photographer and I'm so happy with how they turned out. Now on to make our family photo book for the year...