First week home

Our first week back home was filled with unpacking and organizing. We were blessed to return to a very clean home, since we let Genia's in-laws stay at our home while they visited, and they and Genia left our house in better shape than we did!

Sleepingwise, the girls adjusted really well. Cora woke up very early for several days (5 a.m.), but thankfully she can entertain herself, and Violet slept longer. By the weekend, they were both on track.

 My 33rd birthday fell on our first day home, which was nice because Stace takes that day off to unpack and rest. We celebrated together with lunch out at Wolf Creek, my favorite local restaurant, and a homemade birthday cake.

We had plans to go out for ice cream, but Violet threw up at dinner so that didn't happen. Earlier that day, we had gone to the doctor for advice on her throwing up and loose stools, and took in a stool sample. Later in the week, we found out it tested negative for any bugs. I guess she just has a weak stomach.

Here is Cora's present for me - a picture of us, holding umbrellas, in a rainstorm. The circles are puddles for us to jump in. The numbers represent how many letters are in our names.

The week was nice and warm, and Genia and took our kids to the park. School here doesn't start back up until mid-January.

The leaves covering the sidewalk presented Cora with an important task - raking them with the sand toys into a pile. It was adorable to watch the children working together. Even Violet, at 20 months, was helping right along side the "big kids."

Later, the older ones were playing on the hill, and the sprinklers came on. It was warm enough to let them have a grand old time.

On Saturday, Stace replaced the brakes on his car, and in the evening we took my new inline skates and Cora's balance bike out for some family outdoors time. We forgot the camera, but it was great! We did something similar Sunday evening, with Genia and her kids.

Later Sunday, we had Genia, John and the kids over for dinner. It was a very nice evening, and the children had a great time. I love these photos of Violet and Owen. Ave said it looked like they were on a date.

That Owen! He's so funny!