Then Lovely Coronado

Still shocking that this cute family calls Coronado home....someday I hope we get to follow your example!

Tom smile! ok, then Steve will make you smile!

Natalie captured the feel at the beach...lots of nature, lots of fun with cousins and hanging out.

With everyone under one roof for a time, we had lots of chances to get to play together!

Well, they do look tough, don't they....

Just feels good to be together.

Natalie's stunning shot of the SD coastline

All these blue eyes makes my heart melt.

I love the look on Brauer's face..."Are you kidding me? I can pick whatever I want?"

It is sooooo fun to see long time friends. Charlotte and I obviously still think alike!

I could eat this kid up.

"Ahh. Spotty Dog. I missed you!"

This group makes me smile! And Taft-man, you stole the show on this shot!

First stop was Princeton

'Wow Rachel, I love this present. You picked the perfect one!" Good job Rach. You knew what your little sister would love. (Notice the packing boxes in the background. We slept at their house just one night after they moved in. Don't you think Mel deserves a double good mark for hosting her in-laws that quick after a major move???)

I know Mel already posted this, but it is such a crack-up. 'Give me the frosting but I don't want to get messy!' She is an adorable one year old.

The cheerleaders of Kate's first birthday.

Jake and Mel's cute townhouse and their new van. From city folks to real suburbanites again. I loved their neighborhood and the town of Princeton. Super quaint.

I took the kids to the community pool. Great little swimmers. Jake said, 'they better be after all that money on swimming lessons!'....being there reminded me of our community pool in

Virginia. That was really the only thing I truly missed when we moved to Belgium. Such a great idea to share a huge pool instead of everyone owning a tiny one.

Good 'ol Rach. Still quite the bookworm. She is most happy when surrounded by her books. However now, instead of looking at them she reads them. They grow up way too fast!

The kid is Back!

Proof: Work and wear out your life in the service of the Lord. Good job, Elder Herway!

Meeting this little family was one of my highlights. The mother was inactive, but through Elder Herway(as the instrument) she became active, her husband joined the church, the kids are baptized. The oldest child just got the Mel. priesthood and is preparing for a mission. He was at work and is not in the picture. The mom kept saying, "if it weren't for this Elder, where would my family be?" By the time we left both she and I had had a good, happy cry!

We had to go to the library b/c we needed the internet. Steve gets us set up on our computers, and this was the point where he realized he was free to go anywhere on the internet. It was almost more than he could take. See where he went first? Facebook!

We ate lunch at one of his favorite spots. He thought it was funny that it was finally approved by the Board of Health....guess while he ate there it wasn't!

Elder Herway has been released, but not really. Still directing, still guiding, still leading. He took a call and went to the map!

Really super companions. Fun to meet them.

Loved going to his apartment. He took over, answered calls, etc...

Jake, Mel and kids drove up with us to collect him from the Mission Home. He still has his tag on, so officially he was still a full time missionary!

President and Sister Jeppson. Steve only knew them for a few months. Pres Bahr was his Pres for the majority of his mission.

It's fun to get phone calls from Steve again. Actually, it's still a shock to get them. Sort of feel like I am breaking the rules or something. He has had a lot of 'firsts'....the internet, swimming in the ocean, a movie, and a date! Go get 'em Steve-o. Nice to have you back home. And good job. Well done!

Sorting some pictures...

I was going through some of the pictures from last year.....came across this sequence. It was probably Natalie or Noel who caught this.

Makes me want to be 4 again. Grab a cousin and just have some fun!

Two Weeks from Today

I'm not counting down....just kidding, I'm totally counting down! It's a pretty exciting proposition to pick your kid up from a mission. And this is it. Last kid. I have to admit, it's a little bitter-sweet. And again, another one of life's milestones we have to 'check-off'!

The Hall Connection

I tried 4 times to get a picture without a 'beer-belly' in the background....

But I wasn't having much luck!

Arianna can put on ANY hat and look gorgeous!

Buying rings/jewelry in Brugge

Happy chocolate tasters!

Oh yes, Desi gives Belgium a 'thumbs up' for first rate chocolate!

Berlin

We rented bikes for a day and I felt like that was when we really got a feel for the city. We rode along a canal to get to the Charlottenburg castle just outside the center of the city.

Charlottenburg castle

Having to rebuild the city completely from rubble after WWII they had some really unusual buildings.

A section of the wall that is totally ignored. Almost the best place to see it because it is in it's original and raw form.

On the reputed 'most beautiful bridge' in Berlin, there was a celebration going on. I participated!

The most beautiful bridge

Brandenburg Gate. Being able to walk through the portals makes your heart miss a beat for the joy of the freedom!

It's a beautiful city with lots of water and impressive buildings....even though it was leveled during WWII....they have done an amazing job in restoring it.

The 'historical' boat trip. Neither of us were impressed.

There were several areas of the city that were covered in graffiti. This was the Jewish quarter.

"Schmuck!"

This was symbolic for me. The wall....and above it the air balloon.

A long portion of the Wall still standing. We both thought that most of the wall was demolished, but there are long parts still standing. This is the area called 'Terrain of Terror'. The wall went up on Aug 13, 1961....so there were 50th anniversary 'remembering' events all over the city. Great time to be visiting!

A Jewish Memorial. Unmarked maze.

BEARLIN.....that's how they pronounce it!

We loved Berlin. We had mixed reviews from other travelers, but the city is clean, chock full of history, great restaurants, loads of super museums, canals and waterways.

For me though, it was the history that seemed to come alive. Nazi regime, Hitler, the Berlin Wall and communism. My two favorite museums were 'Terrain of Terror' where there is a long standing part of the wall with a display of pictures depicting the history of when/how/it was put up. The other was where Stauffenburg had his office....the guy who attempted to assassinate Hitler....remember the movie Valkyrie? It was amazing to be in his office and see the inner courtyard where he was murdered.

One coincidence. Tom moved to Germany as a boy in the early summer of 1961...and the wall goes up. Then we move to Europe as a family in Feb 1989...and on 9 Nov 1989 the wall came down!

We did have a fiasco because I mis-read the departure time from Berlin. Missed our flight. Oops. Had to buy new tickets and stay another night. Wasn't all that bad.....