Colorado 2016

We took a trip to the States in February/March and it was so good to be able to see our family! The big reason that we went was to introduce Eve to her extended family. She had been able to meet Tim's mom & sister when they came to help after her birth. She had also gotten to meet Jeni's mom when they met up in Germany. But there were many more people that she hadn't had the chance to meet yet.

We had a good time traveling with the five of us! Joseph and Faith are super easy to travel with. Between all of us, we can share the responsibility of Eve. Of course we were so glad when we finally arrived!

Tim's sister, Karla, was excited to meet Eve! We were surprised that she and her kids, Emma & John, came to the airport. My parents were also there at the airport, which made for a fun arrival!

Jeni's brother, Andrew, had just moved back to Longmont and we enjoyed seeing him! Joseph and Faith liked throwing snowballs at him the first day we were there.

Grampa, Jeni's dad, was in love with his newest granddaughter! It was so sweet to see the love in his eyes when he looked at her.

Grampa and Faith already have a special bond and they picked right up where they left off...arguing about who will have he most fun! One day Grampa was off of work and we went to the Butterfly Pavilion in Westminster. There's a black widow spider that you can hold, if you're brave enough. Both Grampa and Faith held the spider and proudly wore their stickers together. This is a special memory.

Grandma also loves having fun with her grandkids! One day, on her day off, she took Joseph and Faith to a fun play place. They got to experience laser tag for the first time and it was such a super fun time!

Jeni's brother Ross had a baby in October and we were so excited to meet Rhys!! Rhys and Eve are only six months apart in age.

We made sure to get a picture of all four grandkids for Grandma. We took this picture at the lake close to Ross's house when we stayed with them.

There was something really special about hanging out and talking with my baby brother now that he's a father. He is a great dad and obviously completely in love with his precious son!

Grandma & Faith have a sweet relationship too. They like to do girly things together.

 While we were in Colorado we stayed with different family members. This picture was taken while we were staying at Tonya's house. It was nice to get to spend time with each family in their home.

Joseph and Faith kept up with their homeschool work while we were traveling. Here they are working on their schoolwork at Tonya's house.

We went to the Denver Zoo with both Tim's sisters and their kids. We had to get a picture of the three siblings. Tim's the baby with two older sisters.

Here's the best picture we got with all of the cousins on Tim's side. Eve was asleep in her stroller, so I guess she'll make it into the next cousin picture.

Here's Tim & Tonya in front of Tonya's house. They had only been in this house for a little more than a year. They moved from Phoenix to Longmont in January 2015. It was a big transition for them after living in the same house in Phoenix for 15 years.

This picture shows how well Karla & Eve got along. Karla was good at making Eve giggle. I couldn't help but smile when they played together.

This picture makes me laugh!! Jeni's Uncle Dan and Aunt Shannon flew up to Colorado to bring Nana, Jeni's Grandma! They brought gifts for the kids. One of the gifts was these boxing gloves for Joseph who immediately had to try them out. The look on Dan's face just cracks me up!! haha!

One evening we took this 4 generation picture with the two babies.

Later we took another 4 generation picture with the bigger kids too. It was such a blessing to get to see Nana!

Eve liked Nana too. I like this picture of Eve checking out her great grandmother.

I couldn't get enough of my nephew. His cheeks were so kissable and he had this irresistible laugh.

Faith took this picture of Ross and Jeni carrying their babies on a little hike we took one afternoon.

**favorite picture**

Eve obviously felt very comfortable in Aunt Tonya's arms.

She also loved being with Uncle James, Tonya's husband. He's a children's pastor and he's great with little ones. If he was in the room, Eve was always looking at him. She'd smile real big when she was in his arms.

Tonya's daughter Tori also loved holding Eve. Here she is helping Eve get comfortable with Karla's dog.

Here's a fun picture of the kids at the Longmont Rec Center. They loved swimming together and going down the water slides. There's just nothing like having cousins to play with!

Eve was content in Aunt Karla's arms while the big kids played in the pool.

Tim & Matt talked about technology and cameras...guy talk. Matt is Karla's husband. He is a youth pastor. James & Matt work at the same church in Longmont, Colorado.

I love this picture of Karla's daughter Emma with Eve. Everyone was just so sweet with little Eve.

This is a great picture of Karla's family.

This is almost everyone in Tonya's family. They do the children's worship time together on Sunday's at church. We loved getting to see them do this!

Tim's sisters really have accepted me as another sister. They've always been so good to me and I'm thankful for them.

Grandma was in heaven watching a movie with her two granddaughters. One evening, after they got their pajamas on, they wanted to cuddle with Grandma. I love seeing my mom enjoying her grandkids!

This is a rare picture of Grandma & Grampa at their store with the kiddos. It was a treat to get to go see their store. I have so many memories there. They ran this store since I was a baby. It was always such a big part of their lives.

Faith loved watching one of the sewing machines  write her name at Grandma & Grampa's store.

While we were in Colorado, my parents sold their business. They owned this store for more than 35 years, this was such a big deal for them!! The month of March was the big retirement sale. We were so happy for them to have the opportunity to retire! They're so ready to be free to travel around in their fifth wheel.