Friday, February 1, 2013

German Invasion - 2012

Our time with our favorite Germans eventually had to come to a close. As with most Brose visits, there was much talk of the possibilities of their family moving stateside…but this trip offered one very special treat: Lennart now has a Greencard! They really CAN move over here! Jonathan and I are still hoping their wait just a little while longer so we can head over to Germany for another wonderful European jaunt while we still have a comfy place to stay. Shhh! Selfishness!

 

They arrived just before Christmas, Christmas happened, we left for Colorado, so our time together truly began with New Years Eve. The Brose family tradition of gabbing over the Raclette oven was enjoyed by all. Yum!

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And all the kids managed to pretty much stay awake to ring in the new year. We let Bridget stay up til midnight for the first time…she was actually the most awake of all the kids! Crazy girl!

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A few days later B and I took Sarah with us for a fun afternoon at Let’s Pretend Tea Parties. Since all of J’s siblings (along with us in-laws) share Godparent duties for all the kids, when everyone’s together we try to do something extra special with our Godkids…and sweet Sarah is one of mine! I just love that precious soul to pieces. She was so sweet and generous to spend much of her time in America entertaining Bridget – who has been OBSESSED with cousin Sarah for MONTHS. I thought her world would implode once she finally got to spend time with her!

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Getting makeup done:

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Tea and cupcakes:

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Blurry but still full of love!

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Jonathan also got a chance to do something special with his Goddaughter, Hannah (the middle sister). He took on the challenge of bringing ALL the kids camping (minus Bridget because it turned out to be too darn cold). I was so in awe of him! B and I tagged along as the start to help caravan all the kiddos and assist with campsite set up. As you can imagine,there were some serious tears when she and I had to leave…

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One of our last big family events was a triple birthday party for Anthony, Hannah and Ella (Hannah – Nov, Ella & Anthony – Jan). I can’t believe how fast these kids have grown!!! When J and I started dating, Anthony was just a few months old. He just turned TEN. We’re so old.

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Fun was had by all, not just the kids:

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My sneaky girl LOVED her first edible necklace experience:

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Lots of Grandkid love for Grandpa:

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And the WHOLE family finally got our group photo:

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Go-karts, games, pizza – oh my!!

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We’ll sure miss you, Brose Family! Can’t wait til we see you again, sooner rather than later!

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Thursday, January 31, 2013

Beauty of the Lanterns!

Brrr! We probably couldn’t have picked a colder day to go see the Chinese Lanterns at Fair Park, but gosh darnit, we had a Groupon and we were using it! Thankfully good spirits were still abound:

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We arrived a little before nighttime, so we took our time at the start of the exhibit, as nighttime is really the right time to experience the lights at their best!

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This dragon was truly amazing. Covered in china!

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While we waited for the darkness to settle in, we grabbed some traditional Chinese treats: egg rolls and nachos Smile.

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Plenty of time for the night to take over. What a beautiful display!

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My favorite was this amazing blossom out in the middle of the pond. According to the notes throughout the lantern trail, this one was brought all in one piece!

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Longhorns!

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B’s favorite was definitely the dinosaur section:

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I loved the peacock-inspired pieces:

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But after a while, someone was only interested in pushing her own stroller. Joy.

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Time to head out for home!

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