Birthday Love

I got to celebrate 25 years a few weeks ago! There were a lot of moments where I felt the birthday love and gratitude for the people in my life. 

We started off birthday week with Marlies, Ludwig, & an Alba basketball game. I'm glad they trusted me to chauffeur them to the arena & give a peek into the crazy basketball world. I love them SO much. Marlies was on her feet more than anyone with her hands in the air cheering & challenging the referee calls against Alba.

This is what our daily walks look like when we head back inside. A doorbell ring and hello to Marlies & Ludwig before heading upstairs.

Justin got me some birthday tulips. <3

We got to go to dinner with our Supper Club. It was Alex's turn to choose & we had yummy Peruvian food. 

Love this group!! 

Timing had it that Justin would be away on my actual birthday. We celebrated early & went to a couple of our favorite spots at the Berlin Mall. We can't walk by the Lindt store without grabbing a few of our favorite chocolates. 

Then I got to shop and pick out some clothes while Justin chased Logan up and down on the escalators. I enjoyed a baby-free shopping trip!

This felt like a birthday gift for me. Ha! Logan's old stroller had so many miles on it & had visited six countries. The wheels didn't turn on their own anymore unless I bent down and turned them manually. It was time for a replacement & I've been enjoying this new stroller more than Logan. 

After Logan went to bed, we made cookies together & ate them by the candlelight. Justin made me a sweet video with moments from the past year. I'm the luckiest. 

Then, on the morning of March 31, these three SURPRISED me and made me some birthday brunch. Wow, I couldn't help from crying when they sang "Happy Birthday" in my doorway. I felt so loved. We talked, laughed, and enjoyed our pancakes & pão de queijo. These ladies are some of my best, best friends. They truly feel like family & I would do anything for them.

I got a few special birthday FaceTime calls. These also made me feel so loved. A few more tears were shed as reality set in during these calls. It's hard being far away from family especially on days like this. I miss them. I miss being close to home for big moments & celebrations.  

Lastly, I got to have a nice Relief Society meeting/brunch with our presidency. I'm so thankful for the women I get to serve with. I've learned so much from each of them & I value our friendships. This was walking back to the car afterwards. Beautiful Berlin!

Regardless of the circumstances and being oceans away from family, it was a memorable birthday full of love & gratitude.

Grames in Europe!

We've had this visit in our calendar for 7 months! 

The day before James and Gracie were supposed to leave SLC for Berlin, Walli happened to mention the Berlin airport was going on strike for 24 hours. Those 24 hours just so happened to be when Grames would be arriving... 

Man, I was SO thankful Walli mentioned the strike or things would've been a lot more complicated. After spending a few hours on the phone and messaging airline agents, we figured everything out. & this meant they were able to spend one of their days in Paris! 

As sad as I was to wait a few hours longer to hug them, I was so happy they got to see another city while in Europe. They even posed in front of the Eiffel Tower... with their BABY ANNOUNCEMENT! 

We didn't see that picture though until they told us in person. 

They made it to Berlin late in the evening and we were so happy to finally have them here!! A video disguised as a selfie with that same onesie was how we found out baby Rowley is on their way. We're so excited for them & for Logan's new cousin!

So proud of those weary travelers for navigating themselves around before finding us!

The next morning we hit the ground running, showing them the history our city holds. It was so surreal to walk the streets with James and Gracie! I LOVE them. I loved being with them for their Spring Break.

Logan has hit a new level of independence and will take every chance he can to be out of his stroller and on his own two feet. 

We watched Reagan together after showing them this plaque. Makes it way more meaningful knowing what happened in that spot. 

Thank goodness for Gracie's pregnancy cravings because the smell of currywurst was in the air and we had to get some asap.

Hit the essentials around Potsdamer Platz. Spaghetieis for the win.

I decided to forgo my half marathon training for the day and we hiked to the top of the Victory Column! Bless James for carrying that baby boy on his back all the way up. I think that may have been Logan's last time in the carrier. He's so big!!

Notice the bullet holes in the pillars from the war.

Got to see some Alba Berlin action! The bummer was Justin didn't play... Every game, one or two players has to sit out now that they have a full roster. Unfortunately, that night was Justin's to sit out. We still enjoyed showing them the VIP lounge, a yummy dinner, and cheering on our favorite Euro team. 

Logan was so happy to see his dad he didn't want to be held by anyone else after the game! Justin ended up taking him back to the locker room to celebrate the win with his teammates. I was a little nervous, but no tears were shed on Logan's part during the post-game talk. 

Phew!

We were lucky enough to celebrate James' birthday!!! 

We grabbed some birthday breakfast croissants at REWE.

Then headed to the historic Olympic Stadium built by Hitler for the 1936 olympics. It only took them two years to build this. So crazy.

It was incredible to be inside and take in that structure. One of my bucket list items for this fall is to attend a soccer game here. 

We visited the Plötzensee Prison Memorial. This is still an active prison today. The memorial is built next to an execution room Hitler built to murder more than 2,800 people with unjust sentences. One of the story's in the memorial is dedicated to Helmuth Hübener, a member of our church. He was 17-years-old and the youngest person to be executed. 

Soil from the different concentration camps was gathered and placed in this vase. There's a very sacred and somber feeling here. 

We had birthday dinner at our favorite German restaurant!! More schnitzel & currywurst. 

I had my longest run of my training scheduled & I did it!! 10 miles, holy cow. I was so proud of myself and my body. Thanks to my support team who called me from home a few times to cheer me on. It was chilly! See the frosty, sweaty condensation on my headband? Ha!

We spent a lot of time right here talking, laughing, and playing MarioKart & SkipBo. It was the perfect balance of being out & inside.

Another highlight was Sunday. We've shared experiences we've had at church & with our ward to our families since we moved here. For James and Gracie to experience it firsthand was special. 

In the last 18 months, our ward has had 40 baptisms. We currently have 4 senior missionaries, 4 elders, and 4 sisters all working to share the Gospel in the Berlin English ward. 

Then we blinked and it was time for them to get back to work and school! The days went by SO FAST. What a blessing it was to spend a whole week of quality time together. Logan's first visit after dropping them off at the airport was to their bedroom. 

We love you Grames!!