Easter & Conference Weekend

We did our very own Easter egg hunt this year! It's Logan's first year being old enough to understand and get excited about things like this and it was so fun watching him. 

Justin played Easter bunny in the courtyard while we waited for our friends, the Pinders to arrive!

Their kids were so sweet. They had already had an egg hunt earlier and just wanted to help Logan find the eggs. 

Claire, Emery, and Hadley

Logan is in heaven anytime he gets to be with Joey, Greta, and Louie. We're so happy and grateful they moved to Berlin.

We had a Passover dinner with them. That was one of the things on my list to help make Easter special & it was already a tradition for the Pinder family. We put together a grocery list and the meal turned out so good!

It was so fun and special to share it with these guys. How thankful I am for a church that has a built-in community anywhere you go in the world.

Easter morning, I set my alarm and woke up with the sunrise. I think I had a little extra help from Heavenly Father waking up because Emery still wasn't sleeping great at this point.

I read John 20 and pondered what Christ's resurrection means for me. Making our Easter chain & focusing on all of the sacred events around Holy Week made all the difference this year! I felt closer to Christ and heaven. I hope that becomes a tradition for our family. 

Alex, Alex, and Walli came over for breakfast & General Conference. I think this is something we've done together almost every conference for the last three years. <3 With homemade cinnamon rolls of course!

& that afternoon, we cheered on Justin from home. 

A very different-looking Easter than the ones I've been used to growing up. But the Spirit was the same. We were able to focus on Him and what matters most, with friends who feel like family. 

Norman & Birgit & Anneliese

One of Logan's favorite parts of going to the basketball games is sitting by Norman and Birgit. I'm not even sure who said the first hello or how our friendship started, but boy am I so happy and grateful for the relationship we have with them now. 

We were lucky enough to go to their home, meet some of their family, and have a really nice evening together.

I love them! Another blessing from our Berlin experience.

Portugal Film!

I was gifted a disposable camera when Emery was born. Our Portugal trip was the perfect time to use it. I loved looking at the pictures when we got them back. It reminded me of how I felt on the trip. 

Joyful, simple, happy, grateful. SO happy we got to make these memories together!!

Logan & Emery in March

Logan & Emery in March. <3 

Logan: Started saying prayers all by himself, went through a sunglasses phase, decided Rewe croissants might need to be a daily thing, plays with Emery in her "toy" any chance he can get, loves to sing You Are My Sunshine & I Am a Child of God.

Emery: Constantly has socks on her hands = no scratching!, started to smile, sleeping longer stretches in the night, playing under her play mat!

26 Years Old!!

Birthdays and holidays are interesting away from family. I honestly didn't have many expectations for my actual birthday, since Justin headed for Spain right after breakfast. I told myself it would be okay if it was a normal day. BUT, it was actually such a great day and for that, I am so grateful. 

Let me back up to a few pre-celebrations before March 31. 

We went to the Birkenstock store!

I came home from a Relief Society activity to the house decorated everywhere for my birthday. It was such a fun surprise. 

Justin had the day off on March 30, so we drove to Annelies and picked up the best breakfast sandwiches and pancakes we've had in Berlin.

Then we sat down & watched the year-in-review birthday video Justin had put together in the wee hours of the morning after his roadtrip. <3 I'm the luckiest. I watched it over and over again.

That night, I opened presents and a card my parents had sent with my sisters. They've made all of my birthdays feel so special. 

The morning of March 31, Logan and Justin serenaded me with Happy Birthday and I got to blow out my candle three times thanks to Logan's request of "again, again!"

Flowers were left on our doorstep from a friend. 

Marlies and Ludwig came over and visited, leaving shortbread cookies. 

Then around lunchtime, our doorbell rang and I heard a familiar voice say, "Amazon!"

Not one birthday, but TWO have these ladies come and made me feel so special. I opened my door to them singing Happy Birthday, Brazilian style, with beautiful flowers & a cake in hand. 

This was the highlight of my day. It takes a lot of quality time to develop friendships and show people all sides of your personality. Over the last three years, Claudia, Timna, Tabi, and Tawana have become very dear friends to me. I think they're some of the only people who know how goofy Justin and I can really be. Ha!

I cried when I saw them. We ate yummy nutella strawberry cake, played with Logan, watched my birthday video, and I just felt so loved. 

I felt so loved too by lots of family members and friends, who called, texted, shared pictures, sent money for treats, etc. all the way from across the ocean. 

I'm grateful for my two babies who also give me so much love and joy. 

& this guy, who is my #1 forever and ever. It was a great #26 birthday. <3