Some of her Favorite things...

Marie loves to "color". She asks to do it any time she sees something to draw with or something she thinks she can draw with or on.She also loves her big brother and likes to follow him everywhere. It's a good thing he likes her too!
And finally she LOVES kitties! Her vocabulary is amazing for a 16 month old and has been amazing for quite some time. She constantly surprises me with what she'll say. While we were in Texas, at 14 months old, she said things like: button, plobably(probably), Gran, Grandad, and many many more words very clear the first time out of her mouth. I was totally shocked at her ability to instantly reproduce accurately the sounds/words she heard, remember them and use them correctly. She continues to amaze me even now. At 15 months she was saying "I get/want/need that". And although this doesn't fit in the Texas posts... At 16 months she can say...


Translation... Where are you? Come here kitty!

A few of his Favorite things...

Sourcream, Yes he is licking out the container and yes I did feed him previous to this so he shouldn't have been hungry. This is after dinner. :)
Climbing (and Maja),
And TRAINS!!!Here he is posing for a picture and waiting anxiously for me to be done.

So Cute!

There's really not much else to say! :)

Having a ball

...because that's exactly what they did in more than one way. I'll just let you scroll down and see for yourself.

Gran showed Sam he could climb inside...
And let it shrink...
So much fun! I love the smile!
So much fun inside!
Getting stuck.
Starting to get worried because he can't seem to get out.
Help from Gran is always welcome.
Marie was quite interested in it also and agreed to be put inside the ball...
Then she wasn't so sure about it. :) And yes, I was laughing.
It's definitely more interesting from the outside.

Oh how I miss it...

Ok, so I have to admit I hadn't planned on wiping our computer and putting most things back on. Unfortunately it took a while and then I just didn't jump back into blogging. Arnold did a great post for Easter but I'll have to add to that later since I promised the yummy lunch next...

I have to admit, I really miss a good Texas Bar-B-Que! So My dad decided to take us out for some since we didn't have time to smoke some meat when we got back from the temple.
This is my friend, Maja, who came with me to keep me sane on the flight over. It was her first time having ribs and I have to admit we had a little lesson on eating ribs before taking this picture. Otherwise it would have looked more like the next one.I think I've never seen a Texan eat a chopped brisket sandwich with a knife and fork... but hey she's German and it's amazing to watch them use a knife and fork. It's almost like a dance. We Americans struggle with the back and forth while they just eat with both the whole meal. Kinda cool.
And finally what post is not complete without at least one picture of a smiling little kiddo. :) And who wouldn't smile with so much yummy food in front of you?

Easter 2010

"But there is a ^aresurrection, therefore the grave hath no victory, and the sting of ^bdeath is swallowed up in Christ." -Mosiah 16:8

Together with the rest of Christendom we celebrate the atonement of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

He suffered and died that we might live. We are very grateful to him.

As the world turns to spring, and the promise of renewed life, Mandi and I enjoyed spending this easter time with our family, teaching, learning and playing with our Children of the importance of what our Savior did for us.

Here are just a few pictures of our children on Easter.

Houston Texas Temple

WARNING! More pictures than usual in this post! I just couldn't pick our a few.

And...Just for anyone who is curious... The next several or more posts will be of our trip to Texas so I hope you enjoy my pictures of the place I'll always call home! :)

To start, this trip to the temple was just for fun and to show a friend of mine the Houston Texas Temple. We walked around until little people were slowing down and we were needing to eat. This is Marie getting my attention to show me the tiny flowers she found and looked at for at least 10 minutes.

Sam was running wild and giving Grandad a great warmup for his soon to come exercise when he realized Marie wasn't with him and there was something exciting going on without him. He quickly came to join the fun and discovered a few things himself that Marie couldn't quite get.
Triumph! The prize has been won! And Marie decides to move on...
I love the JOY in this little face even if you are looking at the side. We should all enjoy the wind, water, outdoors and life this much!
More cute faces and splashing in water.
Sam was convinced the fountain water was the only thing to drink within miles. He seems to have survived the experience since we couldn't get him to stop. :) Marie was just not quite able to get it and I was pretty happy about that since I knew it would be followed by a very wet Marie.
Wishing it weren't out of reach. Plotting on how to get in on the fun.
The oh so fascinating water. I think about 1/3 of the time was spent looking at it or playing in it. :)
An attempt at getting in...
Stopped but not giving up. There is a lot of determination in this little gal.
An easier way to keep track of Sam than chasing after him for hours.
I think Sam would live upside down if given the chance.
And that finishes the Temple pictures...More soon of the lunch to follow! :) Mmmmm...Yummy!