As you can imagine our time in South Dakota went by very quickly. It was sad to leave our family in SD but we had our time in Cincinnati to look forward to! Luckily, our flights from Sioux Falls to Cincinnati went smoothly and John and Roseann were there to pick us up!
We went straight from the airport to visit John's sister and her family. (Amy, Greg, Emma and Olivia Dowling) While Emma and Olivia are a few years older than Ella, they were so good with her. The three girls immediately went up to the "play room" and we didn't see them again until we had to call them down for supper. Later in the week, Ella had her first official "sleep-over" with the girls and also went to see them play in a few of their soccer games. She had a blast!
Ella also spent some quality time with grandma and grandpa throughout the week. Feeding the ducks, going to the park, and eating lunch at McDonalds were a few of the highlights. Ella loves to spend time with her grandparents and enjoyed our trip back to the States and the chance to soak in the extra attention.
On Sunday evening John was invited to attend the Red's playoff baseball game with his brother-in-law Greg. Although the Reds lost John was thrilled to see his first Reds game of the year and spend some time with Greg. Thanks Greg!
In the evenings we enjoyed our new family game of five crowns with John's parents. It was a nail-bitter down to the end, but John came out victorious in our 2 week long tourney.
Throughout the time in Cincinnati we enjoyed many of our favorite restaurants (Chick-Fila, Olive Garden), watching college football (OK, that was one of John's highlights), shopping at IKEA, enjoying the beautiful fall weather, and spending time with those we miss and love a great deal.
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Enjoying Grandpa and Grandma Warden
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| Aunt Amy, Uncle Greg and Cousins Emma and Olivia |
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| Cousins! |
We also had the opportunity to visit with many of our friends. It was amazing to see how all of their kids had grown in the past year. There were actually 7 babies born in our Journey community since we have been gone! We also attended our old Tuesday night Bible study group, that is still going strong. We appreciated the fellowship and years of great friendships and spiritual growth. On Saturday evening we attended the community bonfire and enjoyed catching up with many of the couples we have such great memories with. Ella had a wonderful time playing with all the kids she hadn't seen in over a year.
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| Addy |
Squeezed in the middle of our trip was a brief but enjoyable visit from Jennie's good friend Erin. Jennie and Erin spent a year together in Kenya after college and have shared a special relationship ever since. As well, John's good college friend Cam also drove down to Cincinnati for an afternoon. As always, it was good to play a game of frisbee golf, talk about sports, and catch up on life. There is never enough time to spend with friends but we are thankful for the moments we had with important people in our lives.
We were also blessed to spend some quality time with our good friends, Matt and Francesca Jensen. It was a blessing to share good food, fellowship, and some great games of Rook. I won't name names, but I do believe that the females went undefeated the entire time we were home! This was also the first time we had met their son Matteo face to face. Ella and Matteo hit it off. She enjoyed making him laugh. He sure is a cutie.
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| Niederman Farm with Matteo |
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| AHHH...relaxation! |
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Feeding Ducks with Grandma
We had a great time in Cincinnati! The time went by really fast, but it was a blessing to see so many friends and family. It was a good reminder of how many people are at "home" thinking and praying for us. Thanks to all of you who made us feel so welcome while we were home visiting! Already looking forward to the next time!
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