Fun in Seattle

Mia and Ella look so similar as babies that it's really fun to dig up some old pics for comparison. The pics above are from a visit we had with my brother's family 4 years ago with cute little 2 yr old Luke and Mia (at 6 months) and the pics below of course are from our trip at the end of September with again Luke (wearing ironically enough the same color tee shirt) but this time with Ella.

Cute little Mercedes feeling so sad about not being Big Enough.

Mia was very inspired by Luke and his Bike Riding abilities and I was amazed how fast she was pedaling on her little bike. We took a walk to the park and while coming down a hill and across a cross walk Erik said Mia came up on the curb and went right over her handle bars! Thankfully she didn't hit her head because as you can see I am the awesome Mom who remembered to pack the bike but forgot all the safety gear!.

Cute Jodi! We never seem to take pics of the adults so I have to throw these in. :)

Mercedes and the girls Dressing up and Posing!

Lance had a conference he had to attend at Purdue the weekend of his Birthday and it worked out nicely that he was able to fit in a Game night with his friends from Purdue, Go see the Purdue vs. Notre Dame football game, and hang out with our good friends and neighbors from Indiana who were so nice to throw a little party for him. The girls and I were sad to not be able to tag along but living close to family now, it's a nice consolation that we can stay in Seattle for the weekend and hang out with my family. For this trip we stayed with my Brother Erik and my sister-in-law Jodi and had a blast just hanging out. The girls just played and played, Ella LOVED watching the kids run circles around her, and Maddi decided she wanted to be a big girl and use the potty sporadically throughout the trip (funny how they always pick the most awesome times for things like this!)

My only regret was having to visit my sister Jen in the hospital rather then at her home. For those who know her and haven't heard, she just recently had Brain Surgery to remove a cavernous malformation that was causing her to have some really debilitating symptoms. The surgery went well and she is now in recovery (which is slow process) but we're glad she is recovering. The week I went to Seattle she had just been admitted to the hospital and they had just decided to do the Surgery so it worked out well that I was able to see her once before.