We had a great week visiting with Lauren’s family in West Virginia. The weather was virtually perfect, we got to play a lot with the kiddos, and we enjoyed good food and good conversations.
Apart from the regular visits to their house to play in the woods and build with legos, we did a couple of outings. One day, we went to the library in Parkersburg to play with their fun toys and to check out a pile of books. The kids enjoyed the marble run, fish tank, and legos. Then we went to lunch at a great local place, Der Dog Haus. Another day, Lauren had some business to take care of in Columbus, so we rode along. In addition to the errands, we took time for the Legoland Discovery Center and the kids loved playing and building. Huck liked climbing in the play area and riding the amusement ride. Piper did not like the person dressed as a Lego minifigure.
We took a scenic drive on a Scenic Byway through the beautiful autumn colors and saw some covered bridges. Then, we were lucky to be around for the ward’s Fall Festival. The Primary Presidency was in charge, which is pretty much a pack of Bauserman ladies, so it was fun to help them get set up and then watch the fun commence. They had a bounce house, pony rides, and games for the kids. Everyone enjoyed hot dogs and the like for lunch. It was a real treat to visit the site of our niece Sarah’s future house, since they hosted the party in the field there.
Today also happened to be the final practice for the Primary children before their Sacrament Meeting Program next week, so we got the sneak preview. Huck knows pretty much all the words and did a great job on his part. There was a great little string ensemble consisting of kiddos (2 violins and 5 cellos) accompanying a song, so that was fun. Piper even got to sing for that one, too. So cute! Lauren and Bo cooked up a feast of bbq ribs for Sunday dinner and it was delish.
Now it’s back to St. Louis for a few weeks. We have our own place booked for a bit so that we are close to Alex’s family without being too disruptive to their regular groove. We are looking forward to seeing them! Have a great week!
Paradise
Happy October! We hope you are enjoying this beautiful time of year! Some people dream of paradise on a quiet tropical beach, listening to the surf with a drink in hand. Not this girl! Give me mountains, especially drenched in autumn color, bursting with new spring leaves, or covered in snow. We are spending October in one of our favorite places–Big Cottonwood Canyon just east of the Salt Lake Valley. We are loving the gorgeous golden aspen with the deep pine greens. Hiking is great and so is the smell of fresh forest! Nathan’s sister, Liz, and her husband, Christian, joined us one morning for a lovely hike through the woods. We got to experience a powerful thunderstorm and then a full day of snowfall. Our condo for the month is just right for us and we love having access to a pool, hot tubs, sauna, and workout facilities. We especially like that we can pop back to the valley to do some shopping or see family and friends. So far, so good!
Fun Family Time
We have had a lovely couple of weeks in Utah. We’ve been able to rest and recover from five months of travel, help Nathan’s mom at her house, and spend time with family.
Full Circle
Five months ago we flew to Rome from Utah. We had a summer of trying new places and experiences and revisiting old favorites and now we’re back where we started. Since we get the question a lot, I thought I would share some of our favorites from our travels in Europe this year.