2015 Catch Up (Botanical Gardens & Katie's birthday)

A lot has happened in my life/our home during the past year and I haven't really wanted to talk about it outside of the family. We've faced a lot of stress, heartache and changes, but the Lord is faithful. At times, I wish I had been more willing to take you on the journey with us, but often words were just not there.  It was easier to not write.  There has been fun along the way, but since I was out of the habit of posting, I didn't share the good times either.

To try and help me get back into writing regularly, I'd like to recap our 2015 highlights so far.
Sound good? Let's see what fun we've had.

I'm actually going to start the recap with a visit to the U.S. Botanical Gardens in Washington D.C. during the last week of December. We visited during the Christmas season to see the amazing natural displays of the iconic architecture of the city. Here are a few of my favorite pieces.

 The Capitol

 The Lincoln Memorial

 The Jefferson Memorial

The Washington Monument 

 The Library of Congress

and three of our favorite people - 

my parents (plaid shirts), and Mark's mom (stripes)

Katie celebrated her 13th birthday, first with family - 

(looks like a future blackmail photo to me!)

Then with friends - 

(fun at the local trampoline place)

Next we were off on a big vacation! Come back tomorrow to see the pictures!