A HUGE thank-you to all of those who made our trip home so special! We have arrived back in Amsterdam safely and are getting back into our routines again.
We had such an amazing vacation back home - family, friends, fun and lots of beautiful weather! Our 2 weeks were very busy and went by far too fast. We had a fantastic time at Abby's cousin Jill's wedding and were so lucky to be a part of Jill and Derek's special day and wish them lots of love as their married life begins. It was a great opportunity to see as many of the Weatherheads as we could as well.
Speaking of weddings, we were able to get quite a bit done for our own wedding while we were home (many people have asked, so we figured we'd give an update). We are starting to get more excited for our big day, even though it is still more than 1 year away. We have been so blessed with help from our moms especially, but also for the willingness of our friends and family to help with the planning, since there is only so much we can do while abroad.
A few fun things from when we were home aside from the above mentioned wedding (which was a BLAST):
-Dan had his first experience driving a riding lawn mower while mowing the LaVoies' yard and loved each minute of it:
-We got to visit with all of our Grandparents - many thanks to all of them for everything they have done and for all of their support! We wouldn't be where we are now without all of their prayers.
-We had our engagement photos taken. It was a great experience! However, it was a very windy night and the gale force winds caused the sand on the beach to put a bit of a damper on our comfort level. On the bright side, we are sure the photos will turn out great AND we were nicely exfoliated by the sand pelting our skin!
- We were able to spend a few days at Dan's parents' boat in Grand Haven. There's something so comforting and relaxing about sitting on the boat and feeling the rocking of the waves during the day and while sleeping. After being away from the boat for so long, it did take a few hours to get our "sea legs" back though!
- Finally, many thanks to all of the below people for making the time to see us during our visit (aside from those previously mentioned):
*Our welcoming crew at the airport: Grandma Rita, Aunt Sarah, Aunt Denise
*Denise and Blair Dame
*Mary and Chris Overbeek
*Meg and Mike Novi
*Mark and Jodi Richhart
*Michelle and Chad (and Baby Brayden) Morrow
*Aly and Nick Dondzila
*Our colleagues from the Booking.com Grand Rapids office (special thanks to Kim Dryer and Ken LaRoche for organizing)
Last - but certainly NOT least - major thanks to our parents and immediate families for making our stays so great (and also for giving us places to stay!) We are so blessed to call you family and you all made this vacation so incredibly memorable. Words cannot express our gratitude for all the support each and every one of you has shown! We love you all!
LaVoies (Mom & Dad, Nate, Molly and Neil):
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| Feel free to make up your own story of what is going on in this picture... |
Hillarys (Mom & Dad, Monica & Bryan):
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| This photo was taken for a campaign brochure for Dan's dad, who is running for re-election for Kent County Probate Court...RE-ELECT JUDGE HILLARY! |
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| No comment necessary. |
Thanks again to everyone! We'll keep you all updated on our journey and are so glad so many of you are able to follow us. Keep the comment coming - we love them!
