This past weekend, Lily and Derek had a five day weekend, and to make it even better, my amazing niece, Madeline, came to visit. She is going to BYU and is getting married this April, and so it was a last chance to have her to ourselves before the wedding.
She arrived late Friday night, and the two of us stayed up way too late catching up. Saturday morning, the kids woke up to find her there. They were so excited. She came with us to their basketball games, which was very fun, and a soon as we got home, the kids put her straight to work playing with them :). First, they had her play Wipeout on the Kinnect.
Lily and Derek loved getting to spend time with her, and she read them stories, played games with them, and just listened to anything and everything they had to say.
Saturday afternoon, we all went out to get frozen yogurt at one of the places where you can put whatever toppings on it that you want. The kids thought it was amazing :). And after Lily and Derek were in bed, Madeline and I stayed up late, once again, watching a movie and talking about her wedding plans. It was way too much fun :).
You see, Madeline has always been like a little sister to me, since although I have four older sisters, I never had a younger one. Ever since she was little, I have loved doing things with her, and I am so glad that we have just gotten closer over the years.
On Sunday, it was the first Sunday of my new calling at church as the Primary Chorister. I was very nervous, but as always, as soon as I got in front of all the kids, I felt right at home. I am always brought right back to when I taught school. I loved being with the kids again, and I had a wonderful time.
After church, Madeline and I decided to make a special treat for Family Home Evening, a chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake. I had been wanting to make it for a while, and it was the perfect opportunity. Unfortunately, we didn't take into account how long it had to chill afterward, and so instead of dessert on Sunday, we had it for breakfast on Monday :).
It was worth the wait though :).
Madeline flew out on Monday afternoon, and so we decided to show her a little of the area first. We took her to Garden of the Garden of the Gods.
When we first got there, the weather was gorgeous, but after going down the trail a bit, the wind picked up, and all of the sudden it was freezing. We hurried back to the car and decided to look at the rest of the park inside the warmth of the van. While we were driving around, a herd of deer crossed the road right next to us. We stopped and I took some pictures out the window - it was so cool :).
After we were finished, I took her to Rudy's BBQ for lunch. It was the perfect way to end a wonderful visit.
The kids and I were very sad to see her go, as it was so wonderful to have her here. It is crazy to think that the next time we see her, it will be at her wedding. So exciting :).
You have some wonderful people in your life- sweet
Great pictures
Posted by: teresa | February 27, 2012 at 09:48 AM
Oo! That cheesecake looks delicious! I'm looking forward to seeing you in April, if it all works out. I've got it in my calendar and everything. Take care!
Posted by: Melissa W. | February 24, 2012 at 10:06 PM
Once again behind on blogging, but getting caught up. What a fun couple of days with your niece. And that cheesecake looks SO good!!! Yum! Glad you are doing well.
Posted by: Rachel | February 23, 2012 at 05:40 PM
ummmm. are you going to be sharing the recipe for that cheesecake? It looks so yummy!
Posted by: Jill | February 22, 2012 at 01:27 PM