January's highlights

In January, 3/4 of the Swillum family (friends in California) visited and we helped celebrate Rose Marie's third birthday. She and Abigial are still best buddies (like their mommies and daddies), despite the long distance and time between visits. It was such fun to see all four little girls together (Abigail - 2, Rose Marie and Autumn Swillum - 3 and 1, and Emmalein Merkle - 18 months. Mom/Grandmama Garner also came for a special weekend visit (while Dad Garner was in Kenya for a two week missions trip!). And "it" snowed! We got several inches. . . Abigail was delighted to see snowflakes falling and was eager to go out to play the next morning, but got nervous after the first crunchy step. Her snowman received most of his admiration from the safety of the back window. Abigail began sleeping in a "big girl bed" (no more crib) in January. Aunt Lydia (Julia's sister) came for a day to make preparations for the TWINS she's expecting this summer. And the our friends the Merkles welcomed a second daughter - Celia. We closed out the month celebrating Nathan/Daddy's [true] 29th birthday.