Stateside III

Our last stop in the States was Cincinnati to see my family!  It was the first time I'd seen my family in 18 months, which is for-ev-er!  Molly, my sister, was home the whole time we were there so we got to spend a lot of quality time with her. 

And, for one last recap, here are some photos from the iphone...

 

Ryan's fav Cincinnati hotspot

 

 outlet shopping

my dad's pina coladas, yum.

 the local dairy whip, my favorite, the 'little league'

 a new vintage store in town! 

 lots of cornhole

 we even made it to Kings Island!

 yay for no lines!

 we were able to see more college friends that live in Cincy

 family boat cruise

 my family in town before the Reds game

 the Reds game!

I miss baseball

and fireworks after the game

and, on our last night, we celebrated my birthday!  27!

Stateside II

So, the main event, the reason we were in the States - the wedding!  It was so fun and I think everyone had a blast.  Sara and Travis got married on the 16th, and it was a beautiful and hot day.  Everything was beautiful, and we were so thrilled to be part of their day!  And so thankful to be able to come home!

Again, a few pics from my iphone...

 the barn reception.

 Jenae and I 

 some family dancing...

and a nice rainbow to end the day!

Stateside

Ryan and I had such a great trip to the States!  We enjoyed great time with our families, friends, and the warm/hot summer.  As much as we love everyone in New Zealand, it was definitely hard to get on that plane to come back.  Three weeks flew by, and we were grateful for the great sunny and warm/hot weather we had the whole time!  Great catch up with friends, time by the pool, meeting for work, and of course a beautiful wedding!

Here are some pics I took with Instagram while we were in Indiana...

 Indians game with our old Bible study!

 Baseball and hot dogs!

 visiting Ryan's grandpa in Brazil, IN

 bonfires

 sweet friends

 Um, Walmart!

dinner with college friends

exploring small town Indiana!

 wine tasting

 Ivanhoe's!

chocolate chip pretzel shake

wine and canvas night with the Sawrie ladies

visiting my favorite place in Lafayette!

Ms Katie Beeh!

Purdue

 our old home, 344

Kent and Melinda

some pool time

 and David and Kati!

Women's Retreat

 A few weeks ago we had our men's and women's retreats!  We had about 20 girls come to The Street City Church and spend the night.  It was great to meet all of the new girls involved in Bible studies!  We made pizzas in the kitchen and then dessert pizzas - which actually turned out pretty gross...  Our method needs some refining :)

Here are some pictures of all the ladies...

 Sarah, Joane, and Amy

 Amy and a few new Bible study ladies

 Bronwyn and her new friend

 Harriet and Pearl

 Sara, Kudzi, Melissa and Emma

Zoe, Theresa, Ailsa, Rachel and Grace

After the pizza making adventure, we hung out all evening and just had fun.  The next morning Lauree and I both gave talks about serving and loving one another.  It was such a fun time, and I am always reminded of how grateful I am to have such wonderful women involved in Student Life!