The end of the visit...

The second to last day of my sister's visit was my niece's birthday. Natalie turned 10 years old on July 27th. I can hardly fathom that she is 10 years old. In some ways it seems like she was just born.

Natalie and I- she was a few months old in this picture.

I moved to California a few weeks before Natalie was born. It's not an exaggeration to say that my sister having a baby was a big part of the reason I moved to California. I have always loved babies. When my sister got married 18 years ago, I pestered her often to have a baby. She always told me that they never wanted to have kids. Years later, their hearts changed though. And Natalie was born. Natalie made my an aunt. She was the light of my life when she born. Honestly. I adored her (and I still do). Luke often worried that I wouldn't love my own children as much as Natalie. I proved him wrong though when Silas was born. :)

I loved having the chance to celebrate Natalie's 10th birthday with her and her family. It was a perfect way to end their visit with us.

Celebrating her birthday with frozen yogurt.
Happy Birthday to a beautiful girl!

The next morning, my sister and family started the drive home. Here are the last few pictures of their visit.

Kieran was fascinated by Levi. He wanted to touch
his face, hug him, kiss him... it was precious.

The best picture of all the kids together...

Yesterday Eliana woke up from her nap and said, "Natalie and Connor here?" Yep, it's true. We wish they were still here. We hope this will become an annual trip. Spending 10 days with my sister and her family was a highlight of my summer!