And then it was time for goodbye...

 All good things must come to an end... I'm behind on blogging pictures, so hope to catch up on our adventures of the past week soon. But, posting these now, as it was the day to say goodbye to Danielle and Alex. We will miss them!

I'll miss more than my dishes amazingly being done every meal and the children having extra playmates when things got crazy. I'll miss the way they jumped in to help, whether it be carrying bags and children or receiving my grocery orders while I played outside with Hadassah. But most of all I'll miss the friends and sister/brother they've become (since they're only 9-11 years younger, they feel more like a sibling than a niece and nephew!).

It's pretty cool how God works. One of the hardest things in moving overseas was how I knew I'd miss out on many things with family. But then there have been opportunities like this - 6 weeks with this part of my family! - something that would not have happened were we stateside. I am so thankful for my brother and sister-in-law for giving us such a gift this summer!

 Ellie will miss her playmate. :) Alex was so good with babies, doing funny things to make her smile or dancing her around the room when she was fussy and just wanted mommy. They also got her to a steady-standing state - now I don't have to worry about her toppling over (usually!) because she's pretty steady with all the practice they gave her while spotting her!

 Hadassah will especially miss Danielle, who did special activities and outings with her. Just this morning, she made this cute play set out of pipe cleaners! Already Dassah's had fun telling a little story with it about a caterpillar who met a friendly ladybug. :)

This morning while they packed up and walked between apartment buildings, they discovered kittens! One was by itself, and very friendly; Danielle took Dassah out to meet it and they even got to pet and play with it for 20 minutes! While we were waiting for Ryan to call a taxi to take them to the airport, we discovered others. So cute!

 Dassah so so loves animals, and even Ellie was enamored watching them. I joked to Danielle (but didn't say her name): "Do you want to bring a kitten home?" Without missing a beat, Dassah gave an enthusiastic "yes!!" One day, little girl, one day, I hope. Just not while we're living in an apartment... But for now it will be fun to try to watch these grow up outside when we can!

Thank you again, Danielle and Alex! The house seems quieter now. It will be good to be just our little family again, but you will definitely be missed. These memories we've made will last a lifetime! And it will always be fun to be just a little closer to you both as a result of weeks together and tons of late night games of The Golden Ages. :)