Choate Friday

Hi Mom :D

See?  I haven't totally abandoned the blog and run off into the sunset with Facebook.

She misses me posting here.  (Because, you know, it's not like we talk multiple times a week or anything... )  If she'd get on fb she'd know I'm not posting much there either ;D

But the boybarians are growing up, and don't always want their lives splashed across the internet.  (Imagine!  The nerve!)  In fact, Wyatt got his braces off yesterday.  I forced him to stand still for photos and he INSISTED I not put them on the blog!  (But he didn't mention Facebook... bwa ha ha ha ha.)

Also, we've been busy!  Busy with good things!  Like a much-anticipated visit from the Choate family!  Tate and Joanna are way out ahead of me on posting photos, and I'm trying to make up for lost time.  (I'll blame it on the fact that my computer just got updated and I'm having to re-learn how to do EVERYTHING.  And my generation is not exactly "native" to the tech world.  And would you like some cheese with that whine?)

We knew they'd arrive Friday evening, so we strategized about where to put six extra people in a house that normally houses five.  My office morphed into a bedroom for Aaron and Joanna :D

Their son, Benjamin, shared a room with Gunnar, while Tate moved in with Wyatt.  And we put the three girls downstairs in the family room, with their own bathroom.

I was able to borrow two queen-size air beds, and Katherine was really gracious about sleeping on the couch.

With everything ready, it was time to head to the airport.  And wait.

And wait.  And wait some more.

Um, no, their flight wasn't late.
But you know how it feels when you're waiting for Christmas...

And.... they're here!

And all their luggage arrived with them.  Always a blessing.  Way to go, Alaska Airline :D
(Remember when Tate and I visited, and ours DIDN'T?  Good friends will spot you a tooth-brush until yours shows up, right Ann?)

Joanna and I shared photos before they left, and I've grabbed some of Tate's as well, so these are a jumble of all of ours!  We wanted to give them a warm welcome, and I think we got God's stamp of approval... pulled up to the house to see this :D

And thus commenced a glorious visit that felt kind of like a five-night, eleven-person slumber party, with lots of activities each day!

Tate and I had visited the Choates and Hibbards in Arkansas about a year and a half ago.  (You can read about THAT wonderful adventure, starting HERE, if you like), but this was the first time the whole Garrett family and the whole Choate family were all together.  It took a lot of trust for them to bring their jet-lagged, culture-shocked, travel-weary and completely fabulous family and put themselves in our inexperienced and somewhat unknown hands, as they re-entered American culture.

And we're so thankful they did :D

You couldn't ask for better house guests!  But it's so much more than that... Joanna and I originally met through blogging.  Then emailing.  And then the visit in 2015.  I'm so very thankful for the chance to have real, face-to-face time with these friends that usually live so very far away!  And we got to experience again the bond that we have through Jesus, even though our worlds are so different.

More coming as I figure out how to manage the photos... ;D