The Stevens' Family in Dallas

Well, we made it and it has been a tough week for all of us, mostly Addy though. Texas is where we ultimately wanted to end up so we can't complain that Heavenly Father has answered our silent prayers and blessed us with this opportunity. But none of us thought it would be quite so soon after moving to Kansas. We all miss our friends dearly, especially Addy who literally cries spontaneously several times a day because she misses Madeline so much. It's so hard to find a pea from the same pod, then have to part ways. My heart goes out to my sweet daughter and it makes me so sad to see her unhappy. I pray every day that she will find peace and make some new friends quickly. I know Madeline is not replaceable (which I would never even suggest!) but I hope Addy can find someone she likes even half as well.

This week was full of errands, sign-ups, and lots of running around. God bless tele-nav! It has been a life-saver this week. Since our house won't be ready until mid-September, we are staying in an apartment until that time. It's not ideal, but it's only for a few weeks and the kids are being really understanding in that regard. We go check out the house every couple of days to see what's been done, and that's fun to see. We went over today and all the tile has been put in as well as trim work painted, granite set, fence up, and lighting fixtures in place.

Our new ward here in Dallas is the Lake Cities Second Ward. We met so many great people today at church and the kids were thrilled to spend a few hours with kids their age. All 3 were greeted very warmly and seemed to enjoy new teachers and classes. We even got a dinner invite for this evening! Much to our children's dismay, John and I were too exhausted to accept.

All 3 kids have met their school teachers for next year which got them enthused to start school Tuesday. Well, Avery won't start til next week, but she is the most excited of all 3. She will

start preschool and you'd think she was going to Disneyland the way she talks about it.

I got great news on Saturday as well!!! We are pregnant with our fourth!!! Just kidding. That wouldn't actually be great news cuz I'm so done. But I really did get great news. My Kerry is coming to visit me at the end of September!!! It was the best news I could have possibly recieved yesterday after such a crazy, exhausting, and emotionally trying week. I got her text and seriously almost cried. Kerry is one of the those amazing people who lifts your spirits without even trying. It is harder to make friends as you get older and I feel so blessed to have forged the strong bond of friendship that Kerry and I have at this point in our lives. She is like a sister to me in all the good ways. She is just so awesome and even though she is pregnant with her 3rd (BOY!) and will be going into her 6th month, she is coming to visit us. You are the greatest Ker, I love you!!!

Amidst the chaos last week, we were able to do a few fun things. The pool at the apartment is super fun and we did some swimming. We also made a trip downtown to the aquarium. It was awesome! The kids had a blast and there was quite a variety of animals both land and sea. We particularly enjoyed the manatees, river otters, and butterflies. Check out our pictures!

Love you all and will post soon!