Yes, We Did Go to Vienna!

It seems like if we truly were in an awesome place like Vienna that we'd surely have posted some pictures by now, don't you think?  Well, not really much of an excuse from here other than that being gone for nearly five weeks (Colorado family vacation/family reunion immediately prior to the four-week time in Vienna) takes a LOT of catch-up time when you return home!  But alas, I'm finally going to try to do this and share some of my very favorite pictures from Vienna with all of you.

First, though, a couple of Colorado pictures:

 

While we were at Rainbow Lake, Drew and Carrie (along with Drew's parents from North Carolina) stopped by for an evening's visit with all of us.  We were really thankful it worked out that we were in Colorado at the same time all the Shaffers were vacationing in Colorado.  That made for some very special time for Drew and Carrie to connect with Grandpa and Grandma as well as Uncle Larry and Galena and Aunt Ann.

And here's our traditional Rainbow Lake photo of the gang!

 

 

 

After returning to Leoti, we had a great weekend of my high school reunion and a big Miller extended family reunion with around 80 cousins in attendance.  That was really special!

 

 

We had about a two-day turn-around at home before we flew to Vienna.  Our main goal in going was to be of help to Gregory, Kim, and Nathanael as they moved from their temporary home to their permanent apartment and as they received their shipping container of household goods that we had sent on its way to them in mid-July.  Gregory and Kim and Dick spent most of the first week we were there picking up some purchased items at IKEA and delivering them as well as some items that were purchased second-hand from a family who was returning to the States.  Of course, almost all of this had to be assembled, and the second-hand items had no instructions so some of this took a r-e-a-l-l-y l-o-n-g time to figure out and complete!  But the end results were really great functional pieces for the kids.  Now I'll have you know that while all of this was happening, I, too, was very hard at work -- my responsibilities included playing with Nathanael!  We had an absolutely delightful time, and that continued for me for the whole four weeks I was there.  Dick actually had to return home after ten days in Vienna for work.  We moved from the temporary house to the apartment actually before the overseas container arrived, and we were very settled in by the time it came.  There were strong guys from the kids' church who helped immensely in unloading the container and moving all the belongings up to the 6th-floor apartment.  Then followed a few days of unpacking and setting up the apartment.  During all of this time, Nathanael and I spent lots of time outdoors at a few nearby fun parks, playing and generally staying out of the way.  I'll have you know, though, that I did help unpack some stuff, etc., during naps and after Nathanael's bedtime!  As my time came to an end, I was so thankful I'd been able to be there and help but also that I was able to have a very clear picture of the neighborhood, the church, the community, etc., where the Kings now call "Home"!

 

And now, a few pictures of my favorite things in Vienna:

Playing with Grandpa!

Happy Giggles!

Cheesy Grins!

Every boy needs a John Deere (or two or three)!

Tickles and Hugs!

Walks!

Parks and Ponds!

Tickling Mr. Bear!

A trip to the zoo!

The grounds at Schonbrunn Palace

Tired Nathanael and Grandma on the train ride home!

One of the many, many, many green spaces in Vienna!

My precious grandson!

Mozart -- one of Vienna's claims to fame

Are you catching a pattern here? 

My favorite things in Vienna are the people who are there!

Like father, like son; notice that Nathanael has his ankles crossed just like his daddy!

I love it!

Nathanael's "zoo"

Not me, the animals!

A picture from what we call "Jeep Park" -- this ones for you Uncle Drew. 

The whole vehicle is on suspensions so you can actually make it bounce and jolt around like a real ride!

Jeep Park also has an awesome water feature that offers hours of play for little boys.  I love the smudge of "joy" on his brow!

And my final evening in Vienna, we went for ice cream -- that boy loves raspberry yogurt.  In fact, he's rather reluctant to let anyone even have a taste of his!

 

It was an amazing time in Vienna, and we look forward to many visits to come when indeed we will probably see more of the traditional sites of this lovely city! 

(But my favorites will always remain my family!)

 

Thanks for taking this lengthy journey with us!