God bless the broken road

We made it! I am sure telling the whole story of our move will require more than one post, but here's something to get you started. After being in Albuquerque for Landon's birthday, my parents took a side trip to Colorado so they could return to New Mexico to help us with the move. Last Friday, the packers came to start packing everything up. I have never had the luxury of being packed. It was a weird experience just sitting around while two guys spent 7 hours putting all of our stuff into boxes. The next day my mom and I loaded up the kids into my car and took off for Oklahoma City with my dad following closely behind. It was all exciting and fun for about the first hour, then the reality of the trip set in and time seemed to stop. After a few pit stops we completed our 10 hour day at a hotel to rest up for the remainder of the trip. On Sunday we competed our journey with another 5 hours in the car. We ended up putting Presley in the truck with my mom and dad and I had Landon in my car. I never thought separating a 3 1/2 year old and a 1 year old would be necessary but it definitely was. After two long days on the road, we unloaded and started to take in that we were home. I am so excited that a return trip doesn't await us in a few days. Jon is currently making the drive with Winston as he had to stay behind to supervise the loaders. He should be here tomorrow. We are set to close on the house on Wednesday and move in on Friday. Is this really happening?!?!

A special thanks to my parents for being away from home for 3 weeks. We could't have done this without your help and sacrifice. Welcome to full-time grandparenthood! 

Here's a picture of my backseat when we moved to Lubbock almost 6 years ago...

And now...

wrapping things up in ABQ

After Landon's birthday, Jon was heading to a conference in Baltimore so my folks stuck around to help me with the kids. We finished up VBS, had Landon's birthday pictures taken and went to a neighborhood ice cream party. I can't believe it's almost time for us to move (again). The movers come to pack us up on Friday and then load and start their journey to Arkansas on Monday (July 30). We are so excited about this next chapter in our lives. It's been 10 years in the making and I can't tell you how proud I am of Jon. We have been so blessed along the way and have had the opportunity to live in two wonderful places and meet countless friends along the way. Here's to surviving the next few weeks and the amazing life that awaits us in Little Rock.

vbs

The church we have been attending offered a morning vacation bible school for kids ages 3-5. This was our first experience with vbs and we definitely made some great memories. There were 24 kids signed up so I volunteered to help out a few days and had some memorable moments myself. On Monday, I had the pleasure of taking all 11 boys to the bathroom before snack time. Having only experienced potty time with a little girl, I was quite the novice at being with the boys. I guess it's good practice for potty training Landon. On Tuesday, we had a little guy get sick and I ended up being on the receiving end of a tummy full of throw up. I managed to survive the rest of the week without any additional "memories". The kids performed Friday night and again on Sunday morning. With each performance, Presley sang louder and louder. It was really a sweet moment watching her singing about God's love and I hope she will remember this special week.

Operation Overboard

Paradise Hills United Methodist Church

July 2012

And of course we have to go for ice cream after such a stellar performance...

fun in the sun

Grammy and PawPaw came out the weekend before all the birthday festivities and we had so much fun playing at the spray park, going to the Museum of Natural History and catching an Isotopes baseball game.

I love the look he is giving in this picture.

so much fun to be ONE

We celebrated Landon's 1st birthday on July 11. I can't believe it's already been a year. We invited everyone out to Albuquerque for a family party. It was a 3 day celebration that started with presents on Monday night, a trip up the Sandia Peak Tram and dinner on Tuesday night and the official birthday on Wednesday. Happy Birthday to the sweetest boy I know!

 So serious, even on his birthday.

 Here comes the tram.

Cupcake Wars...

old blue eyes

June means it's time for our annual photo session. And to think I used to think it was hard to get one kid to corporate! The photographer wasn't that great this time around and we didn't buy many photos but it was still a great way to mark another year in our lives.