still here

It's been challenging getting to the computer to update our family blog. Our lives have been turned upside crazy (I don't want to say upside down because there really is no "downer") for the past several months. Nine months after moving to Virginia, my parents move. Sounds depressing?! It is. My daddy's position was being done away and luckily was able to find another job... {drum roll} to WASHINGTON .... the state. Friends, sweetly, offered us to move in with them until we could find another home. Several weeks later we find a home 15 minutes north of our old home. Two moves, millions of miles {put on our van}, new schools and we are settled in a home..... far, far away from home [I'm referring to Utah, since that is where our extended families are].

It's been interesting being our own little family. Since Nathaniel and I have been married, we've had someone living with us and several times we've lived with both sets of parents. I absolutely loved having Nathaniel's brother and his wife live with us in Utah {one day we will do it again}. Although we are far from family, across the United States far, Virginia hasn't been bad. East coast living & people are a change from the west, but not bad. Virginia is breath-taking, beautiful during the spring & fall. After growing up in Arizona and moving to Utah, I thought Utah's scenery was lovely... until we moved here.

We are extremely blessed to have sons that are old enough to help with moving. Our friend, Jesse, helped us move into his home. Several weeks later Nathaniel, with the help of Ethan and Isaac, moved again.  (Jesse was out of town).

My children are growing up... growing up fast. I swear that I blinked and Ethan is in 6th grade & becoming a young man. Eeek! I don't feel that old. I know that he was just the sweetest baby in my arms the other day and now he's begging to play Halo Reach or Battlefield 3. {I have to be correct on the games because one day when he reads this, he will correct me}. Ethan is a great kid. I'm saying that partly because he IS my child, but also because many people compliment the kind of kid Ethan is. He is kind and thoughtful. He loves his family and enjoys being around them. He is always happy. He is the kind of example I'm blessed to have for the younger children. He loves his brothers and sister. His mind might be wrapped around video games, but I know his heart is wrapped around his brothers and sister. He is very considerate of me. If I ask him to do something while he's playing his video games, he stops and is right there to help. One night while I was getting Grace into her carseat, Ethan got up to buckle Leo in.

Isaac {aka Jonathan} is a delight in our home. Isaac is caring. He loves to goof around ALOT and can laugh  uncontrollably. Isaac offers to help me clean or will surprise me by straightening up a room. He loves to build forts for Leo and Grace. He gives up his video game playing so that Ethan can play his games. He is sweet and kind to others. He will say he doesn't have friends at school. But if you are with Isaac at school, you will quickly become aware at how well liked he is. He can invision ideas in his head and loves to share those ideas. He has learned that he can use both is arms equally well... throwing, eating. Half way through kindergarten Isaac decided that he wanted to go by his first name, Jonathan. I have always had my suspicions why the change until several days ago I asked. I asked him if he decided to go by Jonathan because of my brother, also Jonathan. Isaac's reply "pretty much". My brother, Jonathan, is in the Army. Isaac was asked to write about a Hero. He chose to write about Uncle Jonathan.

Leo, my little charmer. He is a sweet boy. He tells me that I'm the best mom ever and gives me the biggest hugs. The other night he told me that he loves me so much. I replied back that I love him so much. Next he asked me to buy him a Buzz at Target. He is a smart kid. He will count to 10 in English and Spanish. He knows his letters. He has learned by watching Dora and Super Why. He takes everything in. When I pick up Nathaniel from work, Leo will give Nathaniel the run down of how his day went. Including if we went to a different mall. When I pick up Ethan and Isaac from school, Leo will ask them how their day was. He does this great pouty face... {I secretly think Nathaniel passed it thru his genetics}.

Grace is all girl... she loves to get into my make-up, hair products, shoes, purse, wallet {my bank cards are her favorite}. I've had to replace my mascara because she has taken off with it. She loves phones. She knows how to swipe her finger down the face to unlock it. She will find a way to get what she wants. If she wants to use the computer and there isn't a chair around, she will pull one over. She climbs on and into everything... the coffee table, kitchen table, boxes stacked, my vanity, inside the kitchen drawer, the coffee table drawer, under the sink cabinets. Before I had Grace, people would tell me how whiney girls are. I would always promise myself {and prove to everyone else} that my daughter would not whine. And guess what?! She WHINES. I thought since I had raised boys, I could raise a daughter that didn't whine. But she does. She has this cute way about her when she knows she's in trouble. She will slump her shoulders and put her head down, looking at you through her eyelashes. It's scary to say and my mom prayed it would happen, but I have a daughter just like me!

Several years ago when money was tight, I had the idea to start taking my own school pictures of the kids. Thankfully I had also purchased a nice camera before that.  

I have other pictures that I never posted. I enjoy pretending to be a photographer. It's less money, but very stressful being the lady behind the camera and the frantic mother at once. However, I do enjoy the subjects and love learning new things about my camera and photos. Thanks to 'picnik' for amazing tools to fix my photos.

{Grace ~ July 2011}

{Pictures from the D.C. zoo ~August 2011}




{the large bug is made up of a bunch of bugs}... it was disgusting!

 

{Kids with my parents ~ August 2011}