Our New Place

Come September 21, this lovely house will become our home, and we will bid adieu to apartment living. I am most looking forward to the backyard patio, and when fall begins I'll be out there praising God for cool breezes and seasons of change. I will thank Him, too, that Hannah will finally have a room of her own, that Jaycie will have a big yard to play in, that we'll have more room to entertain in, and that He provided all of it within our new pared-down budget. We are excited and hugely thankful!

Too Cool, First Day of School

My baby's growing up - she's a third grader now, which blows me away. She started school last Wednesday at a brand new school and did a great job transitioning. She's got a wonderful, imaginative spirit and lots of creative energy. She's got her own cool fashion sense and loves Hannah Montana way too much (she quotes the show all the time). We're working on keeping her attitude sweet and her emotions in check. She is very smart and loves to dance, read, write stories, play pretend (she's got lots of children - around 10 at last count, some of whom are adopted), and play Webkins online. She's a great big sister, who makes her little sister laugh her head off and has begun to teach her little tricks. I am proud of Jaycie.

Tagged

First Memory - Being held by my dad and waving at my mom from the parking lot of the hospital, yelling "Whatcha doing up there?" after she'd just had my little sister, Jennifer, and wondering when my new sibling would be able to play chase with me.
First Love - My daddy (of course), but my first crush was Michael McQueary, a dreamy 2nd grader
First Concert - N0-name band: Freeze Frame at Jena High School; name-brand band: Bruce Hornsby & the Range at Harding.
First thought in the morning - "Five more minutes!"
First question you'll ask in heaven - Where's the video vault?
First thought when hearing "vacation" - Vacation, what vacation?
First Best Friend - Kara DeLoach; we were "womb-mates" (our moms were pregnant at the same time)
Last food you ate - Deluxe Fudge Tracks (Kroger brand no-sugar added) ice cream - YUM!
Last CD purchased - Hannah Montana 2 / Meet Miley Cyrus (for Jaycie)
Last good book you read - Maximum Ride: School's Out - Forever by James Patterson (the second in a trilogy about mutant kids with wings - way cool!)
Last time you cried - Last week when I was reminded -- for the umpteenth time -- that life is very complicated and not always fair.
Last time I said "I love you" - This morning when Jaycie left for school and Lee left for work.
Last funny thing you did - Can't remember; Lee's the funny one.
Last T.V. show watched - Monk

Now, Dana and Beth, you're "it."

Hannah Loves Mimi & PawPaw

I think it's been too long since we've been able to see Hannah and Jaycie's Louisiana grandparents. She's all into kissing now, and I caught this on the camera just the other day. In the last pic she's making her "ain't I cute?" nose scrunch.

Sisters Inside & Out

Jaycie loves to play on the balcony, and today Hannah wanted to be out there, too. Instead, they played this sweet game. I particularly like the kiss through the glass.

What's For Dinner?

If You're Ever In St. Louis...

...you must visit the City Museum. It was an awesome adventure and right up Jaycie's alley. I was in complete awe of it's uniqueness; it was like something from a dream. I highly recommend it, but I don't suggest taking a toddler into the labyrinth of the maze system there. Our family almost got stuck in a tight spot with Hannah (a wire "tunnel" that led out of a wire ball - see photo), so Lee and Jaycie went off to explore things while Hannah and I investigated the "safe" spots.

The thrill of the museum (and the scary part for type A folks like me) was that there were no directions, and once you chose a path, there were no instructions on how to get out. Sometimes folks were blocking your way, since there was no in or out signs, and you'd have to back out or squeeze by. Crazy - but way cool! There was a really neat area with strange carnival memorabilia and another spot with tons of architectural ornaments. Everything was decorated in a methodically random way, with castoff items from a million different places. It was amazing!

Find out more here.