Full Circle.

We made it to Arizona safely. In one piece. No problems. What a blessing! The girls did great the entire trip! I can say this because they weren't in my car. The uhaul had a bench seat so both of the older girls opted to ride with Chris the entire trip. He was a great sport about it and I think, for the most part, they all enjoyed spending time together. It was a bit of a lonely drive for me, Evyn, and Ginger but we all did great.

We started packing up Wednesday evening. The missionaries came to help for a little bit. And by the time the truck was packed and ready to go it was 2am. It was a long night- especially considering most of our house was already packed up because we never unpacked it AND we started a few weeks ago. We all slept on our mattresses and they were the last to get packed Thursday morning.

It was weird to have a normal schedule for Thursday with an empty house. Elodie had her last day of school and Easter party and Chris had to work until 4pm. The guys he work with were really great about this transfer and the office threw him a little going away party. Very nice. I asked him to take a picture of his desk before he packed it all up. I think he was feeling a little sentimental otherwise he would have just rolled his eyes at me!

I took the little girls up to the school to help with the Easter party and help Elodie clean out her desk. It was sad to leave but I won't say we weren't more excited to come home to Arizona!

Once Chris made it home and we had passed off the keys to the new home owner we were all set to go!


Last picture of the girls sitting outside the townhouse we rented for a year. We loved the little subdivision we lived in. Great for bike riding!


It was so weird leaving Corpus Christi knowing that (crossing our fingers) we will never go back there again! We had spent our entire time there hoping for an opportunity to move home and now that it is here it felt so weird! Almost not real!

We stayed the first night in San Antonio. Drove all day on Friday. Stayed the night in New Mexico Friday night and landed in Gilbert around 4pm on Saturday.

This was my view the entire trip.


The girls and Chris. They had so much fun riding in that moving truck!


My little riding buddy.


We (Mace and Chris) unloaded the truck in to a storage facility, we had dinner at Mace and Melissa's house, and returned the uhaul.

We let the girls ride their bikes in the parking lot of the storage unit.

EK was just happy to sit on a towel! She was so happy to be out of her carseat!


We are so grateful to be home and feel so blessed that we were able to come home so quickly!

A few fun facts.

-I would say half of our stuff never got unpacked when we moved to Texas. There were a few items that got packed in Arizona and never left the spot we put them in when we moved to Texas. Full circle.

-We left Arizona to go to Texas on April 6th of 2011. One year exactly.

-We returned the uhaul and rented a storage facility at the same place we took a uhaul from when we left Arizona to go to Texas.

-We had dinner at Mace and Melissa's the night before we left Arizona last year and we had dinner with them tonight when we came home.


Craziness. It all feels very surreal. Like we never left but we have been gone for a year. I can not say enough how grateful we feel to be home.

Wordless Wednesday {Moving Edition}

Where to start....

We were in Arizona all of last week. The original trip was scheduled as a week getaway to spend time with friends and family. Shortly before we left, the trip turned into a tour of the office, looking at houses, and pinching ourselves that what we were hoping for a year ago is actually happening.

Backing Up.

Back in October the engineering firm that Chris works for posted his job description in one of their Phoenix offices. They have offices all over the United States, 2 in Phoenix.

We weren't really sure how to approach it since we had only been in Texas 6 months. We really didn't think the office here would let Chris transfer. We decided to not worry about it until after our trip to New Orleans with Mace and Melissa.

While we were in New Orleans we told Mace and Melissa about the position and immediately Melissa talked Chris into emailing his boss about the position. I really give Melissa a lot of credit because I tried to get Chris to send an email and he wouldn't. Apparently, Melissa sold it better than I did!

Chris sent the email, his boss immediately emailed him back, and the ball started rolling.

It was a rollercoaster from there. One day they were going to make a decision by the end of the week, the next day they hadn't decided anything. One minute we thought we would be back in Arizona before Thanksgiving. The next we were hoping it wolud be by the end of the school year. It was a crazy couple of months of not really knowing much at all. We didn't really want to plant our feet here in Texas because of the potential of moving but it was driving us crazy because we wanted it so badly!

FINALLY, a few weeks ago, we found out that Christopher got the job! It was a crazy mix of emotions. Before we made this move last year we hoped that taking this job would eventually land us back in Arizona. We assumed that it would take a couple of years. Never did we imagine we would be here less than a year when the opportunity would come.

It's a huge blessing for us. A direct answer to our prayers. I feel very humbled by this experience.

I've done my fair share of complaining. It was the #1 conversation between me and Christopher. And while we gave a good effort we always knew this was not it for us.

And I feel so thankful that Heavenly Father has answered our prayers in letting us return to Arizona AND allowing Chris to stay with the same firm.

So now our little Amazing Race begins.

I mentioned a few post back that the townhouse we are renting sold and the new owners come in on the 1st of April. And while most of our stuff never left the box it came from Arizona in, there is still a ton to do.

We also have no idea when we are actually moving to Arizona. The office there wants Chris by the 15th of April however the office here needs to decide when they will actually let Chris hand projects over to someone else.

We could be moving this weekend back to Arizona, when we have to be out of our townhouse, or we will stay another 2 weeks and move in to an extended stay hotel while Chris wraps up projects here.

It's crazy to have the feeling that we know we are moving but we just don't know where yet!

It's a good stress though. A few minor setbacks to get us back to an area we want to be in. I won't complain.

We are also trying to figure out where we will live in Arizona. We want to buy a house but know we will need a few weeks once we get there for that to happen. Hoping we find a house we love immediately. We have started looking at houses, gotten a realtor, and are in the process of getting our loan in place.

We have always wondered how we would do on the show The Amazing Race. I'm pretty sure this last year and the next few weeks to come will be a good indication!

Wish us luck!

Embrace The Camera

Every Wednesday at our house is library day.

I didn't go to the library nearly as often as I should have when Elodie was younger and it was just the 2 of us. She was 4 before we started going on a regular basis where as Addysen has known the library since she was born. The perks of being second come in spurts sometimes.

The library here is a tender mercy for me. There is very little I love about being here in Texas. Which doesn't mean much as there is very little I LIKE about being here in Texas. The list stops after Christopher's job....

I am by no means trying to get sympathy comments. As a family we are happy and healthy and for that I am extremely grateful. This is, however, a part of our reality and my job to document it so we can go back in 5 years and realize how great the whole scheme was.

So there.

Back to the library. When we moved here, and after things settled down, I realized how very much we were starting over. I cried over little things...."How do I EVEN get to the library!?! I don't even know where it is!"

And then the heavens opened and I found the library. And it wasn't hard to find. And it was close. And brand new. And had row and rows of kid books. And because the library was brand new...the books were brand new too! I was in love.

And after every Wednesday trip I had a new story to tell Chris.

How the book that everyone in Arizona was on the wait list for I got without having to put my name on any list.

There is never ANYONE there. With the exception of one or two people using the computers. There. Is. Never. Anyone. There.
We have the entire building to ourselves.

The shelves are always packed. And they have a section of books fresh from UPS.

In the summertime in Arizona the shelves are ALWAYS bare. As they should be. Not here. I'm wondering now if I should boast about this as it means not many people are checking them out. Their loss. My gain.

The summer reading program was AMAZING! So many awesome prizes to keep the girls motivated including a free ticket to the circus!

One time I was looking for a photography book and the library didn't have it. The guy working the front desk was trying to help me find it but was having no luck. I shrugged my shoulders and said it was no big deal. The next week when we went back to the library that very book was waiting for me! Still. In. The. Wrapper. A $80 book ordered just for me! Christopher cut his eyes at me on this one assuming I was flirting with the guy to get the book....but I didn't!

Just last week I went with a list of books I wanted to check out. They didn't have 3 of the ones I wanted and immediately asked me if I wanted them ordered.

I am so grateful for this library. I don't think I could have handled it if we had gotten here and there was no library. Or a junky library. Which could have been worse than no library at all.

I'm so grateful for this one day out of the week that my girls and I can go to the library. To enjoy a nice clean space all to ourselves.

I love reading. I have so many vivid memories of reading as a child. Going to the library with my own mom and brothers. And having a love affair with the library in college. I was just telling Chris the other night how I would pack my journal around with me. I would find a cubicle in a corner and in between studying or doing homework I would make time to write in my journal. I loved it so much that after I graduated and moved back home I would still take time to stop at the library after work, find a cubicle in the corner, and write in my journal.

I love the library here. And every time we are there, I say a silent prayer thanking my Heavenly Father for this little tender mercy.

The rest I am still trying to figure out!


And bonus! There wasn't a single person around to give me crazy eyes when I pulled out my camera and took some timer pictures of me and the girls reading together!

Addysen's Preschool.

I REALLY wanted to put Addysen in preschool this year. But it didn't happen. I looked around for a preschool close enough to Elodie's school and our house but everything I found was more like a daycare or mother's day out program. Neither I really wanted. No one in our ward taught preschool out of their home and overall it was making me homesick. Shocker! Homesick because I knew that if we were still in Az. I would be doing a swap with Melissa like we had been doing all of last year. And homesick because I knew that there was so much more available for Addysen in Arizona. It's all the things I didn't think about before we moved.

The downside of living in a smaller area. Even the city classes are geared more towards children with working parents.

Next year she will for sure go into a regular preschool program because of kindergarten the following year. Yikes. But for this year I improvised.

Once I stopped feeling sorry for myself I decided to start doing preschool from home with just Addysen. Sure it wouldn't be as fun as her going to a class, but it was something. And she was definitely in need of something! We have done worksheets and activities at home last year but since Melissa and I were swapping and the girls were only 2 we called it good. Besides all the neighborhood kids and the park behind our house the girls were playing nonstop every single day. It definitely didn't feel as necessary.

So on Monday and Friday mornings, after we take Elodie to school, we "busy around the house" (so something my mom would say and I find myself telling Addysen all the time) , and Evyn is down for her morning nap Addysen and I spend some time at the table "doing preschool" It breaks my heart just a little when she brings her backpack into the computer room and sits at the table.

We practice letter writing on the chalkboard, we do puzzles, coloring pages, and then some worksheets. I had no idea how excited she would be about these worksheets. How still she would sit at the table tracing each letter. So serious which is so not her personality! Preschool only last about 30 to 45 minutes. It would last longer if she were in a group setting with playtime and outside to break it all up. But it's perfect for her attention span. After preschool we have a snack and then move on with the rest of our day. In the afternoons when Elodie is doing her homework Addysen begs for another homework sheet of her own. She loves them!

On Tuesday and Thursday we do a playdate swap with another girl in our ward and her daughter ( I miss you Melissa!) and on Wednesdays we go to the library. Now that the weather is barely cooling down we are hoping to incorporate a once a week park day with some other moms in the area. Trying to get back in to my Az ways. Now I just need to find a Melissa, Jen, Audrey, Tiffany, Sarah.....

Now that we are in a routine of things it makes me feel less sad about Addysen not going to an actual class. She loves what she is doing now and I enjoy the quiet one on one time that we get.

I just love her 3 year old ways and so happy she is heading in to school mode. It's such an exciting and fun time!

Weird Feeling

When I started this blog back in 2006 there have been a few traditional post kept. Birthdays. Anniversaries. And the Big Dirty. If you have read my blog for a while you know what The Big Dirty is. And if your a close friend you've been around enough to see the packing, planning, and time spent getting us out to the mountains for The Big Dirty. We have spent every birthday since Elodie was born out at The Big Dirty. Packing cupcakes and pinatas so we can celebrate while camping.

The first year I went to The Big Dirty Chris and I were engaged. Back in 2001. We have gone every year since with the exception of Elodie's birth in 2004.

So it was really weird as the weekend approached and we weren't busy making menus, shopping list, and remembering all the things we need to go camping. It's a weird feeling to know that all of Chris' family are out at The Big Dirty without us. That the tradition lives on without us. I hate it. I hate it for my girls who look forward to it and soak in every cousin and piece of dirt they can.
There is no doubt that it's hard work to get out there. And while Christopher would say he was slightly happy to not be spending his weekend out in the woods because of how much work it is, I'm already making plans for a big road trip next year! Because it's too much a part of our family to let a few hundred miles come between us! Until next year Big Dirty.

Big Dirty 2006

BIg Dirty 2007

Big Dirty 2008

Big Dirty 2009

Big Dirty 2010

Weekend Food.

It's been so much easier to try new recipes now that I have them written out and available when I make my menu. I tried 2 new recipes this weekend and I was so happy that both came out great!!

Recipe #1:
When we lived in Arizona we had Barro's. Oh Barro's, how I love you and miss you. We had Barro's at least once a week. Met friends there on weekends and had playdates during the week there. To say a pizza joint was a huge part of our lives seems silly....but it was!

I never really had the desire to make my own pizzas because of Barro's but had a few go to recipes when we didn't want to spend the money on eating out. Like this deep dish pizza and this chicken and spinach pizza. And those chicken-bacon stuffed pizza rolls that I blogged about a week or so ago. Yum. But for the most part, I left the pizza making up to Barro himself.

And then we moved. Doesn't everything come back to moving? There is no Barro's in Texas. WHAT!?!? Didn't they hear we were moving to Texas? Apparently we are little people to Barro's.

So the other day I was browsing Our Best Bites and I came across a recipe on how to grill pizza....I have used their pizza dough recipe before to make breadsticks and the pizza pockets so I knew this was a winner. And indeed it was. I only had cheese so we did cheese pizzas but according to OBB it's best to limit your toppings so you can really taste the flavor of the grill. They were so good! The only down side I saw to grilling my own pizzas was 1- I didn't have a big enough spatula so my pizzas turned into mini pizzas and 2- these are best when right off the grill so we didn't eat as a family. Which for a friday night wasn't a huge deal breaker for me. But other than that I'm definitely adding these to my regular meal plan! There is something so satisfying about making my own bread...I just love it! Our Best Bites has a great step by step on how to grill your pizza dough so I won't post any more other than a picture of one of my lovely pizzas!


Recipe #2:
We had the missionaries over for dessert last night. Christopher is the ward mission leader so we see them on a pretty regular basis. They stop in from time to time to let Chris know what they are up to and usually end up taking leftovers home with them if we don't have them over for dinner. 2 of our missionaries are going home on Tuesday so we invited them over for dessert for a last goodbye. I had found this recipe for oreo cheesecake (yes please) and knew this would be the perfect time to try it out. Besides, the missionaries will never tell me something isn't good! But really you can't go wrong with Oreos. Have I mentioned our obsession with the Double Stuffed Oreo Blast at Sonic?

Have you ever been to Mel's Kitchen? If you haven't you should head over there. Besides Our Best Bites, it's my go to blog for new recipes and tutorials. She made this oreo cheesecake for her book club (moment of silence for my book club in Az.). That has nothing to do with the recipe other than she has a book club....and I love my book club...and I get sick to my stomach every time they meet without me..and i don't have one now....see...everything does go back to moving.

Oreo Cheesecake:

36 Oreo Cookies, divided
1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter
4 packages (8-ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 large eggs
4 ounces semisweet chocolate
4 ounces white chocolate

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Line a 9×13-inch baking pan with foil, with ends extending over sides. Finely crush 24 Oreo cookies. Melt 1/4 cup butter; mix with crumbs. Press onto bottom of prepared pan.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar with mixer until blended. Add sour cream and vanilla; mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each just until blended. Chop remaining cookies. Gently stir into batter; pour over crust.

Bake the cheesecake for about 35-40 minutes or until the sides are set and the center is almost set. Cool completely on a wire rack in the pan.

When the cheesecake is completely cooled, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. When chilled, remove the cheesecake using the foil overhang and cut the cheesecake into bite-sized pieces. Place the cheesecake bites on a wax or parchment paper-lined baking tray. Melt the semisweet chocolate and white chocolate in separate bowls (I use the microwave on 50% power, stirring frequently). Pour the melted chocolate into a ziploc bag, one for the semisweet chocolate, one for the white chocolate. Snip a small corner off the corner of the bag and drizzle the chocolate over the cheesecake bars. Chill the bars until ready to serve. Alternately, the drizzled bites can be frozen in an airtight container for up to a month. Let them defrost in the refrigerator and serve chilled.

So there you go. 2 thumbs up for new recipes!

Not sure how I feel about this...

I'm a very sentimental person however I am by no means a pack rat. I don't like clutter and typically have no problems throwing things out. As long as I can take a picture of it before I get rid of it I'm okay. This is not to say that I don't have 2 full boxes of Chris' t-shirts from high school, college, military as well as my high school, EFY, and musical t-shirts just waiting for me to make a quilt out of. That we have packed around with us every time we move. One of these days.

When moving to a new state we looked at the big picture of things. Like switching Elodie's school, leaving amazing friends, starting a new job, a new ward....and all of those brought different emotions. And while it's still hurts a little bit (a lot) we are slowly adjusting to a new life here in Texas.

The surprising thing about this move is how much the LITTLE things have stung the most. The little reminders that we have moved.. And the little things are the things you don't think about when you are in the process of moving. I like to refer to them as "nails in my Arizona box" Because I don't like the word coffin and we would like to end up back in Arizona. So the box can't completely shut!

A few examples:

Nail #1-Switching from Costco to Sam's. Now this may seem silly to anyone reading this but standing in that line to get my Sam's card after being a loyal Costco member for almost 7 years was hard! I vividly remember Elodie was 2 months old when we got our Costco membership. I mean, my Costco card is in the spot where my license should go! I figure I use my Costco card way more often than I get pulled over. When Christopher mentioned the idea of canceling our Costco card I put a big fat NO stamp on that card! After all, there is a Costco just 2 hours a way. And while I am thankful there is at least a Sam's out here, Sam's doesn't come close to Costco. And every time I go there, I miss Costco.

Nail #2-Christopher had to get the civic inspected and in the process "they" took down our ASU East parking sticker. Again, very small and silly but yes I cried over that one too. Sure, the only reason that sticker was still there was because we just never bothered or remembered at the right time to take it down. But Still. A huge part of our Arizona life was on that campus. And in 2 seconds it was gone!

Nail #3-Christopher closed out our National Bank of Arizona account. GULP! Yes, I hated that bank because for the longest time the only one available to us was super far away and it was a pain to go deposit money into it. And yes, it was our secondary account so we hardly ever used it. But Still. It was the first checking account we set up in Arizona when we lived in Snowflake. Silly? Yes. Stings? Definitely.

Nail #4- I haven't used my purse since I had Evyn and didn't really bother to clean it out after I switched to a diaper bag. I few days ago I went to Wal-mart by myself and instead of carrying the diaper bag I pulled my old purse out and threw my phone and wallet in it. While I was in Wal-Mart I was digging around in my purse and found a visitor sticker from Elodie's old school. I may have started crying right in the middle of Wal-Mart.

Nail #5- I write all of my list in a notebook and don't throw away the list after I'm done with it. I like to put the date at the top of the page and include all of the chores and errands I have to run that day. A journal of sorts. It also helps when I don't complete my list for that day, I just add it to the next day. Anyway, I came across the notebook that had the list of to-do's for Addysen and Graycie's party. Groceries, errands, plans for the party, Addysen's present list, the gift we were giving Graycie, even a sketch of what the cake would look like. And you can guess, I lost it! I immediately sent a text to Melissa...

Nail #6- The first UFC fight Chris watched all by himself! That alone made me want to fly Mace out here pronto!

Nail #7- Realizing we won't make it to the Big Dirty this year. This will be the first one we have missed in 11 years. We have gone every year since the year we got engaged.

Nail #8- Happened just last week when Christopher went and registered the civic.The Arizona license plate had expired (back in March) and it was at the top of the priority list. Which meant the Arizona license plate came off and the Texas license plate went on. Christopher jokingly asked if we needed to have a little ceremony when he got ready to switch the plates. I thought it was a great idea (aka:photoshoot) but he switched them before we got a chance to commemorate the event. Apparently he was joking. Probably for the best. No need to make matters worse.

Christopher has accused me many of times of looking backwards. And he's right. But I don't think it's a bad thing. I realize that we had our fair share of trials and stresses in Arizona. it wasn't all amazing and happy. And neither will our time here in Texas. But the happy fun times are the things I choose to remember. And we had a ton of those! Otherwise I wouldn't miss it so much!

One day we will laugh about this...

Since we moved to Texas our fridge went out and we had to replace it ($700), the civic needed a new starter ($100), and we found fleas on Ginger (CRINGE!). Thankfully SEARS has refrigerators and we only had to go a week with our food in an ice-chest. Chris was able to find the part and replace the starter himself. And we sprayed the grass, gave Ginger her summer cut, and doused her with medicine and hopefully that is the last we will ever have to deal with fleas! (CRINGE-me no likey bugs!)

I told Chris that if Texas was trying to kick us out, "it" was doing a great job! I'm starting to feel picked on and it's no fun!

Our recent adventure was this past Friday morning when around 10am our electricity went out. We were doing our normal thing and out of no where we were without power. More importantly without AC. I waited it out for about 20 minutes then called the electricity company to see what was going on. After all the account verification rigamaroll we find out that our account has been cancelled because (according to the electric company) we had cancelled our account because we went with a different provider. WHAT!? Not sure what that means? Neither did I. Apparently here in Texas there are a few different options for electricity and at any time you can cancel your service with one provider and transfer to another one. We had no idea this was an option so obviously this wasn't our fault.

The operator I spoke to told me they would fix it as soon as possible. It could take 1 hour but no longer than 24 hours. I explained that I had small children in the house and he said it would be on the priority list. This was about the time Chris said let's go to San Antonio so we packed up and left town. We never thought to call back and confirm that we had electricity so when we got back in to town on Saturday evening we were shocked to find that we still had no power. At this point everything in our fridge/freezer and deep freezer were completely ruined.

So we call the electricity company back only to find out that they don't work on the weekends so the earliest they would come out would be on Monday-SERIOUSLY!?!?

Here we were, 6pm on a Saturday evening and the only option we had was to get another hotel....a mile from our house. The girls were so excited! At this point they think we are on an extended vacation!

So we pack our church clothes (because did I forget to mention I had to speak in church the next day?) and we headed to the Holiday Inn to pay $100 per night for 2 nights. LOVELY!

We made the most of it. Turned the a/c down to 70 degrees and let the girls swim to their hearts content! 4 days in a row.

I gave my talk in church on Sunday, we celebrated Father's Day with our R.S President and her family, and waited it out.

On Monday morning I called the electic company back to make sure they were coming out before noon. I had to check out of our hotel room at noon and we had no other place to go.

According to the electric company we were on the list but they couldn't guarantee anything other than that it would happen before 7pm that evening!??! Seriously! I was losing it! Noon came and went so we went to our Bishop's house. Thaknfully his wife let us in and we hung out at her house until 3pm when the electricity was finally reconnected and we could go home!

Chris and I spent the rest of Monday cleaning out our fridge/freezer and deep freezer. Our house smelt so bad and some food in our deep freezer leaked out on to the floor! It was awful!

On the upside, the electric company is going to reimburse us the $300 we spent on hotel stays and they are giving us $200 for all the groceries we lost.

It was definitely an interesting weekend and one I hope we don't repeat any time soon! There are often times that I wonder if things just happen to us for the fun of it or if we are actually suppose to learn something from it. I know I can see a silver lining in most things but at times it's really hard to not just throw my hands up in defeat and have a good cry. And sometimes I do that even when I do see a silver lining!

This picture I love because it was taken on Father's Day. He's a good snuggler!

Tough Stuff.

I was on the phone with my friend Jaime the other day. She asked me how everyone was adjusting to the move and I told her that I didn't feel like I real parent until we moved. And it's hard!

Thankfully we have never had to deal with too many tough things with our kids. They came healthy. Have grown properly. Their smart and social. And other than a few temper tantrums and true 3 and 6 year old behavior parenthood hasn't been that hard. And what a blessing that is to say that.

And then we moved....and it feels like REAL parenthood has slapped me in the face! All of a sudden I've had to be strong when I didn't want to be. I've had to suck it up and be HER shoulder to cry on. I'm the one saying things like "This is going to be GREAT!" on the first day at a new school. And when her new teacher called because Elodie was having a moment and thought it would be a good idea for her to talk to her mom, I had to take a deep breath and find a way to cheer her up. When deep down I wanted to cry with her, pack everything up, and move back to Arizona!

I remember standing in our empty house with Christopher crying my eyes out and asking him "What in the heck are we doing?!?" And to be honest, 3 weeks after moving, I'm still not sure!

When we decided to make this move I had 1 major concern. Leaving Elodie's school. And besides leaving great friends and family, I cried most when I thought about having to switch schools.

To say I loved Elodie's school is an understatement. She has had amazing teachers. Great curriculum. I helped out in the classroom once a week and loved getting to know the students better. And overall in the last 2 years it has been an awesome experience. We loved it there!

The last week at her old school was HARD! Pretending everything was okay and normal while we were boxing up our house and counting down the days. I hated it. I hated when the monthly newsletter came home, when the kids were practicing their songs for the end of the year concert, and talking to the other moms about the end of the year party. It was so emotionally draining on me to be the mom in front of Elodie and pretend to be happy and excited about our move.

On the last day of school I wanted to pretend like it was any normal day. (I really wanted Chris to go pick Elodie up but he was busy packing.) But Ms. Matthew wouldn't let us. She bought lunch from Jason's Deli for Elodie and all the kids wore their field day shirts for Elodie. And while it was sad to say goodbye, I'm so grateful for these great teachers that Elodie has had! Elodie has loved them and they have adored her in return!

I know this all sounds a bit depressing but it's the hard parts I want to remember too-because this move has been anything but easy for all of us. And while Christopher has gotten this great opportunity with a great firm, we are still trying to find where we fit in as a family here. And I'm not sure how long that takes! And I must also say that Elodie's new teacher, Ms. Mahany, has been just as lovely as Ms. Matthew and has made Elodie feel so welcome in her classroom.

Wishful Thinking

Here I sit surrounded by boxes. When we move I always give myself one week. One week of chaos, of not knowing where things are, and being okay with stuff laying around. The being okay with it all never works out for me!

It's day 2 and I'm struggling! I can't handle all the disorganization! And lets not forget I'm a mother with a nursing baby and a 3 year old at home. Who is back to packing lunches and helping with homework. Who among all the chaos has to keep a schedule for her kids. And let's not even get started on the fact that I didn't get to decorate for Easter! BOO!

I will go back to unpacking all the while thinking about how much further and further I am getting behind on my blog! And think of me when your sitting in your neat little office, with your clean and organized kitchen, blogging about today's events because you are completely caught up! UGh...I want to be her again! At least #2 & #3 are both sleeping right now!

Standstill

The funny things about vacations (is this what we call it?) is you can't wait to go. To get away from the routine, the schedules. To sleep in. To relax. And then about halfway through said vacation you can't wait to get home. To get back to the routine, the schedules. Maybe it's just me. Even at Disneyland there comes a point where you say "Alright, it's time to go home!"

Life is funny like that.

And life for me right now is at a standstill. A tad dramatic? Maybe. But let me explain.

Christopher headed to Texas shortly after dropping me, the girls, and my mom off at the airport. He got to Texas, unloaded, and started his new job on Monday. His new normal started. And slowly, each day has gotten easier for him. He is liking his new job, the area. It's all starting to feel routine for him. As he put it, "The pit in my stomach is almost gone."

I, on the other hand, made a detour in Louisiana. A much needed detour as the idea of trecking across 2 states with 3 children, 1 being a 14 day old baby was not ever an option for me! I think secretly I was more afraid of trecking across 2 states with a certain 3 year....

Either way, the decision was made and we were sent home with mom. And that is where my life has stopped. A standstill.
There have been a few occasions where I've had to remind myself I'm not taking my family home to Arizona!!

I've enjoyed being in Louisiana. We have visited with family. The girl have played hard with cousins, crashing. Every. Single. Night. We have relaxed. I've enjoyed sleeping in and getting help from my mom with the older girls. Taking a break from school (not without a few homework papers from Elodie's old teacher-just enough to keep her busy during Addysen's nap)

But. We miss our dad. We miss Ginger. i'm anxious to get our family back together and face this new adventure as a team and not in 2 different states. I want to get back into a routine. Make dinner. BLOG- I've been MIA because I packed up my camera cord instead of bringing it with me-. I'm itching to do crafts, to sew and make bows, decorate and plan for Easter, and organize my home. Get Elodie back in school. {GULP}

But as exciting as that all is. I still have a pit in my stomach. And I'm afraid that pit won't go away for a few weeks. I keep telling Christopher this has got to be a great thing for us because Heavenly Father is really, REALLY stretching me right now!

Christopher will be here late Friday night. We will bless Evyn with my family on Saturday evening, and we will pack up our little family and head HOME to Texas early Sunday morning.

I'm not doubting that I can do this. I'm not doubting that I can suck it up and make this work. Just a teensy bit scared. So pray for our little family as we embark on this new adventure! Life as we know will be completely different. And I'll have a lot of updates starting on Monday! After I find where we packed my camera cord!

See you later....

I don't do well with change. I don't know very many people who do. When I found out that Chris got this job in Texas I cried. And not because I was happy for him (even though I am EXTREMELY happy for him). I cried because I immediately thought of 2 things -leaving Elodie's school and -leaving my friends. And here we are 4 weeks later and I'm still crying over the same 2 things.

So when Melissa suggested we have a "See you Later" party for our family I immediately said "NO WAY!" Not because I don't love hanging out with our friends but because it was drawing attention to the fact that we were in fact moving and I don't do well with that! I'm more the let me slip out the back door and pretend like everything is normal kind of girl!

But Melissa insisted and I couldn't deny my friends a reason to throw a party!
So we all got together this evening to hang out at the park, have dinner, let the kids run crazy, and reminisce about the first time everyone met the Yarn family.

It was fun and sad and I tried not to think about the fact that we are in fact moving to Texas and I won't see all these people on a regular basis!

We have known this group of friends since we moved to the area 7 years ago. Back when I was either pregnant with Elodie or she was just a little baby. I've watched my friends kids grow up. We've been pregnant together, visited each other in the hospital, and hosted baby showers for each other. They have been Elodie's playdate friends forever. We meet at the swimming pool in the summer and sign our kids up together for swim lessons. I have served in callings with them, had them as visiting teaching companions, and do Sunday dinners with. These are my book club friends, my Twilight friends (I'm already planning on coming back for Breaking Dawn in November), my just need a girls night friends, my lets double date with our husbands, and my I need a babysitter lets do a swap friends. Our husbands have played ball and go on runs together. I love them, I trust them, and I will miss them! And while this day in age it's so easy to keep in touch with blogs and facebook I know it won't be the same. Ugh....

And if I'm being really honest with myself I know it's going to take a while for me to make friends like this in Texas. Our friendships with these people have developed over 7 years and honestly I don't want to start all over!!!

But the beauty of it all is when you make friendships like this, they last forever! And it doesn't matter where we all go I know that I will have these friendships and these people in our lives forever! And that makes me really happy!

Thank you friends! I love you!

Besties

I'm pretty sure that the hardest part about leaving Arizona is leaving these 2 and their family in Arizona! We have become best friends with Mace and Melissa and spend a lot of time together. Weekends, holidays, dinners, double dates...I can't imagine our life without them! And it's not very often when 2 girls become friends that the husbands become equally as good of friends. Mace and Chris hung out a lot, watched UFC fights together, went running together. We had a good thing living so close to them! I'm only hoping that in the next few years we can be back together in the same state! Hopefully next door neighbors!
We love you guys!

Next day...

So yesterday I mentioned I would have a doctor's appointment today and HOPEFULLY my doctor would switch my c-section date. We are looking at it as every minute counts for my recovery and the baby's adjustment so even if he decided to do the c-section on the 28th we would be happy with that.

I explained our situation to my doctor, added a few tears, and the rest is a new whirlwind for us! In order for the hospital to allow us to take the baby earlier than 39 weeks (39 weeks on the 29th) we have to do an amniocentesis...I'm not thrilled about that but given the circumstance I will deal with it. So the amnio is set for this next Monday and if it comes back positive (which my doctor said they do 98% of the time)- meaning the baby is fully developed and the lungs are mature- then the new c-section date will be the 23rd.

One.Week.From.Today.

Holy cow! I wasn't expecting that! However, the more time we have to recover before we have to get on an airplane, the better! it also means my baby with no name will be about 15 days old when we get on an airplane and not 8 days old. That sounds so much better! Our trip to La. might just be a vacation for me after all!

I feel bad that this pregnancy is getting pushed to the back of the to due list- actually to the front just with a different priority in mind! Meaning "let's get this baby out so we can then start worrying about packing, moving, new school". I don't really have time or the energy to be nervous or scared about delivery! That is kinda nice. After all, I've done this twice before. Moving to another state with 3 children, finding a home in a city I've never been to, switching Elodie's school 8 weeks before school lets out, traveling with a newborn, and praying we can all adjust okay is something I have NEVER done!

Please pray for us that this transition goes smoothly. I'm starting to really worry Christopher with how emotional I am so I could use all the prayers I can get! Just to get through a day without crying would be great!

The only thing that stays the same...

I'm not really sure where to start this post....I'm a human roller coaster so depending on when you catch me will determine how I will best describe this crazy thing we call life. Or if I will immediately start crying. Which is most likely to happen seeing as I'm pregnant.

First, I will start with saying I have 2 weeks left in this pregnancy! That alone is enough to set me into a whirlwind. There is much to be done. Did I mention WE.STILL.HAVE.NO.NAME! Lame I know- we weren't this way with the other 2- it just keeps getting shoved to the bottom of our list....it will be of utmost importance on d-day in the hospital.

In other news....We are moving....I will say it again.....MOOOVIIING! Ugh, just the thought makes me want to bury my head in the ground. And not just a simple move across town, we are moving to TEXAS! Holy cow. We just barely found out on Thursday so everything is still really fresh for me.

So, Christopher graduated in December, found work for a firm here and we thought all was well. They pay and health benefits weren't at all what we wanted but we saw it more as an "in the mean time job" rather than "lets go plant our roots and buy a house" sort of job. We did feel that we were meant to stay here seeing as nothing out of state had worked out for us.

On a whim (meaning he didn't think anything would come of it), Christopher applied for a job with a structural engineering firm in Texas. A few days later he heard back from them. 1 week they did a phone interview with their HR department, the next Friday they did another phone interview with some of the partners, the following Friday they flew him out for an in person interview, and just this passed Thursday we found out we got the job! Holy Fast!

It all seems very surreal. When the offer was extended we were told that they wanted Chris on the 11th of April. In Texas on April 11th.

Let's not forget that I'm scheduled to have a baby on the 29th of March.

After the initial panic....who am I kidding..I'm still panicking...we started making plans.

So far, my mom flies in on the 23rd. We have the baby on the 29th, hopefully sooner (I see my doctor tomorrow and hopefully, given our circumstance, he will take the baby a few days earlier) then we pack up the house (we meaning my mom and Chris-although I'm hoping to have the house packed up before the baby is born-my mom, the girls, and I fly out to Louisiana on the 6th of April, Christopher drives the truck with all our stuff to Texas, the girls and I stay in La. for a week or 2 while I recover, Chris starts his job on the 11th, and then he comes and gets us the next weekend.

Got all that?

Whirlwind people- there is no other explanation.

On top of all that we have the regular day to day activities going on- work, school, field trips, piano recitals, groceries, NEW BABY PREPARATIONS!

I'm getting overwhelmed just typing this! However, I just need to take a deep breath, make a LONG to do list, and take each day as it comes!

It's hard..it's only been a few days and it's like a fresh wound. Anything sets me off. Saying goodbye to friends and family. Leaving Elodie's school. The normalcy and schedule we have here is so comforting and we are definitely taking a leap of faith. Ugh....it's awful!

However, I am so proud of Chris. He deserves this and it's a great opportunity! Texas isn't that far away! And thank heavens for blogs and emails...and my mom who immediately stepped in and started making arrangements for me. She will be a huge help! I've already decided that all I'm packing for Louisiana is pajamas!

We will keep you all posted as it happens!