Macon Memories: 2011

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Final post...

Well, I guess it's really time. I'm still not sure that it has sunk in completely that in 2 days we will be living in an entirely different state. I find myself focusing on all of our "lasts"...the last time we'll go to church, our last trip to the creek behind our house, the last time we'll eat at IVP, the last night we'll spend in this house....I could really go on forever. It's kind of sad. :(

But, I also know that we might be back, and that some of those things we might get to do again. And I know that we are about to experience a lot of "firsts", so I'm trying to focus on that. :)
We've been cramming all that we can into these final weeks/days. Here are a few pictures...

Sweet snuggles with Daddy

Jackson attended his first soccer camp with one of his best buddies

Brad took Jackson on a Father/Son canoe trip

His two best buddies and their dads came along too

So, Macon Memories has come to a close...this chapter, anyway :) I will be starting up a new blog in Nashville once we get settled. BUT, I'm looking for some suggestions on what to call it. So leave a comment with your ideas :) Once I get it up and running, I will post a link to the new site on this one. Wish us luck!

And to our Macon Family-thanks for making this our "home". . . please don't forget about us! Until next time...

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Boxes

This is the sight I see every where I turn....boxes, upon boxes, upon boxes. I have been packing for what seems like an eternity. Daily, I sift through things...I purge what we no longer need, silently cry over all the reminders of the great memories we've made here, and I pack our life into boxes. So many mixed feelings, but the one that prevails is exhaustion. I really don't think I have ever been so tired. And tired in so many ways...not just physically.

I had wanted to keep up with my posts in our final months here. I didn't want to miss documenting the memories of our precious time here. But, sadly, I missed it. We have done so much (and still have some left to do) that I wanted to capture here, on this virtual scrapbook. But life happens, and I can only do so much. One thing, however, I cannot leave "unrecorded". Brad's graduation from his surgical residency. Not a great quality photograph, but it's all I have at the moment.

5 years ago, God brought us to Macon, GA. We never saw it coming, and it has been one of the greatest things that has happened to our family. We love this city, have made such great friends, and have grown together and learned so much in our short time here. We hope God has it in His plans to bring us back here one day.

I cannot begin to express how proud I am of my husband for getting to where he is today. His hard work and determination over the years is astounding. This has not been an easy road, by any means. But he (we) have persevered, fought hard, and I have seen my husband grow into an amazing skillful surgeon. We have faced trials in our life as husband and wife that I never would have imagined eight years ago when we said our vows. Some of those trials have been directly related to his training, and others have been just what life has brought our way. But by the grace of God, here we stand, with so much to give thanks for and celebrate. Through all of it, we have grown in our faith in our Lord as He has provided for us time and time again...we have strengthened our bond as husband and wife, supporting each other through the long days, fatigue, and stress...and of course, none of it would have been nearly as comical, joyful, or beautiful without our three children. And none of it would have even been possible without the unending support from our families.

And now, we are off for new adventures! Only 2 more years of training, to be completed in the great city of Nashville. So, sadly, this blog is winding down. I will be back for one final post before we leave :( Until then....

Monday, May 23, 2011

Time to catch up...

First...note the new header picture. The other one was a little outdated. This one I find hysterical. It captures the personality of my 3 perfectly...in a quite imperfect picture :)

Our little peach is 4 months old. As always, time flies. Abby May has brought such joy to our lives. In a time where things are quite crazy and stressful for our family, she brings such peace, and joy, and calm. Really? A newborn baby? The youngest of 3 children? Brings peace and calm? Yes, she sure does :) Here is her 4 month bunny picture...

Her stats are as follows...

Height- 23.5 inches...11th %tile

Weight- 11 lbs 2.5 oz...7th %tile

Petite little peach :)

(FYI...these were Jackson's 1 month stats)

Some things I want to remember about you, sweet girl...

-you are almost ALWAYS happy. when you do cry, it is either because you are hungry or tired. and there is no build up...you just start WAILING

-you like your baths very warm. if the temperature is not to your liking, you let us know :)

-you could watch your brothers for hours

-you suck your thumb when you're tired...your left one, just like your brother Luke

-you sleep through the night, and take 2 scheduled 2 hour naps each day...it is complete bliss to have you on such a schedule :)

-you love being outside

-sometimes when i sing to you at night, you sing back in the sweetest little cooing voice

-you can roll over from your tummy to your back

-you like sitting in your bumbo seat so you can see everything that is going on in this crazy house

-and as your brother Luke says... "you make our hearts happy"

Here are some of my favorite recent pictures...

Luke made his first trip to the dentist. This child is hysterical. He really needs his own tv show. Luke is such a character...everything he does, he puts his little personality into it, and you can't help but laugh. Case in point...here are some pictures of Luke at the dentist

Seriously. If you're in need of a laugh, just come pick him up for the afternoon and he's bound to entertain you and put a smile on your face. Take him to the grocery store...it's hilarious.

*I should also note that this cute funny quality does not exist when he is around his brother. When the two of them are together, you want to kill him. Luke's survival rate goes up about a million percent when he's alone. Weird, I know....
The boys both had Mother's Day celebrations at school. I got to go share a special Mother's Day Tea with my Lukey...

And I got to have a Mother's Day picnic with my J...

Here's a picture of Jackson with his best friends from school. He has so much fun with these boys, and we will be sad to not venture on to Kindergarten with them next year :(

Now that school's out, it's time to rock for the summer

This past weekend, we had 2 of our dearest Macon families over. Our kids have grown up together these past few years, and these 2 moms have become 2 of my best friends. When I tell people I'm sad to leave Macon because this feels like my home...these people are the reason why. I LOVE these families, these moms, these children, like they are my family. They are what I will miss most when we leave here. I am so thankful that our paths have crossed, and we will all be lifelong friends whether God leads our family back to Macon or not. And they BETTER come visit us in Nashville! :)

Here are all of our kiddos playing down in our backyard creek...

And cooling off with popsicles after LOTS of playing :)

Now that I'm crying, I guess I better wrap it up. I imagine this blog only has a few more final posts before Macon Memories will become a wonderful virtual scrapbook of memories, and we will start over with new adventures, making new memories...in good ole Nashville.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Strawberry pickin' time

Every year, we make a trip out to Elliott Farms in Lizella to pick strawberries with our friends. I love this trip so much. It made me sad to think that we will be missing the next 2 years of this tradition...but I'm hoping we'll be back for many more after that. Here are the boys on the tractor ride...

Strawberry pickin' time

Too little to pick, but she's decked out in her strawberry dress :)

LOVE these boys...such great little friends.

Hot and tired after being out in the fields

Each year, we get a picture of our boys in front of the tractor wheel. It's so much fun to get to look back on these and see how our boys have grown. I know Jackson is going to miss his best buds so much, and oh how I am going to miss these boys' mommies! Please don't forget about us while we're gone...I hope we'll be back! Here's the collage from years past....

And here's this year...

Love these sweet memories of Macon. Sad to leave in a few short months...but so thankful for the great times we've had, and even more thankful for the wonderful friendships we've made :)

Easter

We had a wonderful Easter, as we always do. After church, we headed to my parents' house for our annual Easter lunch and egg hunt for the grandchildren. The weather was perfect! Here is our family photo...all coordinating in purple and green :)

My handsome, HANDSOME, boys!

All 5 grandchildren...so cute!

Hunting for eggs...

The fam, watching the hunt from the porch

So, so sleepy from a long and busy day

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!

Luke's 3rd Birthday Party

Ahhh! Luke is turning 3! Goodness, my babies are growing up fast. Luke decided on a Go Diego Go! theme for his birthday. I decided to have it at a local park and go with an animal safari theme. And, since Luke's actual birthday has been taken over by all this royal wedding nonsense, we had his party a week early :) I didn't want people to have to make a choice ;)