Moving Day...

It has been a hard summer since the death of my mom in May. My dad was living in a big house with a pool over an hour away from any family. My sister and I have gone back and forth every week staying with him. We have his house on the market but it hasn't sold yet. After thinking of lots of different solutions (none of which were perfect) we decided it would be best to move him temporarily into my sister's rental house which is just a few minutes from her house. We knew we had to do it, but it was VERY sad moving him out of his home.

The night before the move. Probably one of the last swims in that pool.

So many wonderful memories were made in this backyard.

McKenzie stayed home to take care of the animals and our youngest three (which was a huge help!) Matt and Madeline went to help with the move.

I can't imagine how he felt pulling away from the home that he and my mom lived in for the last 25 years!

Lots of tears were shed as we drove away from Willowbend Way....

His new home is very cozy and is a perfect set up for him. I was amazed how fast we got things set up. Madeline and my niece Carrington did the entire kitchen by themselves!

We tried to put touches of my mom around the house. We displayed her glasses on his dresser. My sister and I were laughing at what "sentimental slobs" we are and that we are turning our kids into that too! They put the magnets back on the refrigerator just like my mom had them, even down to a list that she had written before Christmas!

We have always lived the closest to my parents, so we spent a lot of time with them. It is weird thinking about him not being at his house. It was so sad as we pulled away to go home, but I was so thankful that he had a granddaughter standing there with her arms around him!

More randomness...

Matthew took some pictures of Myles for me before church the other day. I thought this one was sweet.

Malachi told me the other day that he needed braces because his tooth was about to fall out! :o) He lost his first tooth two days later. He was so excited when he got a dollar and a new toothbrush that he is anxious to lose another one.
The boys during family "Bible time". Marc usually does a separate Bible story with the little boys and then puts them to bed. One night we got started earlier than usual and let them join us. Myles didn't last long until he was in my lap but he is learning. :o)

Matthew started a new job about a month ago. He has done some fill in work at a feed/hardware store and he has worked as a farm hand. Neither job ended up being consistent enough so he is now working at another local farm/feed store. It has been a real eye-opener for him! We have been very proud of him and how he has stood alone and been an example to the guys he works with. Their language is less than desirable and it really bothers him. He has learned to walk away and busy himself with other things. The guy that is over him told Marc that he was a "really hard worker". It is definitely physical work and he comes home tired. I think it has made him appreciate his time at home! :o)

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McKenzie in my mother's wedding dress! My mom borrowed her cousin's wedding dress and her daughter brought the dress to us. She told me to do what I wanted to with it. It needs to be cleaned and some work done on it but we were just so excited to see it!

Stone Mountain Trip

Back in June the girls and I went on a "girls only" weekend to Stone Mountain. Besides that being the exact weekend that the "icky" pregnant sickness started, we had a great time!

This was the view from our balcony. The lake was beautiful!

The first thing we did when we got there was hike to the top of the mountain.

On top of Stone Mountain.

This was Mariah's first time hiking the mountain.

We had a picnic at the grist mill. It was a very nostalgic trip because I grew up going to Stone Mountain as a child when we would go to Atlanta to visit our grandparents.

The grist mill

That night we watched the laser show. I think it was better this year than it has been in the past few years. It seemed like there was more patriotic music.

McKenzie made these flip-flops for Mariah. :o)Getting ready for the 4-D movie.

The day we left we drove past my grandparents old house. It was very sad seeing it and thinking about my mom being a teenager in that house! We have pictures of my parents when they were dating standing next to this tree ( it was REALLY tiny then!) My siblings and I climbed the tree when we were little.

I remember writing lots of letters to 501 Greenridge Circle! I know the bird poop is gross, but I had to take a picture because this is the same mailbox my grandparents had when they lived there!

Well, thanks for taking a walk down memory lane with me! :o)

Late night ramblings...

Well, Marc is at men's meeting at church, Matthew is at scouts at church and McKenzie went to quilt with a dear friend from church. Madeline and Mariah fed animals, milked goats, washed dishes etc. while I unpacked from a trip to my dad's, fed and bathed little boys and attempted to get them to bed. They were especially horrible tonight! Well........... Myles was horrible and Malachi had to keep calling me to "make him hush!" All is finally quiet in the house, the three youngest are sleeping and Madeline is reading.
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I haven't really written about my pregnancy except to announce it. Those that have read my blog for a while know that I had a miscarriage last fall. I was a little nervous when I found out that I was pregnant this time and worried that something would happen again. It was a rough start but I am 14 1/2 weeks and everything seems to be fine this time. I have had several ultrasounds and I am amazed at how fast it goes from looking like a little "blob" with a heartbeat to a tiny little baby with arms and legs. I have felt pretty lousy since the second week of June. I think (fingers crossed!) that I might be moving past that part but I am still tired all the time! I am very grateful though and we are very excited about having a new little one around here.

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I was putting Malachi to bed the other night and he started talking about grandma. I reminded him that grandma had made his blanket that he sleeps with. He asked me why she made it for him and I told him because she loved him. He said, "I sure wish she would come back." Later that evening I went into his room and found the blanket wrapped around his head. :(

I took all the kids to my dad's this week. I normally try to take just a few at a time with me. This was the last time we all spent the night in that house together. We plan to move my dad to a temporary rental until his house sells. It has been a really hard summer for my sister and I going back and forth to stay with him. We know there isn't a choice about him moving, but it is SO sad to not have "grandma's house" to go to anymore! That has been my children's second home. It was especially sad for my older kids that have the best memories of when grandma was healthier and so much fun. When we were driving home today the song "Jerusalem" was playing. We started talking about heaven and how happy we are for grandma but so sad for us. We pondered all of the unknowns about heaven. Does she see us? Does she know what is going on in our lives? Does she even care? :o) She suffered more than anyone I have ever seen, before she died. I would never wish her back the way she was, but we sure do miss her!

Well, the family is home and I am headed to bed!

Blueberry Crumble

I found this recipe on another blog. We always pick lots of blueberries and put them in the freezer. This recipe was very easy and everyone liked it.

Crust:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour (I used fresh ground whole wheat)

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup white sugar (I used sucanat)

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Mix together well. Spread into bottom of 9x13 inch baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes.

Remove and let cool; then spread with filling.

Filling:

1/2 cup white sugar (I used sucanat)

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

8 oz. whipping cream, whipped

Cream together and spread cream cheese mixture over cooled crust.

Topping:

1 cup sugar (sucanat)

2 TBSP flour

3 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen

Add the sugar and flour to the blueberries; stir well. Cook over medium heat until thick. Cool. Spoon blueberry mixture over the cream cheese mixture. Chill well and serve.

McKenzie...

McKenzie just finished her studies and is now a certified herbalist. During her senior year she was undecided on what she wanted to do. She was planning on going the college route just because that seemed to be the "next thing to do." She took the SAT and did well on it. I think it was a good confidence booster for her to take it and be compared to other "college bound" kids. She was accepted in a local college and pretty much ready to start but didn't feel peaceful about it. After much prayer and talking to her dad, she decided to study herbalism. She loves organic gardening, cooking with herbs and was interested in natural remedies for health. It was a perfect fit for her. She has learned a lot and has done some "doctoring" on us around here! :o)
We are proud of you McKenzie and look forward to what the Lord has in store for you!