Hilary is nuts

I have avoided talking about my choice of candidates for the 2008 presidential election mainly because my plan is to write in Harrison Ford. Since the biggest qualification for being a politician is being a skilled actor, I think he is the most qualified. He did a fantastic job playing that role in Air Force One and he's good looking too.

But I do have to make one little comment about current events. Either Hilary Clinton is brilliant and has a conspiracy to split the democrat party to get McCain elected so that she can have another chance in four years or she is completely and totally nuts.

Brilliant or nuts? What do you think?

Politics are twisted...

Finally!

Here are the pictures that I promised. I will try my best to never let them pile up like this again. I worked on this off and on for three days. It was taking the pictures forever to upload. So, it may take you three days to look at it. Here is a summary of our last days in WV and our first days in SC.


On the Saturday before our move, our friend Jessie came and got Emma to spend the afternoon with her. She gave her quite a royal day. They went to the salon to get her hair done, got a princess outfit complete with makeup and accessories, and got her nails done. Emma had a blast. Thank you Jessie you are awesome! We love and miss you!

My sweet little graduate. Okay, the sweet part is a lie if we're talking about when this picture was made but she looks sweet :). We're doing some attitude adjusting as my dad used to say and we're getting things back in line. Emma graduated preschool on May 23rd.
This is Emma reading the poem that we wrote. They had a family homework assignment to make a poster of the things that they loved about preschool. Normally I would have done something using pictures that we had taken throughout the year but we were a little short on time so this is the poem we wrote:

Preschool is great,
Preschool is fun,
Mrs. Maidens and Mrs. Morris
I love them a ton

I like to play
I like to run
When we play on the playground,
we all have some fun

Circle time, I love it
The stories are great
I'll be reading in no time
Going at this rate

Well I'm off to Kindergarten
I'll try with all my might
But I really am hoping
they don't have a red light


All of the children drew pictures of what they wanted to be when they grew up. This is Emma explaining her poster. She said that she wanted to be a mommy. This is a picture of her and her two kids. Mrs. Maidens asked her if they were girls or boys. Emma said that they were girls. Mrs. Maidens asked her what their names were going to be and Emma said that one would be Claire and the other, the daddy would get to name :). That made me smile and cry of courseHere is Emma getting her certificate. Emma's preschool was one of the best things about WV. I think we're going to have a hard time finding as quality of a program for Chloe. Emma is walking around sounding out all kinds of words. She met all of her pre-K goals such as tying shoes, knowing her address and phone number. She had to learn a new address and phone number. We're very proud of her.
So Emma graduated on Friday night and we moved on Saturday. I had my camera ready to snap a picture of the welcome to South Carolina sign and then my mom called and I missed it. This is the picture of the sign at the welcome center. It says, "South Carolina, smiling faces, beautiful places". So far, that proves to be true.
Here is our house. Julie, I know that you are patiently waiting for pictures of the inside but I'm waiting for it to look more like a home than a warehouse of boxes. I'm working on it! If you look in the bottom right corner, you'll see my Chloe girl.

Here is the picture of the sign at the church that Susan requested. So sweet!


I just had to post these next pictures. They are horrible but when I pulled them up, I laughed like crazy. I'm sorry Papa, I'll try again next time. Keith was with us through the whole thing. I had thought that I would get a picture of the three of them on the night of Emma's graduation but it was so crazy that night. We were loading the truck and everyone was yucky and then we had to quit and get ready for the graduation real quick. So it ended up that we took a picture the morning that Papa left after everyone was exhausted and you can tell it in the pictures.

I have to say it publicly that Papa is our hero. There are a lot of times that you say to someone, "thank you, we couldn't have done it without you" Seriously, we couldn't have done it with out you Papa! And really, the move went pretty smoothly considering all that there was going on. Thank you Thank you Thank you Papa!

This is how we helped stimulate the economy as if selling and buying a house wasn't enough...This is the first time that we've had room for a king size bed. We just bought the box springs and mattresses and a frame. I found this place downtown that has closeout mattresses and we got a great deal! Maybe we'll get a headboard and a comforter one day, maybe not. These pictures show what happens when you get a king size bed.





Chloe, Nine Months
I'll try to get back to my little layouts next month...
I was out in the back yard trying to get a picture of Chloe on the day that she turned nine months old and someone came to the door so this was the only one I got.


But these were taken on the next day. The church has an awesome playground. Don't let the smiles fool you, she really was sick and feeling miserable. She just loves posing for the camera. Good thing because her sister is totally going through a Chandler smiling phase.
And so does our neighborhood. The following pictures were taken at our neighborhood park yesterday.




My parents came this past weekend but I forgot to get pictures. That's okay because we're going to see them again this weekend. How crazy is that?

Update on grandma... She's home from the hospital and Aunt Alice is there with her right now.
My grandma went into the hospital with what they thought was a heart attack but turned out to be an anxiety attack from what I understand. Thank you all for the prayers for both of them.

Blessings,
Dana

Quick Update

We are still here. I don't have internet yet or at least not my own.. We'll leave it at that. It should be set up tomorrow.

Wow, it's hard to believe that it's only been a week since Emma's preschool graduation. We've been a long way since then. I'll try to post those pictures and pictures of Chloe (she's 9 months today!) as soon as I get a spare second which actually might not be for a while. There is so much to do! I am pretty tired but more because Chloe has had a cold and cries if I put her down than because of the move. I'm wondering if she has an ear infection. We may be trying out the new pediatrician quicker than I expected. I left her in the church nursery on Wed. and that didn't turn out so well. I'm wondering if the girl that was in there will ever have children now. It's really odd for Chloe. I keep telling people, "I promise she is usually very happy". It's not the best way for people to meet her. Hopefully she will get to feeling better soon!

I've got most everything unpacked. I've got to get a couple of sets of shelves to get things organized like I want them. There is still a lot to do but we're getting there. Emma laid claim to the pink bedroom when she looked at the pictures and since Chloe, can't talk, she got the blue room. It's going to have to be painted pretty soon. I hope it doesn't warp her too much in the mean time. I guess it's better than having a boy in a pink room. Other than that, that will be all the painting that I do for a while. We still have a lot of things to take care of like drivers licenses and license plates. There are so many things to be done when you move to a new place.

We have been overwhelmed by how everyone has welcomed us with open arms. The church really knows how to make a person feel at home (I did get a picture of that sign for you Susan. I'll get it posted soon I hope). I'm excited about that not only for me but it is also a place I will be excited to tell my friends about (when I make some that is). But so far, I'm really enjoying getting to know the girls at church. I'm very aware though that we can't stay only within the church walls and I'm looking forward to meeting people "on the outside" too. We've met some of our neighbors and everyone just seems super friendly. The city has some really cool things that I've been reading about. It has a greenway, and an awesome recycling program, and a recreational center with an indoor track and fitness rooms and all sorts of stuff and the membership is only $150 a year for a family. It seems to be a wonderful place to put down roots. Hopefully, that is what we'll do God willing. See, I have learned my lesson :). Anyway, that's all I've got for you right now. I've got to get to bed. Chloe hasn't been sleeping well and my time to catch some z's very well might be limited.

Blessings,
Dana

We Made It!

I think that maybe the whole church was here helping us unload. They were awesome and had it done in no time. We're about to get ready to go to church and then I'll be trying to get the chaos back under control.

Thank you for your prayers. The house is great and the weather is beautiful.

Blessings,

Dana

North Carolina for the night

We stopped in NC for the night. We are all very tired but it's a good tired. I just wanted to say a huge huge thank you to everyone that gave up their Saturday to help us this morning. We love you all and we're looking forward to your visits that you promised us :). We are so thankful for your support in this new journey that we're about to embark on.. We are so excited about the opportunity that God is giving us.


I'll try to update as quickly as I can when we get there. We're looking forward to joining our new family tomorrow. I think we've got about a four hour drive tomorrow.


Blessings,
Dana

Sweet Moments. Edited May 23rd 1:25 pm.

There are so many thoughts passing through my mind right now. Ok, well maybe they're only half thoughts because my mind is quickly jumping from one place to another. I'm going to try to do a update but I'm not guaranteeing anything about you being able to read it. I'm sitting in our living room at 4:15 a.m. It is actually quite amazing that this is the first morning in quite a while where I've woken so early. Quite often there are times when I have a To Do list that has to continue the next day and those never ending to do lists usually mean a short nights sleep. Usually, I sleep for a few hours and wake with the list running through my head. So, I often get up and begin working on that list and then work in a nap later that day. I'll report to you later whether or not the nap happens today. Actually, I probably will not report that to you later.. I think there are a lot of times that something seems important and I think I will write about it later and then later, there are more important things. But, right now, I think getting a nap some time today will probably be one of the most important things...

The time is near. We're making our big move tomorrow.. Wow, tomorrow.. In some ways, it seems like it's taken tomorrow forever to get here and then others, it seems it's arrived in a blink. The walls around me are bare and there is quite a bit of evidence that tomorrows activities are definitely approaching. On the other hand, there are random things sitting around that I wonder if anyone would miss if I inadvertently tossed them in the goodwill box. I don't feel like those things should still be sitting there... I'm also wondering if I should run out and adopt a pet so when my furniture is moved tomorrow, I can blame the collection underneath it that will make it apparent that it has not been moved in three years on the said pet... No, my children will suffice. Seriously, do people actually move their furniture to clean underneath? Please, unless you are going to tell me no, don't answer the previous question.

Also behind the screen of my laptop, (Which is sitting in my lap and gets rather hot by the way), waiting for the iron to heat, is a little white graduation gown that Emma will wear later tonight. It is little for a graduation gown but still bigger than what I feel should fit her at this point. In less than a month, she will be five years old and I am all too aware of how quickly the past five years have flown and know, but can't fully grasp, how quickly it will come that she will be wearing that even bigger graduation gown. If I were to try to keep things all pretty, I wouldn't tell you what I'm about to tell you but looking pretty is not really my style so I will go ahead and say, she has been a challenge lately. Just when I start to think she's grown, she reminds me that maybe she doesn't handle these situations like an adult by having a melt down like the ones that became famous about three years ago. Yes, a couple of times this week, she has reverted to a two year old and has let her emotions freely flow. I don't know that there has been a day go by this week with out a spanking. Yes, we do spank and no, I'm not up for a debate. We can save that for later if you don't mind. But last night, I was able to capture a sweet sweet moment with her. Adam and Emma went to get Adam's dad at the airport in Columbus (I'll tell you more about that in a minute). And when they got back home, Papa spent a few moments with Chloe, I put her to bed and then Adam and his dad went to one last late night movie with the teenagers. This has become a regular occurance that Adam has gone to catch a new release with the teenagers. And since I'm not much of a fan of theaters (I like my movies with a pause button for potty breaks) it's been fine with me to stay home with the girls. Well, on these nights, Emma goes to bed with me. So we went to bed and read the non disney version of Cinderella. I like the non commercialized version of fairy tales best. And after we came back to the real world when the story was over, Emma looked at me and said, "mom you're beautiful, you're the best mom ever". I mean, I'm sure the wicked stepmother helped me out some. If you think the your child is feeling that life isn't fair because you've almost beaten them into next week that day, just put them to bed with a Grimm's fairytale. That should fix things up real nicely. Anyway, it was a sweet sweet moment. And for a moment, I tried hard to view myself through her pure eyes and prayed for God to help me be only half what she believes I am.

Don't worry, I'm not forgetting my sweet, sweet Chloe. Chloe is having some attachment issues. Seems she's only happy when she's attached to my hip these last few days. That has made for some interesting packing. It really hasn't bothered me much. She has been so independent that it's nice to see her differentiate between me and the average Joe. She has a delightful little personality. Yesterday while everyone else was gone, I sat down for a brief moment. She crawled over to me. I picked her up, she leaned in for a kiss and just before our mouths touched (I can't say lips because there isn't much lips involved in her kisses) she pulled away and grinned and shook her head no. I did eventually get a nice big kiss. Sorry Hannah but I just can't resist them. If I think time has passed quickly with Emma, it has flown with Chloe. Things have been crazy since Chloe was born. I'm glad that I've kept this online diary because there are moments that would have been forgotten without it. Since Chloe has been having separation anxiety, I was surprised at how quickly she took to Papa. They hadn't seen each other since Christmas but she didn't act like he was a stranger much at all. I don't know if it's because of the pictures that I show her daily in fear that her grandparents will be strangers to her or if it's the strong resemblance to her daddy whom she adores. She did shyly bury her head in my shoulder at first but it was only minutes before she was willingly crawling into Papa's arms. She even said Papa with precise clarity.

Nana was scheduled to make the trip too. But Grandma, has had some complications. She had a heart attack last week and had open heart surgery on Tuesday. She is doing well thanks to all the prayers that so many of you sent up. Thank God for that! But Lynn is there with her mother right where she should be and she will meet us in South Carolina if things are going well. I think it will be nice for Papa do be able to do some catching up with her as far as time with the grandkids go since Lynn was able to come stay a week with us not too long ago. Please continue to pray for Grandma's recovery.

Well, this post has become quite lengthy and I'm pretty sure that the iron is heated. We are so very excited about the journey that is ahead. I will write about that soon. But, I wanted to make sure that I didn't let these thoughts about the girls slip by. Thank you all for your prayers. We have a long couple of days ahead. I'll meet you again in South Carolina.

Edit: May 23rd, 2008 1:25 p.m.
We have closed on the sell of our house here. For a few hours, we are homeless. Hopefully only a few hours. Somewhere in between 3 and 4 eastern time, we should become South Carolina residents. Can you become a resident without being there? Hmm. Well, we should own a house in SC. The uhaul truck is parked in the driveway. I'm trying to get the last few things together in the house. Adam and his dad have loaded a few things. Chloe is taking a nap. Emma is at a friends house. So maybe I will wait until I get to SC to make another post... Maybe not.

I went back and read this post in the light of day. Seems as if I think a lot about "sweet moments" in the wee hours of the morning. I think I used both of those words at least a 50 times. So, I decided to change the title.

Blessings,
Dana

First Step

Chloe just took her first step at 8 and 1/2 months. Just in time for our move.. Will her timing be this great for the rest of her life? Thankfully, she doesn't mind the pack n play too much. I'll have to elaborate more later. Just wanted to get it down on record. To Be Continued.... We're off for Adam to baptize one of the teens. Can't end a 10 year stint of youth ministry any better than that!
Praise God!

Blessings

Got Tagged

Ok, so I got a ton of stuff packed and got caught up on tons of paper work. The girls are in bed, Adam is at an elders meeting. I've been owing this to Melissa so I thought I would do it for things get more crazy! So, here it goes...

What was I doing 10 years ago?

Was at college in Troy Alabama major was Special Education which I changed a couple of times after that. Was dating Adam.

5 things on my to-do list today:
1. Pay bills
2. Finish a couple of photo orders.
3. Wash clothes
4. Call realtor
5. Pack boxes

5 snacks I enjoy:
1. cashews
2. crackers and cheese
3. sunchips
4. chocolate chip cookies and milk
5. watermelon

5 things I would do if I were a billionaire:

I'm going to deviate from the 5 things on this one...

Ok, you're going to think I'm weird but I'd give all of it but about $150,000 away. Anything more would change my life way too much. And then my being thrifty skills would be wasted. But with that, I could pay off everything that we own. Who would I give it to? Well, if I was a billionaire, there would be plenty to spread around so get it line, when I get there, you're invited to the money parade.

If I paid off everything I own I would be able to set us up for the future, the girls for college all of that stuff.

So yeah, I really don't think money makes people as happy as they think it would..

5 bad habits:
1. caffeine. I've weaned myself off of it several times but I always fall of the wagon :).
2. Wasting time on the computer rather than doing something productive
3. calling Adam a nerd.. I can't help it, he is.. But, it's okay, I love nerds
4. laughing when someone gets hurt. I mean, I probably don't laugh if I see blood but yeah, I typically laugh if someone falls or runs into something.. I'm cruel
5. leaving things open.. cabinets, books, doors, I don't know, I think I have a problem with finalizing things.

5 places I have lived:
1. Birmingham, AL
2. Troy, AL
3. Albany, GA
4. Panama City, FL
5.West Virginia

5 jobs I've had or have:
1. childcare worker
2. waitress
3. shoe sales person
4. tutor (accounting)
5. office manager for a financial advisor

5 people I want to know more about (you're tagged!): Hey, if you're interested in telling me, I'm interested in reading it...

Ellis Update

Just wanted to give a short update on what's going on. Two weeks until we'll be making our big move. The packing is coming along. I don't feel very stressed about it which means I'm probably forgetting something pretty big but I tend to prefer blissfully ignorant. The girls are doing just great. Emma has recently learned to tie her shoes and she already knows our new address. I asked her if she was nervous about moving to a new place and going to a new school. Her reply, "No, I like meeting new people, I like change". I pray that she keeps that confidence. I think Chloe will be just fine as long as she has her bed and the three of us. She is getting around way too well and has way better fine motor skills than a kid her age should have. That along with packing makes for an interesting combination. I regularly fish tiny objects out of her mouth. Emma is quite good at it too. I run the vacuum several times a day but still can't seem to keep everything up. So far, it has been things that could have made it through very easily. And, I will quit talking about that because I could see this subject very easily reminding you of the name of my blog.

I had wanted to write a sentimental post to our moms for Mother's Day telling my mom that every time I make a decision with my girls, I think about what she would do and how I'm so thankful that I know I have her support on every move and because of her, I know how to love and be loved.... I wanted to tell Lynn about how sometimes when I see Adam holding one of our little girls hands, I think about the little hand that she once held. That I know that she loved and nurtured him and prayed and prayed all in anticipation of the life we're living today. I want to thank her for preparing him for us. But, my mind is so in methodical get it done mode that I can't seem to be more reflective than what I've just told you. I have a hard time having an appointment with a sentimental thought to get something written for a specific date. So, I will just say to you both. I'm so thankful for the blessing that God has given me in the both of you. I know that I am truly blessed to have not one but two mother's that support and love me. You both have done and are currently doing so much for us. I want you to know that I'm very aware of that and am forever grateful!

Anyway, this will probably be the last post that I make for a while. I am snapping pictures along the way and I'll have to make a very large update post once we get there.

I know many of you are praying for us and I want to thank you for that and ask you to keep it up!

To all of those wonderful mothers out there. Happy Mother's Day!

Blessings

8 Months!