Today is Moving Day and cleaning out the stuff.

Packing up the truck and heading out to the new city today.  Our family will be together again instead of trying to keep up two households.  Mike has been in the other city for 8 weeks now...I think and most of it spent there.  He came home some but being apart has been hard.  He wasn't able to be with me when we lost Miya.  He couldn't be here for the last week of school.  So much he had to miss out on, but it was only temporary. 

Doing so much by myself with the kids this last few weeks had made me so much more aware of what single Moms go through.  At least I knew at the end of it all, we would be together again. So grateful to God that I do not have to walk life's highway without a live person to walk with me.

We are going to a rental house.  Has a yard with a fence all the way around and an office/playroom and many other benefits over an apartment.  We can get out in the backyard and play with our children and chase fireflies and all those things I grew up doing. 

I feel sad at the same time too.  We have many friends here and family.  While it is only 2 hours East of here it is still not going to be the same.  We have had a good almost 3 years here.  Life is an adventure...now as we walk through this next door; I wonder what God has in store. 

Hopefully after we get moved in and the computer up and running and we are somewhat settled; I can blog again. 

Speaking of moving day and all that goes with it.  Cleaning and packing makes me realize how much God wants to clean out of our lives and for us to get rid of the junk.  When you pack a house, inevitably you discard stuff, junk that has accumulated that you really don't need.  Stuff you were hanging onto for whatever reason that no longer makes sense.  God wants to do that in our hearts too.  We accumulate "stuff".  We hand onto hurts, regrets, pains that we need to let go of.  When if we'd let it go and let God clean it out; our lives would function much better.  So God......I give you permission to clean out and get rid of any junk that has no place in my heart.

Create in me, Oh Lord a heart that doesn't hold onto junk.  A heart open to you and the changes YOU have planned.  A heart of love an  ministry.  Let this adventure of moving be a new lease on my soul as well.  Let me be ready and willing to do whatever you are calling us to do through this adventure.

I am HERE! aka: Moving is an "adventure"

Okay, who ever thought moving through 2 states to arrive in the middle of the state of your final destination of the 3rd state would be easy and filled with butterflies and rainbows.....was wrong just plain wrong.

It all started on packing the truck day. My plans to have it all complete were not met. But for the most part it was done. We only had 3 other peo0ple show up to help my dh and 61 year old father in law pack the moving truck. It was a long, back breaking day. At one point, it looked as if we would not get all our stuff on the truck. But my husband rearranged and it went it with no problem. So we get to our first hotel that night and there was a problem with the Penske truck we rented to move with. My husband could not drive OVER 45 miles an hour. NOT good for a move from Florida to Tennesse. That is too long of a trip to be stuck at 45 miles per hour. My husband called the company and they sent out a mechanic who told us we might have to be sent another truck and have it repacked! I DO NOT think so. I told my husband you better tell them that is NOT an option, and they better find a way to fix it or his wife would take it up with them. Uh, they did listen. I did a lot of praying! Finallly, they fixed it and the next morning we were on our way. Still could not go over 65 because of some kind of governor they had on the older trucks. The kids did pretty well actually because somone GAVE us a dvd player for our van. I started ou in the van with the children and my inlaws while Mike drove the truck. My inlaws forgot what it is like to travel with children and did not figure in the length bathroom stops can take. And they chose Cracker barrel to eat at for almost every stop. Now I like Cracker Barrel but after 2.5 days of non stop Cracker barrel.....uh no.....over it. Finally, Mike put his foot down and said NO more cracker barrell. We also once stopped at a Waffle House but did not stay cause it was so DIRTY! Okay so the trip wasn't that bad but it was tiring. At some point I decided to get in the truck with my husband and strap the baby's car seat in the truck with us. Worked out pretty good but made gas up stops more intersting because they would not take the kids potty unless they asked. Unlike me who makes them try every stop. So, consequently 5 minutess after getting back on, someone would need to potty. My inlaws wanted to take long leisurely lunches, nice but not good for travel. I am greatful to them, don't get me wrong, they had just forgotten how it is to travel with little children. Once we got to more hilly regions travel slowed way down because of the truck trying to climb the hills. We went swimming at one hotel and Hannah scared me silly when she went face down in the water and I could not get to her very fast. She held her breath good and the life jacket thingy kept her afloat til I could get to her. But still it freaked me out, after my friend's daughter almost drowned. Then I noticed, I could not find my purse anywhere....we tore the van and truck apart to no avail. It was gone. I was freaking. We arrived in Tennessee on the hottest day in the region in YEARS! NO ac had been left on in our new apartment and it wa so hot. We only had 1 person to help my husband and my father in law could not help as he was feeling the effects of the heat. So my husband, myself and one football player sized teen unloaded the truck. We were exhausted, the kids were cranky and we had no food in the house. But we were done. The trip was over. The next morning my husband called the hotel in GA and they HAD my purse. They mailed it to me, completelyi intact! The phone company took from the Monday after we moved in to today to get our phone and dsl hooked up correctly and numerous phone calls and complaints. It has been an adventure not all bad, not all good but nothing major. In the middle of it, Christopher's asthma was flaring and we ran out of meds so we had to find a peditrician after we first got here. I never ran so much between all the things we had to do. We have gotten plugged into a wonderful church and are enjoying just being able to worship without any responsibility. So.....even though it wasn't all butterflies and rainbows it was filled with laughs admist the panic and groans. So I draw from the laughter and move on. Moving with 3 children, and 4 adults......really makes for family togetherness......LOL.

Dear Diary(tales from the crib)

Dear Diary: I don't know about this moving stuff. I have to supervise and help as much as possible. After all Mommy and Daddy might not get it right. So I am the official box checker. I get in and make sure the box is sturdy enough to hold all MY precious valuables, like binkies, toys, my brothers things that I want. I have also been known to take things out of a box mommy is packing if I dont think it should be in there.



After I get through checking the box from the inside I must check the box from the outside and add a wee bit of baby drool in order to make the packing process go smoother. If the baby drool isn't there, it is NOT done right.

And everyone knows after a hard day of helping mommy do it right, you gotta have a binky break. What would life be without binkies. I heard someone tell Mommy the other day she should, get this "TAKE MY BINKY AWAY". What? Are they NUTS? I was so proud of my mommy. She said I am not ready to lose my binky. I whole heartedly agree. After all, all this moving and packing is stressful.

That hasn't been my only stress in life lately. The other day mommy took me to the dr place. I do NOT like that place and I do not know when she will understand that! I tell her no no no, but she doesnt listen. Anyway, they made me lay on the shakey table. Said to see how big I am. I dont care how big I am I do NOT like that shakey table. I am 18lbs by the way and 26 3/4 inches. Dr man says I am small and mommy should make me gain weight. But mommy is happy with me just like I am cause I am fearfully and wonderfully made and very healthy and can do all sorts of neat tricks. Then get this........it happened.......the most horrible thing of all. The lady in the bright pretty shirt and pants came in and POKED me with a sharp stick! MOMMY HELD ME DOWN! I was outraged and it HURT. NOT nice, those people are MEAN MEAN MEAN. So finally I got settled down and we went to see daddy at work. As soon as I saw him I started crying so he would KNOW how upsetting my day was. Now that doesn't end it........no, more things happened. Some good some bad. My mommy's sister came to visit with my Nanny and cousins. But the thing is I was soooooooo confused. Mommy's sister...........she looks JUST LIKE MOMMY. Now tell me if that wouldn't confuse you too. First time, I wondered if mommy had slipped something in my bottle(not that she would) and I was seeing double. Mommy asked me for a kiss and I kissed Auntie cause I wasnt sure who to kiss. Then I decided it was better to just hang out in daddy's arms and stare at mommy and auntie. Two mommy looking people is just to mind boggling. After they left, I got really, really hot and felt so bad. Mommy stuck that icky thing in my bottom and said I had a temperature. This happened a week after the dr visit and I was scared she was going to take me back. The next day I broke out in a few spots and the day after that I had spots all over. So now, I am covered in spots. Mommy says I have the chicken pox from that shot I got. I told you shots weren't a good idea.....see what happens when you get poked.....bad things. I dont have fever anymore but lots of spots. My fever was high but it went down after a couple of days. I am a little itchy but that medicine mommy gives me makes me nervous(benadryl) so mommy said she wouldn't make me take it anymore. I act really agitate when I take it and mommy says it isnt worth it. So you see, life as a 1 year old isn't as easy as some people think. And the dr wanted mommy to take my bottle away, mommy said no, not til after we move cause too much change is bad for ya. I agree cause I love my bottle. Well, I must nap even though I dont really want to. Mommy is trying to get the camera to work so she can post pictures of my chicken pox, by the way they look nothing like chickens....what's that about.....?

Love Jennifer.