I guess we are actually going to do this

And by "this," I mean....MOVE!

We are seeing more and more of this at our house:

My girls are loving doing this right now.  And can you blame them?  

I wish I was younger and could play instead of pack too.

M was pretending to be a lion. 

I'm sure she got this from the story, "Honey, Honey, Lion" by Jan Brett.  

Another favorite at our house.

And the countdown continues (faster than I ever thought possible)!

M was worrying quite a bit about when we were actually moving so she asked to make her own chain to count down the days.  It has really helped relieve her stress and it is keeping me from procrastinating on packing also. Win. Win.  We are down to 15 days!  Yikes!  

Exciting yet sad stuff!

PS~Did anyone else notice that my children are in their PJs in every pic?  

They really do wear and own other clothes!  I promise.  :)

And the countdown has begun!

residency work shifts LEFT

and to celebrate...

a treat with a silly note

(FYI:  I am not "punny" enough to think of the cute note above.  

That was courtesy of a good friend!)

Happy Father's Day

Feeling so blessed to have these amazing fathers in my life.  

MY HUSBAND

Loves his girls more than words can say.  Despite his crazy work schedule these past four years, he has made time for his daughters even when I know he should probably have been sleeping.  Whenever people ask him if he'd like to try for one more so that he could have a son, his answer is always, "No!  I love my girls!"  They are two lucky little girls.  I love you, Aaron!  I'm so thankful for you!

MY FATHER

I would not be the person I am today without my dad.  While he can come across a little scary (especially when he is upset), anyone who knows my dad knows that he truly is a softy.  He has sacrificed much for me and my brother and always been there when we needed him.  He has taught me to take one day at a time and trust God to take care of me, to not stress the small stuff (If it won't matter in 10 years...let it go!), that part of loving my children is letting them go a little bit more each day as they grow, that a little chocolate each day is not a bad thing, and to cherish every moment with my children.  And...his grandchildren adore him!  Love you, Dad!

MY GRANDFATHERS

My Grandpa L loved to have his dinner on time, enjoyed his nightly ice cream, had to be 15 minutes early to everything, and was as stubborn as they come, but he taught us all to love the Lord with all our hearts, to follow our dreams, he patiently let two little kids follow him around his garden (I'm sure that we were NOT helpful), and he always held my grandma's hand when they were walking out of church.  I miss him at the most random times and can't wait to see him in heaven one day.  I wish my daughters had had the chance to meet him.  

My Grandpa Vic is quite the character.  He always told us to keep our noses clean, taught all the boys in the family that hats do NOT belong on their heads inside, and hid my ice cream from me when I was little, but he is also one of the hardest working men I know, he has shown us the importance of being compassionate to those in need, that we should be involved in the community we live in, taught me to drive a stick shift car, allowed me to live with him for two years during college and he survived raising four daughters.  I'm proud to call him my grandpa and my girls love their Grandpa-Great!

Pick Your Own

In the past almost TEN years of my life, I have moved 3 times and learned that no matter where you live there will be things that you absolutely LOVE about a place (usually you don't discover these things during your first year tho) and then there will be those things that you pretty much can't stand.  I can tell you that I CAN NOT STAND winter where we currently live, but I can tell you that I LOVE most of spring, all of summer and fall, I love all of the trees (although they were kind of suffocating when we first moved here), and I absolutely love (and will miss) all of the places throughout the year that allow you to come and pick your own fruit.  We have picked apples, raspberries, blueberries, and this past week we went and picked strawberries.  Strawberry-picking was on my list of things to do before moving.  Check.  Check.  :)  

We didn't make out too badly.  Between me and two of my friends (and our kids who "helped" us) we gathered about 24 pounds of strawberries.  Let me tell you...8 pounds of strawberries don't look like a ton when you are out in the field, but when you get them home and are trying to get them in your frig...Yikes!  It is a LOT of strawberries.   

They were only supposed to eat one.  Not my rule. 

The girls did pretty good following the rule, but it wasn't easy.

The only thing better than this...if we were in CA and picking these beauties.

Just getting started

Lovin' the berries, not lovin' the grass on her legs.

M was actually a pretty dedicated picker.  

By the end she was losing her focus and picking the not-so-red ones though.

Our Newest Avid Reader

In the past couple weeks, it has become a very common sight to look over and see our little G surrounded by books and completely caught up in the pictures.  Aaron and I love to read.  I'm hoping that the girls will continue to love reading as much as they do now.

A few of her favorites right now include:  

Silly Sally by Audrey Wood, Who Ate All the Cookie Dough by Karen Beaumont, and 

I Know a Rhino by Charles Fuge

Do you have on YOUR listening ears?

Got Stress?

Everyone in my family does...except maybe G.  She doesn't really have a clue.  Lucky duck!!  

Our family is in the middle of many life changes.  Moving in 5 weeks.  Across states. With a 4 year old and an almost 2 year old.  And a fickle cat.  Graduation. Finally.  Does life really exist outside of medical training?  We aren't sure.  Job changes.  Loss of friends. CHANGE!  Need I say more!  I'm not so good at the c-word, but God sure does like to throw it at me a lot.  It definitely helps me remember to rely on him.  To trust him fully.  To know that no matter what happens and where I go that He is with me.  He is my strength.  And who doesn't need those reminders?  

Despite the change and accompanying stress, we ARE all excited that Aaron is going to be done with his training and be a "real" doc.  (Shhh!  Don't tell him I said that because he hates it when I say that.  Just for the record, he already is a real doc, he just won't need an attending to be around to sign off on his charts anymore.  3 cheers for that!!).  Very proud of him and all his hard work!!!  We are also excited to be moving CLOSER to family!!!  (Lyndsey, it is getting so close we can almost reach out and touch it now!)  Excited that a beautiful home is waiting for us.   And did I mention that after 8 LONG years and lots of tears and sweat and hard work and very little sleep that Aaron is going to be done with his training?  This is huge PEOPLE!!!

So we are majorly excited, pretty stressed, slightly scared, and mostly prepared to step into the next chapter of this crazy journey we call our life.  In the meantime, we are still trying to carry on with normal everyday life.  So here are some pics from the last few weeks of May.  

It's a toad!

 First Dandelion Experience

 Look who finally has long enough hair on top for one pony!

Family Fun @ the Zoo

 G's favorite are the seals

My Favorite~ 

Daddy Love

Aren't they scary?

Not G's favorite

Not my favorite...

Since when did she start looking so old? :)

M's Favorite

She was begging to go see the butterflies ALL day.

First fort that she has built completely on her own

 First Swim of the Summer

Mom, what is this thing you put on me?

 Noodle Fun