Here Comes the Sun....

I decided to use this cheery Beatles song as a mask to hide the true emotions of this post...

For documentation and historical record, and since most of my posts in the next month will revolve around it I wanted to blog about the fact that in less than a month, I will be leaving my favorite city in America, and moving to sunny, warm, and really far away Florida.

I know many people think, ohhh, awesome, warm weather and Mickey! And I think no fall/cider donuts, and most importantly, the many people that have made this place the most amazing home for the last three years.

Mark is starting a new job-which is the really exciting part. He is thrilled, so obviously we are, too! It will be exciting to have him doing something he enjoys and also getting to be home more. Also exciting, is that my brother and his family-and also my parents live in the same town-so we will be going to people who love us. Another bit of trivia is that Mark and I actually "met" in Orlando...we had met prior to that, but he totally fell in love with me at a wedding there. :) (Our dear friends, The Johnsons, whose wedding it was are luckily still there and say they will claim us, also. Whew.)

The sad part is that when we first moved to GR Mark and I joked that I should stand in front of Meijer with a sandwich board saying I was looking for friends because I didn't really have any. God has blessed me so far beyond measure, and now I'm in physical pain to be leaving our dear Detroit/Chicago friends, Mark's awesome local family-aunts and uncles and grandparents, my MOPS group and steering buddies, my lunch bunch, my play group, my book club, my girlfriends, my nights out, and the worst, which I can barely type, is my sister and best friend. Three houses away, we have shared pantries, kids, dogs, extension cords, battery chargers, and millions of phone calls and texts even though we are so close. I love getting home at night and looking over to see her kitchen light on. Or being at her house and seeing that my house is on fire. But that was a different post. :)

I will close with this quote from Shauna Niequists's latest book. She speaks much more eloquently than I. And since I'm pretty much always about 2 inches from crying, it's nice to have someone else do the talking.

'This is what I've come to believe about change: it's good, in the way that childbirth is good, and heartbreak is good, and failure is good. By that I mean that it's incredibly painful, exponentially more so if you fight it, and also that it has the potential to open you up, to open life up, to deliver you right into the palm of God's hand, which is where you wanted to be all long, except that you were too busy pushing and pulling your life into exactly what you thought it should be. 'I've learned the hard way that change is one of God's greatest gifts, and most useful tools. Change can push us, pull us, rebuke and remake us. It can show us who we've become, in the worst ways, and also in the best ways. I've learned that it's not something to run away from, as though we could, and that in many cases, change is a function of God's graciousness, not life's cruelty.'

Come visit! I hear it's warm.

sweet.....potatoes, dentists, and family

Well our Thanksgiving started out with a little run in. With the couch. Ouch! A quick trip to the dentist revealed that besides a few potentially black teeth it was all going to be ok. Three cheers for the dentist cramming us in the afternoon before they closed!

We got home from the dentist just in time to get ready for our 2nd Cousin Party. Love these people!! Love that I married into cousins.
Our first Thanksgiving spent with the DK side of the family...precious Grandma Betsy and the girls. (we did a poor job at photographing this event!)
Then we drove a really long way to spent TG#2 with the Anderson folk. Cutie nieces and nephew.
This is pretty much how we felt all weekend. Stuffed.
I love how Joel and Reesey have the same face in this picture. :)
Kaiya called me from the stairs for several minutes and when I finally went said: "can you taka my picture?". Well who can refuse that Italian accent. So tooka I did.
Reese was totally thankful she was old enough to eat big girl food for Thanksgiving!
Marky picked up a new skill and item for his Christmas list!
Reading with awesome Grandpa who still gets on the floor with my girls.
I'm smiling on the outside, but on the inside saying: "please don't kill yourself, please don't hurt anything, please don't eat that"...pretty much a full time job all weekend! Thankful for a very child-proofed house to come home to!
What I love is how my girls are so cooperative for the camera. Really a beautiful shot (of everyone else).
My darling brother and fam...
The founding members.
Cuddling with Gram!
Yep. Perfect fit.
And what better way to conclude Thanksgiving than with leftovers. Mmmmm.
Praise God for so many blessings, and difficulties to teach us to appreciate them. Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Florida or bust

We were very blessed with the opportunity for an almost free vacation with some of our favorite people.

I don't know why they don't have one of these signs in every airport. It sure does make things easy!

We spent the first day like you should on a warm vacation, getting our toes done. (Or in Mark's case, our feet grated.)
The boys spent LOTS of hours as the resort activity coordinators, planning volleyball games and other games where you throw the volleyball as hard as you can at each other. We sat in chairs and did nothing. Number one reason to travel with friends! Husbands have playmates.
Wheeee!

Look at that cute bell boy!
Out for dinner...yummy seafood!

One day we headed to Key West. Man there was some scary stuff on the way there!
An old wine cellar or something?

The Capt. Tony's tradition is evidently to try and throw a coin into this fish's mouth. Both boys did it. What a relief.
How cute is that aluminum Diet Coke? (my friend is cute, too :))


Look at all the people gathered to watch the sunset! So cool!

The trip was basically to celebrate our anniversaries which are around the same time. We celebrated with an amazing steak dinner on our last night...along with some little treats!

And then we celebrated by Christina and I climbing in bed and falling asleep to Notting Hill.
On our way home, but I feel it necessary to give a shout out to MAC eye makeup. That eyeshadow was still going strong the whole next day. Maybe that will be my new trick!
Such a wonderful getaway. But also wonderful to be back to our regularly scheduled programming. Thankful for my 5 years of marriage-and the ups and downs we've been able to share in that time. And thankful for friends who cheer us on in the journey. And take pictures in sharks with us!

a piece of my heart...

is in Upland, Indiana. Mark and I took a quick roadtrip last weekend to go to a wedding-and on the way had the chance to (quickly) stop by our alma mater. Though Mark and I didn't really know each other at Taylor, we both LOVE it and I'm glad we share memories from there even though they weren't together. :) (Except the one time at the soccer game where I remember talking to him and that he was wearing his blue Gap coat but he doesn't even remember me being there. No big deal. I'm not bitter.)

Fashion show in the bookstore. We stocked up with new duds after 10 years.
I know it doesn't look like much, but seriously, one of the greatest places ever. (Taylor, not the grille, per se.)
We love you podunk, run down Upland.
On to the wedding...and getting to see our dear friends Jared and Mandy-and baby boy Seaman who will be here in the spring. Yippee!
Kayla was a GORGEOUS bride! Seriously the most amazing wedding hair I've ever seen. And I've seen a lot.
Marky Mark of course in the very MIDDLE of the dance floor. I LOVE that about him! I'm thinking about putting ads out for people to invite us to their weddings because when else do you get to do this?!
Mark and pretty Mrs. Seaman.

Playgroup Dad and bathing suit season.

Mark has recently been in a job transition, and been around a lot more which has been life changing. He has gone from being away 2-4 days a week to home 7 and we couldn't be happier. My friends and I have jokingly referred to him as "playgroup dad" lately though because sometimes he is around amidst our chaos. Below-playgroup dad reading to a few of the constituents.

Somehow Luke and Ava started talking about getting married. I'm really not sure where it came from, but they were getting married and Ava wanted her wedding dress. Of course playgroup dad then thought he would suit up Luke, also. Oh my.
Oh my.
I mean, Ava was like, the giddiest I've ever seen her. Ever. Obviously Luke was thrilled, too.
Oh my.
OH MY. I feel weird even posting this picture. Sorry Luke. You kinda look like you're being taken advantage of by an older woman. Which, let's be honest. You are.
Onto more innocent fun.....I think these two girls look a lot alike!
Dress-up.
They found the pool bag in the back hallway. Who knew not wearing bathing suits for a month would lead to this much enjoyment! Kaiya makes me laugh out loud in this picture. Especially the boots.