Goodbye, 2021!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Our Christmas season was packed full of fun--too much fun to recap in this post.

Our kids have never woken up especially early on Christmas morning, and this Christmas morning they all got fully dressed before opening presents (Chet and I were still wearing pajamas). Sydney was even wearing jeans. Ford thought we opened presents Christmas night, not Christmas morning. Where did Chet and I go wrong?

The day after Christmas we drove down to West Palm Beach to visit Chet's family. The kids were thrilled to play with all of their cousins several days in a row. We drove back home this morning, and Chet's sister and her family visited our new house on their way back to their house in North Carolina.

We have yet to unpack from our trip or take down a single Christmas decoration, but that's what tomorrow is for. Right now we are going to watch a show as a family, and then go to bed (before midnight). 

Goodbye, 2021! Welcome, 2022!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Remember our Thankful Tree from 2020?

It was on my list to do one again this year, but time got away from us. So we're doing a thankful...scroll?...instead:

We started it just this past Monday, so I plan to leave it up for quite a while and continue adding to it.

I also snapped a picture of this Thanksgiving-y corner of our living area:

We watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade this morning:

We also went on two family walks.

Here is our table setting, including our wall of some Thanksgiving art:

We had all the food set up on the bar:

We finished the evening by watching "The Santa Clause."

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Day Before Thanksgiving

Here is the picture of the mama duck and her ducklings, as promised:

This morning felt like a true "vacation morning":

But shortly after this I had to go to the grocery store to pick up our turkey breast (I have yet to cook an entire turkey in an oven) and a few other things we needed. Thankfully, the store wasn't busy.

Chet came home early from work, and then we all loaded up and went to Sydney/Lorelei/Ford's Jiu Jitsu class. We are trying to go to Jiu Jitsu as much as possible while we can, because basketball season starts soon and it will basically take over our lives, leaving little time for extras. (They will continue classes, but will have to cut down to once or twice a week for the duration of basketball season.)

Happy Thanksgiving Eve!

Ducklings and a Break

Yesterday the kids and I went to Walmart pickup. (We didn't pick up groceries, which is something I used to do often the first year we lived in Mississippi. But I've gotten out of the habit and usually do all of my grocery shopping at the Commissary on the Navy base. So yesterday we just picked up a new set of sheets and a pair of black leggings -- life's necessities, obviously.)

Anyway, the parking spot we pulled into was next to a blocked off parking space because a mama duck and her two ducklings had decided to claim it as their own.

(I tried to insert a picture, but my computer seems to be offline and not downloading any new content at the moment, so I'll have to share it another day. Hopefully tomorrow if I or the computer can find the energy to figure out how to work properly.)

The children were fascinated with the ducks.

Today (Tuesday) was our last day of our homeschool group meeting for the semester. The kids and I are looking forward to slightly slower days at home that come with this break. We are also staying put at home, just the six of us, this Thanksgiving, and we are all looking forward to that too.

Happy Tuesday!

(One of) Monster's Halloween Costumes

Our cat Monster has several costumes, and a new one is his "cat burglar" costume. So, of course, the children took his mugshot:

His other costumes include: a unicorn, a pumpkin, an elf, and a referee. He also has several festive bandanas. And a bowtie.

It's all thanks to Grammy (Chet's mom) that he's the most fashionable cat in all of Jacksonville, FL.

Halfway Through November!

The second half of November has arrived -- HOW?! Has time been flying by for you as fast as it has been for me?!

It's too late tonight for me to write an interesting update, so I'll provide this picture of a ridiculous toy Ruthie saw at Target (pay extra attention to the toy's title):

Lawd.

The reason I have a picture of it is because if the kids see something in a store they claim they can't live without, I allow them to take a picture so that we can all remember to add it to a future birthday/Christmas wish list.

Nine times out of ten they forget about it, THANK GOODNESS.

Happy Tuesday!

Happy Halloween!

It was not my plan to post only once in October...but it was a busy (fun) month!

(I will do a catch-up post about Lorelei's 10th birthday, which was October 17th.)

Our first Halloween in our new house/neighborhood was a good one. There weren't a TON of trick-or-treaters in our little section, but it was still fun and our kids collected enough candy to give them at least five cavities apiece.

It was Sydney's and Lorelei's idea to dress up like bottles of Gatorade. Sydney even made the "Gs." Ruthie chose not to participate.

Happy Halloween (and on to the best day of the year...November 1st!)!

Goodbye, September!

Is it just me, or did September fly by?

It was a good month for us. Here's a random picture of a pretty sky and our back porch which looks weird because it was in the middle of getting re-screened:

On to October!

Jiu Jitsu Promotion

I probably haven't even mentioned that Sydney, Lorelei, and Ford take Jiu Jitsu. They started in July shortly after we moved here, and we usually go Tuesdays and Thursdays each week. The Jiu Jitsu gym is right across the street from the Navy base, so it has actually worked out quite well with me often dropping them off and Chet picking them up on his way home from work.

This evening they received their first promotion:

Then Ruthie joined the group and was having trouble not being silly:

Which Sydney, Lorelei, and Ford took as a cue that picture time was over:

Happy Wednesday!

College Cat

I know I haven't posted any house photos, but trust me when I say Sydney and Lorelei's' room is the very coolest. They call it the "college dorm," and Monster likes to hang out in there with (or without) them:

Yes, that is a fold-up loveseat in their bedroom. Lorelei draped the blanket she crocheted over the back. They also have a fancy shared desk, but I'll post pictures of that (and the rest of it) another time.

Happy Tuesday!

A Furry Student

We had a furry student join us for our read aloud time at the breakfast bar today:

Also, why does Ford look sixteen-years old in this picture?

Happy Monday!

Picture from Dinner

Here is a picture from dinner last night:

Please notice the green bandana (with price tag still attached) Ruthie is wearing around her neck like a cowhand. She picked out from Hobby Lobby just before arriving at the restaurant.

Happy Sunday!

We DID Go to the Beach

Chet and Ford took Lorelei to her soccer game at 10 a.m. while Sydney, Ruthie, and I prepared for our beach trip. Lorelei's team lost 0-7, but it was a beautiful morning to be outside and she was in good spirits regardless of the loss.

We went to the beach! Chet and I were mostly familiar with the beaches closest to the Mayport Naval Station when we lived in Jacksonville from 2005/6 until 2011, so that's where we went. It was a great day for the beach -- sunny, but not too hot.

After the beach we went to an outdoor store that Chet had been wanting to visit. Next was Hobby Lobby for more yarn for Sydney and Lorelei (they both enjoy crocheting), and then a very early dinner at Chuy's. We did one more fun thing after that, but I'll save it for tomorrow because my pictures have yet to load onto the computer.

Happy Saturday!

Another Lovely Day; Ready for the Weekend

It was another lovely day and I let the kids play outside until lunchtime again. 

Chet and I are considering taking the kids to the beach tomorrow (we haven't visited since we've moved here!), or perhaps we will stay closer to home and enjoy our neighborhood pool:

Lorelei has a soccer game in the morning, and we have a birthday party to attend (Lorelei, Ford, Ruthie, and I) Sunday afternoon.

TGIF!

Fall is here!

Fall arrived today! It was a BEAUTIFUL day here in northeast Florida, with a low of 63 and a high of 81. The sun shone all day, but not in an oppressive way, and it felt like 0% humidity. HALLELUJAH!

The kids remained outside after our morning exercise, and didn’t come in until I called them in for lunch. We really needed a day like this—a reminder that summer really does end, and we can spend more than just a few minutes each day enjoying the great outdoors.

(Yes, that is Monster, wearing a harness and leash like he's a dog, staring at me while taking the picture.)

Happy Fall!

Happy first day of fall! (It's still as hot as ever here in north Florida.) Sydney dressed up Monster for the occasion:

The kids and I go outside each weekday morning and walk/jog/rollerblade/scooter/skateboard around the neighborhood before it gets too hot. Sometimes Monster watches us as we come and go: 

We even had a breakfast picnic one morning:

After our morning exercise/fresh air/Vitamin D we spend most of the day inside doing schoolwork/reading/playing.

Lorelei is playing soccer through our local YMCA, and Chet took this picture of her at Monday's practice with the double rainbow:

Happy Wednesday/fall!

Labor Day Weekend

The most exciting thing I could write a post about is Chet's promotion September 1st, and I WILL tell you about that, but for now I'm going to share some quick kayaking pictures since it's almost dinnertime here.

Chet had been looking for a kayak we could use in the pond behind our house, and found a good deal on Facebook Marketplace. The perfect activity for Labor Day weekend (and the weather was great too)!

Waiting for their turn:

Chet and Ruthie:

Cute Sydney:

I know, I know -- I didn't get pictures of everyone using the kayak. Chet took each of the kids out, then Sydney and Lorelei went together.

You might also be wondering whether or not Ruthie is really strong to be able to handle the oars like that, and you would be correct. She is very strong.

Happy Labor Day!

The Youngest Member of our Family

Any time (more accurately, every time) I introduce Ruthie as our youngest child, she immediately corrects me. "No! MONSTER is the youngest!"

I have to quickly explain I don't actually have a 5th child I'd forgotten about -- one that I named 'Monster' -- and that Monster is our cat.

He does seem more human every day though...

A Quick Picture

Our new house has this front room with French doors. We call it the "homeschool room," even though we don't conduct much official schooling in there. Really it's just a place to house all of the books and binders and the printer.

The legos also live in this room, which means this is where you can usually find Sydney. 

When I took this picture, Sydney and Lorelei had closed the French doors so they could listen to their audiobook (coming out of the computer's speakers) in peace.

Happy Monday!

First Day of School Picture

I remembered to take a picture the first day of school (right before we walked inside)!

Our homeschool group meets at a church, so "Westside" is part of the church's name, not the name of the kids' school.

We had a great first day. It was slightly hectic, like all first days are, but they were excited to get back to our weekly group meetings and to meet new friends.

The Shortest Update Ever

How can it be August 15th?!

We've had visitors and are getting ready to start school Tuesday. Here are some of our visitors:

Chet's parents came too, but we didn't take ANY pictures (or I didn't at least). We were too busy pulling weeds and painting and rearranging the garage during their visit.

I told you this would be the shortest update ever.

Happy Sunday!

A Drawer and a Picture

I'm still looking around this house, wondering things like, "How long are these twin-sized box springs going to line our main hallway?" and "How long does it take for bugs to infest a mountain of cardboard?" 

Anyway.

Yesterday I organized this drawer:

And today I made this seemingly purposeless nook purposeful:

(PLEASE ZOOM IF POSSIBLE AND TAKE A GOOD LOOK AT THAT CAT WATERCOLOR. Anything else I do to the house will pale in comparison to hanging that. My dear friend Angela sent it; she is the best gift giver alive.)

Happy Wednesday!

Quick Update

Well.

The moving truck arrived and unloaded all of our belongings (WHY ARE THERE SO MANY) July 1st. It happened mostly without incident (there are always at least a couple of things that get broken in a move). Chet and I were praying all day that our freshly-painted walls wouldn't be harmed (they weren't).

Best of all: IT ONLY TOOK SIX HOURS. They were gone by 5 p.m., leaving us in our sea of boxes.

(This is one of our front rooms which we're calling the homeschool room. It was simultaneously nice and terrifying to have most of the boxes in a central location instead of towers of boxes throughout the house...which is also terrifying.)

Today is July 27th, so we've had 26 days to get settled (we never count the day of unloading as a "getting settled" day).

Are we settled? Absolutely not. I think Chet and I are actually pretty bad at moving.

However, I've not been getting up super early or staying up late to unpack/get settled, so that has something to do with it (I suppose this means I've taken a casual approach this time around). 

Here are a few things we HAVE accomplished:

• Unpacked all of the boxes
• Made multiple trips to IKEA
• Installed six closet systems throughout the house (Chet of course)
• Taken the kids to the pool many times
• Celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary
• Dropped what feels like 18 carloads of items off at Goodwill (how is this always the case?!) 

Thousands of additional things have gotten done, most of which we've already forgotten about. Pictures to come!

One More Thing

I keep forgetting to mention that I’m not posting pictures because I’m blogging from my phone, and pictures will NOT upload when I’m doing that.

Also, our moving van is delivering tomorrow! Two years ago it took the crew 12 hours to unload our van in Mississippi…surely, SURELY it won’t be as long this time. 

I’ll let you know.

So long, June!

Day #5 (Part 2)

Like I said, we got on the road Friday around 11 a.m. (keep in mind, we were going to lose an hour going from Central Standard Time in Mississippi to Eastern Standard Time in Florida).

Bt, honestly, the drive was a breeze. Sydney rode with Chet in his truck (we had to fold down part of the third row in my van, so there wasn’t room for her), and I drove Lorelei, Ford, Ruthie, and Monster. 

We all stopped together in Pensacola for gas and food, then we each stopped once more, but separately.

We arrived in Jacksonville (technically our house is in Fleming Island) around 8 p.m., and Chet and Sydney picked up Panera Bread for dinner (which is approximately five minutes from our house—quite the improvement from Gulfport where you had to drive either to Slidell, LA or Mobile, AL for Panera Bread!).

It took us a while to get settled, but we managed to completely unload both cars and set up all the beds (a combination of air mattresses, cots, and sleeping bags) before it got TOO too late.

I had been pretty nervous about the drive, mostly because of Monster. But clearly we were covered in prayer, because here we are, safe and sound and ready to tackle the next thing.

All Our Moves

My last post had me thinking of our moves. 

I first moved to Jacksonville, FL after Chet and I got married in 2006 (Chet had already been in Jacksonville a year). That was my first experience filling out a travel claim, which I had no idea was a thing until someone in my ship’s admin office handed me one to fill out. 

In August 2009 Chet and I moved out of our condo (which we actually still own and rent out) and into a house on the Navy base. It was RIGHT on the beach. 

In September 2010, Baby Sydney and I moved out of the beach house and into a newly built house (still on the Navy base) a few of blocks away (Chet was in Africa, and my dad helped us with that move). They tore down all the beach houses and built new ones.

In July 2011 we moved to Gulfport, MS. Chet’s parents helped us with the drive and the moving van delivery. Lorelei was born three months later.

In March 2014, a few weeks after Ford was born, we moved to Alexandria, VA. Chet’s dad helped him drive the two vehicles (and Sydney and Lorelei) to VA, and my dad helped me vacate our MS house with a fussy Baby Ford in tow.

In April/May 2016, a few weeks after Ruthie was born, we moved to Austin, TX. My dad flew to VA, and he and the kids and I flew to TX together. He also helped me and Baby Ruthie with the moving van delivery and the first few days of unpacking. Chet and his dad drove the vehicles down, and my mom and Papa Dave kept and entertained Sydney, Lorelei, and Ford (ages 6, 4, and 2!) at their house in the midst of it all.

12-ish short months later, in May/June 2017, we moved to Lemoore, CA. Chet went out ahead of us in his truck, AND accepted the moving van delivery on his own. He unpacked every box, and then I flew out to CA for a few days to get things organized. (Didi and Papa Dave kept the kids again.) I flew back to TX, then Chet flew back to TX, and then we all got in the car to drive to CA.

In May/June 2019, we moved to Gulfport, MS, just three doors down from where we lived last time. Chet was still in CA finishing up his job, and Sydney and I left Lorelei, Ford, and Ruthie with Didi and Papa Dave in TX so that she and I (and Papa John again!) could accept the moving van delivery and unpack as much as possible before everyone else arriving. Chet picked up the rest of the kids in TX ok his way from CA to MS.

Now we’re in Jacksonville, FL again, and we decided to tackle the move all together—no splitting up. Did you know Jacksonville is the largest city in the United States, area-wise? We are 40 miles from where we lived last time, so it’s kind of like a whole new town to us (not to mention that a lot can change in 10 years!).

Day #5

Friday morning Ford, Ruthie, and I vacated our hotel room early and met Chet, Sydney, and Lorelei at our Gulfport house one last time to get the rest of our things packed and loaded into the cars.

Chet also had to swing by work for his final check out in the midst of this.

Our appointment with the housing office was at 10 a.m., and we were NOT ready. However, we probably ended up emptying the house faster with the housing office lady there waiting on us than we otherwise would have.

I wanted to take a picture of all of us in front of the house…but it just didn’t happen. I’ll have to rely on my memory.

Before getting in the highway we had to stop at a truck stop to weigh our full vehicles. The Navy hires a company to move us, but we are also able to fill out a travel claim for our vehicles and the belongings inside of them to help offset moving costs. But let me tell you (now that we’ve done this seven times), making time to weigh both vehicles twice (empty and full) never feels convenient! (But thank you, Navy, for not making us move out of pocket.)

Next, the drive…

Day #4

Thursday (June 24th) the moving can arrived at our house in Gulfport and loaded up all of the boxes and the rest of our furniture.

There were three men working, and Monster was totally freaked out by them and their music. He hid in the woods all day.

The men started working at 10 a.m. and finished at 6:30 p.m. 

Chet and I sort of tried to finish cleaning and organizing and packing the items that would go in our cars, but we lost steam and decided to go to bed instead. 

Happy Monday!

Days #2 and #3

(We are WAY past this now, but I’d still like to catch you up!)

As predicted, the hard-working packers finished putting all of our things into boxes (and creating the inventory) Tuesday. In fact, they were gone by 4:30 p.m. 

Did I mention this has never happened?

We cobbler together a dinner Tuesday night, and went to bed. (Ford, Ruthie, and I slept in the Navy Lodge—a hotel on base—Monday night through Thursday night.)

Day #3 was Wednesday, June 23rd. We dropped Ruthie off at gymnastics camp at 9 a.m., then Chet, Sydney, Lorelei, Ford, and I went to a bakery called Bagel Bees owned by a former Seabee for breakfast (we had yet to visit, but had heard great things—it was indeed delicious.)

Next we went to the library to return the rest of our books, and happened to get there right before story time, so we stayed for that.

We visited Chet’s and my favorite antique shop after that (these three places are all within a mile of each other), and then went home.

The rest of the day we organized things at home in preparation for the moving truck that was coming the following day.

One of our neighbors who are also our dear friends had us over for dinner that night, so we feasted instead of having to cobble together a meal again.

More tomorrow (especially because as of today we have WiFi in the new house)!

Day #1: Packers

At the risk of confusing everyone, today (Tuesday) is "Day #2: Packers." But since yesterday has already happened and today is still happening, I'll tell you how it went yesterday.

A team of three people arrived at 8:30 a.m. Two women and one man. The two women were the same ones who packed our house in 2014 when we moved from Gulfport, MS to Alexandria, VA, so that was surprising (and slightly startling).

The man started packing in the garage, and the women (who are sisters -- a fact I find adorable) started boxing up everything downstairs. Which was good, because I had things I still needed to gather and organize in the upstairs bedrooms.

The man finished the garage and the women finished the downstairs, and they even packed up Sydney's room, all before 5 p.m. yesterday. THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED. The two women (the man is on another job today) will easily finish the rest of the house before the day is over.

I repeat: THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED. The past several moves have required three days to pack our house; any time only two days were allotted were STRESSFUL. This means that tomorrow, Wednesday, we have all day to tidy and pack the things the movers can't pack for us. Hallelujah.

Here is a picture from Saturday, when Chet was in the middle of painting our Navy blue wall back to white and patching the bathroom wall where we had put peel and stick wallpaper:

It was a bit chaotic, the BEST word to describe all moves, everywhere.

I am an organized person. However, I do not consider myself an organized mover. For example, there were some things we needed to set aside to take with us, instead of going into moving boxes. Such as a spatula, the microwave, and cat food -- but I forgot, so those things are taped up in one of the boxes. Oh, well. There are SO many details to remember when moving that is impossible to get everything right. 

Also, I do not wish to become an organized mover, even though we have to do it fairly often. It feels like it requires too much brain power and takes too much effort to become a moving expert -- so I choose not to. Expert or not, moves always start and finish, and then they're over. I'll spend my brainpower and time being ultra organized in other ways.

Artwork

A couple of weeks ago, in the midst of cleaning out her desk in preparation for the move, Lorelei came across some leftover art supplies from a project that she had already completed. 

She was going to throw the supplies away, but decided instead to gather Ford and Ruthie and have them use the supplies to make something.

Ford made a map:

And Ruthie created a scene with a dog (of course):

The BEST part of this was the three of them were quiet for over an hour while doing this. If you've ever visited, you know how loud it can get in this house, so I'll take the quiet when I can get it.

By the way, I do not keep such things -- if I kept every piece of artwork, I'd need a second house JUST for things created by the kids. I took a picture, put the pictures in the proper folders on my iPhone, and threw the pictures away. (Chet and I joke that throwing things away is my love language.)

Chet's Last Day of Work

Today Chet turns over his job as the Executive Officer (XO) to his replacement.

He and his replacement have been together all week -- discussing, asking questions, etc. -- including eating lunch together every single day so as not to lose any time. Chet is not a big talker, so he's feeling the effects of all this talking, ha!

I had to take a picture of him on his last day as the XO:

He's done a fantastic job in this role. 

Our packers arrive Monday, which means this weekend, in the midst of a tropical...depression? storm?...we will be doing all we need to do to make sure Monday starts off as smoothly as possible.

Happy Friday!

1/3 of the Way Through June

June 10th! Can you believe it?!

I don't have the energy to give a comprehensive update right now, so I'll share these three pictures:

I noticed while looking through my camera roll that these three recent pictures were all in the same spot in the house, and for some reason it tickled me.

Ruthie was waiting for her friend Brynn to get home, I'm not entirely sure what Ford was doing, and Lorelei is obviously holding a swaddled Monster.

How is your June going?!

Memorial Day

Today we remembered our fallen heroes.

I spent some time on the Naval Academy's Memorial Hall website today (click here). 

I encourage you to scroll all the way to the bottom, where the most recently graduated officers are listed. Chet and I were both in the same company as Elizabeth Kealey (class of 2005) and Brian Kennedy (class of 2007). People who are in the same company live on the same hallway, eat at the same tables, and play on the same intramural sports teams.

It's difficult to fathom all of these losses; always remember that freedom isn't free.

Antique-ing

Happy Sunday!

This morning after Sunday school we swung through the McDonald's drive through and set off for the antique stores.

Antique-ing is not the children's favorite activity, but we informed them there was ice cream at home in the freezer. Those who complained would not get any after dinner.

That's our parenting strategy in a nutshell.

Ruthie needed to go to the bathroom twice while we were out. She told me, "I love you, Mom, because you take me to ALL the bathrooms!"

I would post pictures of what we bought...but we didn't buy anything. Chet and I just enjoy looking.

Ford's Bunkbed

Today I sold Ford's bunkbed to one of our neighbors:

We actually have two of these bunkbeds (which are not really bunkbeds, but that's not the point right now), and we really like them, but we only need one of them at our next house.

Now Ford's room looks like this:

A little barren (I secretly love it).

I also finished helping Lorelei pack the rest of her treasures today, and we all agree that this move is starting to feel very, very real.

Happy Saturday!

Fireplace and Packing

Chet built this adorable faux fireplace for our house in California, but we are not taking it with us to Florida.

I hope someone in our current neighborhood (where the houses are all the same) volunteers to take it off our hands and can enjoy it like we have.

Today Lorelei and I packed up most of her belongings in preparation for the move. Desk items, sentimental items, papers decorating the walls, etc. We are both glad to have gotten most of it done.

After dinner and baths we watched half a movie (we almost always break a movie into two viewings -- otherwise the kids get in bed way too late), and now I'm ready to change into pajamas myself. Chet was off work today (and will also be off Monday) for Memorial Day, and it was really nice having him around on a Friday.

TGIF!

Castless Lorelei

Did I mention Lorelei got her cast off?

She actually got it off the first week of May, and has been working on regaining her range of motion and strength.

We go back for one final check next week, and she will be officially healed!

Our bodies (especially kids' bodies) are amazing.