If these walls could talk

I think about our home now.  It has many memories.  Leaving our little home is so hard.

If these walls could talk......

they'd tell you stories of Derek watching golf all weekend during his bachelor days.
they'd tell you about how when I visited, we would go sun at the pool all day.
they'd tell you how excited I was when Derek and I went to look at wedding bands.
they'd tell you how amazing it has been to live in them together only as husband and wife.

If these walls could talk.....

they'd tell you where we were when I told Derek he would be a daddy for the first time.
they'd tell you how we spent hours plotting and planning where our baby furniture would go.
they'd tell you how nervous we were when we brought our baby home for the first time.
they'd tell you about the sleepless nights as parents.


If these walls could talk......

they'd tell you what Derek and I pray about every night.
they'd tell you our fights and our happy times.
they'd tell you what emotions we had after hearing we were moving across the world.


If these walls could talk.....

they'd tell you the countless prayers I prayed asking for a healthy baby.
they'd tell you how excited Derek was to be the one to read the pregnancy test for our 2nd child.
they'd tell you the names we laughed at and battled over for our new baby.
they'd tell you the number of mornings I spent with my head in the toilet bowl with morning sickness.
they'd tell you the hours I have spent holding my babies and begging time to stand still.


If these walls could talk.....

they'd tell you my sad times, too.
they'd tell you the days and nights I've spent crying over losing my best friend.
they'd tell you the battles and trials of not living around family.
they'd tell you the loneliness of spending so many weekday nights as a single parent.


But mostly these walls hold happy thoughts.  Things I can't even begin to number because the quantity of them is so great.  And soon my youngest baby will be 6 months old.  How wonderful is that?

Visit from Great Grandma and Grandpa

A couple weeks ago we got a visit from Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Shirley and Rudy on their way back to Elmwood from Florida.  What a nice treat!  We had a nice lunch and a sweet visit.  We were so happy they stopped by and met Veronica.  Bianca really enjoyed talking to them and also made them the cute butterfly necklaces you see them proudly wearing.  We are so happy we got to see them again before we leave to China.  Thank you for stopping!  Love you both!!!  

I'm a survivor...

Hey there everyone!  It's been a SUPER long time, I know!  We are just going crazy here.... the move is consuming our lives.

Just to update everyone.... our tickets are booked for a departure of May 18th.  That's exactly 2 weeks from today.  I'm excited, nervous, anxious.... every emotion in the book.  We actually will be vacating our home May 15th because that is the day the movers come.  We will be staying in a hotel here in Atlanta for 3 nights.  When we arrive in Beijing, we will be living in "temp housing" until our shipment of goods arrives and clears customs (about 6-8 weeks).  Then, we will move once again to our final destination in an actual house outside of Beijing city.

The biggest thing going on right now with the kids: Bianca loves her school and is upset she has missed this week due to feeling under the weather.  She plans on getting back into the social scene next week.  Veronica started cereal feedings a couple of days ago.  I had been exclusively breast feeding her since it's now recommended to hold off on solids until 6 months of age.  We made it to a little over 5 months.  She was acting like she wanted food and moving her tongue all around.  She LOVES her cereal and is still breast feeding like a champ.  It just makes me sad that she is growing up so fast.  Still not sleeping through the night.... but getting closer (maybe).

Derek is basically working 3 jobs: his Atlanta job, his Beijing job, and the moving job.  Honestly, moving to China is a full time position for me.  It's just crazy.  In 24 hours we sold our home and our van.  Now on to packing.  We can check 12 bags, 4 carry ons, 2 car seats, and 2 strollers.  I will have to take pics of everything!

I'll update more soon.... PROMISE!  Cause once we leave here in two weeks, I won't have a computer for about a month:(  So sad.  I have 10 days to get this blog up to speed.  After saying good bye to my in-laws and dreading the good byes with my parents, I owe it to them to keep this blog up to date.  Miss you all and God Bless your families!!!