The. Big. Move. (first of a few)

My goodness, a whirlwind of a few weeks!  With the planned move to Richmond Hill in 2023, and the building of our new house down there, we sold our beautiful white house in Dublin at the end of the summer. The family - some friends of ours - were gracious enough to let us rent it back until the first of December so that we could finish the Fall semester (and finish building the Barn out at the Farm - another last minute scramble!) 

The Lord, in His great provision, answered a prayer we had about the Spring semester (of which I didn't want to spend actually living at the Farm, with school and sports and so much in the city).  Some other friends were taking a 6 month extended trip to Colombia starting the first of January and intended to rent their house, fully furnished.  Perfect timing!!  We could move out of our white house, enjoy the Christmas season at the Farmhouse, and then get back into town in a rental house just in time for school. Maybe not the easiest way to do it but met all our needs.  

The move out of the house went as well as expected. Especially since we expected - and got! - chaos and confusion, ha :) I felt like I packed up things for MONTHS prior to the move, but the stuff just kept coming as we loaded the trucks. Not to mention I had to pack and organize all the boxes and furniture so carefully (and with color coded post it notes):  box for Farm, box for Carriage House, box for Rental House, box for Storage. "Storage" turned into THREE storage units.  Geez Louise! 

Saying goodbye to the place led to some tears - from the kids, and also from me.  While it's the right decision and leads us to a future we're very excited about, the number of memories and milestones that took place in the house will forever make it a super special place for us.  We arrived at the house with a 2-year-old and a 6-month-old baby, added another baby, and grew as a family (and I don't mean just in numbers, but as people, too).

We had to make several trips back in order to grab forgotten things (including a Christmas present that got left in the attic!), and actually went back to the neighborhood the day after the move for our annual Christmas brunch with the neighbors.  Each trip became easier and easier, and slowly it feels like the home now belongs to someone else.

And, speaking of neighbors - that's the worst part of the goodbye.  We had the BEST neighbors!  The Vyas beside us and the Gardners behind us were our quaranteam during the pandemic, and the kids spent countless hours running between the houses and playing with each other.  The full block has multiple families we've grown close to, enjoyed weekly Sunday Suppers at Paul and Sheila's with, and will forever be a part of our lives.  

But again, the Lord is good, we've been blessed with a beautiful property and a wonderful Farm home that kept us safe and happy throughout December.  This place is a sanctuary for us, and the "Christmas as the Farm" is the first of many memories and celebrations that we intend to experience here.  

Our Students of the Month!

IGA awards Students of the Month for each classroom, and both Maryn received it for November and JB received it for December.  We're super proud of these kiddos, who set a great example in the classroom and are always looking out for others.  We got to eat with them on the first day of the month, to celebrate their success with their classmates.  For his lunch, JB asked if his little brother could join - and Wesley was so proud! (Maryn requested a donut and was equally happy with what we brought up to her, haha).

We're super proud of JB and Maryn and the way they show kindness and support to others!

Finishing up the Fall

Gracious, I guess this Fall is behind us because now we're in full blown CHRISTMAS mode!!  And there is a lot going on, as we start the first of a series of transitions for our family between now (moving out of our white Dublin house) until then (moving into our new Richmond Hill house).  I'm anticipating a year before we're settled...and as scary as that sounds, I know we can do it! 

But, first, I want to remember some really fun and great parts of this Fall 2022.  The best way to do it is quick download from my photo stream...

Wesley learned to ride a bike in about 1 hour (incentivized by a $20 bill if he could learn). He will do anything for cash!  I totally attribute his skills to several years prior on the balance bike.

Wesley also got a worm bucket for his birthday which provides a whole bunch of fun for this outdoor kid.

James and I attended our first Homecoming Weekend at the Ford and enjoyed a fancy schmancy evening.

Wesley had a Preschool Fun day which was not fancy but oh so much fun!  I can't believe it's his last year in Preschool before BIG school!

We celebrated cousin Charlie's FIRST birthday!! Can't believe it's been a whole year!

My parents were in town and we got to see a great show (Chicago) at the Fox.

JB completed a fairly complicated diorama of the North Georgia Mountain region for his social studies course.

We attended his BFF from school, Ellie's, birthday party.  We love this family and will miss them SO MUCH.

The Dublin Service League brought back the Antique Fair and Marketplace!!! So much fun (and hard work), and I got zero pics of the weekend other than my prep to make 3 large oreo cheescakes.

We also celebrated Addison's 6th birthday!

Also headed back to the Ford for an oyster roast and an outdoor kids' camp with the Naturalist.  Lots of fun.

I'm sure I'm missing a few things that I didn't capture on camera, and I'm not nearly as good at documenting here on the family blog like I've been in the past.  So many special memories and I want to take down them all, but so many just happen in everyday LIFE - and we are truly blessed!

Thanksgiving 2022

So much to return thanks for this year, even if it wasn't the traditional way we usually do it. With an impeding move from our house, we didn't have the space or capacity to host and serve like we normally do. 

Thankfully the Sassers were willing to be flexible, drive both down and back in one day (since we're missing beds!), and we all enjoyed a yummy meal at the Dublin Country Club that we didn't have to cook or clean up after.  All in all, a great Thanksgiving Day :)

School Field Trips for the Boys

Both boys had school field trips this week and, if you can believe it, they were THE SAME DAY!!  Thankfully both James and I could attend so we split ourselves in two different directions and made sure each kid had parental coverage. (JB is getting to the age where he's okay if I don't attend. I know we're a matter of years before he won't want me to attend - so I cherish these trips!)

First up, Wesley.  He and James went to the Meadows Chase Farm for the annual Fall Trip.  James had never attended a field trip (just the birthday party we had there a few years ago) so had fun learning about all the animals with Wesley.

JB and I headed to Tifton, Georgia to the Agriculture Museum and historic village - formally known as Agrirama. What a great place!  Since I didn't grow up here in Georgia, I had fun taking it all in. (James - as did most of our friends from here - went multiple times during their own childhoods).

One of my fav parts of parenthood is seeing things through our children's eyes.  I'm going to hitch myself on to these trips for as long as they'll let me!