Brrr...it's chilly here!  This past week was the first week we have had really cold weather.  It's been really rainy and dreary too.  Oh how I dread winter! For some reason, I didn't think it was going to get so cold down here in Tennesee...wishful thinking I guess!  We are five hours closer to the beach?! :) Anways, it was a busy week.  We had both of my sisters here with their husbands. All of the beloved cousins were here too.  The boys were SO excited to see them!  We've all been homesick lately and having them all here felt like "home" had been brought to us...there is nothing like family! 
 While they were here we did some fun things and explored some parts of Nashville we had not been to yet. We tried some new restaurants and checked out a few little shops. The kids played lot's of Pokemon, Minecraft, tag, and just had a blast being silly and laughing together. All in all it was a great weekend!

We visited Percy Warner Park which is in a beautiful section of Nashville called Belle Meade.  They have hiking trails and jogging paths that wind up around and through the hills.  It was fun, but also a good workout! 

The hikers are ready to go!

 

In deep conversation about the "banshees" that might be lurking in the forest.  Even Jackson is playing along! :)

 On the trail!  We passed one of Matt's co-workers while on the trail and he was going the opposite direction.  Today Matt was speaking to him again at work and he told Matt that about a minute after he passed us he saw Taylor Swift with her bodyguards!  She was going the same direction on the same trail as us, just a few minutes behind.  Darn!  I can't believe we missed her!!

 

Mya and Lauren finding a cool place to hide...

 

 

Where is your black coat, Kristi? :)

 At the Puffy Muffy, A.KA. the "puppy muffin".  Jackson looks thrilled to be taking another picture!

 

The "gamers".

 

Lauren with a yummy cinnamon roll.  She was not feeling well, but was such a trooper!

 Fun at the park.

 

They are all getting so big!

 

 

A cool shot of Jackson and Taylor at one of lookout spots in the park.  From the looks of this picture you would hardly know they were smacking each other a few seconds before! :)

 

 

Have a great week and a fun halloween!

Love,

 



Hello!
I thought it was time to post some more pictures for you...here they are:
In Tennesee...
Matt and I goofing around in Franklin.  I think Jackson took this one...You have no idea how long it took to get this one photo! We had lot's of interference from Taylor and James.  :)

 

The boys and I at Chuck E Cheese. 

Enjoying these  last few warm days at the park with James!

We made a quick trip to Indiana last weekend. It felt so good to be "home"!
We visited our favorite Japanese restaurant, Izakaya.  It was sooo good!

Hanging out with cousins Mya and Lauren at Conner Prairie for the Headless Horseman.

At the puppet show!

On the hayride.  Little James was pretty quiet...but he says he wasn't scared at all! ;)

 

Taking some funny pictures...I love Mya's face!

Celebrating my dad's birthday!  Mmm, a cake from Taylor's bakery...oh I miss that place!  There is my mom in the background on crutches.  We were glad to get home and see her since she hasn't been able to walk for the past two weeks.

We are having vistors this week so more pictures to come soon!
Love,

Hello there!
The blog looks a little different doesn't it?! I got tired of that gold/yellow floral pattern and decided it was time for a change. :) If you have ever been in my house, you probably know that my couch pillows fluctuate often, so this blog will probably follow suit and get a makeover every few months.  It's so fun to change out the old with something new!  Anyways, I hope this post finds everyone doing well and enjoying the beautiful fall weather.  It has just been gorgeous down here and I have been dying to share it with you.  I know I said I would post some pictures of the trees and hills, but I haven't quite gotten around to taking any pictures yet.  Actually I tried to get one tonight, but ended up nearly rolling down a huge hill and getting my foot caught in some netting...it was random and I think the boys must think I'm nuts...probably the construction crew working down the street too! And I didn't even get one good shot? Oh well!  Matt is out of town, so I think I will postpone my hiking until after he gets back.  :)
The reason why I am posting tonight is because I just want to share something that is on my heart.  I'm feeling so very thankful.  Thankful for my family and thankful for my health.  Most of all I am thankful to God and I just wanted to take this time to praise Him and share with you what has been going on in our lives for the past few weeks.  About a week after we moved in I was randomly scratching the top of my thigh and I suddenly felt a lump.  I looked down and wondered if it was some sort of bite, but it didn't have a head on it or any puncture and it was clearly not on top of the skin.  It was underneath and very hard, almost like a rock.  I waited a week to see if it would change, but it didn't so I went to the urgent care.  The doctor wanted to do an ultrasound, but we were in between insurance so he ended up just giving me an antibiotic.  After a week of being on the antibiotic there was no change.  I decided to wait a few more weeks to see if it would go down on it's own. It didn't and was still fixed and hard.  All the while I was getting very fearful.  This thing just wouldn't go away and so last week I decided to go to a regular doctor down here.  After he felt it he looked at me and told me it would probably have to be biopsied.  He said he wanted blood work done immediately and told me there was a possibility it could be a cancerous lymphoma or leukemia.  After hearing this the room started to spin as I sat there and I'm sure all the color had drained out of my face.  I felt shock that this could be happening.  He then paused and said, "You know what?  Let's just try one more week of a different antibiotic and then we'll move on to the more serious steps."  Well, after just  two days on the new antibiotic the lump started to shrink and today I went back to the doctor and found out all of my tests came back normal and everything looked fine.  It was such a relief! When the boys came home right I away I told them, "We're going to Chuck E Cheese!" :) Yes, I was so thrilled and thankful that Chuck E Cheese sounded like Disney World to me...it just felt so good to be with my family and enjoy them!
I was served a major dose of humble pie this month and even though I would not want to go through that again I can say it was worth it to get my mind focused back onto what is really important. I have been so caught up in the move and our new house and all the details with that, I just lost that urgency of why we are really here.  I mean, why are we really here?  I can tell you that in the time I've been talking to God over the last several weeks I was not praying about a house or thinking about any of those things that had dominated my thoughts before this happened.  I was thinking only about two things...my family of course, but more than anything my relationship with God.  I was in the grip of fear and all these things I have been counting on, planning on, dreaming about...they just felt so trivial and far off.  They could not help me in this hour of my life where I was facing uncertainty.  I had been holding on to all these things with all my might, but I didn't realize I was holding on to the wind.  Facing this reality check of my own  mortality, the substance of these other things faded away and there was nothing to hold on to anymore.  This life is temporary and I guess what I'm trying to say is that God is not.  He is eternal and forever.  When those cold blows of reality hit us, He does not fade like a mirage.  He gets stronger and more clear than anything we have ever seen with our eyes or dreamed about or planned for.  And throughout these past few weeks that is exactly what has happened in my life.  First, this realization of the emptiness of everything I spend so much time chasing after.  Then the in your face, red lights flashing in my soul of my need for God...my need for His presence and to know that no matter what happens, I can be assured of life with Him forever through Jesus and His death on the cross.  And finally, through  understanding His love for me I was filled with His peace and strength.  Even though I did have many moments of fear, overall my usual hypochondriac self was unexplainably calm and I even thought to myself several times, "what is wrong with me?" :) I am natural born worrier times 10 (to the 100th power)!! But that is what God does for us when we give our lives to Him...He is able to accomplish the things we could not do on our own.  He has been working on me and letting me know that He wants to do this everyday, not just in a crisis.  He is so loyal and so faithful in all things and I want to write it and say it outloud because I know He has been with me through all of this. 
Anyway, I hope this might encourage you too, with whatever you might be going through right now.   
Love,


P.S. Here is a video to one of my favorite  songs...so encouraging!

Hello there-
It's been awhile!  I intended to update this post with pictures from our trip to Indiana, but sadly I don't have a single picture to show from it.  Our whole family has had the stomach flu...yuck!  Jackson came down with it first when we arrived at my mom and dad's house late Friday night.  The next day I started feeling bad and got very sick.  We headed back early Sunday so that Jackson and I could rest and my mom and dad could be free of our nasty germs!  On Monday Taylor and Matt ended up getting it and James got it on Tuesday. So now it's been through our whole house and hopefully it is on it's way out never to return for many, many years! I absolutely hate any kind of stomach illness and this was an especially contagious and bad strain.  In fact, it was so bad that Taylor actually fainted.  I got a call Monday from his school that he had gotten sick in class and had passed out while in the nurses office and hit his head.  He's doing fine now, but it was really scary!  He has never fainted, so it really bothered me that this flu bug affected him that way.  The funny part about it was that the first thing I saw when I pulled up to get him was an ambulance parked out in front of the school and so I totally panicked! (I didn't know it was for the fire-safety program).  It must have been quite a sight when I pulled up, jumped out of my car and ran in that office with my no shower for three days hair-do, death warmed over complexion, ten-year-old sweatpants, and socks with sandals look.  :) I didn't even stop to sign in or look at the front desk, but raced past them down the hall to the nurses office and was in tears when I reached Taylor.  I think that nurse was a little taken aback, but  I was so relieved when I realized that ambulance wasn't for him.  He is doing fine thankfully and is back at school today!
On a lighter note, the leaves are starting to change around here and I'm so excited for fall!  I will post some pictures of the beautiful scenery soon!
Love,
Jennifer

Here are a few of the pictures I do have:

James on the couch this morning feeling better, yay!  He's a loner today as the other two are back at school, but thank goodness!  They had a flu bug pow-wow in the living room yesterday and there were lots of tempers flaring...you know it's bad when your kids are fighting over who threw-up the most!  :)

Here's one of Jackson I took the other day with his model of a plant cell that he made for a science project.  I had to post this because he was trying to be so stone-faced and cool, like any typical teenager...

 

But then  this....

 

And this!

 

I love it when I can still catch him being that silly little Jackson I used to know!!

 

A trip to Cheekwood Botanical Gardens...
This week finds us exploring Nashville!  I have never been to downtown Nashville and don't know much about it.  We decided to take a trip to a place called "Belle Meade" just south of downtown to see a botanical garden there.  It is a really neat area with historical homes and beautiful parks.  It reminds me of the Meridian area of Indianapolis with a southern twist.  Here we are...

"Why do we have to go to this boring garden Mom?"-Taylor

 

Hmmm...they have treehouses?  This might not be so bad.

 

 

And pirate ships?

 

Jackson spoofing Titanic...

 

Lot's of fun things to play on.  A random fish made entirly out of CD's...

 

A giant ball of yarn in the middle of a pond...Don't see that everyday, now do ya? :)

 

Headed out on the nature trails...a bamboo forest.  So cool!

 

Lot's of artwork to see on the trail.  This particular one had James heading for the hills! :)

 

We saw this buck and many other deer on the trail. 

 

Tall chairs for some tired out walkers...this place is huge!

 

Now on to exploring the Cheekwood mansion from the 1700's.  The owners eventually started Maxwell House coffee and IBM computers.  It was amazing to see and the grounds were a maze of boxwood bushes, flowers, and fountains. 

 

Gorgeous views of the hills from the mansion porch. 

 

James studying the "strange lady" at the edge of the fountain...

 

Posing for a picture with the boys in the drizzle.  It is so humid down here!

 

Beautiful grounds everywhere you look!

 

It was a great trip and it's been fun exploring our new home.  More pictures to come soon! 

Love,

Jennifer

 

 

Hello friends!
James started his first day of preschool today!  He was really nervous about it all day yesterday and kept telling me on the drive there this morning that he thought he needed "to go back home and rest" for awhile.  :(  Once he got there and we saw his teacher and the other kids, he got a little more excited, but still very serious.  He is such a funny little guy...so loud and ornery here, but in a social setting like that he becomes very quiet and shy.  I could read his eyes as I said goodbye and I know that if no one else was watching he might have cried, but he didn't.  He was so brave! 
We had gone to visit the school last week.  It's at Presbyterian church about five minutes from our house.   I got to stay the whole morning with him and I was so impressed with him and loved seeing his personality come through in that setting.  He takes everything to heart and is just so sweet.  He wants to do everything right and I could see this sheer determination when he was working that I've never seen before...he is really changing big time and growing up right before my eyes!
As I sit here by myself for the first time in many months, I feel...well, if I can be honest, relief! Spell it with me, R-E-L-I-E-F!  :) Sorry, our summer was a little longer this year because of the move and any parent knows how kids get at the end of the summer...lots of whining, bickering, "he looked at me the wrong way", even , "he looked at me" was thrown out there a few times...it was crazy!  I think with the move it was crazy times two! 
Even though I am loving this quiet time I have to enjoy for a few hours, it's strange being here in a new place alone.  We've been so busy I haven't had time to stop and process all that has taken place and really just how much we have to be thankful for. 
When I look back, I can see how God has been working in our lives in the last year to prepare us for this change.  He placed a desire and openness in our hearts to move last year, but we didn't understand it or even think it was a possibility.  Then came this spring when I randomly started cleaning and organizing everything in our attic closets, which was a lifesaver knowing that was done when we found out about Matt's new job.  It was a HUGE job and Matt had even commented to me when I was doing it that, "it looks like we're getting ready to move".  I really don't know why I started that project.  I'm kind of lazy when it comes to cleaning, especially closets. :) It was like something inside me just ignited and I didn't stop for three days until it was done.  Then, the sale of our home was another open door.  It was amazing that our home sold in two days and to tell you the truth, I can't imagine what it would have been like for us if we had not sold it that fast now.  That was such a blessing and made the transition so much easier. 
In all of these things, I can see the signs that God has been leading us here.  It has not been easy being away from family, friends, and all the familarity of home, especially for an anti-change kind of girl like me.  My worries can at times overwhelm me when I stop and consider how big of a decision this was and how it will affect each of our lives.  On the other hand, it's been freeing for such a scaredy cat like me to get out of my comfort zone and take a risk.  I can't wait to see what His plans are for our family in Tennessee!
-"Trust in the Lord  with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight."  Proverbs 3:5

In the car line with James at his new preschool:

Hi everyone-
We are finally getting settled into our apartment!  It doesn't feel like "home" yet, but we are getting there.  The boys and I arrived last Friday to a pretty organzied new place, thanks to Matt.  He had already been unpacking for a week and had all the beds set up and almost all of the boys things unpacked.  It was really nice to come in and not see a ton of boxes.  The boys were thrilled to see their beds and all of their toys and furniture again. 

Here are a few snapshots of us from the past week:

Matt setting up the washer and dryer....sorry I couldn't resist! :)

 

The boys entertaining themselves with boxes.  They were desperate for some time to let loose after all the stress of the move and this kept them occupied for a few hours. 

A picture of my mom and her buddies Chewy and James.  She drove down with the boys and I and then stayed with us for the first week.  I can't imagine what I would have done without her being here.  She helped unpack the kitchen, did countless loads of laundry, cooked us dinner and some fabulous desserts, and helped watch the boys while I got them registered for school.  It was such a blessing to have her with us! 

 

This is a picture of Jackson before the school dance he attended Friday. He was so nervous about going to a new school and I was prettied worried, but look at him now!  I am so proud of him for going and being so brave.

 

 

What else??? Oh, I do have a quick Tour de Le Apartment for you:

 

 

Driving into our apartment complex...It's only two minutes from Matt's office!

 

The front of our building.

Living room...

 

Small area for our table... 

 

 Kitchen...

 

Taylor and Jame's room.  This living situation started out well, but has gone downhill fast.  Taylor is very patient, but he misses his privacy and being woken every morning at 6:30 by his baby brother doesn't help.  This morning it was James singing "Party Rockers" that threw him over the edge. :)

 

 

The view from our balcony...it's very private and quiet, which is nice.  We've also seen deer right down below. 

 

That's all for now.  More to come soon!
Love,
Jennifer