graduation, living in virginia, a wedding, beach vacation, and more

That title just about says it all...I am behind again!  So much has happened in the last two months since I last posted (and I was already behind then).  Hopefully I will do my best to quickly catch up so I can keep you up-to-date with all our recent adventures!

While we were in Montgomery for Matt's course we were also able to take advantage of being close to so many family and friends.  Aunt Karen came over from Atlanta a few times, Sean stopped by on his way to Georgia, we met our good friend Jackie for dinner several times, and we were able to meet up for a playdate and lunch with good friends Will, Tashina, and their girls.  It was wonderful to catch up, meet other friends kids, have friends meet our kids, and pick up right where we left off.  I feel like we got spoiled seeing so many people in two months after being so far from everyone for the last five years!!!

On July 19 we had Matt's graduation ceremony from SOS.  It was a very nice ceremony and a great way to end and celebrate the two month course in Alabama.  Overall we had a great time in Montgomery.  I am so glad we had the opportunity to go as a family and share the experience.  We left Alabama with more friends, fond memories, and as a stronger family.

The afternoon of July 19th we parted ways for the next several weeks.  The kids and I, with the help of my mom, headed to Virginia while Matt and the dogs headed back to Minot.  Matt still had about a month left in Minot.  He was able to finish some last projects on the house, put all of our things on the moving truck, and close on the house while also helping transition new people in his office and doing his final out!

While Matt was busy working, kids and I on the other hand got to play!!!  On our way to Virginia we made a three day stop was Athens to visit my grandparents.  While we were there my Aunt, cousin, and cousin-in-law also were able to come visit with the other three great grandkids!  It was the first time all five of them had been with Nana and Papa at the same time.  We had a great time of playing, playing, and well...more playing!  I am sure by the end of those few days my grandparents were excited to have their house free of toys and quiet but they sure did enjoy all the fist bumps, yard races, pretend meals, and animal noises!!!

After our weekend in Athens we drove north to Virginia.  The kids and I stayed with my parents until the end of August.  My poor parents were used to it just being the two of them and their house quickly became full - my brother was living there during the summer plus me and the kids!!!  They loved every second of it and I loved being able to be so close to both sets of parents (Matt's parents live seven minutes from my parents).  

On August 8th I headed north with my parents to Boston for Krystal and Kyle's wedding.  While I was in Boston the kids stayed in Virginia with Matt's parents and had a great time!  We arrived in Boston on Thursday and on Friday morning, before wedding festivities, we headed into the city to meet up with more great friends - Mike, Sarah, Heidi, and Oliver!  It has been five years since I have seen Mike, Sarah, and Heidi so it was wonderful to meet for breakfast and get caught up!

Friday afternoon the wedding festivities began!  I was honored to be in Krystal's wedding party and excited that I got to spend time with her during the weekend.  We have been friends since the beginning of High School and I couldn't be more happy for her and Kyle!  The wedding was perfect, the weather couldn't have been better, and the happy couple is now married!!!

The rest of August we enjoyed every minute of being in Virginia and so close to so many friends and family members.  Matt's aunt and cousin came down from Vermont, the kids helped both moms with baking, Lauren was in town for several days, I was able to meet up with many friends, we went to the national zoo, Syd's sisters came over to Woodbridge for a day, the kids went kayaking for the first time, we were able to go to Mrs. Kim's burial, we went to the Natural History Museum and the Air and Space Museum, the kids played all sorts of instruments with their  grandparents, we were able to have several playdates, we did a lot of playing in driveways and on porches....can you tell we did a lot in just six weeks of living in Virginia!!!  We had a great time, got spoiled rotten, and enjoyed being around everyone!

On August 30 we packed up the car once again to go with my parents to Edisto but we took a short stop at the Charleston airport to pick up Matt on the way!  Matt was able to spend most of the week at Edisto with us and the kids and I stayed until Friday!!!  We had a blast!  If you didn't already know, Edisto is one of...well, lets be honest...my favorite place to be!  Several of my cousins were able to come over for a few days as well as my grandparents!  In addition to the "normal" beach things...you know: kayaking, playing in the sand, feeding seagulls, drinking, etc...we also took the kids to the serpentarium and went on a dolphin watching boat ride around the island!  We had a great time visiting, soaking up the sun, recharging our batteries, and being together.

After a wonderful week at the beach the kids and I started making our way toward our new home in Louisiana.  We stopped in Athens for a day and got to spend some more time with my grandparents, Sean, Aunt Karen, and Uncle Mark.  The kids loved watching all the Georgia fans pass by my grandparents house on their way to the game and they quickly learned to say "Gooooo Dawgs! Sick-em, woof, woof, woof"!

On Sunday, September 8, Aunt Karen, myself, and the kids drove from Athens to Bossier!  We were able to make the trip in one day (thanks to Aunt Karen being with us)!!!

The new week flew by!  Monday we closed on the house and started painting the kids room, Tuesday our household goods were delivered, Wednesday Aunt Karen flew back to Atlanta and Sean stopped in Bossier for two nights, Thursday the TV was hooked up, Friday Sean left for St. Louis and Matt had his final out in Minot, Saturday Matt continued his drive toward us and I worked my way through boxes, and Sunday Matt made it to Bossier!!!  

We have now been in the house and in Louisiana for a month.  We still are working our way through boxes, meeting new friends, getting used to the weather, and learning our way around town.  Overall we are enjoying it.  Now that I am finally caught up I can't wait to start sharing our more recent adventures (like potty training!!!) and soon photos of the house!
.katherine.

house hunting

Back in July (I swear one day I will be caught up), over the holiday weekend we took a quick trip from Alabama to our soon-to-be home: Bossier, Louisiana.  Matt had a four day weekend for the July 4th holiday and we knew we wanted to get in a house hunting trip while we were already down that way so it worked out perfectly.
We had been searching and starting a list of potential houses for weeks...well lets be real, I started looking the day I found out we were going to Louisiana.  A few weeks out, however, we got serious about our search.  We talked to our realtor who sent us several and we added some on our own.  We racked and stacked all the potential houses and came up with our game plan - seventeen houses and all to be viewed on Thursday, the 4th of July!
We got into town on Wednesday evening and started the house search early on Thursday.  To be honest, I thought it was going to be a mess - seventeen houses, two toddlers, one car, and an overwhelming amount of information.  However, the day went really well!  I won't say we didn't get overwhelmed or tired but we saw every single house we wanted to, didn't even go into a few from our original list, and even saw a few extras.  In total, we saw eighteen houses!  By the end of the day everyone was exhausted but we were so glad we were able to see everything we wanted.

That night, the kids promptly fell asleep and Matt and I continued working.  We went through each house that we had seen and voted a yes or no.  The "yes" houses we were going to return to again on Friday and we really wanted to keep our list to five.  We ended up seeing six...of course we had to add a new house to the mix!
The second walk-through of those final houses was extremely helpful.  We spend much more time in each house, planned where things would go, how it would all work, and tried to picture ourselves living in each home.  We kept a very open mind about each one but the second we walked back into our original favorite from day one we knew that was the house we wanted (although Matt tried to say he wasn't sure).  After seeing all the properties and having my personal opinions, I had Matt call his parents just to describe our top two.  He kept going back and forth and while they were both great homes I knew when he described the homes to his mom it would click for him and it would reassure me about the right house for our family.  When he spoke about our top-choice house I just knew it was the one - he went on in detail about the location, the yard, the kitchen, the space, the opportunities, the master suite, the extra room, etc (you get the picture).  By the time he hung up the phone I didn't have to say a single word, he just looked and me and said, "yeah, ok, lets go put in our offer."  So we did just that, we put in an offer on our favorite house.
We decided to leave Louisiana that evening but we felt great about all the work we had accomplished.  We saw all the houses and neighborhoods we wanted including the base option, we put in an offer on a house, and we had two "back-up" houses in case the original didn't pan out.  I couldn't believe how much we got done so quickly!
On July 8 we were notified that our offer was accepted!

We will close on the house in the beginning of September and can't wait!  We are so excited about the house and the move, I think it is going to be the perfect house for our family for the next several years!  Here are a few photos but really, you should just come see it in person!!!

.katherine.

project x

On July 1st all the students at SOS participated in an event called Project X.  In simplified terms it is an obstacles course of sorts.  Each obstacle is timed, has specific requirements and guidelines, and are solved/completed as a flight.

All spouses and families were invited to come watch the event.  (Spouses were later given an option to participate in a spouse version.  However, I did not participate since the kids were beyond tired.) We all had a great time watching Matt's flight and trying to figure it out from the side.  We were allowed to photograph the event as long as it was people and not of the obstacles.

The kids also enjoyed themselves...they found a huge mud puddle, played in the rocks, ran around in  the dirt, and climbed on the obstacles.  Bryce loved when the flight debriefed because someone would usually let him borrow a helmet and he was in heaven wearing the helmet and standing with Daddy.  Zoey wasn't too sure about the dummies, she was sure they needed to be taken care of so she would sit beside them saying "its ok" and rubbing their heads.  The kids had a great time while we were there and slept great that night after so much playing!

I loved having the opportunity to watch Matt's flight.  It was great to see some of what they were doing at SOS and watch them all work together.
.katherine.

an angel called home

You know those people who you meet and they are just full of life, so joyful, friends with everyone, and you are instant welcomed into their life?  Mrs. Kim was one of those people.  She and my mom had been friends for years and I am sure I met her sooner, but I remember meeting her when I was in fifth grade.  From day one I was one of her "angel babies", I felt like part of her family, and she was another mom to me.  Mrs. Kim had the biggest heart I have ever seen and loved everyone.  I have always felt so blessed to know and be love by such a kind woman.

When Mom called me on June 22nd to tell me Mrs. Kim had passed away I was heartbroken.  I know God has a plan but this didn't make sense to me - she had fought and won against cancer four times, she survived a horrible car accident, she and her husband just built their beautiful dream home, her three kids still "need" their mamma, she has six grandbabies to watch grow, and most of all...I wasn't ready to let go.  I know it is selfish but I wanted more time - I had looked forward to the possibility of seeing her later this summer and catching up and I just wasn't ready to say "good-bye".  I know I am not the only one - she was loved by so many people and leaves behind an amazing legacy.

On the 29th of June we attended her memorial service in Hinesville, Georgia.  It was hard to say "good-bye" but it was a beautiful service.  The amount of people that come to honor such an extraordinary woman was touching.  She had many beautiful words said about her and my Mom sang a beautiful song.  She would have told us all to take advantage of being together, catch up, and give hugs - which plenty of that was done.  Most of all, we had the advantage of remembering her beautiful life and legacy.

I hope, one day, I can be a fraction of the amazing military spouse, mother, and friend she was in her lifetime!  Thankyou Mrs. Kim for loving me and I miss you.
.katherine.