Another Year

Birthdays are the best.  I'll keep saying that for at least another 10 years, I guess.  Can't say what my very favorite part was, but the Happy Birthday​ serenades on my voice mail, getting to hold two precious little babies, a grown-up dinner with my husband and homemade cards from the kids are all at the top of my list. 

Speaking of little babies, Joshua has had some really good days -- we're praying for many more in the weeks to come!​

Apparently visitors are no longer exciting.  :)​

If you follow my Instagram feed, you might have seen how Ella commandeered Henry's stroller from me on Saturday.  She's taken over feeding and rocking him, too. 

I sure hope he doesn't forget all about me. 

Today, we went to the Piedmont Park Arts Festival (otherwise known as the poor man's Dogwood Festival).  We missed the dog competitions, but we did get some yummy food truck sandwiches, the kids got King of Pops popsicles, and - for ​the bargain price of $7 each - we had the opportunity to risk the kids' lives with this bungee-combined-with-trampoline contraption. 

Disclaimer: it looks higher than it is, the kids bounced pretty slowly and didn't even try flipping around.  I have to write this because Rocket reads the photoblog.

Feeding Fun

With Henry's stubbornness (that's my official diagnosis) to run, play and jump at the same rate as his same-aged pals, we've been a little slower to introduce solid foods that are more complex than a puree.  When a report came home from school saying he'd had pizza and corn for lunch (!!!!!!!!!) we decided maybe we could carefully start him on some flavored puffs at home.  (You parents of toddlers out there know which ones I'm talking about.)  We've had some varied success with those, and even more success getting his new teachers to follow his feeding plan.  ​

With the puffs introduction behind us, we tried some crackers at dinner last night.  And bananas at lunch today.  And a rib at dinner tonight.  No, seriously. 

​At this rate, the kid'll have steak for breakfast tomorrow.  What was that about our plan to go slowly?

You can't see it here, but he's grabbed the spoon from me and won't give it back.  "I've got this, Mom.  Hand over the rest of the goods."​

I can't tell you how much this makes my heart ache for the day we can have a puppy again.  I can just see him or her waiting patiently by Henry's high chair for all kinds of yum-yums.  ​

Mmm, Fox Brothers.  ​

The Newest Family Rockstar

How am I supposed to be a baby hog when Mother Nature gives me a cough the week before our new nephew arrives?  At least when I finally got to go to the NICU, I was the only visitor and didn't have to elbow Wes out of the way.  So it took a little extra time, but here are some photos of Baby Joshua at 10 days old. 

He's super cool.  ​

It's hard to see a little one with so many lines tethered to him, but he seems to be taking it all in stride.  Mom Kristi is a pro at moving him around the room and not getting tangled up.  

Who isn't a sucker for cute little baby toes?

I'm pretty sure Joshua's gotten most of his rockstar-ness from his Mom and Dad.  What an amazing and strong family.  We can't wait to see Joshua grow and give his cousins a run for their money -- clearly he's already gaining some major street cred.  ​

LEGOland

It took two attempts, but we finally broke into the wonder that is LEGOland on Sunday afternoon.  The wait for each of the two rides was unusually slow but otherwise, we had a good time and Michael's been sleeping with his new Dark Saver toy ever since.  (You may know him ​as Darth Vader.)

I was oddly over-excited about the entire city of Atlanta made out of LEGOs.  So cool!​

The smart folks who designed the play spaces included tables for kids to build with bricks while waiting in line for the rides.  ​

One more item marked off of our Atlanta Bucket List.  Eighty-seven more to go. ​

First Grade & Early Naps

On Wednesday, all three kids started new years in new classes.  The boys weren't interested in my photography antics that morning, but sweet Ella indulged me.  ​

Waiting with her new class for Community Circle to start.  ​

I'm going to type something here because I don't know how to delete this text box. I did figure out how to move it to the side and pair it with a photo. Not that that's what I was trying to do.

On Thursday mornings, Henry goes to see Dr. Marla so we try to ​get him down for a nap right after breakfast.  Today, he learned a valuable nugget of information.  If you look cute when mom comes to wake you from your nap, the click of her camera and a big lens in your face may be your wake-up call. 

3​

And because I can't have a post without Bud-Bud..as it turns out, I can sneak up on him while Tangled is playing (dang that horse is funny) and fire off one or two shots before he's on to me.  ​

Ahh, the beach.

School starts on Wednesday.  New classes for all three kiddos.  So yesterday we got home from a week at the beach, and today we spent 12 hours doing 8 loads of sandy laundry, hitting the self-car wash, (reorganizing the mud room and playroom and medicine 'cabinet' -- WHY today?),  and cleaning WalMart out of all the school supplies that were left on the shelves by shoppers much more prepared than we.  ​

But before we jump head-first into reality tomorrow morning, ​I want share some of my favorite shots from the week at Sunset Beach.

Some snaps of Carolina Americana before we got to the beach house. ​

Bet this old farmhouse was nicer before a highway was run through the front yard. ​

Finally!  The beach!​

I have this same photo/pose from last year in the same suit with the same sweet smile.  One day I'll figure out how to put the two together to see how she's grown up in so short a time. 

Digging BIG holes was Michael's M.O. for the week. ​

Here is Granny with seven of her eight beautiful grandkiddos.  So cool.  I want to be her when I grow up.  ​

One night, there was an amazing lighting storm just off the coast.  Took a few photos then went and got creamed by Granny and Nate at euchre.  ​

There were literally hundreds of thousands of these small snail-clam-like-things littering the beach our last day.  They would burrow into the sand, then a wave would wash away and they'd pop back up above the sand like a crazy flash mob. It was insane.  ​

As is tradition, we ended the final hours on the beach with a water balloon fight.  One hour of filling balloons for three minutes of launching them at cousins and friends.  Kinda like cooking for Thanksgiving dinner.  ​

Bye-bye Summer.  We'll see you next year.  ​

Shower Fun and More FFPs

Saturday afternoon we got to celebrate our newest Manning-to-be.  Michael was concerned that the diaper cake was for eating ("That would be so chewy") and Ella was on-hand to offer all of her gift-opening and cake-cutting consulting services.  I'm sure Aunt Kristi was abundantly appreciative.

The next day - and it was rainy...what is going on in July in Georgia? - the kids and I decided to try for some more FFPs (Forced Family Photos).  Wes was busy doing some things around the house, and the kids are always up for any activity that promises to end in eating leftover cake.  I didn't get The One yet, but I think I got a couple of keepers. 

Someone, who will remain nameless, was feeling a little silly. 

I caught this one during a 'break.'  Sweet boys. 

And someone else was no longer interested in sitting for photos, despite sweet words and kisses from big sis.

But he could be talked into playing with some toys. Will someone please remind her how much she loved him one day when he's bothering her and her super-grown-up teenage friends?

The 4th

Skipping the usual crowds, we highly recommend the private-house-with-dock approach to vacationing through the 4th of July.  Poppa and Gigi sure know how to do it right. 

Below are a few of my favorites from the week.  You can see the full set if you click here. (I'm trying out DropBox as a MobileMe Gallery alternative.  Let me know what you think.)

Henry, for one, had no concerns about us getting packed and out of the house on time.  He was quite leisurely, in fact.

 What's the 4th without some pyrotechnics in the hands of young children?

 

Playing "pirates" with the jet ski lifts was a favorite every day.

This girl loves to fish and apparently has no qualms about grabbing the fish.  We couldn't keep her out of the worms container either.  So proud.

There was a rumor Henry didn't like (kind of completely hated) his infant life "vest."  Not true.  Would that smile lie?

I can't remember what the conversation was here, but I'm guessing Michael's response was something along the lines of "nope, nope, nope."

FFP: Forced Family Photos

As I look through our photo library, I notice a missing commodity...there are nearly none with all of the kids together.  There's a good reason for this, of course.  Have you ever tried to get three kids together for one photo?  It requires a seven-part logistics plan involving proper lighting, sufficient rest, recent snacks, relatively dirt-free clothes and faces, good behavior and happy moods that is all but impossible to acheive with three little people all at the same time. Spreadsheets cannot help me with this problem. 

Nevertheless, it's a goal of mine so I'm going to keep instituting FFPs for the kiddos throughout the year.  Eventually, I'm sure to get The One.  Right?  You may notice a certain three-year old is only present in a minimum of photos below.  There's also a good reason for that.  Let's just say he's lucky to still be with us today.  The good Lord made him ridiculously cute and funny for self-defense purposes, I now know. 

 

"Phew Mom, that was hard work. Are you telling me I need to get used to this camera thingie?  I'm going to have to up my training."

And one more...from Saturday...this girl is so happy at the pool.  Our little fish. 

And We're Back Online

Our trusty MacBook Pro died last Saturday.  And when I say "died," I mean in a completely and utterly useless state of being.  Apple's recycling program thingie estimated it's residual value at $0.00.  Thanks a bunch for that. 

So, we're now the proud owners of a new MacBook Pro and, miraclously, all of our data backups and plans worked out so the new machine is humming along as though disaster never struck. PHEW.

If we jump into the way-back machine, we'll make a first stop at last Friday's Decatur Beach Par-tay.

Henry discovered sand.  Ella and Michael renewed their love for the King of Pops.  And we all were subjected to a crazy-loud kids' band.  All-in-all, a good time.

Saturday morning, we headed to a quadruple baby shower for all of the new little souls joining the Manning clan. There's a ridiculous amount of blessings headed our way soon. 

Ella watched intently as presents were opened.

Two of the moms-to-be received their handmade quilts from Grandmother M at the shower.

Meanwhile the little kids were entertaining themselves with water guns outside. Utter mayhem and fun.

Since making the jump to full-frame, I've not had a true wide-angle lens...now I do. :)  It's like Christmas in June.  I hope to spend some more time this weekend getting to know my new friend.  Apparently, I'm not the only one drooling over it.

For Father's Day, we hit the Braves game. This photo would have been much improved if I got up and took it from 10 feet to my left, but hey, I had a cute baby in my lap. And he didn't feel like moving.

One day, Michael's going to be ticked at me for letting him run around in public with big, lady's shades on.  But I don't care.  It was worth it.

One-Night Getaway

It was short, but sweet.  The boys shot guns, the girls laid by the pool, and we all spent plenty of time eating and being merry. 

Footnote No. 1: I neglected to take a photo of the (fabulous, wonderful, tasty) smoked meat Wes cooked as part of dinner.  But really, the cow and our hosts managed all of the hard parts. 

Footnote No. 2: I'm sorry I missed taking a comemorative photo, though.  It was a delicious dinner. 

Our Worst-Kept Secret

Apparently when you put a For Sale sign in your yard and then neglect to tell anyone what's going on for several weeks, you're going to create a little talk.  So to answer the obvious question, we do have some news to share: at the end of this year, we're making the move to Texas. 

Depending on what day you ask, we are either, A. Completely Excited and Ready to Go, or B. Completely Freaked and Sad to Be Leaving.  Most days, it's a little of both.  Or maybe it's C. Completely Overwhelmed with the Amount of $hit That Has To Be Done Between Now and Then. Yeah, it's mostly just C. 

While we are heading off into a great adventure filled with new opportunities, new friends and family to welcome us in, we are also leaving behind the comfort of what we know, amazing friends and family we won't be able to see as often as we do today.  Our hope is that our "home" is just expanding by one more state, and we truly look forward to all of the good things to come for us and the kids. 

Soooo, if you're looking for a fabulous homestead in the best neighborhood in Decatur, might we suggest 129InmanDrive.com?  It's a peach.  I only cried for about an hour the night we put the sign out front.  Really. 

In a nutshell, here are the rest of the details:

• We'll move over the Christmas holiday
• I'm staying with my company and Wes will be moving Manning Homes to Texas
• Ella will be going to elementary school where her cousins go/have gone
• Michael will be starting at a new preschool
• Henry will be staying home for a while before starting at the same preschool

While neighborhood-hunting over Easter, we stumbled upon a property that we couldn't pass up.  So we bought it last week.  (YAY!) The former owners are staying through October and we will begin some fairly extensive renovations in November. 

We will ALL need therapy by the time this is all done.  I'm researching where to go for those services, right after I finish researching pediatricians, door knobs, bunk beds, neighborhood covenants, pool fences, moving announcements, PODS, health insurance, state licensing requirements, vehicle shipping, desk chairs, eFaxing, FIOS, stair railings, mineral rights, landscapers and where the nearest Target will be.  (That's Wednesday's list.) 

Last weekend, we took a quickie trip out to the new house to meet with an architect, check out the boys' new school and look at about five flooring stores.  Thank you to our chauffer-extraordinaires, Nana and Rocket and a big, BIG thank you to Poppa and Gigi for wrangling all three kiddos for two long days. 

Without further ado, here are what will be affectionately known as The Before Pictures of our new home in Texas. 

Picture the house painted white.  (I know, shocker.)

This is what you see when you walk in the door.  Picture the mirrored wall gone (the whole wall, not just the mirrors), less popcorn on the ceiling and hardwoods. 

 

Here is the formal family room at the front of the house which we'll convert to a playroom as well as section off from the front entry with French doors. 

The guest room is downstairs.

Along with its adjoining bath which will be completely redone.

The kitchen is currently closed off from the rest of the downstairs living space.  We'll change that with opening up two walls.  The first being the one with the ovens.

The second family room space will connect with the open kitchen, once the wall with the cooktop is also taken out.

Down the hallway is the office.  Picture far fewer built-ins. I mean, we read a lot, but the number of built-in bookshelves in this home is outrageous.  Is anyone else noticing the "Where's Wes?" theme? 

Off of the office is a small courtyard.  Future plans TBD for this space. 

At the end of the hallway is the master bedroom.  Again, picture less popcorn, more hardwoods. 

The master bath and closet will be our second-largest renovation project.  Since, ahem, we don't exercise, we won't need that space, but we do love to wear shoes so there will be more closet room in here, and a general layout overhaul.

Off of the kitchen is a pool bath that connects to the backyard.

And on the other side of the garage, there is a workroom with two large closets - one cedar and one for wine.  We may make both for wine.  We'll take votes. If you bring a bottle of wine, you get two votes.

Upstairs, you find three more bedrooms and one shared bath.  Haha, this'll be fun when Ella hits age 14.  It'll build character, right?  This bathroom will be redone like the others in the house.

Here is the backyard view from a Juliet balcony off of Ella's room.  Which will be dismantled before said girl turns 14 and gets any romantic ideas. 

The real reason we fell in love?  The outdoor space. 

I'm looking forward to discovering my inner green thumb.  Or maybe Wes' inner green thumb.

Near the greenhouse, there is a garden with roses, vegetables and herbs.  I'm three parts excited about all of this, and one part scared I'll kill it all.  Okay, maybe switch that ratio around. 

We learned on Saturday that there are also two pomegranate trees, and one peach tree.  Found the pomegranates.  Couldn't find the peach tree.  Funny, right?  The two of us have lived in Atlanta for a combined total of 55 years and could not identify a peach tree. 

As we wander around, it's obvious this home has been well-loved and has been a happy family home for the past 25+ years.  With their children grown, it's ready for more.  We can already picture Michael going on major stick-collecting excursions and Ella living out her afternoons as a fish in the swimming pool, while Henry toddles around.  We can't wait. 

Over the past few months, we've stumbled upon some crazy coincidences (matching addresses, Georgia Bulldogs everywhere we turn, matching teacher names, matching neighbor names...it goes on) and near-constant deja vu.  So even on a day when we may doubt the wisdom of all this uprooting and change, there are steady reminders we're doing the right thing and it will all end up for the best. 

We look forward to making the absolute best out of the months we have left in Atlanta and know that we'll be back often.  Cheers to the next chapter in our lives, and if you actually read this far...wow.

Of course, all of this assumes that the world doesn't end on December 21, 2012.  Fingers crossed.

The Renaissance in Georgia

I'm not exactly sure what the world and it's people looked like during the Renaissance, but if it was anything like what we witnessed south of Atlanta today...I don't know what to say.  What I do know is this: if there's anything that feels better than a refreshing shower after a day at the lake, it's a refreshing shower after having spent five hours in the blazing sun being constantly dusted with gravel dirt kicked up by horses and passers by. 

Reading over what I just wrote, you might get the impression we didn't have fun.  We did.  It was awesome.  I only wish we could go back without the kids so we could spend more time taking in the...sights...and less time corraling sweaty, dirty, happy kiddos. I'm sorry I wasn't able to take many photos, there was just so much going on!

The first show we checked out was jousting.  Here are the big kids cheering on their rider.

If there's a face-painting booth within a mile radius, you know we have to stop.

Henry was a serious trooper today. (So was Wes.)  Pardon the greasy hair.  The kids were laden with several rounds of sunscreen. Oh, and he did start the day with pants.  (Henry, I mean. Well, Wes, too.)

And of course...the reason we came.

We hope you and yours spent this Memorial Day enjoying all of the fun, freedom, family and safety our service men and women make possible in this awesome country.  God bless it. 

Heading Into the Holiday

It was a big week for our little girl.  She finished up Kindergarten and danced her last dance (so she says) as a member of the local ballet school.  Apparently she doesn't care how much we love watching her perform...there's too much stretching in ballet and she's not going back.  (*sniff*)  Maybe bocce ball is up next? 

These are a mix of shots from her dress rehearsal and the actual recital in case the order seems wonky.

Today, we headed up to Lake Hartwell to spend some time with Aunt Kristi and Uncle David.  Can't believe the kids didn't crash in the car on the way home, but they certainly went to bed easily after all of that fun in the water and sun. 

"I'm not tired."

And I think there are a few random ones that I haven't posted already.

Michael had a grand idea to go running around in the rain.  Which was great until he came back to the front porch and got a whiff of Mom and Dad's reaction to his soaking self. 

Big sister thought it was hysterical that little brother got in trouble. Naturally.

Love this one from Farm Burger after Ella's dress rehearsal. 

Project 52: Week 21

All I want to know is this: How can three kids who drive you completely nuts from 4 to 7 p.m. be so competely awesome and adorable from 7 to 8 p.m.?  The Witching Hour is real, folks.  It's real.  Just ask all of the nice people who were sitting near our table at the Brick Store Pub tonight.  Eesh.

Project 52: Week 20

It's been a little harder than I expected to get back in the habit of picking up my camera the past couple of weeks.  Even tougher to set aside time to edit and post, but I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of things.  There's just been a lot going on lately -- more on that exciting topic in a future post. 

In the first photo, I believe Michael was busy explaining the finer points of "Taptain Amerita" and his super hero friends to his little protege. 

Poppa and Gigi came to visit and watch the kids so we could have dinner with friends.  The inherent risk is always that they don't want Mom and Dad to come back home.  (The kids, I mean. Pretty sure Poppa and Gigi are glad we don't hop a plane to Bermuda.)

The most awesome thing about your daughter learning to read and write?  She can do her own Teacher Appreciation notes.  Sweeeeet.

Henry's big news this week involved his first taste of super delicious oatmeal cereal.  Surely he was thrilled that the whole family was there to support him and document the momentous experience.

More? Please?  I'm wasting away here.

Project 52: I don't even know the week

It's been a couple (or three?) weeks so I'm going to have to look up where I'm at with the Project 52...tomorrow.  In the meantime, I dusted off the Nikon this afternoon.

Whenever it's past bedtime and the kids are ready to bring forth the excuses they've been dreaming up for why they can't stay in their rooms, this is the view we get. 

Any 301 grads see a GS here? 

Ahhhh, porch weather.  Love it. 

Project 52: Week 15

This week was Break Week for the workshop so I didn't pick up my camera very much.  Happily I toted it to the park yesterday; Michael had a soccer game and he scored two goals!  This is a major improvement from sitting on his ball on the sidelines for long stretches of time, refusing to get on the field. 

Doing some warm-up drills with Coach. 

Breaking away for his second goal!

High-fives from Coach and friends.

The big reward: Snack Time.

This morning, Michael, Henry and I enjoyed the front porch.  My favorite spot on a weekend morning.

Project 52: Week 14

Well I missed a Sunday post by a few days, but here is a mix of photos from my workshop assignments and from our trip to Texas over the long Easter weekend.  Those two aren't mutually exclusive categories, but I think that covers my bases.

Project 52: Week 13

For the next few weeks, I'm taking another online workshop.  My weekly posts will be some of my favorites from my daily (!) assignments.  Hope I can keep up.

And this last one was taken seconds before Henry rolled over for the first time!