Our new home

Our old house

Our new house

Can you tell we like white farmhouses?

I guess I should update some of you about our recent move. I have recently returned to work after being an at-home mom for 10 years (well, doing very little contract work here and there). We moved from the cornfields to a suburb in another state in January, and I started work in February. It has been a big adjustment for all of us, but we're all doing great.

We love the area where we live, but we do miss our gigantic yard, the golf course, and the lake where me moved from. We also miss family and friends, but are making new friends here. We moved from a 4.6 acre lot to a .27 acre lot, so we're still trying to get used to being so close to our neighbors. Fortunately, we have great neighbors! There are about 35 kids on our cul-de-sac. For real. The kids love that, and made buddies very quickly. Jack has teamed up with a group of 3 red-headed brothers. They are always running around with their shirts off and their white skin glaring. They use the trees in our back yard as urinals. I thought Jack might not do that once we had neighbors, but it doesn't phase him at all. Lovely.

We joined a very active, HUGE church soon after moving. Jack played in the church baseball league this summer. We tried the public school for a semester, but really missed having the kids in a Christian school. We have them enrolled in a Christian school for this year. It's very tough academically. They start teaching Latin in first grade! I'm sure our kids can handle it. They are geniuses, like their mother. Abbie is playing on the volleyball team and is taking a summer prep class this week. She's making friends from the school already. Jack knows a boy in his grade, because the boy used to live in our house! We have come to know that family, as the dad is our new pediatrician. They're very nice people, and recommended this school.

Lily will start going to preschool 3 days a week this year. She is so excited, and ready to be like the big kids. She has 3 little boys her age in our cul-de-sac to play with, and a 3 year old little girl just moved in down the street. You might be able to see the cars and trucks on our front porch in the picture. All the boys know they are welcome there any time, so we often walk out the door to find a demolition derby in progress.

Kenny is still self-employed and working from home. So that works out great for the kids. He has been a trooper. He's been unbelievably supportive of my returning to work, and of us moving away from his family. Luckily, we are only a little over 3 hours from them, and 2 hours from my parents, and about 1 1/2 hours from my sister, brother, and their families.

Well, there's a little bit about what's been going on with us. Now let me hear from you!