Movin' on Up

So, for those of you who haven't heard, we have completely lost our minds and have decided to put our house on the market. For about a year, we have been wavering between "this house is plenty big" and "we feel like sardines with toys coming out of our ears". So, the low interest rates finally convinced us to give it a shot. At least we don't feel pressured to sell, so if it doesn't work out, we will still be fine.

I want to thank Bob for ALL the work he has done in the past week or so to get this place ready to sell, with lots of great help from Josh too. I have done a little, but mostly have been in charge of the kids and dog and daily operations. We have cleaned out half our stuff (including all of the attic and crawl space), boxed (box procurement was a job in itself, no thanks to Harris Teeter who fell through twice after saying they would save us some), and packed a 8x8x16-foot pod nearly full. We have also rearranged the living and dining rooms (had to remove the tv...eek!), stained the deck, laid new mulch, leveled the air conditioner, repaired the fence, mowed and trimmed the yard and bushes, done lots of touch-up work, and cleaned like crazy. We have also had the house pressure washed, and I admit that I had someone come help pack the kitchen stuff into boxes. There was no way I was going to get all that done. I also had somebody come clean some of the house yesterday for the same reason. So, we are pretty pooped, especially with Miss Big Appetite still waking up every 3-4 hours at night (yes, she is over 3 months old and still doing it...I blame it on her not taking a paci or thumb to help her sleep). But, we are making it and we'll see what happens!

Anyone interested in buying our house??? Basset hound conveys!

Beach!

We had a great time at Ocean Isle last weekend with Grandma F.! The girls did great and they both really enjoyed being out on the beach. Poor little Anna got either a little sun or wind burn on her cheeks, even though we only had her out in the shade or after dinner. I felt so bad, but she is back to normal now. Erin LOVED the ocean. We were surprised at how much she liked it! She walked right up to the water and started splashing around the first evening, but the following morning she was a little whiny. I think she got salt water in her eye. But every other time we went out, she loved it. The pool at the condo was closed, but we hardly had time to go anyway between naps, meals, and playing at the condo! We also didn't get a chance to break out Grandma's kiddie pool or kite, so those are on the schedule for next time. Erin loved the "tunnel" in Grandma and Grandpa's living room between the couch and chair, and she also loved all the books and toys Grandma had for her there. The balcony was a big hit with both of them too.

Though we mostly hung out around the condo and beach, we also went to church and had a quick outing to Calabash and went out to eat on Sunday night. So, it was a nice mini-vacation for us...our only one this year! We packed heavy, but our "t-rex" was up for the luggage challenge. Bob even managed to make an extra spot in back so I could go back and help calm Anna down when she needed it.

Here are a couple of pictures...we didn't take very many, and I can only get the landscape ones to look right on the blog, so see our Picasa site for the rest. We can't wait to go back again soon! Thanks for everything, Grandma!

Baptized!

Anna got baptized yesterday! It was a great day with lots of family and our church friends, the Mattinglys. Erin behaved poorly, but otherwise it was a great day. Anna did very well, with just some crying. She looked beautiful in the dress that Grandma A. made and blanket from Grandma F. She even got to try some of her baptism cake that Grandma A. made. Thanks to everyone for coming to help us celebrate!

5 short years

Friday was Bob's and my 5th wedding anniversary. Wow, 5 years already?!? We have had a busy 5 years:

- We've been to Europe twice, plus Indiana several times, New York once, Chicago, Maine, the Outer Banks, and Boston twice...plus Bob has been to Seattle, California a few times, New York a few times, Florida, New Orleans, and England for work
- Oh yeah, we have also been to San Diego when Bob visited me during my 3-month stint out there for work right after the wedding (I'm still mad that I had to go)
- We have bought and sold 4 cars/truck
- Bob earned (got? won?) his PhD, and all the rights, privileges, and responsibilities therein
- I went back to school and got my nursing degree and worked for a grand total of 9 months
- We had a boarder for a semester...just Dale, not an exotic exchange student or anything : )
- We've repainted the entire house and done some other projects like flooring the dining room and tiling the kitchen backsplash
- We have kept a basset hound alive, and vice versa
- Bob got baptized/confirmed/eucharisted, though that was right before the wedding
- At least we haven't moved...yet...we continue to ponder that one

Did I forget anything? Oh yes, we have had the two most beautiful, bodacious little girls...definitely the best - and hardest - thing we have done in the past 5 years. Whew! No wonder I'm tired all the time! It's been wonderful, Bob. I can't wait for many more!

Fun weekend!

We had lots of fun in Concord this weekend and Erin got to check out a new place, ImaginOn in Charlotte. It's actually a library (so it's free), but they have a lot of toys and stuff for kids to climb on. There was also a puppet theater and dress-up stage! Erin wasn't in the best mood all weekend, either because of getting over the flu or because we haven't been to Concord in awhile, but she still had fun. We had a great time seeing everyone, and Anna still slept great away from home!


Thanks to Aunt Leslie and Uncle Chris for their pictures!