Everything Must Go

"I found a shoebox stuffed with cards and notes from your students. Are we keeping this or can it can be thrown away?"

Adam asked me that over the phone. And I just took another deep breath. 

This is what the past week has been. If it can't fit in the jeep, and it's not super important, toss it. 

Even if it is super important to me, it might end up in the toss pile.

The amount of stuff we've donated is unreal. I'm not one to get attached to stuff, but it feels like I'm donating pieces of my life here. Because I am. Boxes and boxes of kitchen stuff, art supplies, decorations, bedding, frames, candles, lamps. You name it. I've probably given it away in the last 6 days. 

And it's exhausting. 

Because each day as we pack up or donate a piece of the life we built here, I'm also saying goodbye to someone. And it feels so belittling of relationships to offer an hour here or an hour there as a final goodbye. And I'm the first to admit that we didn't do a good job establishing roots here, but there was definitely a deposit made in the last almost 4 years. 

And I'm running out of steam. 

The hard part about leaving this place is we're headed down a road marked with uncertainty. We don't know where we'll land. We don't have a specific plan.  We don't know much. So as my girls said their final goodbyes last night, one of them said, "I hope this move is worth it!" And I wanted to collapse because it's the thought that's been in my head and my heart for the last few weeks. 

I know we want to be around family. I know the depth of relationships waiting for us back home is far greater than what we're leaving behind. I know this is the best choice for our family. I do know it will be worth it in the long run. 

But it's still a struggle. 

Adam has significantly less he's walking away from, so how we're handing this time is significantly different. We're going to arrive in Georgia with very little to show for the last 4 years (excluding our best souvenir- Nolan). And I'm working to be okay with that. 

But please, Adam. Don't make me throw away that shoebox. 

Crazy 8

Our little boy is 8 months!! How is it possible that 8 months have passed? He's such a cheeser, and we cannot be happier that we got this delightful surprise! I just love to smother those cheeks with kisses. 

This little guy is sitting by himself no problem! He can go from sitting to crawling with no problem. And yes, he is crawling. He progressed from army crawl to regular crawl pretty quickly. Life with a crawler is very different than life with a roller. 

Nolan still has no teeth, but anything he gets his hands on goes in his mouth. It's like he's been teething for months! It looks like there are 2 bottom teeth just below the surface of the gums. We're not sure, but he might be walking before he ever gets teeth.

New foods this month: peas, spinach, broccoli, chicken, honey dew melon, yogurt (peach, apple, blueberry, pear, banana), puffs, and potato. I think his least favorite of all of those would be the blueberry yogurt. He's devoured everything with remarkable speed. The above picture shows what Nolan looks like when he sneezes right after taking a spoonful of yogurt. 

I've been working on the concept of finger foods with Nolan. He's pretty good with the puffs now, but at first, every last one of them ended up on the floor or in his lap. And he would get very frustrated. But he's a champ at it now. I've started including other foods on the tray now, too. 

Turn your back for one second, and he gets pretty far. He really does love how soft that purple blanket is. Once he crawled his way over there, he just put his head down on the blanket and relaxed.

Our Chunky Monkey is growing like crazy! His hair is really filling in, too. I'm loving his laughter, his desire to explore (it's a love/hate relationship), his love for food, his excitement when Adam gets home, his perfect cheeks, and his laid back demeanor. 

Seriously, the kid is so happy most of the time. He loves to flap his arms and legs.

Confession: there are times when I'm not thrilled with the crawling. Because of his new skill, he's not as happy in the swing or jumperoo, making it significantly harder for me to get things done. 

And just because I think it's important to share the pictures that aren't super cute and flattering, I give you this treasure:

Makes me laugh every time. We love our sweet boy, and I can't express how much joy this guy brings to our lives. I love being his mama, and I'm so thankful God has entrusted him into our care.