Home to Iowa!

Well, we are officially "home" and have made it back to Iowa! I can't really describe my feelings- excitement, relief, exhaustion and just overall happiness at the way things have worked out. We arrived here Monday night to a sparkling clean house and spruced up yard...thanks to amazing friends who prepared our place for our arrival. Walking into "our house" again was unbelievable.

Our last week in Texarkana was busy with lots of good-byes and excitement. The highlight was the graduation ceremony and seeing Tod receive his hard earned Masters Degree. I am so proud of him and proud of the work and commitment this represents. (Pictures will come shortly- I accidently packed the camera cord and we are still waiting for our stuff to arrive.) Our journey here was fun, and we were able to stop at the farm in Missouri for a few days. Being at the farm is always so great- the weather was beautiful and we got to see our beautiful new niece, Leah Marie (Megan and Jerimy's baby).

This week had been full of firsts- Tod's first day of work (no computer yet, but an office and learning his way around), Ashton's first day of 1st grade (lots of new friends and a teacher who is strict about handwriting), Jordan's first day of preschool (loves that they have lots of "art stuff" to do every day), and my first opportunity to take a deep breath and soak it all in! Regan is just enjoying having room to roam (the stairs are a favorite).

Stay tuned for pictures as soon as our stuff arrives- hopefully at the first of the week!

One More Week

Actually, one week and a day...we will be leaving Texas a week from tomorrow. We are all excited and feeling ready to go and get on with our next adventure. These pictures are from the New Boston parade last Saturday. Each year, the ward has a parade entry and invites the primary kids to ride along. The girls loved it last year (when we had first arrived here) and were so glad we got to do it before we left this year. Also, it was about 20 degrees cooler this year which was nice- especially for a Texas summer! Can you believe that the one picture is of the entire ward primary? It is very small, but full of love...and the girls have truly been adored here. They will miss all the individual attention, and we will miss the wonderful people we have met.

Sweet and Simple...

On Sunday, we celebrated my 32nd (wow!) birthday. Our celebration was sweet and simple. Tod and the girls surprised me with a yummy ice cream cake from Dairy Queen- one of my favorite desserts! Also, Ashton and Jordan presented me with my very own Webkinz (stuffed animals that are also virtual pets on the computer). I have secertly wanted one ever since the girls got really into playing with them! Obviously, Ashton was not happy in one of the pictures!

For my main birthday present, I am getting this:

For those of you who haven't heard, we are moving back to Davenport, Iowa into this house! I know, I can't believe it either. It's a long story, but through a series of miraculous events, Tod has been reassigned to work at the Rock Island Arsenal instead of at the Redstone Arsenal in Alabama. To say we are thrilled would be an understatement. For over a year, we have been hoping and praying that somehow this whole "situation" would somehow be resolved. We were unable to sell or rent our house this entire time. I could never have guessed after everything was said and done, that the resolution would be that we would move back. We will be arriving around the end of August. I seriously can't wait to unlock the door, walk in and be finally home! I have more to say, but no way to put it into words. For the first time in a year, I have been able to sleep and not wake up with a sense of despair. I am so incredibly thankful. That is the best birthday present I could ever ask for!

More Utah Pictures

Okay, I've got to wrap up my long, slow recap of my wonderful trip to Utah. We've now been home for 2 weeks...and it's time to move ahead. So here are just a few more things we did that I want to remember, with a picture or two for each memory:

-My dad took the day off so we could all go to Hogle Zoo. Growing up, this is something we did every summer, and we loved it! My girls share my love for zoos, so they had a great time, especially on the new, beautiful conservation carousel. Jordan absolutely loves zebras and talks about them all the time!

-I spent most of the 4th of July being sick, but still managed to run in the Freedom Festivel 5k and also enjoy our traditional trip to the Provo parade.

-I went to a reunion with friends that I made during a semester I spent studying in Nauvoo back in 1996. It was so great to see these people again...they are true friends in every sense of the word and seeing them brought back all the memories that we made during that very defining time of my life! They know a side to me that not many others do.

-We went to Helper and were able to see Grandma Betty which is always so important to me. I love to see my girls interact with her and to remember all the great times we've had in that little town. It was so fun to see the Mascaro family, too.

-Other things we did that I didn't post pictures for: trip to Tooele complete with swimming in Grantsville, Bridal Veil Falls, Cemetary with Dad, Bean Museum & Brick Oven with Erin, Thai dinner with friends, Children's Garden at Thanksgiving Point with cousins, family get together at Grandma Mary's, BBQ at Chris & Marieta's, Movie day with Grandma Patsy, and Veteran's Memorial Pool.

I am so glad we got to take this trip! As I look back on it, I can't believe how many great times we had. I wanted to thank everyone for planning and driving and spending time with us. I am so thankful to have the family situation that I do- everyone is trying their best to make what we have work...and it is awesome.

Grandma's Tea Party

One highlight of our trip was the tea party that Grandma Patsy hosted for Ashton, Jordan and their cousin Savannah. It was amazing- complete with a beautiful glass tea set, matching dresses and fancy finger foods. Grandma even taught the girls some special manners and ways for making conversation. It was adorable, and the girls loved it! The tea (chocolate milk) was served in a tea pot and they were free to add cream (white milk) and sugar! It was a little girl's dream. Pat always says that she wants her grandchildren to have very real, concrete memories of her as their grandma. So far, she is doing an exceptional job!

A Trip Down Memory Lane...

The first full day that we were in Utah was June 25. What a memorable day for our family...the day my mom left this earth for a bigger adventure, eight years ago. Anyway, we wanted to do something to honor her memory but it had to be uplifting and fun...how about lunch with some of her favorite friends at one of her favorite places (Robintino's)? My sisters and I met up with 3 amazing ladies who were 3 of my mom's best friends in the world and have really always been like mothers to me.

First, there was Patsy. What can I say about this lady? She is incredible, strong and compassionate. Growing up, it seemed there wasn't anything she couldn't do from sewing to baking and everything in between. She was one of my dearest YW's leaders and even after my mom died, she made such an effort to keep in touch with each of us. Next is Marge. Wow. Her daughter was my best friend all through my childhood, so many people just assumed Marge was my mom because we were always together. She was always so much fun to be around and I secretly envied her spontaneous personality and fun loving spirit. To this day when I see Marge, even if its been several years, it feels that no time has passed at all. We laugh and talk and remember. I truly love this great lady. Finally, is Pam. Pam has been a mentor to me all my life. She was my piano teacher and inspired me to go as far as possible with music. Now that I teach piano, I have modeled almost everything I do after how she taught me. She also returned to school to become an elementary teacher and it was her example that inspired me to major in education and pursue that career. Pam is organized, gentle and a true friend, someone who is always ready to listen with concern and love.

Being with these ladies was just incredible. I could have stayed with them for hours (except for the 3 crazy children I had with me). It felt so good to be with women who knew my mom, who loved her and who are still missing her as we are, even today. It was an incredible afternoon!

After lunch, Patsy volunteered to take us to our childhood home in Bountiful. She knew the people who lived there and felt they wouldn't mind if we showed up to have a tour. It was so fun to be in our house again. The family was very nice and had made a lot of positive changes to the house. At the same time, it was easy to remember what is was like when we lived there and all kinds of memories came flooding back. I couldn't help but snap a few pictures of the outside of the house. What a place! What a life!

Home!

We are back from Utah! We had a wonderful trip, made some great memories and loved spending time with family and friends. I have tons of pictures and lots to write about...but also have laundry and unpacking! For now, this is one of my favorite photos from our trip- my three gals in front of my Dad's house in Provo. Since there isn't a lot going on right now in Texarkana (just waiting to move at the end of August and frying in the heat), I think I will try and write about something from our trip each day for the next little while. Stay tuned!