thanksgiving

i can't take the credit. i didn't take the pictures. but i'll let them do the talking.

it did my heart good to have my family in my home...together.

last week in atlanta

we were in atlanta last week. and what a week we had. matt was presenting a paper at a conference in the city and a friend invited us to come to her parent's house and stay while he was gone.

the stringer family opened their home to us and i have to say, the hospitality and generosity was like nothing i've ever experienced before.


i am not a good receiver...and i got schooled this last week. home cooked meals, a beautiful home, specially planned events just for us, 20+ acres to explore, tractor rides and a cook out. yeah. it was pretty unbelievable.

we found a park on a lake one day...

alaythia took kubota rides just about every day around the 20 acres.

isaiah helped mr. stringer get the fire ready for the cook out.

to top it off, we got to see a great friend who was also in town for the conference. she extended her stay to hang out with us. we went to the georgia aquarium and coke museum and what a day we had. if you are ever in the area, those two things are a must.

we loved having aunt dana with us!

everyone was working hard...

the last room of the museum is a tasting room.
there are fountain machines everywhere with different coke products
from around the world. so you grabbed a cup and tried whatever you wanted.
the kids thought they were pretty cool....

as you left the museum you got to grab a bottle of coke.

in this picture, they are on a rush from bucket loads of HiC....

thanks again to the stringers for hosting us in your amazing home. and to aunt dana for staying to hang out with us!

redeeming myself

i remember in college i had a roommate that hated the tradition of christmas cards. i remember her saying how she hoped the tradition would die with our generation. i vowed to her i would keep it alive. even last year, when i had to order a double set because i screwed up our first set of 100 -- i was not deterred. (although my husband wasn't too happy).

with all the new technology, yes even blogging, it's easier to keep up with people and their lives. but in this digital age, i know i find myself not printing as much pictures, not having peoples faces around my house. and that is why i LOVE christmas cards.

during the holiday season i am eager to see what chrismtas cards arrive each day. i display them around the house as decoration and when the holiday season is over, cut out each picture and post them on our bulletin board for the year.

there are a lot of options out there and this year, i'm hoping to use shutterfly for our christmas cards. there are tons of creative designs and fun ways to show your family. even if i can't get the perfect picture of all of us together, there are options to get individual shots and make it look fabulous. i've used shutterfly for photobooks and stationary and always love how things turn out.

and yes, by writing this post, i'm hoping to redeem myself from last year ordering a double order.

typical morning

after being without a camera for the past week or so, i am snapping photos like i'll never be able to again.

here's a snapshot of a typical morning in our house.

isaiah starts off the day creating an epic battle.

mommy can't get enough of this toothless grin.

snugglie and sleepy.

creativity - and ready for whatever the day will bring.

swinging in daddy's work chair.

all i want for christmas

he has lost both top teeth within a week!

the first last

MATT ATTENDED THE LAST CLASS OF HIS EDUCATION TODAY!

he was done with his required course work last semester. but each student must attend 5 semesters of a colloquium. a meeting once a week with all the new testament faculty and PhD candidates to argue, debate and 'chew the fat' if you will. today was the last day of his 5th semester.

as we were on a family bike ride tonight he said, 'today was my last class ever.' like it was no big deal.

his last class of his formal education. i wonder how many classes he's taken? how long has this journey been anyway?

we're nearing the end people. i am not being naive. i know that writing a dissertation is no small thing. i know it will take more energy and thought than he's had to produce ever in his life before.

but we're at the end. i can see and feel the end. the end. there is one step left. one final step. a huge step - but it's just one huge step.

un-freakin'-believable.

blissfully joyful

the tornado feels like a lifetime ago. with the kind of week we had coming...it was fitting that it started that way i guess.

on wednesday matt began comprehensive exams that lasted until this past monday. grueling tests all right on top of each other. i have never seen my husband put his head down and plow like that before. it's really been the whole month of october. the intensity of it, the timing and deadlines. the do-or-die mentality.

matt said i was carrying his stress too much. but i couldn't help it. each morning i felt suffocated with the pressure of what he was about to do. on friday, i just couldn't hold it together anymore. it was (what he thought would be) the hardest of the tests and as i watched the clock tick i felt myself beginning to break.

the kids had started some music and were having a dance party together. all happy, all distracted for the moment. so i took the opportunity to go in my room and have a good cry. and boy did it feel good.

as i finished and was composing myself, i noticed the music was a little louder, the song a little faster. when i walked back onto the scene i found the two older kids stripped down to absolutely nothing and sophia in the middle of them, pointer fingers up, pumping the air.

i stared in disbelief and then felt my heart get lighter. the music shook the air, their faces and bodies were so joyful. blissfully joyful. and i thought of their dad, working his guts out at that moment, their mom crying her guts out -- and them -- having no idea.

it's why we remember childhood so fondly. no worries, no cares. it's not because there was no stress. it was there. but we were unaware, blissfully unaware. dancing around naked to our hearts content.

the tests are over, and while we don't have the grades to know officially that matt passed, we feel hopeful. i would say it's safe to say we're basking in each moment together. thankful for 'post comprehensive exam life'.