May - A month in pictures
Part One: We moved.

May - A month in pictures

Part Two: We went camping.

Good Word Wednesday!
I live!
Well, we're still getting situated and settled here in Hometown and dusting ourselves off from the annual camp out (more to come on all that later, you can bet on it).

First. Something super important happened over the weekend and I haven't even stopped to talk and brag and remember all about it yet. Shameful. I love doing all those things.
It was the third anniversary of the birth of my darling, sassy, beautiful, wonderful, wild, sweet and lovely baby girl. Oh boy, do I love this girl.

London Mae.

Thanks to Life Happens Studios for making one of my most favorite videos ever, three years running.

Stay tuned for upcoming episodes of our marathon move and the rainy day camp out.

Flashback Friday:

Good bye Little-Big Town.

One day more. Tomorrow is what I’ve been calling “The Muscle Day” because it’s the biggest of our moves; all the heavy stuff is getting loaded and gone. Next week will be used to clean and pack all that random stuff that shows up just as the last box gets used. Happens every time. Here’s the part where I should warn you that I’ve been feeling a little emotional. Nah, “little” is an understatement. I’m pregnant people, remember? Emotional has become my middle name….oh poor, patient, sweet Olen…. So, things are about to get down right mushy up in here. If you can’t handle mush, then you might want to click your back button now. Well, I’m not emotional about selling my house because the whole process has been nothing short of a miracle and the product of great timing. Plus the Seymore family (our buyers) is fabulous and makes me happy to leave our home in their loving hands. (R.H. ward: you’re going to love them!) The huge lump forms in my throat when I think about pulling up our tiny roots that have began to sprout in our Little-Big Town and take them back to my hometown to grow for awhile. Man, I’m really gunna miss it here.

The flashbacks begin. We moved here because Olen and I built a little dream house on a big piece of land. We raised chickens and pigs, one dog and a son. We had the best neighbors on all sides and thought life couldn’t get any better. Then we had a daughter and life got better. We decided to “branch” out and moved a quarter mile away to a new neighborhood. Bigger house, smaller land but still managed to have the best neighbors. We made new friendships with old high school acquaintances and watched our families grow together and ate a lot of Starbursts doing it. Although not nearly often enough. I learned that running down a morning farm road with the smell of wet soil and new cotton blossoms on my skin is pretty much how I picture the roads in heaven. My Sunbeams are about to go into the second grade, my Bear Scouts are passing the sacrament, and my Mia Maids are getting ready for marriage, or in college and traveling the world, or enjoying the blessings of motherhood. Porter is in school with the same boys he started nursery with and London has play dates with the girls that were blessed the same month as she was three years ago.

We went on vacations with friends when money didn't matter and had friends over for pot luck dinners when we realized money doesn’t matter. We stared new careers and then a new business and felt the support of our family, friends and community the whole way. I met the most unlikely bunch of night owls and loved every cart pushing, late night snacking, mommy story swapping minute of it. Every time I see a highlighted barcode on a sign I will think of my Ad Set Ladies and hope they are getting a nap today. But what makes the lump in my throat harder to swallow is that I know it’s time for us to move on. You don’t just think one day, “I wonder if our house would sell if we tried.” and then within a month it does. You don’t just get the best buyers you could ask for and then have everything go just right. You don’t just have that happen unless there’s a reason. You just know there is a reason. Today really (really) will be the first day of my blog hiatus. For reals. Like I said, Muscle Day is going to be bananas and then comes The Campout (that you’re all invited to) and then, well, I’m sure by then there will be stories to be told.

I will be back to tell them. Just from a new zip code.

Molly's Rule of Life #28

If mom forgets about lunch, go on without her.

Good Word Wednesday:

'Nuff said.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Um...found my maternity clothes at last.

I was having the hardest time finding the right box in our garage, that I just started buying new stuff this time around (and then stopped looking all together).

Today Olen brings in this box and says, "Love, it was right where I said it was."

See, I had London in May 2006 and then we moved into our current house in July the same year. Olen was my main packer back then and he so lovingly, caringly, packed my maternity clothes and gave the box this label. What a doll.

Meh, he's right again. On so many levels.

Hey what gives? Didn't I say I was going to be MIA this month? Well, yes. Yes I did. But then the eye twitching and nervous tapping of my fingers really started to scare my kids, so I still drop by. Ya know, for the kids' sake. This kind of stuff only takes ten minutes anyways and I gotta say packing isn't as hard as I thought it was. I think only because I have some freak awesome family that has been helping me and keeping me sane. Well, helping me.

For Mother's Day all I wanted was...

And I got it.

I hope you got it all and had a splendid Mother's Day, too!

Good Word Wednesday.

This is what Mamasita Bonita reminds me when I start to feel small. It always works, too, because she's never wrong. Hearing myself say this turns me into Wonder Woman and I can do anything. I am woman, hear me roar!

I dare ya to give it a try; that is if you think you can handle the super powers that follow.

Radio Flyer wagon: Birthday present from Nana and Papa five years ago.

A backyard to flood and a hose to do it with: Who cares, mom and dad bought all that.

Making childhood summer memories with your best buddy: Priceless.

Molly's Rule of Life #80

The church pulpit is probably not the best place for a weepy, hormonal, pregnant girl with too much on her mind and a heavy heart.

Dear Mr. Nice Old Bug Man,

I just wanted to let you know that this morning as you were heading downstairs to inspect for bugs and said I looked like I could be Marisa Tomei's younger sister; you really made my day. I hope you didn't see me blush. Thank you more than you'll ever know.

Yours truly,

Flashback Friday! My time is limited, but some flashbacks you just can't pass up. I laughed my brains out when I first dug up these pictures, so if you are doing the same right now, don't feel bad. Please feel free to laugh with my permission and blessing.

You know that group of girlfriends you had in high school that had your back even if you were wrong and could read your emotions before you even said anything? The girls that grew to be a part of your family and even called your mom and dad, "mom" and "dad"? The same girls that would tell you if you looked fat in those jeans and if you should totally go for that older guy? Those girls that were your brides maids at your wedding and visited you after you had your babies? Well, these are mine; Briauna, Camille and Lisa. These are my girls.

Then life moves on. You go to college, get married, move away, have kids and get busy. You send Christmas cards and call a week after their birthday to say that you really remembered, but never had the time to call, and that you love them just as much.

Then, like a boomerang, you find your way back to each other and discover that after ten years, not much has changed and they're still your girls.

I had a blast yesterday girls. Let's not wait so long next time.

For my Katies:
While digging up these old high school pictures, I found this gem. This was taken at my brother, Christopher's, mission farewell party. In this picture is the boy that would grow up to marry my sister Katie Mae and also Christopher's future wife, Katie, both were just good family friends at the time. Also, my childhood home in this picture is now owned by two other best friends from high school. It's a small, small world. And even crazier is that it was a small, small high school!