The Bus

I'm sure he is fine. I'm sure he had a blast. I'm sure he got to school and found his classroom. I'm sure he is happy. I'm sure he is proud of himself (I'm proud of him). I'm sure this moment was necessary.

But, man, was it hard to see his little face through the window of that big yellow bus driving away from me.

3:30 won't come quick enough today.

Exploring and New Friends

Here are some pictures of our new backyard. We don't have grass yet, the hay is where the grass will be eventually. The boys and Grandma went exploring down the trail yesterday and spotted 3 deer and some rabbits. Our neighbors told us that they have spotted a red fox.

The boys spent most of today outside playing with some of the kids on our new street. They went from house to house and played outside in between houses. We've already got kids coming to the door to ask if they can come out to play. They had a blast and have come a long way from the first two days where they didn't even want to leave the front porch!

While they were outside playing, Neal got most of the blinds hung, so we were able to take down the sheets we had taped up on most of our windows. Mom and I also hung curtains in my dining room and put some stuff up on Luke's walls. His room is the one that is closest to being done. I'm just lacking curtains and some other small decorating things. I've also been enjoying doing laundry with my new washer and dryer - they are so much quicker than my old ones!

Sam goes to his first full day of Kindergarten tomorrow. When I picked him up the first day, he told me that he had made 2 new friends, the second day he asked if one of them could come over to play. So, my goal tomorrow at the K Mom's meet and greet is to track the new friends mom down and get their number. When we told him he was going back to school tomorrow, he got excited - so that's a good sign! I think we might even attempt to do the bus on Tuesday. We've been watching it pick up and drop off the kids everyday and most of the neighbor kids ride it, so I feel a little better about it now. Baby steps...

If you ask me about my day...

...I'll cry.

We made it!

After a long day on Monday, we made it into the new house all in one piece! It has been an insane week and I really shouldn't be blogging right now, but I had to take a little break! Luke is asleep, Sam and Gabe are playing in their room, the internet is finally working right, so I thought I would say a quick hello before I go take a quick nap before we leave to go pick my mom up at the airport.

We have sheets taped up on our windows, we have a little 20 inch TV sitting on our coffee table, on top of TIVO and the DVD player, and boxes everywhere. It's a mess, but I love it! There are so many new, wonderful things about this house that you will son be hearing about. But right now, I'll leave you with a picture of one of them...

What kind of Birthday Cake does Grandma like?

Happy Birthday Mom! We can't wait to see you in a few short days. I'm sorry, but there probably won't be a pink Power Ranger cake waiting for you when you get here. Maybe there will be some Ben and Jerry's Coffee Heath Bar Crunch ice cream in the freezer with your name on it.

We love you so much and don't worry, Luke did not fall off the couch at the end of the video...I caught him in time. ;)

Can you tell I've figured out how to work the video camera with my computer?

Moving!

The time has come to say goodbye to our little house on Magnolia Lane. We've been here 7 years, it was the first house we ever bought, the house were all our babies came, or went home. I've always loved this house and will be sad to leave.

But...I know I'll get over it in the 10 minutes it takes us to drive to the new house!

Monday is the big day, closing on both houses and moving into the new one. My mom is coming into town on Thursday, but before she gets here, we have some wonderful friends helping us out. I've got all three boys going to someones house for the day and Sam and Gabe are even spending Monday night with their friends. We will spend the weekend doing some last minute packing before the movers arrive Monday morning. I bought a book tonight so I have something to keep my mind occupied when I can't sleep. I'm so excited!

I'm sure you won't be hearing much from me next week, I'll probably have a few things to get done. Moving aside, the week will be insane with Parent's night at Sam's school Tuesday night, Gabe's Thursday night and soccer practice for both boys. Oh, and my baby starts Kindergarten...but let's not talk about that right now.

By the way, I received a record 9 comments on the post of Luke's laughing video. I love getting comments - so thanks - keep it up!

I'll be back soon!

The best part of my day...

We've got a mover...

not movers, a mover...or more accurately, a crawler. I've always joked that Luke would probably start crawling a week before we moved into the new house. That way he would be really good at it and into every box I try to unpack. I like being right, but I was really hoping he would hold off for another month. He literally figured it out today and these are some of his first...crawls (?). His little 6 1/2 month old self has also figured out how to go from laying on his tummy to sitting up.

We've entered into a whole new phase, and you know how I feel about that...sad.

Brothers, Blackeye's and Ice Cream

Laundry baskets are a favorite toy around here, especially with most of the toys packed up for the pending move. Sam wanted Luke to sit with him in the laundry basket this afternoon, and, of course, asked me to take their picture and Gabe had to jump in. The look on Luke's face in this first picture cracks me up. He looks thrilled, right? I had to throw in the others from bath time, just to show his big ole smile, especially when his brothers are in front of him. Sam can make him smile and laugh like no one else. He just looks at him and Luke starts smiling. It's pretty sweet.

You might also notice Luke's slightly black left eye. He fell on a toy the other day and has beaten Gabe's record of youngest Watson boy to get a black eye, at six months. Gabe holds the record of worst black eye of the youngest Watson boy though. If I hadn't already packed up their journals, I could tell you exactly when Gabe's first one was, I think it was around 8 months. He had at least 3 before he turned one. I hope Luke doesn't break that record. Actually, I hope Luke doesn't break any more of the records Gabe has already set health/injury wise (this would be outside the womb)!

I also have to tell this funny story. We went to Chick-fil-a this afternoon and while we were sitting at the table eating ice cream cones, Sam asked for a napkin quickly because he had a little bit of ice cream on his mouth. He asked for new napkins a few times to wrap his cone in to catch the drips and and one point said, "I don't like to get dirty while I'm eating". I told him that I didn't either, but that someone at the table sure did. We both looked at Gabe and couldn't help but laugh. He was covered...ice cream was dripping down his chin, his cone, his fingers, all over his shirt, but man did he have a smile on his face - that boy bleeds sugar. They are polar opposites in so many ways, but they sure love each other.

SCC on TV This Week...

STEVEN CURTIS CHAPMAN & FAMILY OPEN THEIR HEARTS TO AMERICA Family to Appear on GOOD MORNING AMERICA, LARRY KING LIVE and in PEOPLE magazine

NASHVILLE, TN....AUGUST 4, 2008. GRAMMY and Dove Award winning artist Steven Curtis Chapman, along with his wife Mary Beth, and eldest children Emily, Caleb, and Will, will soon be opening their hearts to America about the loss of their daughter and sister Maria Chapman this past May 21st. GOOD MORNING AMERICA will air a special interview with Robin Roberts from The Chapman’s home in Franklin, TN on August 6th in the 8am EST hour, followed by a live interview from Los Angeles on LARRY KING LIVE on August 7th, and an extensive feature in an upcoming issue of PEOPLE magazine. The decision to speak publicly was not an easy one, and these will be the first interviews the family has participated in since Maria’s death.
“Initially Steven talked about never doing any concerts or media ever again,” comments Jim Houser, Chapman’s manager. “But quickly God began to show Steven that if he ever believed the songs he was writing, singing and recording before May 21st and Maria’s loss, that they must still be true now. It’s the family’s hope that these appearances will serve as a chance to proclaim to a watching world what they know and are deeply convinced of even in these difficult days, the Gospel is true and faith in Christ is our Hope.”

About Good Morning America:Seen nationally, ABC's morning tradition, Good Morning America began airing in 1975 and reaches a huge audience of approximately 8 to 10 million each morning. The program presents daily news, information and features in a captivating format. Issues and stories explore a variety of topics confronting Americans and their families today, with interviews, light-hearted features, book reviews and other home-oriented topics.

About Larry King Live:Larry King Live is a worldwide, live television viewer call-in program providing a mix of topical discussions on critical public policy issues and celebrity interviews. The program is known for its political debates and announcements, as well as unflinching portraits of guests and in-depth profile interviews. The show is seen nationally and internationally by between 1 and 2 million nightly on CNN, the Cable News Network.

About People Magazine:With a circulation between 3 to 4 million people each week, PEOPLE Magazine was established in 1974 and designed as a forum for personality journalism through the use of short articles on contemporary news events and people. Content focuses on celebrities in the arts, sciences, business, politics, entertainment and sports.

My Summer Reading

My friend Christy showed me this book last night. I gave Neal strict instructions to pick it up for me this morning at Lowes. I'm looking forward to looking through it in between packing and caring for 3 crazies. I'm already inspired with some new ideas for the new house.