I'm BAAAACCCCCKKK! It has been almost a whole year since my last post. I know. I'm terribly sorry. The thing about the blog is that the longer you put it off, it just becomes a task that gets bigger and bigger and you kind of want to forget about it forever. I made the promise to keep up with it as long as we were living away from family and I wanted to document the lives of Stella and Sophia for the first five years of their lives. Sophia is 4 and a half and we are moving back to Texas next summer, so...here I go.
Let me first say that a LOT has happened in the last year. Great things, awful things and everything in between. The blog post that I wrote last night was pretty gloomy and I didn't have a good feeling about it. I uploaded the photos today and had to scroll through an entire year of our life documented in photos and my attitude completely changed. We have had an amazing year of happy memories!
I will start off with a pretty sad memory, but don't worry. I'm going to turn it around. I promise. On October 4, 2012, my Grandma Beulah died. She was an absolutely amazing woman that gave me more happy memories than I could ever write about. I felt a crushing grief about this loss. I felt overcome with guilt for not going home to visit her one last time as she suffered the effects of a stroke. I felt angry that she had decided to have the surgery that caused the stroke. I thought I would never learn to accept this loss. But I have. I know that I did what I could while she was alive to show her how much I loved her. I still talk to her and feel her presence with me a lot. One night in the spring, I was reading a book called Stand Tall, Molly Lou Mellon that is about this little girl who has everything stacked against her. She has such a great spirit and is so confident because of her grandmother's constant reminders to "Stand tall!" As we finished the book, Stella stroked my hair and said "You miss your grandma, don't you?" I answered "Yes, very much." She said "You don't have to. She's all around you." Oh. My. Word. From a 6 year old? Really? So, there's THAT. Thank you, Stella!
Here she is, turning 6. I know. It was last year. She turned 7 yesterday. I promise I will post those pictures before next year. She had an amazing cupcake decorating birthday party.
Some of these photos are out of order because, as I said before, I had to go through about 100,000. This was an attempt to take a photo of my parents when they visited at Christmas.
Sophia's Christmas performance at school
The girls got some AGGIE gear for Christmas from Grandma Polly and Papa John
Papa Mike and Mimi Sandy also came for a post Christmas visit
Stella is STILL horse crazy. I am not sure what it about to happen to Rody, but it doesn't look good. I could publish a book of all of Stella's weird horse configurations in her room, but I'm not sure it would be a good seller. We are definitely intrigued, though.
As I said before-out of order-this is our Thanksgiving family hayride. I hadn't been home for Thanksgiving in years and it was wonderful!
Date night at Chik fil A with daddy for Valentine's Day
Stella lost her first tooth and wrote a book about it-note the bloody tooth. She has lost five more since then.
Attempted Easter photo
We got to take a 10 year anniversary trip to Destin and it was one of the best trips we have ever taken. For many reasons, but the main one being that we were so thankful to be able to go despite our circumstances. Ahem. Circumstances. Let me explain. On March 15, 2013, Josh lost his job at Aaron's. The blog post last night went into great detail about how awful it was, but I'm not going to go there today. It's not worth it. What I will say, is that it was the BIGGEST blessing that has happened to us since Sophia was born. We lived it up. For 7 months, we didn't waste a second of soaking up our time with Josh. We had had years of 12 hour days, trips, of not really seeing a lot of him and missing him like crazy. I will admit, that it was sad at first. It was. But we're over it. He has a new job with a Florida based company that allows him to work from home and for the first time in years, he is truly appreciated and respected for his work. AND we get to move back to TEXAS!!!
I must note that while we were on this trip, Stella cut Sophia's hair. So much that I could have made a wig out of the hair that I found under the playroom couch. It is still growing out. A half mullet.
Stella started a talk show called "Sundays With Stella" where she mostly interviewed animals and talked about escaped animals from the zoo. Sophia was her sidekick. Josh fashioned her studio out of PVC pipe and bed sheets.
This one turned 4. And this picture explains her personality in a nutshell. She is full of sass.
Mimi and Papa came to visit for her birthday and we took them to Amicalola Falls.
They also got to see her ballet recital in the spring.
It was "The Three Little Pigs"
I got to go to Dallas to visit my friends from home.
And this lady! Aunt Lori! Can't wait to have margaritas with her again.
The annual "freeing of the butterflies"
Strawberry pickin'
Didn't realize when I uploaded this pic that she wasn't sitting like a lady, but I had to document the stitches. She slipped in her room (because her floors are so shiny and clean) and fell on her cell phone, splitting open her chin. I had to tell her that she looked great (as blood and fatty tissue was protruding from my baby's chin) and run into the bathroom and scream into a towel. I am NOT good with these situations. Josh had to sit with her during the stitching. And he had her GIGGLING while I was breathing into a paper bag in the hallway with Stella. Stella definitely has my personality-she was right with me saying "It's just awful. Just AWFUL!"
Sophia decided to check Dr. Hutson's throat at her check up-we love him
Lots of zoo trips
Backyard photo session
We were playing at Stella's school playground and decided to take a nature walk. Sophia said we needed to be careful of predators. I said "What kind?" She responded with "Oh, you know...termites, ants....wolves."
I found a collection of pencil erasers, used staples, marbles, and beans in Stella's room. I asked her where she got them and she said her kindergarten teacher told her she could keep whatever she found on the floor.
Stella got to have a horse riding lesson and she was instantly in love. How could you not be? Look at that face!
Tootsie Pop was pretty great
And so was Stella. There is something about seeing your 6 year old lead around an animal that could trample her. She was so confident and happy. We MUST do this again soon.
Zen
Fernbank Museum
Out of order-Jason and Mandy came to visit and it rained for FOUR STRAIGHT DAYS! They got shortchanged on that Atlanta experience, but we really enjoyed them.
And the Peds came to visit from Dallas!
Lots of kiddos
Back to Jason and Mandy-this is sweet Sam
Owen and the girls had a lot of fun. They were going to take a bath together and (Stella's going to hate me for this one day) I told the girls that Owen had different parts and not to make him feel weird about it. "I know, Mom!" Stella said, "Boys have a PUPA!" Oy. Needless to say, Owen changed his mind on the group bath. Probably for the best.
Jason and Mandy are masters at navigating museum maps
BEACH TRIP!
A lady passing by said we need to use this at her rehearsal dinner one day
Over the photo shoot
Aunt Carrie, Uncle Richard, and the boys came to visit and I am kicking myself for not getting pictures of Hunter and Richard.
But here is zombie Grant!
First day of 1st grade
First day of pre-k
This was from the summer visit to Mom and Dad's-we got to see Brandon!
and this gigantic grasshopper
And Andrew trying to look tough. Instead, he just looks crazy.
Beauty
My folks at their house in Jasper
And cousin Kristie with her Art Car
We were not ready to say goodbye to summer-we spent almost every day at the pool
Stella has an awesome Russian tennis coach who sounds EXACTLY like John Malkovich in "Rounders" minus the foul language and Oreo eating. She loves him.
The day we got the news that we were going back HOME to Texas! Yeeeehaw!
"How do you stop a flip flop from climbing a tree? Buy a FOOT BAG!" -one of Sophia's many unfunny jokes
One day, Stella was walking around touching everything in the house. When I asked her what she was doing, she replied "Some things shock me. I just want to be aware of those things."
Sophia loves to make up songs and sing in the backseat to and from school. One day she asked me if I "liked her pipes."
Stella told me that my heart would be broken if they did something bad or if Daddy unmarried me. "What would I do to make Daddy unmarry me?" "Oh, I don't know. Maybe if you fed the cat broccoli....'cause cats aren't supposed to eat broccoli." A. We don't have a cat B. That's it?
Corn Maze at Southern Belle Farm-Stella hated it! She will probably have an anxiety every time we pass a corn field from now on.
During a yoga session with Stella, I kept asking her to sit still and quiet her mind. "I can't quiet my mind!" "Why not?" I asked. " I don't KNOW! ASK my MIND!"
Stella-"Sophia-it's 5:15. At 7:15, I'm gonna LAUGH IN YOUR FACE!" "STELLA!!! DON'T LAUGH IN MY FACE!" Sisterly love...
Halloween 2013
"Hey Mom, nice haircut!" "I didn't get a haircut." "Well, whatever you're doin', it's workin' for ya!" -Stella, age 6
That is all for now. I promise it won't be so long next time. Next post is Stella's 7th birthday day of fun at the Georgia Aquarium. It will be before 2014. Love you all!
