In case you missed all of the latest updates (ack!! because I am so behind on blogging)….we have moved and we are now back in Seth’s native land of Texas. We are re-acclimating back to BBQ, Tex-Mex, mosquitoes, southern accents, very erratic weather and all other Texas joys!

I know you have all heard this but just in case you haven’t, this week Blue Bell ice cream was recalled again. Seriously folks, if you aren’t from Texas you just don’t understand. People are very worked up about this. Lucky for Blue Bell they have such loyal customers that I am pretty sure most are worked up about waiting for ice cream and there is hardly a soul ticked about the listeria. Priorities. I told Seth someone should do an independent study to see how much weight Texans lose in the absence of Blue Bell. I saw someone on Facebook who said they have never had a birthday in 35 years without it so they would postpone their celebration! Ha!

We braved a few Texas snow days and now we have moved on to  the bluebonnets!!! Here are a few pictures we snagged from a neighbor who offered mini photo sessions a few weeks ago. Our own family attempt ended abruptly with a bee sting, a screaming baby (not the bee sting victim), and a too cool for school not going to smile child. So we opted for the mini session and her results were much sweeter!  Caitlan Salerno is a great photographer for you local folks! She is super flexible and can come to you for family photos. (and she didn’t pay me a penny to say that)

Jackson and Owen have adjusted well to their new schools and Seth has been enjoying the momentum of his new job. The boys have been busy with sports practice and MaryAnne is thriving on running the show! She is a climber and a great “helper”. She is talking lots and her favorite pastime is tracking down the boys and calling “BOYS” as she heads their way. They mostly welcome her with lots of love….unless she grabs the remote. My days are spent mostly busing kids to and from school and I am getting antsy to make some friends in our new hood!

Texas is feeling more like home! The swing set is up (our marriage survived the reassembly!) and the garden is in. Now to slow down and  let some roots begin to grow.  We are trying to get out in the cooler weather now, knowing that we are no where near prepared for the heat to come.

Many a post on this blog have been about friendships along our journey. No place has been without both loneliness and deep friendship. When we moved “home” to Virginia we settled in as if it was going to be forever. Being a foreign service family we knew we wouldn’t likely be the ones living in our home forever but we had plans to hold onto it and for it to be our “home”. Anywhere on the globe our children would know their home. Life moved along and we were pulled more and more to moving life closer to family. But why leave a career Seth loved and a life set up here when things were so stable. After much searching and praying and talking and pondering we decided that after MaryAnne was born we would dive into a job search. Seth had looked the previous year and we were leerly of starting it all again. But we looked. And we waited. Someday I will hop back on and tell you the long of it but the short of it is that a week from Thursday our belongings will be packed for what we hope is the last time in a long while. And then they will be loaded up and will make the drive back to familiar lands north of Dallas in Plano, Texas. A home awaits us there, as well as grandparents, siblings, cousins, a farm and a completely different life. Whew. More on that later.

But where the heck does chicken come into all of this?

Before even coming back to the US, I signed up for Mothers of Preschoolers and a community bible study group so that I would be sure to have fast friends. We had great friends from our previous times in DC but we were now toting older kids, and spread our geographically so coordinating schedules became tough. Our visits were sweet but rare. While our social calendar was full of friendly faces and fun activities it took longer to find those deep friendships. I have learned in the last 5 moves that while you do get better at the packing/unpacking, setting up house, and meeting people, deep friendships just can’t be rushed. It has only been in the past 7 months that God really dropped a new dear friend into my daily life.  What began as a friendship out of necessity with carpooling kids around has been a sharing of daily joys and woes.  We know each other’s children’s interests and triggers. She has seen the worst of days for mine and I have seen her kids best behavior days! Or so it feels. A few months back we started a habit of picking up an extra rotisserie chicken at the store if either of us was at Costco. For my international friends, I realize this sounds like quite the splurge but Costco sells a plump rotisserie for a bargain. And you stay at home moms know the wonders of a cooked chicken during a jam packed week. Oh the possibilities. Anyhow, back to the chicken deal. We never exchanged money, we just held up our end of the deal and returned the favor when it came time to run to the store. The chickens arrived with the most impeccable timing on nights when cooking dinner felt like an impossible feat. A reminder of community and God’s provision through friends.

Seth and I were laying in bed the other night rehashing the to do list and what final things need to be done that last day in town. I ran through my long stressful list and then burst in to tears as I told him the last thing I need to do is deliver a chicken.

I know it will take many days and months, shoot, here it took years, to have deep friendships. But I do know that God has chosen special friends for us along the way, at just the right time, and capable of meeting just the right needs, not just for friendship, sometimes evenfor chicken.

I have a bazillion months to catch up on but couldn’t stand the delay any longer. Here is a picture catch up on our Fall to tide over the grandma’s and friends who have been patiently waiting and checking for updates! I read a quote the other day “Autumn is the year’s last smile”. We have been soaking it up and moving non-top. The weekends are packed with soccer games, times with neighbors and all things Fall!

Yesterday I tortured MaryAnne a bit. Seth’s mom loaned MaryAnne some dresses that she and Seth’s aunt wore as babies. I had MaryAnne do a little fashion show so that we have some pictures of her in the sweet clothes. She was tired and while she is normally all smiles she just looked at me blankly and sucked her thumb for most of it. Here are some outtakes from her little photo session…

Sweet girl turns 7 months old tomorrow! Oh my! This is going by way too fast. She now sits up on her own. Loves sweet potatoes, zucchini, avocado, pears and oatmeal! She is now reaching for the boy’s toys and doing lots of shrieking and arm waving to get attention…as if she is lacking!! Her hair is coming in darker than Jackson’s and lighter than Owen’s! I am curious to see her little personality unfold…