{iPhone Rewind} :: July

If last summer was our summer of Chess, this one would be our summer of Stratego! Haha, the kids play it ALL day long, and they barely let Mike walk in the door from work before they're asking him to play!

Aiden finally lost his first front tooth! There's A LOT of drama around losing teeth in our house, but it's out, and he's now happy as a clam ;)

Pretty flowers to gear up for VBS week! :)

Mike taught the kids some silly hand tricks and they just thought it was the coolest thing ever. So now all I hear is, "hey mom! Look at this!"

Anniversary flowers :)

Working on some Picasso-inspired art!

Aiden is all done eye-patching! After 2.5 years, it couldn't come fast enough for him ;)

We have definitely had some scorchers this summer!

Mike got a chance to see my parents before his trip to Colorado, and he got to tour the TX Whiskey Ranch with my dad!

I went to put the trashcan out, and met a deer in our front yard! :)

While Mike was in Colorado, the kids and I had a sleepover in the basement! We basically just watched a movie and had some sherbet, then slept in the basement, but the kids thought it was the best thing ever haha.

Twin cuteness

Family Time in Texas

When we returned to Texas for Michael's Celebration of Life Service, we were fortunate to spend a lot of time with family. The kids have pretty much become experts at air travel at this point, and I am just so thankful that they do so well on flights. They have had such great attitudes, even when their Yoto players haven't worked; they have been {mostly} patient, shared with each other, and been such great travelers!

On our way back to Texas for the second time in a month

Watching his favorite thing in the world: football :)

We spent the first few days on the front end of our trip with Mike's family. Staying with Granny and Grumpz means lots of games, toys, yummy snacks, and fun! Granny was gracious to watch the kids and allowed me to sneak away to go have lunch with Cindy and Kirston, as well as see Dan at the office. I am really grateful that I had that time as a final closure to say goodbye to that chapter of my life as well. I know I will keep in contact, but being able to see them and give hugs after the official closing was helpful for my heart. 

We also got to celebrate Henley's birthday with a fun breakfast-for-dinner and hot tub night! The kids had a blast with their cousins, and Lindsay and I even got to sneak away for a McAlister's lunch :)  And then we got to have another fun night of cousin fun at Uncle Bryan's house, complete with a bounce house {fully inflated inside the living room} and s'mores! To say that my kids had all the cousin fun they could have wanted, is an understatement :)

It was good to fill our hearts with family fun before my brother's service. And even though we moved over to Grandma and Papa's house and had to prepare for that, it didn't mean we didn't make time for family fun over there. Through the tears and the hardship, we were still able to find ways to laugh and enjoy time together, and I am grateful for that. 

Grandma took Maddie and me to get our nails done, which is such a sweet way for the girls to spend time together. Maddie loved every minute of the pampering, and she was a good sport for the rest of the errands we had to run that day.

Grandma's house is also filled with games and toys and fun. From Legos to Jenga, to coloring and bowling, there is not a lack of fun things to do. And we also got to watch a lot of football, which was Aiden's favorite :)  Not pictured was a lot of time spent with extended family who was in town, which was also really sweet and special.

Mike had to head back home on Saturday, but the kids and I were able to stay a couple of extra days. On Sunday, we were able to go to lunch and then out for {real} bowling with Aunt Vi, Addison, Airalyn, and Uncle Thinh. The kids had a blast, and it was a sweet afternoon with family.

I'm thankful for my good little travelers! They know the drill, and they got so many compliments on how well they were prepared through security and how well they behaved on the flights. It's really only because I came armed with snacks, and they have flown so much recently. Although, we did have one incident where we were made a bathroom trip right before boarding started. We were literally getting ready to do family boarding and one child {who will remain nameless} said they had to go to the bathroom again. I had to make a split second decision whether or not to take them right then or wait until after we were in the air... Thankfully the bathroom was close and there was not a line. We made it back just as they were boarding. It would not have been that big of a deal, except that I was flying with them solo and relying on family boarding so that we could sit together. Why did you not empty out, child??? haha

Headed back to Virginia!

My little travel pros :)

He's like a middle aged man haha

Our trips to Texas in the last couple of months have not been what we expected or would have planned. In many ways, they were the hardest weeks I have experienced. But I am thankful for family, and I am thankful for the time we got to spend together. I'm thankful for the moments of laughter in the midst of the tears. 

Michael's Celebration of Life

The afternoon that we were preparing to say goodbye to my brother in December, they held a flag ceremony in his honor. Because he chose to be an organ donor, the hospital honors the donor and their family for their gift of life. Because the number of people who came to see my brother exceeded the hospital's capacity for the honor walk, everyone was moved to the flag pole for the ceremony and prayer. And then a smaller group of family and friends walked with my brother to surgery. My parents, his wife, and I were with him to say our final goodbyes in the OR.

The following days were filled with planning and decisions for his funeral. I didn't want my parents to do that alone, and I'm thankful that Mike and his family could manage the kids so I could help them every step of the way. Intellectually, I had an idea of what had to be done, but I really had no idea the number {or type} of decisions that have to be made around a funeral. The Lord was incredibly kind to place amazing people in our path to guide us every step of the way. I can't imagine making funeral and cemetery services my career choice, but every person we encountered was absolutely made for the job they were in. They were kind and compassionate, and I'm thankful for their help in such a difficult time.

Ultimately, we planned a small, private graveside service that same week, and then delayed a Celebration of Life Service for January. There were so many people from varying parts of Michael's life that came to show their love and support: friends from high school, people from his days at DBU, and of course people from his church. And there were also people who came to love and support me and my parents: family, people from BSF, our own friends. 

I am so thankful for the outpouring of love and support for my family. It was comforting to see how loved my brother was. I'm thankful for the opportunity to celebrate my brother's life; I'm thankful for my brother's life. I miss him so much, but I find my comfort in knowing he is whole and healed and resting with Jesus. 

I am thankful to be on the other side of the service and the "formal closure events" of grief. To close that chapter of the "have to's" has allowed my heart to move past one piece of the closure process. I am still working out the rest of it. The rest of it isn't quite as planned and neat; it's definitely a lot more messy in my heart. Unfortunately, I can't plan away grief haha. But God is for me...

"You have kept count of my tossings;

put my tears in your bottle.

Are they not in your book?

Then my enemies will turn back

in the day when I call.

This I know, that, God is for me.

In God, whose word I praise,

in the Lord, whose word I praise,

in God I trust; I shall not be afraid."

- Psalm 56:8-11

{iPhone Rewind} :: December

Bible study leader fellowship- so thankful I get to serve alongside these ladies!

Mike took Maddie to Pioneer Girls, so I got a night with the boys. They chose watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas and building robots!

Granny had left us 5 Christmas presents to open in December, and we were so excited to find Christmas mugs with our names on them! Perfect for hot chocolate :)

This girlie LOVES meats haha {and writing about it}

Aiden said wistfully, "I wish I had this much money..." One day, buddy. One day.

**The rest of the photos in December are marked with the loss of my brother. I still haven't quite figured out if or when or how I will blog about this time, but I do know that there are ways the Lord took care of us that I do not want to forget. So for now, I will put some photos of family and the kids here.**

I am SO PROUD of these 3. They are such troopers, and they did so great with all the last minute travel. And I can't tell you how many people were shocked that Mike was handling all 3 by himself {it actually started to annoy me}. I had zero worries, because I knew he would do just fine {if not better than I could}. And he did. 

Sweet cousins who had matching Christmas pajamas and cookie decorating waiting for our kids when they got off the plane in Texas.

Sweet Airalyn turned 13 the day Michael went into the hospital, so we wanted to be sure to find a time to still celebrate her. She LOVES claw machines, so we spent the afternoon at ClawZania!

In all the last minute rush, Maddie ended up in Texas without pajamas! And even when I was going through all the clothes, I missed it completely as well, so poor girl had to wear her brother's shirt. She was a good sport, and Aiden was ok with it...only because it wasn't garbage day ;)

My kids have brought so much laughter and joy to a hard few weeks, but they have also brought their love and gentleness. I have been amazed at their sensitivity and how they have cared for the adults with their love and hugs.

We have received an outpouring of love and support from our own church family, even while we were in Texas. But when we arrived home, there was more waiting for us. From meals and cards to flowers and love gifts for flights, we have been overwhelmed by the body of Christ and its care for us. 

The normal Christmas activities we had planned didn't happen in the same way, but we still made a little time to do a few things for the kids. On the morning of Christmas Eve, we let them paint some Christmas ornaments.

Living their best Christmas Eve life :)

A hawk came to visit us on Christmas!

We had 2 down sick the day after Christmas...

Eli helped Mike up at the church, and he was so proud of his work :)

This is the medication insert for my Stelara. Granted, a lot of it is directions for use. But there are a lot of fine print warnings too. It's just a lot of small print, front and back. I just try not to think too much about it...

The last few days of the year have been pretty rough. Mike was pretty much the only one left standing, and we have seen who is a good sick person and who...definitely is not haha.