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His Grace Alone Christmas

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Random leftovers from our Kentucky Summer

I realized with my last post that I had neglected some very cute and or touching photos from our last days in Kentucky.  I just had to include them on the blog since I will be binding it and creating a hard copy for posterity in the future. So, here goes.

Amy bought the girls these oh so cute shirts.  If you don't know the reference, it is the Cat in the Hat.  Adorable!

The fourth of July was so fun this year.  We met up with the Allen's and Bridge's in a perfect location to see the fireworks close up.  We also had fun making our own fireworks.  Sarah is not so sure these are safe, so I am not sure how much fun she was having but the rest of us had a great time.

Julie and her family always have the best time together, I am glad they joined us on this night.

Leah had fun just getting to run around in the street!  Toddler freedom is always a blast.

Leah's perch at any event is Daddy's lap.  I am sure he becomes tired of this at times but I like to remind him that the day is coming that he will wish she would like to be this close to us.  

Papaw and Mamaw came up from Pikeville to join us in the fun.  Dad said the Georgetown fireworks were as good as any he has seen live.  I would have to agree!

Sarah and Maura have such a special friendship.  There aren't many people a person can say they knew since birth.  These to were fast friends and hopefully will stay that way forever.

On the true independence day, Leah got decked out in her patriotic finest.  She hates the piggy tails and usually  pulls them out almost immediately, but I love them at this age and snapped a quick photo.

My baby is not a baby any more.  She looks so big with her hair pulled back.  She favors Sarah so much more without bangs.

We definitely miss our Georgetown Chik fil a!  It became such a hang out for me and the girls.  The kids love the food and the playground and so do we.
Now for our last few days together with friends.  Sniff, sniff.  Julie had a luau party just before we left.  She moved it up just to accommodate our moving date.  She is such a wonderful friend!

The (bigger) three amigos.  Who would have known when I moved to Georgetown almost 12 years ago that I would find some of my very best friends in the world right down the street? 
Chris's birthday was our "last hurrah" with the family.  There were many tearful hugs as we almost couldn't believe the time had come for us to go.

What a special family.  Such blessings reside in our old Kentucky home.

Saying goodbye...for now

I have waited a while to write this post for a couple of reasons.  One, moving is hard mentally, physically, and emotionally.  Keeping one home clean enough to show on a moments notice while preparing to move to another state is hard enough on its own.  Add to that seeing your husband only on weekends and trying to visit every person that is special to you and your children before leaving and you will begin to get the picture.  For a while we were in denial that the move would occur.  But as the weeks without Chris began to pass, we realized that we were ready to make the big move. 

This is our new home in Kansas.  It is beautiful, has a basement, is in a great neighborhood and a wonderful school district.  This definitely made the idea of moving a little more bearable.

The main reason we bought the house is the spacious backyard. it is flat, has a great play structure, and is surrounded by large trees. It feels like being on vacation when you have breakfast looking out the back window.

I made so many memories outside as a kid and our kids were becoming primarily indoor beings.  Hopefully this will change with such a welcoming backyard.

 

With that being said, we had a difficult task of saying goodbye to the friends, some of whom my girls had known since, well, forever.

We went to Salato with Sarah's friend London and his brother.  They had a blast.  We had only known London for a year, but Sarah developed a very sweet and special friendship with him almost immediately in preschool.

Saying good bye to Caden was especially hard for Sarah.  He was literally one of her first friends.  She has never known life without him.

Maura and Sarah have been "friends" since they were under six months old.  This was an especially hard goodbye due to my friendship with Julie as well.

 Saying goodbye to Pikeville and the grandparents was no easy task.  We know we will still see them often due to our many trips to the bluegrass for Chris's job, but we will not see the mountains as much as before.  Papaw is so good with the girls.  He is never afraid to roll around in the floor with the grand kids.  Sniff, sniff.

Leah adores being outside in the mountains as you can tell.  Hopefully this love of the outdoors will continue in Kansas.

Saying goodbye to "family", I mean neighbors is so difficult.  We watched Shelley grow into such a wonderful young woman.  She went from kid across the street, to babysitter, to surrogate family.  She even asked Sarah to be her flower girl in her summer wedding. 

Julie invited us over one more time for a luau party.  She has it every summer but bumped it up since we were leaving.  I will miss Julie and Dawn so much!

These kids have been friends forever.  I hope they always hold special places in each others hearts, even from afar.

Saying goodbye to Amy was perhaps the hardest goodbye.  We are more than blessed to have her in our lives. Both kids light up with they see aunt Amy.  We know she will visit us often in Kansas.  She loves these two like they are her own.

We were lucky to stick around long enough to attend VBS at North Lexington.  Sarah brought her two buddies to the event.  She loves Bible class here and I hope we can find something she likes in Kansas as well.

Saying goodbye to our local library is hard as well.  We have a great library in Scott county.  My girls enjoyed every visit. This will forever be "Leah's perch".

Sarah has climbed this caterpillar since she was a baby.  Sniff, sniff.

We will miss the reading nook as well.

Leah will so miss the steps in the front of the church building.  She spent many days getting in trouble for trying to run around on stage. :)

Leah, Papaw, and Alena taking a walk.  Leah and Alena were just getting to the age where they begin playing together.  They always seem to have a great time together.  I hope distance will not change that fact.

The girls from church invited me for a night out to say goodbye.  We have had a tradition of going out for birthdays for some time now.  I will miss our time "sans kiddos."

These are some of the first friends I made in Lexington many, many, years ago.  I am privileged to still be able to call them friends even today.

It was fitting that our last night out would be at Jalapenos, a restaurant that became a staple for all of us.  It is close to Chris's job and our old church building.  Much laughter and memories were made here.  I was so glad to get to go for one last hurrah with my girls.
As you can see, it is more than difficult to leave all of this behind for a place where we know NO ONE!  I firmly believe that God has a plan for us and we will see it unfold during our time in Kansas.  Luckily,these friendships may change, but they will never die.  I am truly blessed.  So I say goodbye...for now...

The Beginning of the End

Have you ever had a time period in your life that just felt like the paths were all coming to an end?  This sums up our year. The end of sleepless nights with an infant, the end of preschool for the big girl, oh yeah and the end of life as we know it in Kentucky!  I must say that life has pretty much been a roller coaster for the past year and the culmination of all this is a cross country move.  Needless to say, this has been a challenging time for our family.  Saying goodbye to family, friends, and our home has been gut wrenching.  Below you will see one of those moments when Mommy's do the "ugly cry".  My first born is growing up.  I can't remember when it happened, but suddenly the toddler has turned into a girl.  A real girl, with real opinions and feelings.  The girl who wailed in front of the crowd at her first Thanksgiving program at preschool until Mommy came up on stage to stand behind her is now about to walk across the stage all alone and accept a diploma!  Granted a preschool certificate but let me brag.  I am very proud of the smart and confident young lady I call my daughter. 

I so love the fact that Building Blocks dresses the kids up in cap and gowns.  It is so exciting for them and really gives them a feeling of accomplishment.  Sarah looks so proud here.

Graduating to kindergarten is hard enough, but it is multiplied when it also means leaving friends that Sarah has known, well, forever.

I love my baby. I wish I could slow down and enjoy these fleeting moments of childhood.  Hopefully when we get settled in our new home.  Sigh....

Landon, Avery, and Sarah have know each other since birth.  They are born within a few months of one another. What a friendship they have!  We will miss them so much!

The kiddo's showing off their crazy face skills.  They are really a hoot! 

Now we are back in the auditorium anxiously awaiting the beginning of the ceremony.

Alena came along to share in the celebration.  These two are becoming partners in crime.  I am sad that they are going to live so far apart.  I hope they can remain close as they grow up.

Here she goes, all by herself across the big stage.  We are so proud of her. 

Mamaw and our neighbor, Shelly came along to support Sarah as well.  We are so blessed to have so many family and friends.

After the ceremony, the graduates gathered to pose for some photos.  Madeline and Sarah are almost the same amount of months apart as their mothers.  I remember playing with Heather at this age.  Isn't that crazy?

Thumbs up for a great year!

Papaw (from the Mountains) came to celebrate as well.

Sarah and "my Amy".  It is so hard to think about leaving a place surrounded by loved ones (sniff).

The best photo we could get of the Coleman clan.

Mamaw (from the Mountains) and Sarah.

And now for Mamaw and Papaw (from the street) :)

Shelley and Josh surprised us by attending as well.  We think of Shelley as family.  We watched her grow up and become a wonderful young woman.  Sarah will be her flower girl in her upcoming nuptials.

Baby Aubrey was cheering on cousin Sarah as well.  So cute!

Here is Sarah with her two "Mamaws".  She loves them both so dearly.  I am so glad they were able to come.

Leah is not always known for her good behavior during crowded events, but the balloons kept her very happy.  A great time was had by all.  We celebrated our Sarah and had a wonderful afternoon as a family together (if only for a few more weeks).