It's Been A Year...

I am just sitting at a McDonald's near Kirsten's softball practice since its too hot pretty much everywhere without air conditioning today. And I happened to remember that it has been a little over a year since I started this blog. The year definitely flew by. At this time last year we were living in a hotel in Sandy Springs and I was holding onto my sanity with a thread.
It has probably been the second hardest year of my life, probably all of our lives. Fortunately, we can now look back and laugh over it.
Lauren has adjusted well to southern living. She completed her junior year in high school. She cheered on the competition cheer squad and lettered in lacrosse. She started almost every single lacrosse game and yet maintained her I play it because its fun attitude. Despite what she thought she managed to hang on to her boyfriend, Shane. He has made several trips to Georgia. Once for homecoming and once for her prom. and they are both always looking for a ride to see each other. So if you're headed south let us know! Lauren was also able to attend Elizabethtown's prom this year too. It was a very quick two day trip because she had finals the next week but the pictures and memories   were worth it.

Kirsten finished her first year of high school and has adjusted well. In the fall she played on the JV softball team at her high school which was quite an accomplishment because softball is so much more competitive here than in PA. In the spring she played and lettered in lacrosse. She has also played and conditioned year round with her travel ball team, GA Trouble. We love that team and recommend it to everyone that asks where she is training. The coaching is awesome. She has grown by leaps and bounds through all her hours of training. She struggled with her batting a great deal this year. For Kirsten as well as many others if she doesn't feel confident in her game she doesn't play well. She has started to shows of overcoming her issues which is awesome for her. Last night with her school ball team she was the most consistent batter, making it to base at every at bat. she had a triple and two doubles for a total of 6 runs batted in. We are so happy to see her beginning to enjoy the game she loves so much again.
Zach made it through his seventh grade year. I say made it because there were times I thought I would surely choke the life outta him. Just kidding! Moving in the middle school years is perhaps the worst possible time in a child's life for such a major change. But he made it and can sometimes even laugh about it. He played football in the fall and lacrosse in the spring. Currently, he is playing lacrosse through LB3. It is run by a former Major League Lax player and several individuals that have played both college and professional level lax. Needless to say, the instruction is top notch and he loves it.
Cole is finished with third grade and we are hopeful that fourth grade will be a more positive experience for him. That's all I will say on that topic! He has made several good friends through school and even has a buddy or two in the neighborhood. He has loved going to the neighborhood pool because he can almost always find someone there to play with. He took a year off from sports and activities which was a good thing. I don't think I could have managed another practice schedule if I tried. Recently, he has taken an interest in baseball. He's been going to the batting cages with me when I take Kirsten for practice and really enjoys it.

Bill has loved his new job since we moved. He is able to go to the gym that is right in the building where he works during his lunch break. The stress level is so much better. His boss and everyone at work have been awesome about sharing their knowledge about life in GA.

As for me, I am pretty well used to the Southern way of living now. I never thought I would say this but I actually enjoy country music. After living here somehow the music just makes more sense and I find myself relating to the lyrics. After all, I know all about those red dirt roads! I still haven't found anyone here that scrapbooks but I'm sure they are here somewhere. Instead, I just facetime one of my scrapping buddies back in PA. It is alot easier than packing up all that stuff anyway! I did try meeting up with someone from social media but that didnt turn out too well. I will definitely have to share that sometime! Social media, texting etc have been life and sanity savers for us all. I can honestly say I don't think I would have made it through the year without them. It has also made it a lot easier on the kids and their friendships. I am really not sure how people did these kinds of moves before smartphones and GPS. Siri has literally been my lifeline this year! She has gotten me to every practice, every game and every appointment with minimal stress. She has also helped me find fun things to do when we were bored.
Almost everyone at some point has asked me if this is home now... That has been a tough question for me to answer because while I love the area and there is lots to do here, home is where the heart is and part of my heart is still in PA with our extended family and my best friends. I miss those drop ins for coffee or those Sunday morning calls from my mom saying they were on the way to our house. That has been the hardest for me. Missing out on family times...

Amicalola Falls

Today we decided to do a little exploration...ok, yes I admit I decided to drag the children kicking and screaming out of the house with the threat of no electronic devices hanging over their heads to go exploring. Now, in some of the pictures you may notice that they are actually smiling. They actually admit to having fun now but those smiles were bought with a bribe of a milkshake when it was over. At least the boys' smiles were. They arent easy to get to smile. And with such a gorgeous background I did not want to end up with pictures of serial killers on my camera. It was a great place to hike. Never mind the 425 steps that go down along the falls and then the 175 steps that go further down the falls. Add that up and realize that we did those steps not once but twice. I tried to convince the kids to hook up some kind of system to drag me out but they couldn't manage that so we had to do it the hard way!

As you can see there are alot of stairs!  Going down was great!  Coming back up was not too terrible.  Not so bad that I wouldn’t do it again. Finding somewhere this beautiful so close to our house definitely gave Georgia some bonus points!  It was perfect hiking and picture weather too!

This is the view from the top of the falls.  We hiked all the way down to the road at the bottom.

A rare but very natural smile on Zach

Until now there haven’t been many pics of me taken with my kiddos.  As my parents have aged I realize how sad it is that we have so few pictures of them with us.  One of my new year’s resolutions was to actually be in more pictures no matter how bad I think I look. Someday they will cherish these kinds of pictures.

Growing up too fast! 

 

The view from almost the bottom of the falls.  It was impossible to catch the entire falls in a picture. 

The kids on the bridge that crosses the falls.

My monkeys.This is the point that made me start bribing the boys with ice cream.

See what a little ice cream can do for a photographer?

Yes, this smile was paid for with a milkshake. Pretty fake looking eh?

 

 

 

From the very bottom of the falls.

 

Holiday shopping..

For as long as I can remember the kids have been buying Christmas presents for each other to open Christmas Eve. I believe the tradition started one of the years that Bill's parents was overseas. We had always gone to their house for dinner and family gifts on Christmas Eve and I remember we were struggling to find something to make our holiday tradition that year. It may also have started when one of the kids had a really thoughtful suggestion about what they wanted to get one of their siblings. Because ya know when they are little they pretty much just want to get the gift that they will enjoy playing with. It really doesn't matter what the other person would enjoy. So when one of them actually thinks about someone's likes and dislikes you want to reward them by letting them experience the joy of giving a really appreciated gift. It has become a tradition that has given us many valued memories!

When you have four kids one of the things that is rare and precious is getting time alone with each of them, especially the boys because dad is so much more fun that mom. The girls all I have to say is "anyone want to go shopping?" And I usually have at least one taker! So sibling shopping has as a rule developed into something that is done alone with mom. It is fun to watch and hear the thought process that goes into the gifts. Now they usually go more along the lines of the person's personality. For instance, there is one child that has bought Zach the same thing in different forms for the last three Christmases. The gift is loved and kinda adds to a collection he has going. I sometimes wonder if it will develop into a lifelong thing. I can't reveal what it is right now just in case one of them reads it. For some reason, everyone seems to get Zach gag gifts or humorous ones! Kinda goes with the personality right?

Shopping with boys can be quite a bit different than with girls. It usually takes a little longer because what guy in his right mind actually knows what gift to get a girl??? And my boys have three girls to buy for!!! Fortunately for my girls my boys have become pretty good shoppers. I tell myself that I am preparing them to be good husbands some day. Another way it is different? When the girls say, "oh look at that!!!" In an excited voice you can pretty safely figure what you are being directed to look at will be a cute outfit, shoes or a coach purse. However, when Zach says, "Yes! Check it out!!" You just never know where you should look or what it will be. Last night it happened to be a huge rubber band on the floor! Silly boy! It was one of those times I was laughing so hard trying to explain what was funny that he couldn't understand me. The boys also tend to be more likely to do a list when they shop. So usually they are finished pretty quickly. The girls can shop for days.....for one person! I have really come to enjoy the individual time spent with them! As they get older it is more and more difficult to find the time to spend with them.

Another reason, I have enjoyed this tradition is watching them try to keep their gifts a secret until Christmas Eve. Poor Cole has a really hard time with this one. In fact, the kids know not to ask for any clues about his gifts because the clue usually gives away the gift! Zach likes to disguise his packages by making them bigger so no one can figure out their sizes! He also likes to use clothing to disguise any noise or rattle the gift might make. That's how he has ended up with only two pair of underwear right now because he used all his clean underwear to cushion a package! They were CLEAN!!! He was just being green!!!!! Isn't that in style right now???
Kirsten has gotten where she doesn't even put her gifts under the free until Christmas Eve because she has a hard time deceiving people about their gifts. Lauren probably does the best at keeping things secret. This year Zach got his brother something he will love, something he has been dying to have. He is so excited to watch him open it. I explained to him that that is why adults love Christmas watching the other person open their gifts and see them be excited about them. His response, "yea but the gifts that adults get stink!" No worries, he's not growing up any time soon! Well, I need to get some wrapping done so I had better get moving!

It's Been Awhile...

I don't know if anyone really checks out our blog anymore but for those that do...we're still alive!!! We have just been keeping up with life.

We survived the rocky start we had with fall sports and have moved right into the winter season. Lauren is doing conditioning for Varsity Lax at the high school. Kirsten continues off season practices for her travel softball and she's also doing varsity lax at the high school. Zach tried out and was awarded a position on a travel lax team. And Cole is playing rec lax this spring too. They are all doing really well at their chosen sports and have adapted to life at their new school pretty well. Do they still miss PA? You bet! In a heartbeat they would all move back to PA if given the choice. They all had good solid friendships there which I don't think they even realized until it was too late. It has made us all realize those that truly cared and those that were just along for the ride. You know, those Facebook friends who you except the friend request from only because you feel like you have to? I pretty much knew who my best friends were when we lived in Etown but this move just reaffirmed it for me. I think it has done the same for the kids because they consistently request to see the same kiddos when we go back to PA for a visit. I miss those same kiddos too! Unfortunately, because I spend so much time getting them to see their friends I feel like I miss out on the time I want to spend with my friends and family. I'm hoping we are able to have a nice long trip to PA sometime this summer. I so miss having the ability to just walk down the street and chat with a gal pal over a glass of wine or cup of coffee. Most of my neighbors here are two income families so no one is really around during the day. I did find a couple scrapbooking groups online that meet a couple times a month at a local store so I signed up to attend one of their gatherings in December. I figure I will at least have something in common with them.

I think the one thing I don't miss in PA is the weather. The weather here in Georgia has been wonderful since about the middle of September. Lately it has been in the mid 60s to low 79s it's wonderful weather to enjoy some time out on the porch with a glass of wine in the evening or a toasty mug of coffee in the morning. It's weird because it seems like it rarely rains. Kirsten made the remark that she kinda missed a nice rainy day here and there. I never thought about it when we were there but I guess the occasional rainy day stuck inside is kinda nice. I don't however miss the gray, rainy cold days that go on and on and on.. We haven't had measurable rain in quite some time. Of course, the girls and I decided to go to Atlanta for some Christmas shopping and girl time today and what do ya know...it rained all day!!! It figures!!! As we were dashing in and out of stores I asked kirsten if she still missed the rainy days! We got some shopping done for the boys but that was about all. They were able to give me plenty of ideas for their lists of course!
Well, it's getting late I will try not to let so much time pass between posts! Love y'all and miss ya too!
Sharon

More Scrapbook pics!

Finished project!