So I know that this post comes way after the new year, in fact Valentines Day has come and gone. But over the last few days and weeks I've been doing a lot of thinking about things we as a family and as individuals need to work on this year.
A little over a month ago my husband lost his job. We were hopeful that things would be solved quickly as he had a job interview already set up for the day after he ended up losing his job. However after the interview and things we did a lot of praying and fasting that we would make the decision that was best for our family and what the Lord had planned for us and our future. In all of this praying and things we got the impression that Brett needed to get out of Restoration work. This left us confused and wondering what he was supposed to do for work if not what he had been doing for years. He filled out so many applications it is a blur and during this time we continued to pray and fast for the Lord's guidance in our decision making. The one distinct impression we got was that Brett needed to look for a job with normal.regular hours so that he could go back to school this fall to continue his education. He now has a job in the pest control field (a field he has worked in before) and he will have the regular hours that he needs to be able to go back to school.
During all of this praying and fasting I realized that we all needed to better ourselves this next year and try to all become better people. Not that we are terrible, but everyone can improve. Some of our main goals for this year will be:
1. Get better at having FHE regularly
2. Try to spend more quality time together
3. Try to get out of debt more
4. Try to get healthier (diet and exercise).
5. Study the scriptures more regularly (Individually and as a family)
6. Yell less, and laugh more.
It will be nice to see if we can meet these goals this year and I'm very hopeful that we can. I hope to make progress on some rather quickly, while others I know will take time and patience from all of us.
So here's to a new year and a family that is happier, healthier, and just better all around.
Friday, February 20, 2015
Thursday, December 18, 2014
It's Christmas Time again!!
Yet another year has come and gone. We've enjoyed this year and have had lots of fun together. We've all gone through some changes, but are looking forward to what the future holds.
Brett: Is still working for Carolina Restoration Services and is one of the top Water Technicians at the company and he's hoping for a promotion within the next year. He has been working a lot of hours lately, but looks forward to the overtime pay and what we can use it for (dental work, Christmas gifts, other expenses). He was able to spend quite a bit of time over the summer working on the yard and was able to get a fountain working and was able to finish the privacy fence. He was recently called as the Young Men's Secretary in our ward and is looking forward to working with the youth. He knows it will be challenging at times to balance work, church, and family but he knows the Lord will bless him with finding that balance.
Melinda: Has been continuing to work on de-cluttering the house over the past few months and things are getting better and better. There is still work to be done, but overall we're about 50% there. She has also been working with Natalie on continuing her progress with her speech and has been starting on some preschool work with her and hopes to get potty training going soon.
Morgan: Is loving 1st grade and is thriving in school. She wasn't able to continue with dance this year, but she loves to dance around the house and try to teach her younger sisters what she learned in past years. She has also been a big help to her mother with taking care of things around the house and her younger sisters. She can be quite the little mother hen at times.
Natalie: Is doing very well with her speech and is actually no longer in speech therapy as they felt she was making enough progress that she would be fine on her own now. She is now talking as good as other children her age. She also recently started showing interest in going potty, so we're hoping that she'll be potty trained within the not too distant future.
Lucy: Is into everything. She is climbing on everything and running all over the place. She has a love of life and doesn't like to be slowed down by anything. She even didn't let a concussion she endured slow her down for very long. She is also starting to talk more and we are amazed at some of the things she is able to do at such a young age. She is learning a lot from her 2 older sisters.
As a family this year:
We were able to go to our Nation's capital for Thanksgiving with Melinda's parents, grandmothers, sister and brother-in-law. We had a wonderful time and learned a lot at the museums and Arlington National Cemetery.
We are looking forward to Christmas and getting to talk to Brett's brother Bradley who is still on his mission. We are also looking forward to spending a lot of time as a family and with our families and friends. Melinda and the girls wil1 be spending the week of New Years in Edisto, SC with some of her family.
Brett: Is still working for Carolina Restoration Services and is one of the top Water Technicians at the company and he's hoping for a promotion within the next year. He has been working a lot of hours lately, but looks forward to the overtime pay and what we can use it for (dental work, Christmas gifts, other expenses). He was able to spend quite a bit of time over the summer working on the yard and was able to get a fountain working and was able to finish the privacy fence. He was recently called as the Young Men's Secretary in our ward and is looking forward to working with the youth. He knows it will be challenging at times to balance work, church, and family but he knows the Lord will bless him with finding that balance.
Melinda: Has been continuing to work on de-cluttering the house over the past few months and things are getting better and better. There is still work to be done, but overall we're about 50% there. She has also been working with Natalie on continuing her progress with her speech and has been starting on some preschool work with her and hopes to get potty training going soon.
Morgan: Is loving 1st grade and is thriving in school. She wasn't able to continue with dance this year, but she loves to dance around the house and try to teach her younger sisters what she learned in past years. She has also been a big help to her mother with taking care of things around the house and her younger sisters. She can be quite the little mother hen at times.
Natalie: Is doing very well with her speech and is actually no longer in speech therapy as they felt she was making enough progress that she would be fine on her own now. She is now talking as good as other children her age. She also recently started showing interest in going potty, so we're hoping that she'll be potty trained within the not too distant future.
Lucy: Is into everything. She is climbing on everything and running all over the place. She has a love of life and doesn't like to be slowed down by anything. She even didn't let a concussion she endured slow her down for very long. She is also starting to talk more and we are amazed at some of the things she is able to do at such a young age. She is learning a lot from her 2 older sisters.
As a family this year:
We were able to go to our Nation's capital for Thanksgiving with Melinda's parents, grandmothers, sister and brother-in-law. We had a wonderful time and learned a lot at the museums and Arlington National Cemetery.
We are looking forward to Christmas and getting to talk to Brett's brother Bradley who is still on his mission. We are also looking forward to spending a lot of time as a family and with our families and friends. Melinda and the girls wil1 be spending the week of New Years in Edisto, SC with some of her family.
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Speech therapy, Mother's day and Dance recital
It's been a busy last few months. So here's a little update on everyone in our family.
Brett: He's been working really hard and was recently promoted and given a raise. He's continuing to work towards his Master in Water Restoration. He's also working to try and get a new managers position within the company. He's also looking to start back to school in the fall.
Melinda: She's been working hard trying to keep the house and kids going while Brett's been working some crazy hours. It was really difficult a month or so ago when allergies caused her to rupture an ear drum which caused balance and other problems for her. She's recovering really well and her hearing is improving every day. She was able to enjoy Mother's day and is still enjoying her new camera she got.
Morgan: She's been doing really great in Kindergarten and continuing to love school. She also enjoyed taking dance again this last year and just had her dance recital. She did really well and we all had a great time watching her perform.
Brett: He's been working really hard and was recently promoted and given a raise. He's continuing to work towards his Master in Water Restoration. He's also working to try and get a new managers position within the company. He's also looking to start back to school in the fall.
Melinda: She's been working hard trying to keep the house and kids going while Brett's been working some crazy hours. It was really difficult a month or so ago when allergies caused her to rupture an ear drum which caused balance and other problems for her. She's recovering really well and her hearing is improving every day. She was able to enjoy Mother's day and is still enjoying her new camera she got.
Morgan: She's been doing really great in Kindergarten and continuing to love school. She also enjoyed taking dance again this last year and just had her dance recital. She did really well and we all had a great time watching her perform.
Natalie: She was evaluated a few months ago because she wasn't really talking and it was determined that she needed speech therapy. Therapy is going very well - she already (in just a little over a month) gone from a vocabulary of about 15 words to just over 100 words. Every day she seems to doing better and better with her speech - more words and it's becoming easier to understand her.
Lucy: She is growing like crazy. She is crawling all over now and getting into everything. She even tried to take a step last night. She also recently started a few trial runs with table food and so far has enjoyed it. It's crazy to believe that shell be a year old in just a few months.
Thursday, January 2, 2014
Life 1 year later
It's hard to believe that we've been in our house a year now. It seems like just yesterday we were moving in, but at the same time it feels like we've been here forever. It's also crazy that I haven't posted in almost a year. A lot has happened in the past year. So in the spirit of the new year I will do a month-by-month update of what happened (to the best of my memory).
January- In about mid January we found out that I was pregnant with our third child and due in mid September. We were very surprised by this as I was still on birth control, but we figured that Heavenly Father's plan for our family was different than ours and he always knows better than we do so we got on board with having another child join our family.
February - We got Morgan all registered for school and got everything filled out to hopefully get her in to the local year round school. We also told all of our family that we were going to be having another baby in mid September.
March - We found out that Morgan got in to the year round school and we were super excited about it. We also got more things unpacked and were just so thrilled about life in general.
April - We enjoyed Easter and had fun watching the girls look for eggs in our front yard. They had such a great time!
January- In about mid January we found out that I was pregnant with our third child and due in mid September. We were very surprised by this as I was still on birth control, but we figured that Heavenly Father's plan for our family was different than ours and he always knows better than we do so we got on board with having another child join our family.
February - We got Morgan all registered for school and got everything filled out to hopefully get her in to the local year round school. We also told all of our family that we were going to be having another baby in mid September.
March - We found out that Morgan got in to the year round school and we were super excited about it. We also got more things unpacked and were just so thrilled about life in general.
April - We enjoyed Easter and had fun watching the girls look for eggs in our front yard. They had such a great time!
May - I think it was in May that we went up to Williamsburg and got to see my cousin and her husband and spend time with most of my siblings and their families for the weekend. It was a fun trip and great to be able to spend time with them. Morgan also had her very first dance recital and she did great. So proud of her.
June - In June we found out that Morgan was on track 4 at her new school and found out when her orientation and everything would be. We also found out that Brett's youngest brother would be serving a mission in St. Geaorge Utah for 2 years. We were so excited for him. We got to see Brett's grandparents when they came out for Bradley's endowments. It was great to see them and talk to them about our baby's blessing and things.
July - We got to meet Morgan's teacher and get her started in school which she is really enjoying. We also celebrated our 7th wedding Anniversary.
August - I went into early labor that they had to stop (at 34 weeks) and then continued in early latent labor for what seemed like an eternity. Morgan really enjoyed going to school and was doing very well in school. We also found out that we would be put into a new ward that was being created. We have really enjoyed our new ward too.
September - On September 6th at 4am Lucy Jean was born and that was a real adventure for me as my epidural never worked and had a very rough labor with her. So glad that she was here (although it was 9 days before her due date).
October - Morgan enjoyed her first track out from school (although she cried her first day on track out because she wanted to go to school). We also got to enjoy our first Halloween in our new house and took the girls trick or treating around the neighborhood. It was lots of fun for all of us.
November - We got to celebrate Thanksgiving with Brett's family at a beach house in Topsail. We got to spend time with his grandparents who were visiting for the Holiday and for Lucy's baby blessing. It was lots of fun and very relaxing to wake up to a view of the ocean and the sound of waves.
December - We got to enjoy Morgan and Natalie's birthdays with lots of family. We also blessed Lucy and got to enjoy the time with family for that special occasion. We then spent time with family for Christmas parties and things. We also got to skype with Bradley on Christmas day which was awesome. The girls and I then got to spend time with my family in Edisto, SC for New Years. We had a great time walking on the beach, watching dolphins, playing games, and just having lots of fun.
Now this new year is going to be spent getting the house decluttered and organized and getting healthier so. We hope to really enjoy this year and I hope to be better about updating this monthly with everything going on in our family. Last year was pretty good to us and we hope that this year of 2014 will be even better than 2013. Happy New Year to everyone!!!!
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Unpacking in our new home
We have now been in our new house for 1 month and we are still working on getting everything unpacked. The house is looking better and better with each day and with each box getting unpacked. Hoping that by the end of this month we will have this house looking exactly the way we want it looking. Can't wait until we get things looking perfect and where we can just kick back and really enjoy our new house.
Monday, November 26, 2012
Packing the house
Our closing date is almost here - Nov. 29th. We ended up with 2 extra weeks due to a small hiccup with the loan. However, now we are down to less than 1 week until we move. The girls and I went out of town last week which didn't help the packing situation, but it's going pretty good now.
The Living Room is over half done, the playroom is all done (other than the TV and Wii), the kitchen is 2/3 done, the bathrooms are partly done, and the bedrooms and bathrooms have barely been touched (luckily those rooms con't have much other than furniture). The family room is full of boxes from the other rooms. We still have the mudroom and attic to work on too. Hoping to get it all done by Wednesday night so that all we have to do on Thursday is finish last minute packing of little things here and there.
Friday hopefully brings moving all of the boxes to the new house and then Saturday is moving all of the furniture and the shed, attic, and things from the yard. We are so excited and ready to be in our new home and start this next chapter of our lives. Just wish the moving didn't happen days before the girls' birthdays, but what can you do. We just had to postpone our birthday plans for them.
The Living Room is over half done, the playroom is all done (other than the TV and Wii), the kitchen is 2/3 done, the bathrooms are partly done, and the bedrooms and bathrooms have barely been touched (luckily those rooms con't have much other than furniture). The family room is full of boxes from the other rooms. We still have the mudroom and attic to work on too. Hoping to get it all done by Wednesday night so that all we have to do on Thursday is finish last minute packing of little things here and there.
Friday hopefully brings moving all of the boxes to the new house and then Saturday is moving all of the furniture and the shed, attic, and things from the yard. We are so excited and ready to be in our new home and start this next chapter of our lives. Just wish the moving didn't happen days before the girls' birthdays, but what can you do. We just had to postpone our birthday plans for them.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Buying our first home
So we are so excited to be buying our first home. We have been renting a house for 5 years and are glad to finally be in a place where we can buy a home. We are due to close in less than 2 weeks. It has been a very long and aggravating process at times. Brett losing his job when he did set us back a little.
We first figured out how much we could afford and then we got up with a realtor who was able to help us find a few homes in our desired area and within our budget. We were able to narrow it down to the perfect little starter home for our little family. It's a beautiful 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom house that sits on a third of an acre in a nice neighborhood in Fuquay Varina. That will put us much closer to Brett's job and with in 5 miles of everything else that we do on a weekly basis.
It has been a long road of ups and downs through the whole offer, counter offer, earnest money, due diligence period, and all the other things that go along with buying a home. Now we are down to just a few things left (mostly dealing with the loan) before we can close. Everything is looking good for us to close on time.
Unfortunately that means we have less than 2 weeks to get our house packed up and ready to move to the new place. Hoping that we can get it all done in time, but it's proving to be a slow and stressful process. Can't wait until we are settled into our first home and can start enjoying our lives as home owners.
We first figured out how much we could afford and then we got up with a realtor who was able to help us find a few homes in our desired area and within our budget. We were able to narrow it down to the perfect little starter home for our little family. It's a beautiful 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom house that sits on a third of an acre in a nice neighborhood in Fuquay Varina. That will put us much closer to Brett's job and with in 5 miles of everything else that we do on a weekly basis.
It has been a long road of ups and downs through the whole offer, counter offer, earnest money, due diligence period, and all the other things that go along with buying a home. Now we are down to just a few things left (mostly dealing with the loan) before we can close. Everything is looking good for us to close on time.
Unfortunately that means we have less than 2 weeks to get our house packed up and ready to move to the new place. Hoping that we can get it all done in time, but it's proving to be a slow and stressful process. Can't wait until we are settled into our first home and can start enjoying our lives as home owners.
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