Pennsylvania trip

Howdy gang!!
Ben submitted leave (so I hope we will all be on our upcoming trip!) this week. I just wanted to let our western PA friends in on the plans.
We are not planning on coming home to PA for Christmas SO if you want to see us this year, here's your chance!
We will be arriving on the afternoon of June 12th and leaving early morning on June 17th. (the kids will be there with mom and dad while we supervise the packers so if you want to see them you will have a longer time frame!)
Please shoot me a text, email, Facebook message or whatever if you want to visit! We are hoping to see y'all!
Love to you guys!
Jamie

Carried away....

I cannot believe the emotional roller coaster that we have been on the past few weeks.
We were surprised by another positive pregnancy test. Surprised, (I took 3 tests because I was sure they weren't correct!) shocked, scared, then eventually excited and elated.

I must admit my first reaction was not as joyful as our past pregnancies because I was scared that it was going to be another miserable, painful pregnancy. And to be frank it was not MY plan. But I eventually was excited at the thought of the new life that Ben and I had created. What a blessing from God!

I was due January 11th (my cousin Sarah's birthday.)

I had a random thought that maybe Ben and I would be spending our 10th anniversary delivering our 4th baby.

I was praying for another little boy. Even though this mama is sometimes overwhelmed by Isaac's little boy antics.

I knew the symptoms as they started occurring but tried to pray them away anyway.
The result was the same.

Not MY plan but God's plan.
I don't understand it but know that it's perfect.

May 17, 2013 we learned that another baby was gone.
I take comfort that this baby had a sibling to welcome it into heaven. I also take comfort knowing I have 2 sweet angels I will hold one day....

The half

Happy 9.5 years to my love, my heart, father to my children,my everything.

Praying for many, many more!

Love you  BGWG

Memorial day memories

Although we did work on house projects and getting the house back into "show condition" yesterday, we took time to enjoy each other, the beach, the sunshine, and our freedom.
Here are a few snapshots from the day

Magnolia

One of my most favorite thing at our NC house is our southern magnolia tree in our front yard.
Here is our first bloom of the season. The first picture is the unedited version. Second is me playing with different editing tricks.
I love how they turned out!!

Phase 2

Surgery is set for June 3rd!
I am now in glasses full time until the surgery. No make-up either! They have me doing drops 4 times a day.
I am nervous and excited all in the same thought process!
Ben will be pinch hitting with the kids end of school activities for me and my friend Jenn will be driving me to Wilmington.

Our weekend....

Ballet recitals, house projects, last visits with friends, cuddles, But mostly being thankful for those that paid the ultimate sacrifice.
Happy Memorial day.

Our route to California

We have mapped out our tentative route from Jacksonville to Camp Pendleton. Here is what our game plan looks like!

Day #1. June 29th Jacksonville, NC to the Young's in Knoxville, Tennessee

Day #2. June 30th (Happy Birthday Kendall!!) Somewhere between Knoxville and Springfield, Missouri.

Day #3. July 1st Springfield, Missouri To visit with Ben's sisters and family.

Day #4. July 2nd MO to Oklahoma city

Day #5. July 3rd OK to Albuquerque, New Mexico (one of my favorite stops from our first cross country move!!)

Day #6. July 4th (happy birthday to our niece, Bethany!!)
Grand Canyon

Day #7. July 5th to Aunt Charity's in Phoenix, Arizona

Day #8. July 6th onward to Camp Pendleton!!

Showstopper

Kendall had her very first dance competition in Myrtle beach at the convention center. Showstopper was an appropriate name!
It was an overwhelming experience for us both!! Lots of dancers and activity.
It was a much needed alone time activity for us too.
The dance of the rose maiden was a hot and the girls brought home gold which is second place!
I can't believe my first baby girl is about to be 7 in just about a month and big enough for these crazy competitions!

Field Day

Kymber had her field day for parents morning out today.
Mainly that consisted of her splashing in the water and being drenched with water by her older brother.
Having her in this swim suit reminds me of Kendall's first trip to the ocean in it!
What a blessing to be able to have shared memories in shared clothes!

New to us

Ben has spent countless hours searching for an enclosed trailer for our cross country move.
All his hard work paid off when he found this! He got it for about $1000 less than what a new one would have cost us.
We will be using it for a "partial ditty" move. Basically, the items we are bringing with us instead of sending with the movers.
When we get to California, we will use it to store the items we cannot use in our new home. We couldn't believe how much cheaper this option is as opposed to a storage locker!
More from our Camp Pendleton or bust journey soon!

Step 1

I had my first eye exam yesterday for my LASIK surgery.
My eyes passed with flying colors. I hope that the surgery is no worse than the corneal thickness test and I should be fine!
I got some cool shades to wear under my glasses since I had to have my eyes dilated as part of the exam.
Praying that the timing works out as that is the last hurdle to completing the surgery prior to our move.

My little knight

Isaac recently told me when he gets married (stifled sob) that he is going to where a helmet, shield, and sword. "you know like a knight mom."
I pray that he will be some lucky girl's knight in shining armor!

No doubt

There is no doubt that this girl is my daughter!
It brought back great memories of my Night Rider race track while I watched her play with the matchbox cars.
Oh sweet Kymber.

Fun at the park

We enjoyed the NC sunshine today and one of the local parks. It did my heart good to hear their laughter!