Life is a Party

So, here we are living in the Residence Inn in Irvine, CA. It is Day #6 in a small space with lots of togetherness, and my creative daughter is undaunted.

During rest time today, Turner decided to plan a party for our family. On her own (without either of us knowing ANYTHING), she organized several games, including hopscotch made of ribbons and a scavenger hunt for all of her hair stuff...made a platter of snacks....and created prizes for her guests. As soon as Parker woke up, the party began, and it was FUN and really perfect! We all needed a party, and Turner knew it!

One of the coolest things of the whole day was the below-pictured prize, a hand crafted purse made of...(drum roll, please)...drawer liner scraps from the new house, tape and star stickers!!! Isn't it AWESOME???

Box of Blessings

So, I was having a kind of down day yesterday. I was tired from moving, traveling with two little kids and changing time zones. Tired of being in a hotel and having no home or car or "freedom." Tired of so much uncertainty. And tired of not knowing how to get to the nearest grocery store without a GPS.

Plus, I was feeling frustrated, because several important things were not working out as planned.

God bless her, Turner knew JUST what I needed...

She came up to me, and she was holding a little box I had given her. She said, "Mom, you know what is in this beautiful box? Some songs to remind us of God's promises!"

She then proceeded to sing, "God is bigger than the boogie man, bigger than Godzilla and the monsters on tv. God is bigger than the boogie man, and He's watching over you and me," along with "Jesus loves me" and "I will trust in your Word, in your Word, in your Word."

Now isn't God amazing? He sends us messages and messengers in all shapes and sizes. Thank you, sweet Turner, and THANK YOU, Lord.

A Few Goodbye Photos from GA

After three short years, it sure was hard to leave Georgia. God blessed us with some amazing people in our lives, who have loved on us and loved on our children. I wish I had photos of all of them, but here are a few we were able to capture. We will miss this community and look forward to returning to them SOON!

In the immortal words of Ray Charles, "Georgia" -- and our brothers and sisters there -- will be "on our minds" and in our prayers often and fondly!

Turner and Avery Turner, Parker, Mr. Tony and Ms. Shannon at church

Parker on our last night in our house, sleeping in Trip's "Cars" tent

The Davidsons

The Kuehns

Sweet Home, South Carolina

We spent two weeks in July in South Carolina. It was a very special time with family and friends and a chance to say goodbye for a while before we headed to California. We maximized EVERY minute and had so many great times! We are sooo blessed and truly grateful for all the support we have as we begin this journey. We may be a few more miles away, but we will NEVER forget where we came from and who we are! Love all of you!

The Guerard Family Gathering

Guerard Ladies enjoying the shade

Cousin Ken and Parker

Turner and Caroline

Sweet Cousins

Parker and Claire giving a concert!

Daddy and Parker dancing to the mariachi music at Niki's Mexican birthday Fiesta

The birthday girl!

Pinata! Crazy family! Turner and Abram
Turner, Tatum and O-E-O (Owen)
Cousin Ryan! Sweet Miss Erin got to spend the night Buried treasures :) Parker and Tyler Turner and Cate Lynn Turner even lost her FIRST TOOTH while we were at the beach! What a great time for everyone to get to celebrate. She got TWO gold dollars from the tooth fairy!

I don't have any pictures, but I did want to remember the kids' special trip to the Children's Museum with Nana and Grandad! The kids both enjoyed it, and Parker had THE BEST TIME dressing up like a pirate and driving the ship. He is still talking about it!

On our way back to Georgia, we detoured to Sumter and visited with Grandy. It was a joy to see her and have the opportunity to meet her new "beau," Larens. They are so cute and really are testimony to the fact that love transcends age and time. Turner wasted no time stating her purpose as she waltzed in Grandy's apartment, kissed her and said, "Grandy, I need to meet your boyfriend!" :)

Time zones

We are still getting used to CA and the new time. Turner told her friend Trip on the phone today that even though it was "bedtime for him," it was "only" afternoon for her! She has gotten quite a kick out of that!

So, tonight, she got this really thoughtful expression on her face. She looked at me with hope-filled eyes and said, "So, mom, does Christmas come earlier in California than in Georgia?"

:)

(I didn't have the heart to tell her it was three hours later here...)

5 Going on 15...

So, I picked out Turner's clothes this morning to go over to our friend's house. Completely unbeknownst to me, she brought along her backpack with *another* outfit SHE liked better...then proceeded to change and accessorize (complete with necklace, bracelet and different hair clip) immediately after we arrived. 5 going on 15? God help me! And her father!

New Smyrna Beach

We had our first real family vacation with just the four of us!

One of the most special "perks" of working for Chick-fil-A, is that Truett Cathy owns three condos in New Smyrna Beach, FL. Every four years, employees in the home office are eligible to enter a lottery to spend a week in one of the condos. We had the blessing and privilege of doing that in July.

The week was really memorable! We ate lots of good seafood, took our first family fishing trip (which was quite a success!), enjoyed the beach and two pools, went to a huge waterpark (Daytona Lagoon) and had fun just being together. Some of our great friends from Chick-fil-A happened to also get the same week (completely randomly!), so we were able to enjoy some special times with them, too!

Mermaid Turner (with a real, live crab on her tail!)
One of FOUR rainbows we saw during our time at New Smyrna Beach! Since this was our quiet family time before our move west, I just kept feeling like they were put in the sky for US, and that God was saying, "I am with you..."

Manatees! Beautiful! Turner on the pier Watching the dolphins and manatees swim

My little fisher girl! We decided the kids were old enough to learn about one of our favotire pasttimes, so we chartered a fishing boat one morning of our trip. All in all, we caught over 12 different species of fish, including: Ladyfish, Pin Fish, Catfish, Blacktip Shark, Mangrove Snapper, Grouper, Sand Trout/Golden Trout, Speckled Sea Trout, Red Fish, Sailor's Choice, Jack, Sheephead and EVEN a Stone Crab. Needless to say, we have some new fans of bottom fishing in Mosquito Lagoon!