Distance Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

Well I was saving the post about leaving my family for last. I'm not sure I even need to write out what it does to my heart to move away from them and move the kids away from them. I'm pretty sure anyone who truly knows me already knows this. Luckily actually leaving them in Florida wasn't as hard as it could have been because I will be seeing them in less then a week in Cape Cod, and, major bonus, Auntie Ally flew up here yesterday to spend the week with us before Cape Cod!! Not sure leaving after our week in Cape Cod will be quite so simple, but for now I focus on the a-m-a-z-i-n-g week we will have in Cape Cod together!! I simply can not wait!!! I love you guys, and can't wait to see you in less then a week!!!

 We spent our last afternoon together watching Madagascar 3

 Swimming with Mack!!

 And taking a last morning swim on his own... because he did that every morning the last week.. because he's a big boy and just swims like that these days :)

 Before we headed to the airport :(

And.... A few random pictures from our final week in Florida.... 

Yummy powdered donut for breakfast

 Love this picture Auntie Ally snapped one morning :)

 Ryder can usually be found here in Auntie Ally's room when he visits

 And Landon can be found in places like this... anywhere he shouldn't be :)

 Another example.... he wanted the computer SO bad! He also has a seriously obsession with iPhones right now!!

 Listening to some music

Hanging out in Grammy's pantry... bad boys!

 Lots of blogging to do from our time here in PA already... Ally is here though, and I may or may not be sucked into 50 Shades of Grey right now :) We'll see what gets done!! :)

Irreplaceable

This blog post is a hard one to type... Not one where I just want to write a quick "yeah and we said bye to our friends and hope we'll see them again soon" while I'm only half paying attention because an episode of Keeping up with the Kardashians in on the in the background and the kids are playing distracting me every two seconds like most posts because it deserves SO much more then that! My whole life I dreamed of being Mom. I remember filling out a survey my senior year of high school telling us what we should do with our lives and mine pretty much summed up I should be a stay-at-home mom. Some people picture themselves heading off to college and taking on the world, becoming CEOs of big businesses, becoming a big time doctor, or becoming a famous actress. Not me... I always wanted to be Mom. I dreamed of having my own kids and spending my days with them all day every day. To me that was enough and all I ever dreamed of. I think the first year of being a Mom is always slightly disappointing because you are finally in that position you always wanted to be in and dreamed of, but your baby can't interact quite yet with the world and you feel trapped. You can't go on with your usual life, but you can't quite do "mom stuff" yet. I know all you mommy's out there know what i'm talking about :) Then somehow, without even realizing it, it happens! Your babies turn into toddlers and then little kids and make friends. Before you know it you are packing lunches for trips to the park, finding local fast food joints with playgrounds your new favorite hang out, your meet-up times are early morning or late afternoon because nap time is too precious to be missed, and you soon realize the weekend isn't quite so fun anymore because your husbands are off work and you can't have your girlfriends around  to help you pass time with your kids :) days like Tuesday for pre-school and morning breakfast and Wednesday play date day become your new favorite days of the week.

I never took our last year in Florida for granted, as I always knew that we were looking elsewhere at jobs. Somewhere though in the back of my mind I always hoped that the "right job" would be in Fort Myers because everything else fit so perfectly down there. Not only was my family there, but that life I always envisioned was there. Childhood best friends who had babies that were now my own own babies best friends. New friends who share a common past with you that becomes best friends so fast. Going places out and about and bumping into old friends that have their own families now. There is comfort when talking to someone and knowing they went to Verot like you, or went to Mariner and you know so-and-so who went there.  It just feels good and feels like "home". Friendships are special and aren't something you can just go into the store and buy. It's sad knowing that no matter where I go, whether it be the park or the grocery store, I will never bump into a familiar face. I'll never see an old friend from high school or childhood. That is the biggest heartache when it comes to moving. I just thank God that I live in a day that friends are a phone call or text away, I can see their faces over FaceTime whenever I want, and birthday parties or holidays are only a plane flight away these days. I just wish that jumping in the car and ignoring all household chores for a playdate was just as easy..... because we sure will miss them!!

Girls... Please know how much we have loved our time with you guys and hope for many more over visits in the years to come! The boys and I love you and your kiddos more then you will ever know. It breaks our heart to be so far away from you guys, and your friendships are irreplaceable!! 

Ryder and his best buddy Connor... These two are quite the pair :)

See you soon Mr. Connor... I'm sure you will make quite the cute Ring Bearer for Mommy's wedding in October!! We are SOO happy for you guys!!

Ryder and Sophia...

Thought about showing these pictures since they met at six month old, but i'm not sure my heart can handle that right now!! We love you Soso and will see you soon!!!

Oh these two... best buddies... I have loved nothing more then watching Dyson grow up every day for the last year. Bring tears to my eyes knowing how big he will be when I see him next.

I love you buddy!!

Big hugs good-bye... They were so non-chalant about it.

"Ryder's moving to Pennsylvania" doesn't have quite as big of an impact on a 3 year old as it does to a Mommy... they just don't quite get it. To them it's just down the road... no big deal :) Wish it felt that way to me!

Kisses good-bye from Sophia

Kisses for his girl....

Don't let those other boys in pre-school win you over next year Sophia :) Mommy and I are already planning your guys wedding!

Our babies saying good-bye...

They'll be such big boys when they see each other next!

Best Friends til the end....

I need to dig up some REALLY old pictures of us minus these four little ones...

Lots of history here... and lots more still to be made... I refuse to let the distance come between us...

We love you Miss Amanda, Gigi, Sophia, and Dyson!!

(Thank God for sunglasses... lots of tears going on in these pictures)

Pre-K 3 is in the books!

Our move timed rather perfectly for school with Ryder. He attended Noah's Nursery 3 year old program at his Aunties' school Fort Myers Christian. He went from a scared little boy who cried every single day I dropped him off to a little boy who practically ran into school forgetting to say bye at the end of the year. Ryder attended every Tuesday and Thursday from 8:30-1:30. He loved his teachers Miss Kristen and Miss Evelyn. Sophia started up school about half way through the year with him, and Connor started going Ryder's last month there. He also made some of his own friends while there like Harry, Mason, Josh, Ally, and, of course, Wyatt. It was really fun to see Ryder bond with friends on his own without Mommy making them for him. Wyatt was by far his favorite friend in school. Ryder would tell me stories every day about the races they would have on the playground and how they would play with the train table together.

It was so fun every day to hear about Ryder's school day when we picked him up. It took time to figure out what goes on every day for those five hours we aren't with him, but I think we did end up figuring it out. He received stickers every day based on his performance during praise and worship time and circle time. He could get up to two stickers. Most days he came home with two, and his teachers would always tell me how vocal he was during praise and worship. My boys loves to sing and dance!! Seeing him out of school at events i've come to realize he is really great at participating in stuff like this which shocks me with his usual shy demeanor when meeting people. I think the most significant things he learned while in school is to identify part of his alphabet, draw some letters, and sing the whole alphabet on his own. He learned the days of the week and can sing the months in English and Spanish. I love that he learned that during prayer before lunch you fold you hands, bow your head, and close your eyes. He likes to remind us of this during prayer before dinner when we just simply fold our hands most of the time. I loved his projects he made during holidays, and will always have fond memories of his first year in school.

I am already looking into preschool for him in the fall. I really want to find a great school for him that will have him really prepared for Kindergarten in Fall 2013. With his August 25th birthday only six days before the cut off for the school year he will be the baby of the class having just turned five. I want to make sure this next year we have our little man fully prepared to hang with his older classmates come Kindergarten :)

And now some pictures of the last day of school.... Sure do wish I had gotten up early enough to shower. Not use to taking pictures on our way into school :)

Mommy and Ryder on our last day of school

June 5, 2012



 Ryder and Sophia's last day of school together.

 His first day back in August just shy of his 3rd birthday

While Ryder was busy at his last day of school, Landon, Grammy, and I did what we do best and went to have breakfast with Miss Amanda and Dyson. We always went to a breakfast place called Philly Junction every Tuesday. We would sit in a booth in the back of the restaurant and the babies could make as big of a mess as they wanted. We even brough a baby gate in once to block Dyson in. I looked forward to that breakfast every Tuesday to catch up (not like we didn't talk every day in between... just nicer face to face). Our last Tuesday we headed to Chic-Fil-A instead because it was getting impossible to eat at Philly Junction anymore with these babies... who aren't really babies. They enjoyed the playground at Chic-Fil-A much more!  Below is a picture of Landon climbing UP the slide and waiting for Dyson to follow him.

 After school we took Ryder to get some ice cream to celebrate. Check out how HUGE his two stickers were for his last day!!! His teachers must have spoiled him!!!

 The boys then got to skip nap and go swimming with Finley and Charli at Grammy's... I didn't get any pictures of the older kids swimming, but did manage to snap this cute picture of Landon and Charli. Charli turned two in April when Landon turned one... You'd never know since they are about the same size.. Landon might even be bigger!!!

I'm excited about enjoying summer with Ryder, and can't wait to see what the school year brings us in the fall!!!

Splash Pad

One thing Pennsylvania does not have, to my knowledge anyhow, are splash pads!

We will miss them dearly, as the kids LOVE to spend time running around at them. They are basically playgrounds with water squirting everywhere... great fun!!

Last Monday we met up there with Miss Amanda and the kids. My friend Natalie also got to join us with her girls Finley and Charli. Natalie is one of my best friends since high school, and unfortunately spends just as much time moving around as we do so we very rarely cross paths. We do stay in touch with phone calls almost daily though :) She always considers "home" Fort Myers as well so it's nice to cross paths at least once or twice a year. Natalie was my first friend to have kids and lead the way for me. I remember calling her on August 25th three and a half years ago extremely pregnant to wish Finley a Happy 2nd Birthday. I was ten days before my due date, and joked about how I wished our kids would have the same birthday... with Ryder's early and quick arrival our kiddos share the same birthday! Pretty cool huh? Natalie's husband, Matt, is serving our country for the United States Navy and is currently over in Afghanistan. That means Natalie is home in Fort Myers for the summer while Finley is out of school, and our paths crossed for a whole three weeks (one of which I was up here unpacking) so we spent some quality time packing my place together and then hanging out last week. Anyhow.. onto some splash pad picture :)

Ryder and Finley really hit it off! They had met before but never really had the chance to play. We wished we had more time with them!!

 Ryder, Finley, and Charli

 So when going through my pictures last night... this one made me tear up :(

My heart aches... Miss them so much!

 Pretty Girls.... Dyson wasn't really feeling it in the picture up above :)

 Dyson was a maniac at this splash pad! I miss that crazy kid!!

 Anxiously awaiting the water to come back up!

 There it is!

 Ryder crawling around like Landon

 The Lutz Boys and the DeHaven Girls

 Later that night... Check out those summer tan lines



Cook Outs

I flew back to Florida on the 1st of June to get our boys and spend a week without worrying about the actual move and enjoy some quality time with our friends.

I missed both of these faces so much the week we were moving our stuff in!

 Our last weekend in town my best friend Amanda threw a cookout for our group of friends to get together and on Sunday my mom threw a cookout for some family friends to get together. It was such a great way to spend some fun times with our favorite people. We took WAY too little pictures over those two days (not a single one at my mom's), but we did make up for it later in the week.

At Miss Amanda's... The Three Musketeers

We were joking that they'd reunite at Ryder and Sophia's wedding with Connor as the best man.

These two kiddos are such a blessing in Ryder's life and will be missed dearly!!

(Any Momma's out there.. Ryder is doing Umi-Googles from Umi-Zoomi)

 Yummy ice cream sandwiches

 Miss Amanda couldn't get a slide rental for the cookout so they tried a slip-n-slide instead...

Poor Ryder, no matter how hard he tried, could not get his body to slide to the end.

 These three girls have been there for me through thick and thin since we moved to Florida when I was in 3rd grade. We have all gone our own ways at times, but always have each others backs through everything. They are like family to me, and although we have moved away once again, I know they will still remain my closest and best friends! My heart aches to know we can't see each other as often as we have this past year, but I am so thankful for technology to keep in touch with them. And also love that they are only a plane flight or phone call away :)  

May on the iPhone

Alternately Titles: The iPhone... The only place Mommy takes pictures these days!

And here we go....

My Mother's Day necklace Ryder made me at school

 Best buddies playing in the shower at the Little Dipper pool

Silly Boy :)

 Taking family pictures on FaceTime while Daddy was up in PA, and we were still in FL

 Lots of Mommy pictures with her boys because we sent a lot of pictures to Daddy this month while he was up in PA starting his new job

In this picture here my kids were sound asleep... I had to wake them up for a thing at school for Hailey. Within seconds both were screaming! Waking up your kids is the WORST!!!

 All better and on our way to the school :)

 I love Ryder's kisses

 Playing with the water table at Dyson's 1st birthday

 The birthday boy!! I can't believe our babies are one!

 Ryder and his partner in crime Connor. These two probably did this slide over a hundred times at the birthday party.

 Hitting the bottom of the slide with his buddy

 Ryder, Sophia, Landon, and Dyson taking a bath after the party

 A good morning picture to send to Daddy

On Mother's Dady Ryder fell asleep on me... What a great present!

 Soooo sleepy :)

 Showing off his new basketball outfit

 Ugh Oh....

 This morning both my boys woke up with fevers...

 Watching toons with their blankies trying to feel better

 That fever made him exhausted :(

 The next day they felt all better, and we went to Cathryn's (Uncle Ryan's girlfriend... and an old friend who we love!) house and got to swim in her lake

 And go tubing!! My 27 year old body can not hang like it use to... I paid for this fun time the following days!!!

 Landon loves to give Molly lovin'

 Ryder decorated some of the moving boxes so his Uncle Cole and Uncle Dalton would see them

(They are 5 and 9, and Ryder has since met them.... They totally hit it off. It's all i've heard about!!)

 Ryder played hookie from school this day because he was excited for Daddy for fly in for a few hours before Mommy and Daddy left for PA with the moving truck

 Being silly... Landon was sleeping in the car so we were giving him a few minutes rest :)

 Looking for Daddy's airplane

Derrik and I in the moving truck moving our stuff

 Meanwhile... The boys were in Florida at Grammy and Mack's... we got lots of pictures throughout the week....

Picture during FaceTime with my sweet boy...

Whew... what a month... After this last picture I flew back to Florida for one last week in Florida with my boys... I'll be back to blog about that soon :)