Here are some picture updates of things we've done in the past month and a half:
Went to a Ranger's game in the Chick-fil-A suite with our other IM friend's in the DFW area
Sweet Grayson is the son of our friends Steven and Chrissy. Carmen loves hanging out with him.
We've been going out to dinner a lot more than we should but the evenings are just so pretty here and there are restaurants with patios all over the place. We love to find places where Carmen can have dinner entertainment so that Michael and I can catch up over the meal. In this case, it's dirt:
Michael's good friend in the IM Program, Andrew, came to visit for a day. Carmen loved having him stay with us and for whatever reason renamed him "Devin." Devin is a great guy!
Michael rekindled our Saturday morning donut drive. Ain't no one here complaining.
We traveled home for a fast 2 day trip. Aunt Sarah is home from Africa and got to meet Brooks for the first time!
We got in a few ours with some of our favorites. Reid and Brooks are best buds.
We finally were reunited with our beloved Farris family! Bret and Ashley stopped in on their way home to Houston and we met baby girl Rylie for the first time. She is dreamy and fits right in with her older brothers. Carmen seriously loves her time with those boys.
We still visit the store regularly. Brooks had his first waffle fry at 9 months old. My standards are way lower this time around. He also gets licks of my ice cream any time we have it. Sometimes Carmen just eats fries for lunch. Oops. However shall my children survive?!
Oh, look. More ice cream.
She's a mess! But we give them baths every night. Despite what the pictures above show, we don't get to see friends much. I just don't take pictures of our lonely days. And well, it's really hard to make friends in a living situation like this. We try though! We go to our community group on Sundays, I take her to play dates organized by the church. I try and make conversation with other moms at parks and libraries but it's just not the same as living somewhere permanently. I've realized how hard it is to break into established circles of people groups. It's giving me a new, fresh perspective on how to love people and go out of my way to include those "on the fringe." Next time we put down roots I hope to be able to bring these experiences with me and always be one to have open arms for those new folks in town.
Carmen regularly asks to go to Nonni and Bri's house (my parent's home). That's always so tough for me because I simply can't give her that. She wants to play with her cousins, Tirzah and Malachi, and her best friend, Kate. But I can't give her that either. As Brooks gets more mobile, Carmen is realizing that she has a playmate in him. He's starting to chase her around the kitchen but most all activities end in tears these days. Some days I worry that I'm a crazy person by the time evening falls and Michael walks in the door. I think I've been told this is normal and most moms go through this? Two kids two years and under is hard. It just is. I know things will get easier as they both grow more independent but right now, sheesh, doing this thing far away from any outside help is tricky. Before Kaylee and David (another IM couple) moved away, Kaylee offered to come stay with the kids for two hours while I ran errands. It was life changing. But just for an hour and a half. I think I have issues when I'm on my own now, it's absolutely foreign to me. Kaylee is the sweetest thing ever and I was so blessed by her. We were sad to say goodbye to them last month.
If you've never read the Honest Toddler blog, you should because it's hilarious. Here is a post that sums up some of my days, the section where he lists the "5 free items" to give for Mother's Day is my favorite. Laugh on.
