One year

One year ago today we were saying our goodbyes. Our small town in Arkansas had been so very good to us for five years, but it was time to leave. All of our stuff was already packed and loaded and on it's way to Charleston. We went to church one last time as a family of four with the people who became our family here. I cried through Sunday school as I loved on my girls. We gave a lot of hugs, wiped more tears, and then headed for the hardest goodbyes... our parents. Luckily, my mom traveled with us to South Carolina, but we had to say goodbye to Brandon's parents and my dad. Ugh. That was torture. We pulled out of town a little after 2 p.m. and traveled straight through.

October 16, 20211, right before we headed east.

Saying goodbye to my Sunday school girls.

We stopped for chicken in Memphis at Gus's. I did my part and drove to Birmingham. We snacked at Quick Trip in Atlanta. We hit a deer outside of Augusta. Mom and the girls were troopers. And B booked it down the highway until we rolled into town at 6:30 the next morning. I remember walking into the hotel, exhausted and ready for bed, as men were leaving for work. I kinda felt like I'd been out clubbing or something. (I mean, I assume that's what it felt like. I've never been clubbing in my life. Ha!) Two hours later we were up and headed to our rent house to meet the moving company and begin the unpacking process.

Outside of Augusta, GA around 2 a.m., thanks to the deer.

Our home in SC

From that day on we put all our effort into adjusting to the lowcountry. In my mind we were home. I could see us living there forever. I can't put my finger on it, and I know to some people that will hurt their feelings, but South Carolina living was good. Yes, it was lonely at times. Yes, I missed family immensely. But ever since July 2010 I always felt a piece of my heart belonged in the Palmetto State.

And yet here were are today. In Arkansas. Exactly one year ago we left. Tomorrow we sign the contract on our new house here in the Natural State. It's kind of hard to process, really. Had someone told me a year ago when I was hugging my dad's neck in the driveway of our home that I'd be back and have a new driveway in a year, I would have laughed in their face and called them crazy.

So what did I learn in that year? In short, I learned...

*God answers prayer. I can see Him in the friendship He gave my girls. Hannah Mae Mae was a complete answer to prayer. We prayed for months for a friend at school and a friend in the neighborhood. Hannah was both.

*God is our Jehovah-Nissi, our banner, and He goes before us. Had our house sold immediately, we would've bought a house in South Carolina. He knew we wouldn't be there long and protected us.

 Our orange house. We were set to make on offer on this house days before we learned of the move back to Arkansas. 

*God is our Jehovah-Jireh, our provider. From Brandon's job, to all the details regarding both moves, and bringing us back to Arkansas, He has provided it all.

*God is Sovereign. He is in control. When I stop and get lost in the "whys' of it all, He is in still in control. Isn't it so easy to tell people to trust God? But when we find ourselves in a situation that doesn't make sense we often have trouble remembering that? Or is that just me? He is in control. Always. Not me. His ways are higher than my ways, His thoughts higher than my thoughts.

I spent several days this summer alone at the beach, praying for God to move in our lives, no matter where that took us. 

I wish I had every question answered. When we were praying over moving back, Brandon contacted one of our pastors here. He told B, in regards to why we had to move only to come right back, "You might know in a few months, you might know in a few years, and you might not ever know why God moved y'all".

I tend to get hung up on wanting to know it all. But on this anniversary of our move, I have to let that go. I have to choose to be thankful for a fabulous 10 months of lowcountry living instead of dwelling on the sadness that we're gone. I choose to remember... 

Boone Hall pumpkin patch

Halloween - The day Caylee came out of her shell for a minute and spoke to Hannah, having just met her. That took a lot and their friendship grew from that day forward. Oh and the HILARIOUS trunk or treat at Chick-Fil-A. 

Thanksgiving with people I had never met, but who became sweet friends.

James Island Christmas lights

Caylee's dream come true -- pet day at school!

 Christmas on the beach started at Coconut Joes!

Our tiny yard that could be mowed with this cute thing! Oh, and my gorgeous lantana!

Shark fishing!

Cathedral of Praise

 Lots of walks on the beach

:)

An amazing school that welcomed the girls with open arms.

Lizards!! Lots and lots of lizards!

Walking along the Ashley River.

Skipping school during birthday week to learn to fly a kite at the beach!

All the cool critters we would find at the beach!

Self guided tours in rickety boats with ALLIGATORS!

Our membership to the SC Aquarium and feeding the stingrays.

Fourth of July on the beach with friends.

Bucatini at Trattoria Lucca!

Thriller!! (And the awesome birthday weekend B threw for me!)

My bridge

Realizing my body is capable of far more than I give it credit for. Charleston was the place I chose to become healthier.

Halls Chophouse

All the times we stopped in Atlanta at The Varsity

I look at this last picture and it tells me so much. I see Caylee and Hannah headed to Hannah's house. I can't count how many times the door flung open and I heard "Hannah's here" or "Mom, can we go to Hannah's?". Sweet memories. I see Caylee as she is, carefree. I mean, skootering in her bathing suit? Priceless. I see our sweet, coastal neighborhood. Sure, we knew our stay in that neighborhood was temporary, but looking back I realize just how picturesque it is. But most of all I see that rainbow. There seemed to be a lot of them in SC. I should have taken the hint then from God. He is Faithful. In all things, He is Faithful. It's my job to trust him.

Thanks for the memories, Charleston. I'll be seeing you. 

Apartment living

Coming from a 2400 square foot, two story rent house to a 900 square foot apartment has been, well, an adjustment. We knew it would be, and luckily, it's only temporary and our time here is almost done. We really are very thankful for this three bedroom, two bath tiny abode. It was available exactly when we needed it, it is on the side of town for the girls' middle school (our town is divided into north and south for middle school and junior high), and it has easy access to the interstate for B's commute. The neighbors are friendly, the pool was refreshing during the heat, and Sonic is right next door. There really isn't that much to complain about. ;)

For our memory, I took a few pics from my phone when we first moved in. 

Kitchen/dining combo. Luckily our breakfast table from the old house is the perfect height. 

Living room. It fits our couch and loveseat perfectly. 

Baylee's room. I think she's honestly going to miss her room. She can lay in her bed at night and see directly into our room. Haha! 

Caylee's room. You should see it now. It's a mess, as usual, on one half and the other half has stables, fences, and horses set up. Classic Cay.

I think this was our first dinner at the table as a family of four. Mom was with us a few days and then B was traveling. If it wasn't the first, it was close. Mmmm.... A greasy burger. I'd love one of those right now. ;)

And no matter what size house we have, we always have room for Grammy. :)

Best thing about the apartment? The air conditioner. That thing gets COLD! I've used a throw every day since we moved in. And if you sit on the loveseat you can feel the air from the vent, plus the ceiling fan is always going. It's delightful.

Worst moment since living in the apartment? It was night two of being here and Brandon had already left to begin his traveling. It was just me, mom and the girls. Oh and Molly. We were headed out for an evening swim and somehow Molly escaped. For over two hours. It was embarrassing. She was barking like a maniac, chasing everything in sight, and would NOT come back to us. Usually she goes right back to B, but he was gone. Cay and I stayed inside - Cay was in tears, I was a nervous, anxious wreck just knowing the neighbors hated us already. Bay and mom were patient with Molly and Baylee eventually got her. From that moment Molly has had to revert back to being a crate dog. And I don't care one bit. She deserves it after that nightmare. 

So there we have it. It's a quaint little place and we are very grateful for it. But I have to be honest. I'm dreaming of the day our house is finished. Just a couple more weeks. I think I can, I think I can...

Charleston family photo shoot!

It's hard to believe one month ago today we pulled out of Charleston and headed to Arkansas. I knew before we moved I wanted to capture our time in the lowcountry with some good quality photos. I always have a camera in hand and snap away, but we needed something better. I did some searching and found a wonderful photographer who did a fabulous job! 

Our first stop was Boone Hall Plantation. (This place was recently in the news because it was the site of Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively's wedding, not to mention part of The Notebook was filmed here.) Nothing says lowcountry more than Boone Hall. Despite the looming thunderstorm, crazy humidity, and mosquitos, Julie captured everything I had hoped for. 

I absolutely ADORE this picture. The colors, the gate, the moss, the house. It all makes me smile.

This picture totally captured the girls in their element. Silly!

I can't look at this picture without seeing Caylee falling onto these zinnias in laughter as she tried to stand up. Sorry, garden keeper, for the broken stems. It was worth it, though. The pic is gorgeous!

Oh, my boy!!!

See what we were working with? Silly 11 year old girls who aren't posers. Haha!

After Boone Hall we headed to Sullivan's Island. We were originally going to Isle of Palms, but I had seen on Julie's website some beach shots that had the Arthur Ravenal Bridge in the background and that's what I wanted. We should've checked the tide schedule, though, because once we got there it was high tide and we couldn't get the bridge in our shots. I was majorly bummed.

See the rocks in the background? That's where we needed to be to get the bridge in the pic. Obviously the tide was up just a bit. ;)

Love. This. Picture. I don't think they realize how often they hold hands. It just comes naturally to them.

Caylee cracked us all up on the photo shoot. Posing just isn't her thing. But, goodness, she's so pretty!

Baylee has always been very photogenic. She just doesn't take a bad picture, that pretty girl. However, she had us nervous leading up to this day. Earlier in the week she lost her glasses in the ocean. It was a mad scramble to get her a replacement pair in time for pics. Ha!

That's Ft. Moultrie in the background. And I'm pretty sure I was singing "We're off to see the Wizard!" at this point. 

Sand in my toes. The best feeling. 

Love Charleston. Love my family. Love these pictures.

What I miss...

•Downtown
•Cathedral of Praise
•Giant pizza slices from Di Giovanni's
•Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge (my bridge!)
•Isle of Palms
•Plantations
•Paul Silva
•Trattoria Lucca
•Publix
•Kiawah
•Alligators
•Señor tequila
•The market
•Hannah Mae Mae
•Waterfront park
•Indigo Palms
•Pastor Mike
•School within walking distance
•$3.25/ticket movie theater
•Boeing
•Boone Hall
•Jack's & the Kool-Aid on tap
•The connectors (IOP & Summerville)
•Hall's Chophouse
•Jumper, Stacey-Scott, J-Mo mom, Car Rider, Kevin Frasier
•Tanger outlets
•Daniel Island
•Loading up Vanna for a beach day
•Carriages rides
•My orange house
•Being in close proximity to new adventures all along the east coast
•Lizards
•Museums
•Palmetto trees
•U-turns
•Pastor "Darin"
•Crazy long yellow lights (& flying through them!)
•Air Force, Navy, & Coast Guard all in one place
•Shem Creek
•Sand in my toes
•King Street
•Crab claws
•Christian Elton John & Billy Abbott
•Kudzu
•Raceway, AmFlag, Kangaroo
•Cane's
•Seagull attacks
•Pointe magazine
•Sweetgrass baskets
•Angel Oak
•Leaving the beach & heading to Boone Hall Farms to get our local produce & other food for the week.
•And so much more.....


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