Wesley's 6th birthday

I know I've mentioned it before, but we only celebrate BIG for our kids birthdays when they turn a multiple of 5.  W had a party last year so this year he was only going to get a small family celebration.

W's birthday was on a Saturday so I let him pick the entire menu for the day.  He decided on cereal for breakfast, oven pizza & mac and cheese for lunch, and dinner was mini-corn dogs and fruit.  We had a normal Saturday and then at night, we went to the Movie under the Moon in Sugar Land Town Center.  The movie they showed was Sing (which we've already seen), but it was a fun time anyways.  W invited his friend from school, Christian, and then the March cousins as well as JuJo and the Livingston's.  I made sure to let everyone know it wasn't a party and they didn't need to bring gifts, but of course some did anyways.  I brought a cookie cake and a cooler with water and juice boxes for everybody.  We even sang Happy Birthday to W before the movie started.  W said he had a great day and loved his birthday even though he didn't have a big party.  

I also tell the kids their birth story on their birthday and I usually read it from my blog so I'll remember all the details.  For some reason I cannot find Wesley's birth story written down so I'll try now to recount the story in detail. 


May 5 (Cinco de Mayo) was a Thursday and I taught a normal day at school.  SEBTS was having a family night with free food and inflatables, so we planned to attend like we would normally.  We got our food and ate hotdogs in the quad and I noticed that I was having some contractions.  I had been having contractions for a few days but I was 39 weeks so it was normal.  After eating, we took R & A to the inflatables so they could play.  R climbed in easy because she was tall enough, but A couldn't climb into the hole.  I tried to bend down to pick A up, but I had a big contraction at the same time and I couldn't move.  A nearby man saw me struggling, so he helped get A into the inflatable and once I could walk, I found B (he had followed R through the course) and told him what had just happened.  We decided it would be best to go home so I could lie down and see if the contractions stopped or not.  We got home and I rested while B gave R & A bath.  When I realized the contractions were not stopping, I called Brian and Jojo to let them know.  We had already asked them to take care of R & A when we went to the hospital for Wesley's birth.  They had just sat down at a Mexican place (since it was Cinco de Mayo) but hadn't ordered yet.  They came over to get the kids and at this point, it was probably 8:30 pm.  We grabbed our "go bag" and drove to the hospital.  We arrived shortly after 9pm and my contractions were pretty close.  We didn't make any calls because we weren't sure if it was going to happen quickly.  I did call Sheree so she could find me a sub for school for the next day.  After checking in to the hospital and getting in a room, the nurse checked me and said that I was about 6 cm dilated.  They broke my water quickly and things progressed like normal.  I was thinking I might have a Cinco baby, but as the close approached midnight, I knew that was not going to happen.  Shortly after 12:30, it was time to push.  Dr. Moore was the doctor at the hospital and she told me to check my modesty at the door.  She's really funny and I always tried to make my appoints with her while pregnant.  W's head came out and we thought the rest of him would come out like R & A were born.  W's shoulders were too wide and he was stuck.  I knew something was wrong and then I had some pain, so I arched my back which made things difficult.  The nurse had to climb on top of me to get me back down and she started pushing on my belly to help push W out.  During all this commotion, I somehow ripped my IV out and blood shot out and squirted B and me. It's all sort of a blur 6 years later but I remember the craziness inside that room.  Dr. Moore had to twist W's head and wiggle him out.  He had shoulder dystocia and was bruised.  He was also big and healthy weighing 9 lbs 5 oz.  He looked a lot like R when she was a newborn.  His birth time was 1:03 am Friday May 6th.  We only stayed in the hospital 1 night because we were anxious to get back home to the family.  R & A were very excited to be big sister (again) and big brother.  Our W is tough and everyone says he looks just like B (same body type and face).  His delivery and birth are by far the most traumatic for me, but I wouldn't change anything because he was safe and healthy. 

Our NC Visit

I've been counting down the days until our trip to North Carolina.  We've been gone for 2.5 years and I know things have changed, but I still couldn't wait to get back and visit everyone.

We flew out Christmas day (Sunday) after having a nice quiet Christmas morning at our house.  Kids opened their gifts (adults too) and then we packed up and headed to the airport.  We dropped Cooper off at Ms. Mary's house on Christmas Eve.  Our flight was non-stop and I sat with the girls and B sat with the boys.  The kids loved it and they were so good.  Jen picked us up when we arrived in NC because Keith was at home cooking for us.  When we got to their house, we ate a TON of food including fish and wings.  Boy I've missed K's cooking.  Everything was delicious.  All the kids opened gifts after dinner and we watched Arthur Saves Christmas together up stairs in K's man cave to end a great day.

I got stopped because of fudge in my backpack! Thanks Aunt Mo :)

Through security heading to our gate

From Ms. Mary, our dog-sitter

We made it....Raleigh, NC

I only have 1 picture of opening gifts for some reason

Monday:
K and I left early to work out.  K dropped me off at a CG location in Briar Creek and then he went to O2 to work out.  He picked me up at 5:30 and we came back home to sleeping spouses and kids :)  Once everyone was awake, K made a gigantic breakfast for us all that included real bacon, sausage, toast, eggs, and cheese-toast.  It was all so good and totally undid the workout I just completed.  We previously purchased groupons to an inflatable jump place so that's where we headed for the day.  The 6 kids loved it and I enjoyed watching them play together.  E gravitated more towards Bree Bree and I could see Lexi feeling torn because R, A, and W all wanted her to play with them.  There was an air hockey table as well as a basketball hoop so even things for adults to do.  The 4 adults talked a lot and we left when the kids were hungry.  The Daniel's came over for dinner and K fried up some food again.  Sara & Andrew have become really good friends with K & J and they actually have gone into business together with a catering company called Salt&PepperBBQ.  I love the name, so witty.  
That afternoon was so relaxed.  The kids played outside and in the girls room, while adults talked and we had a lot of laughs.  The Daniel's left and it was time for the dad's to go see a movie (maybe Rogue One).  Jen and I got the kids showered and ready for bed.  Actually Jen did all that because Debbie Lauria came over for a visit.  She was going to have to miss our open house, but wanted to see us, so she drove all the way to Briar Creek to see us.  It was so good to see her, and I'm very appreciative that she took the time to come see us while we were in town.  B missed her but she says one day she'll take a road trip and come visit us in TX.  After getting the kids in bed, Jen and I watched a movie until we went to bed. 

Playing superhero headbands that A got for Christmas

After a full day of activity, E passed out on the chair

D. Lauria drove to see us in Briar Creek.

Tuesday:
K had to go back to work this day so I went to the gym with Jen to take Body-Combat.  B stayed back at their house to finish up some editing and the kids went to childcare.  It was fun working out with Jen.  We went back to their house and changed, then drove to Wake Forest (we rented a car at some point) to go by our old house and look at WFMS.  Our house looks mostly the same except for the yard.  The people who live there put stepping stones all the way down the hill that leads to the front door.  It's still a cute little house and I'll have wonderful memories of our 8 years in that house.  The Caldwell's hosted a homecoming party for us that was a come and go thing that afternoon.  We invited friends from church and school/work to come see us.  It was a pretty steady stream of people, and no big rush, so we got to visit with people in a small concentrated time frame.  I tried to remember to take pictures of all the visitors, but I know I missed some.  We saw the Ducketts, the Conyers, The Fosses, O'Janpa's, Daniel's, and maybe 1 or 2 more that I can't remember.  We stayed with them until 10 pm just talking and the kids were playing.  J/N have moved out to Wake Forest, and their house is amazing.  The basement is finished and it's an entire kid playroom.  All the bedrooms are upstairs so the middle floor has the living space and kitchen plus an office.  Their backyard is huge with a lot of potential for a play-set, or even a baseball cage. Too bad they moved to WF after we moved away.  It's a lovely neighborhood also. They invited us to spend the night, but we decided it would be better to drive back to J/K's house since that's where all our stuff was.  We would see them again though.

Boys

Our sweet first home.

The Ducketts

The best mentor teacher ever!

The Daniel family (we need to cruise with this family one day)

The Foss family (they kept R when A was born unexpectedly)

The Caldwell Family (with us from day 1 in our small group)

Wednesday:
We went to sleep so late, that it was nice having a chill morning with not a lot to do.  B had to do a few edits for AJE so I took a walk around the neighborhood while the kids played together.  Our plan this day was to go visit the O'Janpa's for lunch and some quality time with their family.  We first dropped A off with J/N so they could have some godparent time with him and take him shopping for Christmas.  Originally A was going to spend the night, but changed his mind at the last minute.  We didn't push for it because things were out of place for him.  Kristen had sandwich stuff ready for us for lunch and we were very thankful.  Having a nice sandwich was a nice relief to all the heavy fried food and fast food we had been eating since flying to NC.  The house was similar to how I remember before leaving and our kids played great with their kids.  Since E was a baby (1 year old) when we moved away, she's doesn't really have memories of K/V or her god-sisters, so we felt it was very important for her to have some time with them.  I had a few calls from some of my teammates from school asking if they could come see us so I asked Kristen and of course she said yes.  I was thankful because I would have been sad if I'd have missed seeing them on our visit.  Chris B, Linda G, and the Klines came over.  Their visits were staggered so I got to spend intentional one-on-one time with each family.  I loved catching up with all of them and it made me miss my school and all my school friends so much.  I know a lot of teachers have walked the halls of Wake Forest Middle, but that school will hold a special place in my heart because that's where I started and made so many wonderful friends there.  Kristen and Vic ordered pizza from Miltons and our favorite, a calzone, especially for us.  I love the O'Janpas so much.  Our old 'small group' came over for dinner which included the Caldwells (minus Justin and they returned A to us), Gillams, Daniels, and Haynes.  I cried a lot when I left their house, but had a warm feeling inside after being surrounded by what had been my family for so many years.  It was renewing for my soul.  Our girls spent the night with the O'Janpas and we went back to J/K's house.  The adults played video games after the kids went to bed.  I think we stayed awake until 2 am.

L. George came to see us in Wakefield

I cried when I said goodbye to the Klines (M was my BFF for many years at WF)

Felt like old times at small group dinner meetings

Thursday:
One thing that Houston doesn't have that NC did have was Krispy Kreme donuts.  Shipley's owns the donut market in Houston, so on our list of "must do's" was eating KK donuts.  Thursday morning was that day because K took off work to spend the day with us.  We drove out to the KK in Wake Forest, and picked up our girls on the way.  We ate KK with the Gillams like we've done so many times before.  After the sugar coma, we went to Grandma Pat's apartment to visit her for a while.  We got to see Sheree and Aiden & AJ for a short while.  The girls were at the dentist so we missed Ahmaya and Alissa.  After visiting Grandma Pat, the girls and I went to the movies with Jen and her girls.  The boys stayed at the Gillams and played video games all afternoon.  Both parties had a great time doing different things.  We saw the movie Sing and it was really cute. After the movie was over, we all hung out for a while at the Gillam's and then returned the rental card.  For dinner, we all piled into Keith's pathfinder and went to eat at Crazy Fire Mongolian Grill.  It's a favorite of ours with the Gilliams and we ate there with them before we moved away in June of 2014 for Father's Day.  The evening was chill and we all sort of hung out, trying to put off the inevitable.  Our time was coming to a close.  The kids took showers and then went to bed, saying their good-byes and "I love yous" to each other.  The adults stayed awake for a LONG time talking and playing video games again.

The O'Janpa parents

The kids in age order

The O'Janpa family (funny to take a self timer with so many people)

Love Donuts!

Grandma Pat

She practically raised R, A, & W

Movie date with the girls to see Sing

The boys played video games all afternoon

Dinner at Crazy Fire Mongolian Grill

Special god-parent time with Aunt Jenn

Friday:
Our flight was EARLY so just K got up to take us.  We pretty much picked the sleeping kids up and let them stay in their jammies and we changed at the airport.  They were so tired, and so were we.  It was sad leaving, but we had an awesome time.  We had great family in NC and we miss them dearly, but as B and I reflected on our trip, we prayed.  We prayed for our friends still in NC and that their relationships would continue to grow closer as they have in the past 2 years.  We prayed for our lives in TX and that we would continue to see God's hand and purpose in our lives.  We can see now, after 2 years, why God called us to Texas and our new ministry here, but it's so sad to leave our family back in NC.

So sad to leave NC :(