Fun in the Sun!!

Hasn't the weather just been wonderful lately?! Addison and I took full advantage of the beautiful afternoon today... I moved an inflatable ducky (it's supposed to be used in the bathtub) outside and filled it with water for her to splash around in... she had a blast!!!

And when her Daddy got home from work and came outside to see her... I think she might like him just a little bit... :)

I hope everyone is enjoying this burst of springtime as much as we are!!!

Well, we're movin' on up...

... to the east side... Well, northeast side anyway. It's official, Kevin, Addison, and I are moving to Dahlonega, and we could not be more excited! :)

Most of you know that Kevin has been working on getting his doctorate for the last couple of years, so he has not been coaching football. The Lord works in wonderful ways. We've been able to get a great foundation for our marriage, and start our family in those 3 falls when, typically, he would have been coming home late and putting a lot of time into coaching. Not that he hasn't done his fair share of coming home late and putting a lot of time into working on his doctorate (especially now that he's writing the dissertation), but it has definitely been nice having him to ourselves for a while. And, we have had a blast traveling all over the state watching his self-proclaimed "game of the week" every Friday night during those 3 falls. Anyway, I digress...

So, Kevin figured 3 years was long enough to be away from something he loves so much (and believe me, he was getting pretty itchy to get back into it!), when God opened up a wonderful opportunity for us, and we were more than excited to jump at it. Kevin has known Tommy Jones, the head football coach at Lumpkin County High School, for a long, long time. They both played football at Furman, they coached together for 2 years at Oconee Co., and their dads have been highly touted football coaches in their own rights in DeKalb and Gwinnett counties for years. So, there is a very strong history between them. Anyway, Tommy offered Kevin the Offensive Coordinator position at LCHS, and we believe it really will be a perfect fit for him. He and Tommy talk all the time about how similar they think as far as football goes, so I think it will be a lot of fun for them to coach together again. Not to mention, I am lucky enough to come away with another great friend out of the deal! Tommy's wife, Cory, and I have gotten to be good friends, and they have two of the most adorable daughters ever - Avery (almost 9) and Sydney (6) - who love Addison like their own sister. So... I have no doubt we are going to have a blast with them!!

Dahlonega was the site of the first major US gold rush and is known for its beauty. It is nestled right in the mountains of North Georgia (do I sound like a travel brochure yet?!). The campus of North Georgia College is right downtown. It has a quaint little square with all kinds of antique shops, boutiques, restaurants, and hobby stores. The Smith House is right off the square (like the Dillard house - family style dining). The Etowah River flows right through, and it is about a 15-minute drive to the north end of Lake Lanier. Can you tell I am SO EXCITED?!

When will all this happen you ask? As soon as possible! Our house is on the market now (for a good bit less than I actually paid for it unfortunately), and as soon as we can get it sold, we are heading to the mountains. We've been up there a couple times looking around at neighborhoods, and actually found a house this past weekend that we both really (really!) liked. So, we'll just hold our breath and say our prayers that the perfect people come along and buy ours. Until then, Kevin will be driving the triangle for spring practices and coaches' meetings (Loganville to Oconee for school, Oconee to Dahlonega for football, then Dahlonega back to Loganville at night) - yikes! So, we are asking for prayers that we get our house sold quickly, and can get moved and settled before football REALLY starts in late summer.

Anyway, we are so very excited about beginning this new chapter in our lives. We really feel like Dahlonega will be a wonderful place to raise our family, and it makes me thrilled to know that Kevin will be so happy doing something he loves so much with someone he gets along with and respects as much as he does Tommy.

I will keep you updated on any news on the home front (ha, get it? "home" front? - yeah, OK... that was bad). Just as soon as we can get up there and settled, we'll be expecting visitors to come hang out in the beautiful mountains of North Georgia with us... we might even go dig up some gold!! :)

Addie's Adventures With Mops and Pops

While we were on vacation last week, Addison got to stay with my parents (Mops and Pops) for 4 nights. Every time I called (only twice a day, thank you), they said that she was doing great and they were going to move away with her and not tell us where they went... needless-to-say, after not getting any sleep the last 2 nights we were gone, they met us at the door with her when we returned. (OK, not really, but I think leaving her for more than 4 days in the future will need to result in a grandparent tag-team around midweek). Anyway... Mops was thoughtful enough to document her 4 fun-filled days for me in pictures, and I thought I'd share...

Leaving for church Sunday morning...

Big girl holding her own bottle... because I'm still nursing, very rarely does she get a pumped bottle, so I had no idea she could do this... Mom said she just grabbed it and went to town on her own...

This is Hadley... Our family has been babysitting her since she was about a year old... she's 5 1/2 now... she might as well be Addison's big sister... we love her. :)

Trying on Pops' Harley hat...

And our first hugs when we got back home... :)

So... I think Addison had just about as much fun at Mops and Pops' house as we did in Cancun... And, it sure was great to get back home to her!!!

Cancun '09

Well... we are back from our very restful vacation. Kevin's Spring Break was last week and we took a little trip down to Mexico for 4 nights to celebrate our 2-year anniversary (3/31), and just take a little break from grown-up-life. Addison was very lucky and got to stay with her Mops and Pops while we were gone (only the second time we've left her overnight!), and from what I've been told, she did great.

Anyway... Cancun was awesome. We had great weather (in the 80s every day), and the resort we stayed at was an all-inclusive, so we ate way more than our share of food. Seriously, I gained back every pound I lost in preparation for vacation. Oh well, now I just start over again, right?!

We had a really rough flight down there, and then a shuttle to the hotel, so by the time we got there, I was ready to kick back and relax... When we got to the front desk to check-in, the guy asked us if we were celebrating anything special, and when we told him it was our anniversary he upgraded our room for free! Wasn't that nice?! So, we ended up with this INCREDIBLE corner room that had an extra big living area, 3 huge windows, a double-sized balcony, and views off both sides of the resort... it was pretty dang awesome... here are a few pics...

The view off of one side of our balcony... The first sunrise off the other side of the balcony...

The first full day we were down there we just hung out by the main pool and relaxed. The place was incredible...

Dinner on our second day...

On the third day we were down there, we rented a 2-person speedboat. We were supposed to go on a Jungle Tour, through the lagoon, and out the canal to the ocean where we would snorkel. Unfortunately, it was pretty windy that day so the canal was closed to boats, so we just took the Jungle Tour and went out in the lagoon. It was still really awesome!!

Our hotel from the lagoon...

Going through the jungle!

Our third night, after dinner...

The last full day we were there, we got to the pool super early, and stayed at the pool or on the beach until the sun was starting to go down... so, it is this day that I blame for my now peeling forehead... but, it was great...

There was this guy on the beach that had a chimp... crazy, I know... and he was charging people $12 each for a polaroid with him... Needless-to-say, I wasn't paying $12 for a picture with him, so I took my own...

And then, this is our last night in Cancun... My cousin and his girlfriend were down there at the same time, staying in the same place (yes, we knew before we went that we were all going to be there, but isn't it kinda creepy that we were going to the same place on vacation, and staying at the SAME HOTEL?!... weird)... anyway... we had dinner with them the first night we were there (which I don't have pictures of), and the last night...

And, while our vacation was absolutely amazing (and much needed), getting home to this might have just been the best part...

Addie says "Jump, Jump!"

Addison's new favorite thing... seriously, I can't get her out of it!