{pretty, happy, funny, real}

Aaaaaand I'm back.  We got ourselves some interwebs and The Google hooked up here at the new place.

It's scary how dependent I am on the internet and how much I have missed it this past week.  I couldn't even find a grocery store without it.  Sad, I know.

I've never done this before, but I thought I would copycat Like Mother Like Daughter today, as a quick way of chronicling our first week in our new house.

{pretty}

I was washing the dishes in our new kitchen tonight, and I heard L's little voice cry out from the porch, "Mama, look at the moon!"

The picture really doesn't do it justice.

The beauty of our natural surroundings here at the new place is quite breathtaking.  We are loving, loving, loving this new yard and bigger space.

(The girls had to do some moon-gazing just before they settled into bed tonight.  I love how L is holding up Arnold, her bear, so that he can see too.)

{happy}

First day of preschool in our new town was today!

We've found a wonderful little school for N here and she had a great first day.  We're so thankful this worked out so well!

We didn't send her off with quite as much fanfare as we did last year, partly because she's an old pro now, and partly because things have been so crazy that the day just snuck up on us.

L was of course dressed and ready to see big sister off and blow big kisses.

Speaking of N and school, I just had to throw in a little of her work here:

These notes were written as part of a pretend game she was playing with Daddy.  The one on the left says "Teapot, warm hot on (ononon) the kettle" and the one on the right says "Warm hot cocoa on the stove, warm inside, and children around the fire."  Daddy helped with the spelling, of course.  It was her idea to write these things... not sure what they were pretending.  But I just love watching her little writing skills develop!

Above is her drawing of Shan Yu from the Disney movie Mulan:

See how N drew the hawk on his shoulder?

{funny}

L likes to hide in the cabinets in the new kitchen.

The fact that said cabinets are still empty gives you a little insight as to how the unpacking is going (or not going...)

Good thing she's so cute, right?

She's been giving Mommy & Daddy a run for their money by escaping and hiding in all of this new expanded space we have here.  "Where's L?" is a question frequently asked.  We will be getting lots of locks (placed in high spots on doors) very shortly.  She's a quick one, that girl!

Speaking of L and funny, we have moved to a community that is a bit more racially diverse than our old place.  We were in Wal-Mart the other morning, and L commented, "Look Mama, a chocolate girl and a chocolate boy!"

(In her defense, she's not racist!!  That really was the first African American person she had ever seen in her whole two years.)

Hmmmm.  We're going to have to think about how to discuss this tactfully!!

{real}

If all goes to plan, we could be closing on this house tomorrow.

We'll definitely close by next Tuesday.

And that means... we're about to really own this house.

I get sort of giddy every time I think about that.  And living in the house has made me love it even more than I ever did.

Believe it or not, I'm also quite anxious about home ownership and all the responsibility it entails.  On top of my responsibilities with the kids and what little work I'm doing, it seems pretty overwhelming.

But that's another post for another day.

For right now, let's focus on the happy:

Our first breakfast on the new porch, last Sunday morning.  (We've been having healthier breakfasts since then, don't worry...)

Our house is great.  We're looking forward to some great years to be spent in this great place.