Fair Winds and Following Seas.

Taking a moment to remember and thank God for the opportunity to serve in the U.S. Navy.  We have been blessed with life long friends and amazing opportunities over the past 10 years and we're so very thankful.

...and so begins a new chapter of our lives. 

Four months old.

Our sweet little Eden Joy is four months old today!  She has become quite the giggly and inquisitive baby in the last few weeks - finding her toes, grasping and reaching for toys, and squealing with delight whenever her big siblings come into view.  She is eager to sit up and see the world around her and is getting less and less happy just laying down and looking up...we'll see what that means for her development in the next few weeks!

Sweet Reunions!

We were so excited to plan a playdate/reunion with our dear friends the Capps.  Joseph and Josh went to UNC together many moons ago.  Joseph then married lovely Kristen and they quickly became the "standard" for Josh as he sought to become a married man himself.  One of our first dates was actually to their house for dinner, so that he could get the "okay" to continue our courtship.  I passed.

And now, here we are...a decade later with 6 little sidekicks enjoying a picnic lunch and a grand outing to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences!  It was wonderful.

So much to see and do (and learn). 

Most of the live animals were of the creepy crawly variety.   Bugs, snakes, turtles, etc...  These guys are so cool!

Sadly, we were not allowed to take pictures of the special exhibit "Dinosaurs in Motion" that was on display.  It was an amazing interactive exhibit with the sculptures of John Payne.  The kids have been talking about it ever since we left the museum!

A strange new world...

 It's easy for me to forget that our kids have spent the majority of their lives living outside of the United States.  We figured out the other day that in their combined thirteen years of life, they've spent a total of 10 of those years living in foreign countries.  When people ask Elise where she's from she smiles and answers "Japan."  Caleb is still trying to use his Italian for every occasion that warrants a hearty "Grazie" or "Non Lo So."(with a very Italian pursed lip and shrug of his shoulders)  And sweet Lucas asked yesterday if we could please go back to his yellow house so that he can have granite for his birthday.  (He also asks just about everyday about when we're going to North Carolina...ummm, clearly he's a little confused.)

Anyway, it will take some time for this to feel like home - I dare not write about all of my current angst, sadness, etc...  but, in the meantime, it's been funny to see that kids' curiosity about some things that are "Molto Americana."  Squirrels, mailboxes, yellow school buses and the flushing handle on toilets currently take the cake for the most talked about new experiences.  We're already on a first name basis with our mailman (Vincent) and when I asked the kids to put a letter in the mailbox and put the flag up, you would have thought I offered to take them to Disneyland. (well...almost!)  Simple joy at it's best.