Graduation Weekend

Graduation weekend started off with Jeff and Linda and Mamaw and Pawpaw getting into town on Thursday afternoon.  Pawpaw treated all of us to dinner at Milton's.  The food was amazing and we had a great time!  

Emily was collecting sugar packets in her little pocket and she was daring any of us to take them away...ha!:)  

Pawpaw had Hannah cackling.  We actually got out the video camera so that we could record her sweet laugh.  Notice all the boxes in the back ground.:)  

Pawpaw also had Emily laughing.  He's just all around FUN!  

On Friday night, after graduation, Bert's sisters and mom gave him a graduation party.  They did such a great job planning everything....we all had great time!  Most of our small group was able to come and then a few other friends/family from the area.  

Mamaw and Hannah.

Aunt Katherine, Jacob and Hannah.  

Grandmama and Pawpaw blowing bubbles with Emily.  

At first Emily was coloring with a permanent marker ( I'm not even sure where she got this), but Aunt Alison quickly replaced it with washable markers so the coloring-on-the-table fun could continue!  

We had such a great time at the party!  We were so thankful to be able to see all of our Wake Forest friends one last time before we moved.

Saturday was a work day.  We cleaned the apartment from top to bottom.  EVERYONE pitched in.  Some people were cleaning, some were taking down shelving, some were packing, some were playing with Em and Hannah, but everyone was so helpful!  There were some things that couldn't be cleaned until all the boxes and furniture were out, but we were actually able to get a lot cleaned.  At the end of the day on Saturday I absolutely couldn't believe I forgot to take a single picture of everyone working so hard to help us.  We really are so thankful.  It was such a huge blessing and made moving day about a million times easier than it would have been.

It was a busy, but great weekend!  We had lots to celebrate and lots to be thankful for!

Aunt Carrie

Aunt Carrie spent the week before graduation with us.  We all loved having her here, and she was such a HUGE help as we were in the middle of packing up our apartment when she arrived!  She spent countless hours holding Hannah and playing with Emily.  

Carrie just loves our girls so well and so much, and they love her right back!  Thank you, Carrie!  Thank you for coming to WF to visit and for helping us pack up our apartment....we all hope to see you again soon!!  Love you!!

Small Group Going Away Party

Our small group surprised us with a going away party the week before we left Wake Forest.  We thought we were going to our regularly scheduled small group dinner.  I had the dessert we were bringing in one hand and Emily's hand in the other....Bert had Hannah and the diaper bag.  We were running a few minutes late (I have to admit this is not totally unusual) and when we opened the door everyone yelled "SURPRISE!"  All of our small group was there plus a few other WF people who are near and dear to our hearts.

We had such a great time that night.  We felt so loved and I hope each one of you knows how much you are loved by us.  It has been a privilege to "do life" with this group over the last 3 years.  They have encouraged us, challenged us, pushed us closer to Christ, loved on us, prayed for us, visited us in the hospital when we had our babies, cooked dinner for us, held us accountable, and helped to give us a better understanding of what it means to live in community.

We love each of you so much!  We'll be praying for y'all from G'ville!

Joyce

Bert started working for Joyce in March of 2009.  Joyce owns several acres of land, and Bert was her handy man of sorts...he did all kinds of yard work, built fences, refinished her porch, moved a wall inside her home, painted most every room in her house, etc.  He started out working about 20 hours a week for her.   She was completely and totally flexible about when he went to work and how long he worked. Some weeks he would work a little more, and some a little less, but Joyce never minded either way.  As we were preparing for the arrival of Emily in April of 2010, Bert started looking for a more full time position so that I could say home with Emily.  He asked Joyce if he could possibly cut back to just working for her on Saturdays for about 6 hours a week (so that he could work at Archwood Tuesdays through Fridays).  She was, as usual, totally gracious and flexible and was totally fine with the new schedule.  So, for the past two years Bert has just worked for Joyce on Saturdays.  I can't begin to tell you what a blessing this sweet woman has been to our family.   Joyce was constantly sending Bert home with goodies and gifts for me and the girls.  At the end of the day she would ask Bert how long he had worked, he would tell her, and she would often reply with "surely you've been her longer than that....you can't count.":)  More weeks that not she would send Bert home with extra money.  Every few months she would take our family out to dinner.  We usually went to Red Lobster, but for our going away dinner we went to the Olive Garden in WF. We had a GREAT time, so I wanted to take a few pictures of the occasion!

Joyce holding Hannah!  

Joyce not only adopted us, but she has also adopted my sister and Bert's sister and their families.  The last several  dinners she has insisted on taking all of us out.  We always have such a great time!  

Joyce, we are thankful for the way that God provided for us through you., we are thankful for your kindness to us, but most of all we are thankful for your friendship.  We miss you and love you!

Graduating and Greenville

I finished my last seminary assignment on Saturday afternoon, May 12th, about four years and a couple of weeks after Stephanie and I moved from Dahlonega, GA to Wake Forest for me to pursue an MDiv at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. After more tests and papers than I care to remember, countless hours of late-night or early-morning studying, and 90 hours of course work, I will finally graduate on May 18th.

We moved to Wake Forest having been married for four and a half months, and as we are nearing the end of our time in Wake Forest, we're more blessed than we would have ever imagined, almost four and a half years into our marriage and now the parents of two beautiful daughters. It really has been an amazing, fun, busy and enriching season of life for us!

That was then...

And look at us now!

As we are winding down one chapter of our lives, we are also looking forward to starting the next one. We'll be moving three days after graduation to Greenville, South Carolina where I will begin serving as the minister of students at Mountain Creek Baptist Church. Although we're certainly going to miss the many incredible friends we have made in Wake Forest and our church family here, at the same time Stephanie and I are excited about this great opportunity to serve at MCBC and we're looking forward to the new friendships and partnerships that we'll be able to build for the sake of the gospel.

I'd like to say a quick thank you to all of you who have encouraged us, prayed for us and supported us over these last four years--we could not have done it without you. Also, the biggest thank you is reserved for my wife. Seminary for the married student is a family commitment. Stephanie sacrificed much more than I did, and I would not be receiving a diploma on Friday if it weren't for her continual encouragement and help in so many ways. 

Learning to Share

Emily and Hannah are already learning to share.:)  

Here they're both wanting Emily's bunny....

Hannah's not intimidated by Emily's size....

And....she got it!

Look at that smile!:)  

Don't worry, Hannah didn't keep Em's bunny for long.  I'm sure this won't be the last "sharing" adventure at our house, and I know they won't all end this happily!

Family Time

Last night we were enjoying some family time before we put Emily to bed.  We were all four playing on the floor.  It really is nights like this that are my favorite....so I decided we needed a family photo to capture the memories.:) 

 

I liked Hannah's expression in this picture...too cute.:)  

Emily likes for everyone to be together (in the same room), so when we're all playing on the floor together this child is in heaven.  Bert and I sat up for a minute after we had taken the pictures.  Emily pointed to where we had been laying and said "Mommy lays here....Daddy lays here....Hannah lays here!"  She was showing us where we were laying so that we could go ahead and lay back down with her.:) 

My Hannah just has the sweetest little smile.  She's smiling at her Daddy in this picture.  She laughed for the first time 3 nights ago.  I was in the kitchen and Bert was playing with  her in the living room.  When I heard her I dropped what I was doing and ran in there....it was just so sweet!

I'm so thankful for our family.  I love spending time with these three....wouldn't want to be anywhere else in the world.:)