September 6, 2005

Waaaah! Today was a sad day. Mom Mom left. Michael and I took her to the airport, and Michael was just adorable. He blew her kisses as she went through security, but he didn't really *get* what was going on. Until we got back to the car. He broke free and started running back to the terminal, just CRYING. He realized that we were leaving and Mom Mom was not with us. He probably cried in the car for 15 minutes. That was hard.

But it just goes to show how much their efforts to Michael have paid off. The two of them have consistantly been so great at making efforts to be invovled in his life -- and always going the extra mile. Michael is very blessed. Now we'll just look forward to December when the baby comes. Mom Mom already arranged to book the guest room for the month!

Here's a nice final picture of Michael and Mom Mom...

We are slowly getting settled in our new community. Yesterday we received a flyer in our mailbox that the community is doing a drive for items to truck to the Gulf Coast for the hurricane victims. What a great community! We hit BJ's last night, and will drop off our items this afternoon. Apparently the community is very active with charity, children's events, and dinners.

September 5, 2005

Michael moved from his crib to his big-boy bed last night! And not one of those little toddler things -- a real twin size bed! In fact, the bed itself was Pop Pop's when Pop Pop was a boy. Michael did great. He went to sleep within about 20 minutes, and stayed in bed until 5:30 am. And when he was ready for a morning nap, up he went, right to his big-boy bed! We are very proud of him!

September 4, 2005

We dropped Pop Pop off at the airport today. That was sad. Of course Susan will miss him, but so will Michael. Pop Pop is so good with Michael. As we sat and ate lunch today, Michael kept pointing to Pop Pop in a picture and saying, "Pah Pah!".

Of course we are continuing to unpack (will it ever end?). But we took a little time to drop by the pool this afternoon. (The community has a pool, and rights to 3 other nearby pools.) We met some nice people, and Michael got to splash, swim, and jump.

September 3, 2005

Yesterday the movers came, and we can finally get settled in our new house! I don't think I ever want to see another box in my life! But we had our first night in the new house last night, and all went well. Okay, short of Michael waking up at 5 am and starting to play with his new animal sounds toy that Joni & Rich gave him for his birthday! He loves that thing, but 5 am is a little early for The Farmer In The Dell!

Anyway, we are slowly getting used to having a LOT more space than we had in our townhouse (about twice as much). But it sure is nice to have the separate formal and casual areas. And the master bath is to die for. Did I say master bath? It should be master bathS. Yes, that's right, we have dual master baths, plus a huge dressing area. It is all probably more square footage than our whole bedroom in our last house. Greg has his whole bathroom with a HUGE shower, plus two closets and a built-in dreser... and I have a giant whirpool tub in my bathroom, with a large walk-in closet. It's nice to feel pampered.

Mom Mom & Pop Pop (Susan's parents) have been a huge help in unpacking. They are always the first to offer to help, and their help is very much appreciated! Mom Mom just about has the kitchen done, and Pop Pop has been help Greg assemble stuff and arrange furniture. Yes, I'm helping too... but there's only so much I can do with this pregnant belly of mine!

September 1, 2005, PM

We are now the proud owners of a 4 bedroom, 3.5 bath brick colonial, with formal living and dining areas, a large family room with fireplace, huge kitchen, sunroom, and a 2-car garage! Plus a huge fenced backyard for Michael and Conny to play! The movers come tomorrow, and then we can get settled in.

Our experiences at both settlements were wonderful. We had very professional attornies -- a big change from when Susan sold her condo in Maryland a few years ago. We still question if that guy ever passed the bar. But both in VA and in SC, the experiences were top notch.

Here is a picture of our new house:

September 1, 2005, AM

Final inspection is done! All that is left is settlement.

The gas panic has definitely hit here in SC. People need to just settle down! The majority of the stations here have no gas, and those that do are now over $3 a gallon. (SC generally has the cheapest gas in the country.) We're not concerned about the price -- even at $3 a gallon, we're paying half what we paid in Europe 10 years ago. We had to laugh at the guy in the Hummer trying to fill up at the one station with gas.

Michael had lots of fun at the hotel pool!

August 31, 2005

Hello from Greer, SC! We finally arrived after 2 days on the road. Although the moving van picked up all our stuff in Alexandria last Saturday, we had some business to wrap up before heading south (not the least of which was settlement on our old house!). All went well, and Tuesday morning we hit the road.

Susan's parents were nice enough to offer to ride down with us. Two cars, a dog, a toddler, and pregnant Susan would have been a long trip for just us. So we really appreciated their offer! We headed west through Maryland and west Virginia, and then all the way down I-81 in Virginia. Needless to say, we got hit with some of the remnants of Katrina. Visibility at times was minimal, which is really a shame driving through the mountains. We stopped overnight in Hillsville, VA.

This morning we packed up and finished the drive to South Carolina. A much better day for a much easier drive!

All along the trip, it has been very encouraging to see all the caravans of electric trucks headed south to help out the hurricane victims. Many thanks and prayers to everyone headed that way to help out. By the way, have you donated to the hurricane relief efforts yet? If not, please visit The American Red Cross or your favorite charity to help out.

We'll post more as after we settle on our house down here and start unpacking...

August 30, 2005

We drove part way today, stopping in Hillsville, VA to rest.  Here are a few pictures from the trip.

All tired out!

Pop Pop & Michael looking at the hotel deer

August 28 - 29, 2005

We're here, there and everywhere for a few days before taking off to South Carolina.  Settlement on our old house was on Monday, and then Tuesday we are taking off.  Here's a few pictures...

Walking the "dog"	Holding Pop Pop's hand	Reading with Cousin Mark
Dinner time!

August 27, 2005

Bye bye to our old house....