Still truck'n along

Whew! What a whirlwind it has been over the last couple of weeks. Scott has been on "vacation" this last week and to say the least, we were productive. It all started on Friday, May when we welcomed his parents, both brothers and their families for the weekend. I think all of us together made 18! It was a blast and it was so great to see his older brother (Kevin) and his family as we had not seen them since Thanksgiving '05. We were thrilled, which is an understatement, to have us all together and cherished every moment of it. Mary Ella certainly enjoyed all the attention from her older cousins. Everyone arrived Friday evening. We went to beach on Saturday, which was surprisingly clean AND beautiful. We went to a Hibachi restaurant that evening and all caught an Astros game Sunday afternoon (unfortunately they lost big time!). We finished off with a family dinner at a fantastic seafood restaurant. If you travel to the coast, seafood is a must. I'd say two restaurant experiences with 18 people wasn't as challenging as you might think. Here are a few pictures:

Boys talking "shop" (His older brothers are both OB/GYNs)All our "cuties"
Look at them sitting so nicely!

The "Fam" (Addy stayed home with Nana)

My brother, Uncle "Wobin" with Mary Ella at her first Astros game (he's so proud!)

NO, I'm not even close to "done" yet....On Monday, the kids went to Shreveport with their Nana and Popaw while we traveled to Tyler, Texas for an interview and to visit with some of our "residency" friends who now have settled there. Tyler is so beautiful and growing like crazy. Overall, it was a very positive experience and a place I could definitely see us settling down. The interview was on Tuesday and we left Wednesday morning to catch an interview in Shreveport, Louisiana (I did say productive, right???). Our kids were there waiting on us and we couldn't wait to hug on them. Wednesday evening we went to our good friend's new house, The Sumlins, where we were able to visit with our small group from Grace Community Church. We miss them all so much and as always, feel right at home in that good ole' southern city. Again, Scott had a very positive interview and we were courted with a fabulous steak dinner (Steak this good should be a sin!). In summary, both places are great and this is going to be a very tough decision we will definitely be praying through.


Friday morning we left for home to have some calm days at home over Memorial Day weekend in order to re-program the children and get back into our routine. I awoke Saturday to a strong need to clean out and organize. Could "nesting"really be starting this early???? We cleaned out 2 storage closets and packed up unused clothes/other items around the house to be given away. My car is now loaded for a Goodwill trip. YEAH! I can't believe it has only been a week, but it has been and we are feeling real good about our progress and options.

Quote of the Week (Mary Ella...of course): "But I don't like healthy food anymore, only sugary food!".....Guess this might take a while!