It's A Wonderful Life

A lot of sweet friends have asked me over and over to keep up with my blog so they can see pictures of Lizzie and stay posted on what we're up to in life. So, I'm recommitting myself to at least a couple of posts a month. I'll guess I better back up a bit and start where I left off.

February and March:

A few weeks after taking the mommy daughter pictures, Lizzie and I moved away from our beloved Charlottesville and came to Salem, Virginia to live with my parents. I was dreading leaving my friends, but the hardest part was leaving our apartment. It was like saying goodbye to John all over again. As we locked up the apartment I imagined all the times Lizzie and I had watched out our kitchen window for John to get home from class on his squeaky bike. Lizzie's arms and legs would flail when she heard the familiar sound of her daddy coming home, and she would squirm in anticipation until John came in and whisked her away. I will always miss those days. As we pulled out of the parking lot for the last time I felt my heart sink as I noticed that John's bike wasn't propped up on the poll outside our front door. Whenever Lizzie and I came home from running errands I would tell her to look for the bike so we would know if Daddy was home. I couldn't help but cry as I thought of the missing bike, a reminder that we would never come home to him in that place again.

But the move wasn't all tears. I was so touched by the many many people who came to help. More than 20 guys from the Elders Quorum showed up, and they had everything out of the apartment in less than half an hour. As if that wasn't enough the Sanchezes brought cupcakes and the Glasses brought homemade cinnamon rolls. I didn't even have to rent a moving truck! Scott Wakefield arranged for a truck and even drove it all the way down to Salem to unload it. Being LDS is pretty amazing. It's like being in a huge family filled with talented, giving people. You never have to face life alone.

Moving in with my parents has proven better than expected as well. I thought it would be hard to move back in after being on my own, but Lizzie and I love having Grandma and Grandpa around all the time. For Lizzie it means lots of extra attention, and for me it means showers as hot as I want them without a baby crawling around at my feet. We've been working hard to get the house ready for the new baby...cleaning out, organizing, remodeling, etc. We've also been playing hard. Lizzie loves the trampoline, sandbox, baby pool, etc. in the backyard.

With my mom's help, I've also had a little more time to research careers. I booted the Clinical Psych PhD idea after talking to some students in VT's PhD program. They said they spend 60+ hours a week on school (not including the 2 hours a day I would have to commute), and as much as I like school, I would hardly ever get to see Lizzie until she's 10 years old! Not worth it! So, my life plan is still in flux, but my most recent idea is a masters in social work. I think I'd like to work for LDS Family Services doing adoptions, teach at the college level, and do private practice therapy on the side.

Highlights from April:

A wonderful trip to Utah to visit John's family. It was all thanks to Mike (John's brother) and Sheri. They paid for my plane ticket and were even willing to host a baby shower for me while we were there. Lizzie LOVED hanging out with her cousins, especially little Lincoln...what a stud! I couldn't ask for better in-laws.

A weekend visiting Aaron and Gena's amazing family in Richmond, including a fun trip to the National Zoo in Washington D.C. Lizzie couldn't get enough of Grandpa Jones or the monkeys at the zoo...maybe there's a connection there. =)

A day trip with the Hughes family to Virginia's safari park. It was SWEET! Zebras, ostriches, camels, llamas, deer, etc stick their heads inside your car so you can feed them. We even got to feed a giraffe. My favorite part was feeding the giant camels, but Lizzie was more interested in digging in the gravel and stopping at every hand sanitizer station in the park. Oh well. At least she still gets free entry.

Spring! We can't get enough of playing outside, and now that it's warm, I've even pulled out my camera (to Lizzie's dismay) for a few good pictures while the wisteria is still in bloom.