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Author Archives: Julie
Playing and maybe some packing
Playing
Some serious housework.
And then playtime
I don’t know what we are supposed to be doing at this point, but we are not doing it. People think we are busy and our lives are getting hectic. Maybe they are supposed to be, but we are ignoring it. Papers are signed and dates are set to move August 1, but other than that we are just playing. We have collected a lot of boxes, does that count? I am sure the following weeks will be busy, but for now we are just enjoying each other.
God’s Timing
There is really no other way to describe it. Ethan and I left town last Friday with no showings on the house. It had been on the market about a week, but no traffic yet. By the time we landed in Houston on Sunday, we had 6 showings and one full price offer. Full price is the kicker. Who goes in and offers full price from the start? With a contract in hand for a buyer, we called our agent in Nashville and submitted an offer on a house that we had found. Let me say that again, we found a house in one weekend. Just how does that work? Only by the hand of God.
Tonight I sit here. Relieved that this part is over. Contracts are signed and we enter into the pending stage. When Ethan told me the sellers in Nashville had accepted our offer, he commented on my lack of enthusiasm. Truthfully, I guess I didn’t know how to react. I was glad we got the house we both liked, but I guess it was a lot of reality hitting too. We are scheduled to close on both houses by Aug. 2 and probably move the first week of August. Does anyone else feel this is coming quick??
For Sale
You have seen them all over, for sale signs. And if you pay attention you realize how many of them are out there. But have you ever really thought what that sign means to the family? Well, when someone comes by and sticks one in your own front yard, possibility becomes reality too fast.
This is our home. We lived in a townhouse after we were married that was originally my grandmother’s, then brother’s, then father’s. We eventually bought it, fixed it up and sold it. But this is our first house. We bought this house just 2.5 years ago, months before Noah’s birth. Not only did we anticipate Noah coming home here, but we anticipated grandkids coming here. We love this house. But it is still just a house. It is the people inside that make it our home right now.
So why is it for sale? Ethan has accepted a position with MankinMedia in Nashville, TN. Our good friends Ben and Amanda Mankin own this business and decided that Ethan would be a valuable asset to their company. He will do a little bit of everything to help out this 4 man team, but will mainly be responsible for marketing. This is a big change for everyone. The Mankins, grandparents, friends and especially us. Ethan starts with MankinMedia July 1st. But he is able to work from home until the house sells and we move to Nashville.
Those who know me are probably shocked. You think that I am the type to never move away. (I moved to this area when I was 6 months old.) And you are right, I am not adventurous. I am not interested in change. I am not interested in making new friends, finding a new church, finding a new school for Alyssa, learning my way around a new city, leaving my family, or establishing myself somewhere else. But I am interested in supporting my husband. And while, yes, there is a bit of excitement in all this, it is sad for me to think of leaving all of this. But I would not choose my comfort over his dreams and success. We are doing this together, and there is no one else I want to start over with.
2nd Annual Cousin Camp
This year was hosted at our home. We had the older Eller cousins camp over for a day this weekend. Tate and Megan hung out with Nana and Papa. We tried the follow last year’s tradition and tie-dye shirts, but they did not turn out as well as I had hoped. And two days later, I think the dye has almost disappeared from my hands. I guess that is why they pack gloves in the box. All the kids had a great time with games, popcorn, ice cream, pillow fights, hide-n-seek and some good play time. It was good to see them all together again. Pics
With Hope
Written by Noah’s Nana
One of my favorite songs that I found during the last 2 years is one by Steven Curtis Chapman called “With Hope.” The words expressed so well the feelings that began to fill my heart:
We can cry with hope, we can say good-bye with hope,
For our good-bye is not the end.
We can grieve with hope, we believe with hope,
There’s a place where we’ll see your face again.
We wait with hope
We ache with hope
We hold on with hope
We “let go” with hope
Over the last 2 years our family has found many ways to remember Noah and express our love as well as our pain, but it seems that the words and actions of the children, my grandchildren, have been the most powerful proof of faith. They talk about Noah without hesitation: “How big is he now? Can he see me? I miss Noah. I wish Noah was here. When will we see him? Does he see God?”. And so many more. There is not a doubt in their minds that he is happy and safe and is right where he is suppose to be.
I say all this to try to explain where my idea for a painting came from. Every holiday and birthday and even “no special reason” days, the grandchildren send off balloons for Noah to catch and whisk away. They love to do it and we are touched by their faith that he gets them. In the same way, they always relate the rainbows seen in the sky to Noah. So it seems I never look at the sky with clouds, sunshine, or rainbows without thinking of precious Noah and how much his sister and cousins love him and like to remember him.
So, after April told us about a comment that Cade made, my mind started painting a picture that I wanted as my own remembrance of Noah. Cade was talking about how rainbows are made and that God made them, but then he said, “Maybe Noah makes the rainbows with all the balloons that we send to him.” What a beautiful picture I saw in my mind!
God led me to a beautiful Christian lady, Lee Harris, and she took my ideas and put them at the tips of her brushes. The painting she presented to me encompassed every thought I have had about how I want to remember Noah. I want to name just a few, and you might find your own meaning in it—-just another reason it is such a beautiful piece of art.
3 children:
- These represent my grandchildren who love to send off balloons to Noah. They watch until there is only a dot left in the sky and they know he has grabbed them.
- A symbol of the Godhead: God, who is holding Noah in His arms; Jesus, who made it possible for us to see Noah again some day; Holy Spirit, who provides comfort and assurance through our grief and loss.
- Alyssa, Megan, Noah – what might have been
Sky and clouds:
- It is like looking into heaven, having so much of the picture made into the sky and getting a glimpse of the clear blue that lies beyond.
- Picturing Noah in the shapes of clouds everyday that I see them in the sky.
Balloons:
- So many balloons to represent all the times we let them go.
- Seeing how they float into the heavens and seemingly fade into bands of a rainbow.
Ocean:
- Endless, looking beyond, peaceful, powerful
Land:
- A promise – So faint in the background, but it is like the place waiting for us; the place where we will find Noah.
So as I look at the painting, the words of the song seem to come alive in the soft images: We wait with hope — the children standing on the shore viewing the land and the skies beyond the ocean waves. We hold on with hope –small hands clinging to the strings of the balloons knowing what beauty there will be as they fade into the rainbow. We let go with hope — Seeing the balloons float away, believing and clinging to the promise that we will meet again in a place more beautiful than any rainbow.
Happy 4th Birthday
Man, I look at Megan and cannot believe she is 8 months old … but I really cannot believe Alyssa (my baby) is 4 years old. 4 years of hugs, kisses, giggles, jokes, books, and playing together. I look at her and almost cannot remember her as a baby and a young toddler. I see pictures and think, “was that her?” The time has gone so fast.
We celebrated her actual birthday on the 4th at home. She picked out a rainbow cake from Kroger and we gave her a new bike. Then we had her party this weekend. It was a carnival theme. Usually I don’t go overboard on the theme thing, but it was fun this time. Ethan even got into it and decorated the driveway with streamers and balloons as you entered the carnival. The kids played games and won prizes. We ended with a pinata that could only be smashed by Braden, Alyssa’s 10 yr old cousin. Who might I add plays baseball. It took him about 4 or 5 hits to smash it up. Once the friends had gone, the cousins each got a balloon to send to Noah. It is beautiful to watch every time. Pics
Sea World
We took a trip to Sea World last weekend with the Kennedys. (She has a cute scrapbook on her blog.) It was fun to enjoy the time with friends and see our kids having fun together. Graham and Alyssa have such a good time together. It is hard to look at them and not imagine what it would have been like if it were Alyssa and Noah. Graham is a little older than Noah would have been, but he reminds me of what Noah would be like.
We visited the park two days and wore all the kids out by 2:00 each day. Surprising Megan did well despite the lack of sleep and the heat.
Too much?
She folds. She feeds. Now if I can get her to just change diapers.