Moving!

We didn't say much to the boys about finding a house until the offer was accepted.  But once we got that green light the excitement for OUR new house began to build.  I think we drove by the house every day just to take a peek and talk about it for the first week and a half.  One day I let the kids get out and look in the windows.

We got the keys on August 24 and decided that the next night we'd go have pizza at our new house.  Luke excitedly announced, "Mom! Our family has a new tradition! August 25 is our house's birthday.  That means on every August 25 we have to have pizza in the backyard!"  I, for one, welcome any kind of birthday that's not at the end of November or beginning of December, but mostly I loved that Luke is a guy who likes traditions and making new ones as a family.  You can bet August 25 is in my calendar for our houses birthday in 2018.

Moving day came about a week later.  This was the only picture I caught, because it was, once again, a literal sea of friends working their magic and unloading our stuff in record time.  The amount of love that our family has been given, particularly from members in our ward and family who helped, is too much to quantify.  It just felt awesome to know that we didn't have to do it on our own, and that there were so many who genuinely were happy to help.

I woke up on Sunday morning after our move the day before and caught the most beautiful sunrise.  It was the dawn of a new day and a new beginning of our life in this new place.  It's pretty great to roll over in the morning and watch the sun come up!

When I mentioned our living situation to people a common response was, "Oh, I could never live with my in laws!"  But I have to say, it was a really special time for our family.  It's a different experience to live together and be involved in each other's life every day.  I have to say I loved it.  Leah getting in to EVERYthing aside, being there was an immense blessing for our family and really strengthened our relationships with one another.  And even though Grandma and Grandpa are just ten minutes away now, we find ourselves missing them and the time we had together every day.