I started this blog in order to document all the new experiences , learnings and blunders that I would encounter jumping head first into parenthood along with Jenn. It would also serve as an awesome opportunity to share these memories with our children when they are older.
After four years and two children I have found that there is a fine line between documenting my life with my family and actually living it. Hence we have been back from our big road trip for almost a month, and I have yet to catch up. So I am going to try with a quick update or what I am calling a quickdate, which I am hoping doesn’t become a regular occurrence.
After 3 weeks away, I flew to PA eager to see Jenn and the kids. They arrived about 15 minutes after my flight landed. I ran up to the car ready to have two kids jump into my arms. Instead they were both asleep…awesome.
We made it to Virginia Beach in the early morning about 8 hours later. Can I just say that our kids may be the best road warriors around. That week was filled with trips to the Botanical Gardens, but more importantly the splash park at the Gardens, the Zoo and most importantly time with family including the newest addition, Ms. Waverly Jae. Nolin & Grace were excited to meet their new cousin.
It was a short week, and a long drive home (about 13 hours), in case I didn’t mention, our kids are road warriors.
Luckily, we did at least have a few days once we got back before Nolin started school. This at least gave him time to settle back into a little more structure before he started Pre-K. The days between vacation and school were pretty quite, but spent just catching up and spending time together and being amazed at the latest development in our family.
At some point over the summer, it all came together for Grace, she is now able to communicate anything she wants. Including, Mommy pee now. I think she’ll be potty trained before she turns two. Her new found love for language means we have two kids fighting for air space…heaven help us.
The day before school started, we took Nolin to meet his new teacher. Grace unfortunately missed the cut off by a couple of days, but she walked into that classroom and seemed more prepared than most of the 4 year olds (including her brother). Anyway, Nolin has a great teacher and his teacher from last year’s daughter is in his class which means that she will be the mommy helper occasionally which he is excited about.
So we’re back to school and back to life and in 462 words I am back up to date…
Our Modern Family 
Over these past few years … Your photos and life-story has brought me hours of joy, laughter and heart-felt tears! You all are amazing!
Wonderful pictures (with the exception of OLBus by the pool). You guys are great!!!!
Patrick,
Hello! My name is Elizabeth Arnold, and I work with the marketing team at Buckner International.
I have been following your blog and sincerely appreciate you sharing your family’s journey. Thanks for the great work!
In case you aren’t familiar with Buckner, we are a 135-year old faith-based global ministry dedicated to transforming lives. Shoes for Orphan Souls is our largest humanitarian aid project, and we annually help coordinate more than 1,500 shoe drives nationwide to collect new shoes for children and then deliver them on short-term shoe delivery mission trips worldwide. This year we are celebrating our 15th anniversary and counting down to 3 million pairs of shoes delivered.
We are gearing up for our annual Barefoot Run to raise awareness and support for Shoes for Orphan Souls® and would love you to join us in our quest to place shoes on the feet of the world’s orphans and vulnerable children. The Dallas Barefoot Run is Saturday, Oct. 4 and the virtual Barefoot Run Where You Live event takes place October 4-11. This is an excellent opportunity to educate your followers about the needs of orphans and vulnerable children around the world, as well as shed light on one simple way people can make a big difference – through a new pair of shoes! It’s also a little crazy and fun, too, and should make for some interesting blog content. ☺
Would you be interested in participating in the virtual Barefoot Run Where You Live (if they are local, this will say Barefoot Run, not Where You Live) and blogging about your experiences? Don’t worry, the barefoot part is optional (but strongly encouraged!).
If you are interested, I will gladly send you a free race packet, running bib, a link to print off a photo of a child you can support and our official Barefoot Run T-shirt. We would also like to offer you the opportunity to help us select the winner for this year’s social media contest on Instagram. The person who posts the most creative picture while using #barefootrun (and liking our @Buckner_Shoes page) will win something BIG! (Think airline tickets, mission trip … we are still waiting to confirm the final prize).
Thank you for your consideration, and I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Arnold