Our Bird

For several weeks, this mama bird perched above a column on our front porch. She barely flinched as we came and went, and Abigail was thrilled to have her own bird! Truth be told, the first few days after noticing the bird, we thought it was wooden, left by the previous owner! We suspected she was a dove - does anyone know for certain?

Uncle Lawrence's Visit

As my youngest brother, Lawrence, retrieved his items from storage in Ohio, he managed to stop and stay with us for a few days and a couple of times. So nice living closer to family! This was Abigail's barren bedroom until our household goods arrived weeks after our move-in date. She actually loved all the space for playing!


Despite being our anniversary, these are our only photos (oops). It was nice to have a free babysitter while Justin and I slipped out to toast our 6 adventurous years together!

Statue

Abigail loves admiring this statue outside our public library.

Wagner Farm

After a few days of being in Indiana, after closing on our house, we returned to my Mom's to retrieve more belongings. There is a nearby historic farm open to the public that Abigail really enjoyed experiencing.

Moving Day

Very quickly after Justin was hired in a fabulous job as an engineer, we found a house! Here are photos of Abigail, a.k.a. The Ham, after we have packed the van and are on our way to close on the house. "Our house" stayed bone dry during the flood - yay! This would be the first time for Abigail to see the new house since she stayed with Grandma during our house hunting trip. Good news: she LOVES it!




Can I brag for just one teensy second? Thanks! Our little Abigail has been such a trooper, going on living in her fourth state, and she approaches every move with enthusiasm and a positive attitude. We are so blessed by her friendly, adventurous personality which has served her so well! While she won't grow up identifying herself as a military kid, she has had quite the introduction into that lifestyle!

The Flood

Meanwhile in Indiana, Justin was dealing with the aftermath of a "500 year flood." Since he was evacuated from his hotel the night before, Justin slept in his truck in a parking lot which was on higher ground.



This lady is standing on the median of a major highway into town:

Not a good day to be a trucker going through Indiana!


Gas station with a fire hydrant which is underwater -

Riding a Pony

My mother's next-door neighbors have a little girl (Demi) about Abigail's age, and they kindly invited Abigail to the birthday party, which included ponies! Abigail mounted fine but soon decided she didn't like the idea. Back in Hawaii, Abigail happily rode a horse about twice the size of this one, so I didn't understand this reversal. I suppose the nature of childhood fears are sporadic.



Another neighbor-girl, Jackie:

Cousins, etc.

Abigail seems to think that her cousin Nicea (10 months older) is an absolute rock star! (Aunt Katie reading a story.)



My youngest brother turned 28 while still living in Mexico. Of course we celebrated upon his return (any excuse to eat cake!) Anyway, life seems a bit more complete for my mother now that our family returned from Hawaii to the mainland and Mexico has graciously given us back Lawrence. All the nieces and nephews just love their Uncle Lawrence - how many uncles ride the unicyle and juggle?!



Bonding with the cousins, and playing with some light-up clock...

Bonding with Gramma over Parchesi...

Bouncing Elephant

We found this bouncing elephant on sale, and I thought it was just perfect for a new, empty house (knowing it would be awhile before our household goods would be delivered). Here's Abigail trying it out at Gramma's house -



I think she likes it!!!

Lightening

Justin took these pictures during a pretty bad thunder storm.