Whoa! Long time, no blog

Yes, we are still alive and well. Just taking things a bit, well, leisurely in the blogging department.

If anyone is still interested in fall activities, they may be a bit disappointed in this update. I will, however, try to recap most of November happenings and see if we can move things along to the holiday season (in which, I'm sure you don't need reminding, we are in the the throes of...)

Ev turned 1 on 11/4 - the same day we elected our new President! Pretty cool, I think, and here is the b'day girl poking her cake as if to say "am I really supposed to eat this?". Never fear, she loved it and ate quite a bit despite being extremely tired and a bit overwhelmed.

She began to walk just 1 day before her brother's 5th birthday on the 25th of November! Crazy........

Ryder had a party at the bowling center and loved it - we had only bowled a few times prior to this but it seemed to go pretty well if a bit long for the younger ones who attended. Ryder's cake was another take on the Hot Wheels theme, such a big part of his play right now. We had a great time and it's hard to believe he's 5 already!

Thanksgiving was at my Grandfather's house this year and all 4 of my mom's sisters came this year! It was great seeing everyone and Ry and Jonah climbed trees on their own for the first time. My grandfather has 2 HUGE magnolia trees in his front yard and they had a blast climbing for probably an hour or more.

Lastly, our oldest furry child left us on the day after Thanksgiving after a long battle with cancer. I am most thankful for the almost 12 years we had together and his sweet spirit and effervescent personality. We all miss him and I think hardest part has been adjustment to life without him - he was never a pest but he was always AROUND, and it seems so different now that he isn't here. Garbo and Gertrude and Deano are doing well, but Horton is super-affectionate now and I think really misses his buddy!

Whew! I think that's it for now. More soon.......MG

We're not sure how we let this happen

The most beautiful baby girl in the world turned a year old 1 week ago today! I have to admit I love everything about her.

Her brothers adore her, she loves everyone she meets and she eats (practically) anything I serve....a true dream child for any mom!!! And she has Daddy truly mesmerized......

So....if my blogging has been a bit lax, you can understand why. This is Miss Everett in her birthday tutu......

More hopefully later this week in a Halloween recap and pumpkin farm extravaganza!!

Love to all

M

Tennessee Happenings, and No rest for the Wicked

This past weekend we traveled to Tennessee to visit with the other Gardins (Brad's brother Bart and fam). Our niece Aubrey was baptized this weekend and it was so exciting to see her take this step to follow Jesus. We got to visit with some people from her church and loved spending some time with Bart, Leslie and Brett as well. The boys and cousin Brett got along well, but Ryder followed Aubrey around all weekend and even said that he wants to be like her (this said during her baptism service). It was so awesome to spend some relaxed time with them, as they are moving to California very soon. While we are excited for them, it is somewhat discouraging for them to be so far away.... I would love to say we have kept in close contact, but busy-ness and life have gotten in the way on our end.....please pray that we can strengthen and deepen our connections with them despite the distance that will soon separate us. We will miss having them just 2 hours away!!
AND......for my birthday I decided I wanted to go and see WICKED...the Broadway adaptation of Gregory Maguire's novel about the witches of Oz......so very fun and a great night out. The music and imagery were fantastic and the story even better! The Fox Theater is one of my very favorite places in Atlanta..........

A couple more photos for fun........



Ev in Bart/Leslie's tub; Brett at the butterfly exhibit (TN aquarium); Bart, Leslie and Aubrey; Ry and J downtown Chattanooga.

That's the scoop! More soon......Love to all! MG

Run Don't Walk

To your local video store to rent this one : BELLA (www.bellamoviesite.com)
We stayed up late last night to watch it . This film was so touching and sweet. It made me hug my babies a little tighter today. It made me think again with fondness on the sweet and lovely birthmothers of my children.....as well as the absolute gift it is to know what they are up to and their willingness to be involved with my family. Minnie and Makeda, we love you!!! Hugs and kisses.......

The week in review

THIS HAS BEEN THE THEME OF THE WEEK, thanks in no small part, to a glorious case of the stomach flu. All but Jonah have done their part (though he had it 2 weeks ago). In all fairness : Everett started it. But, we have all persevered and are now on the mend.

Other activities (school, work, kindermusik) have fallen by the wayside but I think it should be a fairly normal week coming up. We were able to share (spread) the joy to others (Nana and Grandad, future SIL Pepper) and we are fervently praying that our contagious days are past. My mom (Grandma) has surgery on her knee on Thursday and we are hoping she doesn't come down with it, despite being temporary shelter to our little people this weekend. A couple photos:

Ev's new pearlies! : 1st glimpse of Deano : Ry and Ev wait for G'ma


Jonah with Transformers; Bags packed for Grandma's

So, the big news comes in photos this week - Ev finally has teeth! Geez, it's about time!! She is so done with pureed baby food and has been eating from the table for a while now. However, she does have a big problem with fingers in her mouth and pitches a fit if you try to touch the new chompers!!

Deano is our newest family furry - a very sweet tuxedo boy and is adjusting well (minor growling between felines is still occurring). He may be one of those cats that is "annoyingly sweet" but we'll see. So far all is going well. His story: a pseudo-rescue (very sick cat whose owners unfortunately couldn't treat him due to finances) that ended up falling in love with me (ahem) and I had to bring home.

So that is it for now! Fun abounds! Love to all

M

THINK - What does it mean???

T - True

H - Helpful

I - Important

N - Necessary

K - Kind

Kind of our family motto and how we (try to ) live. So, as we have had this blog since July and have yet to REALLY post anything substantial, I will try to give a quick overview on what is up with our family.

Brad and Michelle - chugging along day by day and trying to figure out how to be best friends and partners and parents to 3 children under 5. Brad works for ATC.com (Manager of work force mgmt. team and analysis and reporting team) and Michelle is a part-time veterinarian for a small animal clinic.

Ryder - 5 next month and full of energy! He is doing pretty well in his T-K class at school (a ramped up version of pre-k for young 5's) and loves Transformers, Hot Wheels and Power Rangers. We are sure ly but slowly outgrowing an obsession with Thomas the Tank Engine. I think we might actually have a different birthday party theme this year!!

Jonah - 4 in June and so much fun! Loves to run and jump and play and is excellent at computer games and puzzles, mazes and I-spy books. He is also in Pre-K this year and enjoys school so much. We are reading chapter books in bed at night and trying mightily to keep this one in his own bed all night.

Everett - 11 months old - the perfect combo of sassy and sweet! She has a 1-word vocabulary (CAT) and is very mobile - not at all surprising to find her at the top of the stairs. Everett is flirtatious and loves everyone unless they are trying to comb her hair!

As for the rest - well, we have several pets - Nate, Garbo, Gertrude, Horton and Deano. 2 dogs, 3 cats. The furries are ok - we are all adjusting to Deano (more about him later) and Nate is doing well also for those who know his story (another post entirely).

Here is my pledge - to update the blog weekly and let you all know what we're up to . It's up to you all to keep me honest!!

Love to all! M

Test For Pilot on Thursday 7/24

Test