Farewells + Reunions {favorite friday}

[Summer 2008 - England]

We're elated to hear that some of our dearest friends will be moving here this coming fall.  It's been too long, and we have missed them dearly.  This picture was taken at their farewell barbeque six years ago... my, how everyone has grown!!!

xo - Jess

Doll On A Music Box {favorite friday}

[England 2007]

This was a six-year-old Bug, preparing for her very first on-stage performance as the "Doll On A Music Box" from the Disney classic "Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang".  The dress was a gift from one of Military Man's TDY's to Germany.  The performance was for the Thetford Ward Talent Show.  The stage props rocked, with a decorated music box complete with a large turn key and a doll that became "animated" and actually spun around like a real music box doll.  In the words of Bug herself, "it was EPIC!"  This week, seven and a half years later, she's preparing for her first pageant with a schedule full of mock interviews, pageant prep classes and review boards.  Busy, busy.  We are so proud of her - she's an incredible young lady and we can't wait to see what other amazing opportunities will come her way in the future.

Happy Friday!!
- Jess

Many Welcomes Home {favorite friday}

[England 2009]

Five years ago this week Military Man was on his way home from a deployment in Iraq.

Hiking in Turkey {favorite friday}

[Marmaris, Turkey 2008]

Celebrating our ten year wedding anniversary in the Mediterranean.

Buggy's Wool Hat {favorite friday}

[Scotland 2009] just LOVE this picture of my little Bug. 

This girl has many exciting things coming up over the next few months.  Some of her biggest mentionables include being invited to perform with the high school orchestra, the Miss Pre-teen Arizona Pageant, and her first year at girls' camp with the Young Women... just to name a few. 

Morning Haze on the Santa Ritas

Happy Wednesday :)

Warwick Castle Project

Glue, cardboard, empty paper towel rolls, toothpicks, scissors, molding clay, pens, markers, papers, mounting tape... this is a quick list of items that were scattered around our living room for the better of two weeks.  Freckle Face worked diligently on her 6th grade castle project for social studies, choosing to replicate Warwick Castle in England.  We visited the castle several times while living there and she was eager to display everything she remembered about it. 

After talking to the kids we found that they each have fond memories of taking grandparents on specially guided tours - by the kids themselves - it was one of their favorite parts about living in the U.K.... the castles. 

Authors Night at SIS

The family attended Bug's "Meet The Authors Night" last week.  This is a snapshot of her and her beloved 5th grade teacher, Mr. DeGroot.  Buggy's book is a detailed description of our family's adventurous spring holiday break in Scotland.  She dedicated the book "to her Daddy - for taking her amazing places."

We recently had a family discussion about the options available to Military Man as he is nearing the "could get orders at anytime" phase of this station.  One option would be a bold move from active duty to reserve and contract civilian employment, and another would be an over-seas assignment again.  It didn't surprise me that Buggy was the only child that wholeheartedly voted for the continuation of active-duty service and consistent moves around the world.  She LOVES the mystery and excitement that accompanies PCSes.  The good news is, we HAVE options - and that's a wonderful blessing.

Thistle {favorite friday}

Buggy is working on a book soon to be published for a literature project her class is working on this year.  She chose to write about our family holiday in Scotland three years ago.  I know it's going to be fantastic and interesting, as her writing always is.  One detail she mentioned (which I thought was great) was seeing all the purple thistle, as that was almost the only contrast to the dark overcast sky and continuously green countryside.

The above {favorite friday} image is sadly not one from Scotland, but was taken high in the Catalina Mountains.  I am still hopeful that I will be able to retrieve all the 2009 files from the broken external hard drive that I was storing them on... fingers crossed!!