Welcome to our new house! I haven't been very good about posting pictures or really updating the blog in general... but we have a new baby and just moved.
Isn't it cute? We were so excited to be able to get a stand alone home in this area. We were all set to buy a town home as that was really all we could afford, (this is Virginia,) but we really feel like we lucked out with this one.
Another huge plus to this particular home is the ADORABLE neighborhood. It was a huge selling point. It's kind of a cross between Mayberry and Wisteria Lane. I feel like I live on a movie set... which is funny because apparently "Evan Almighty" was filmed in our neighborhood. I've never seen it, but I think I need to rent it now....
These are the homes to the left of our house. Our neighbors are just plain awesome. So friendly. Our immediate next door neighbors are our age and first time homeowners as well. They let us use their washer and dryer while we waited for ours to come... and waited and waited...
Ok, so these are a little out of order, but this is the main road in the neighborhood. It is SUCH a pretty drive. We literally live at the base of the Blue Ridge Mtns.
This is the house across the street from us. So cute!!!
Another view of the neighborhood. Those huge houses on the left are part of the neighborhood, but NOT the part we live in... They all list at over $900,000. It's crazy to me growing up in the south where the same house would sell for at least $4-500,000 less. Location is everything!
This is the section of the neighborhood where we are.
So Cliff and I became homeowners at the very end of June. We almost didn't have time to celebrate between a new baby coming and a move from Japan. This started out as an incredibly difficult move for us, but has turned into a tremendous blessing. Although the area is a lot more expensive than Pensacola or even Jacksonville would have been for us, we are so grateful to be here and as you can see, the views are spectacular. We feel like we live in a national park. The people here are wonderful and Cliff is actually really enjoying his new job. Even more than his job, though, we are LOVING the time we get to spend with him. He is home every night and usually by 4p.m. It's incredible.
Life with two children has been an adjustment for me. I used to be able to just pick up and go with Lilia. We went out every day. We went shopping and out to lunch and to the park and we just always on the go. Although Ivy isn't quite as fussy as Lilia was, she is still pretty fussy. We are just now starting to venture out on our own without Cliff and It's pretty physically exhausting. The good news is that with this baby I have something I didn't have with Lilia. I have
perspective. I know that these next few months will be rough. I also know that it WILL get better. Ivy is already a better sleeper than Lilia. She will go 4 and sometimes even 5 hours at night. Lilia didn't get there until she was over 7 months old. I'm grateful to the ward here. The ward members are fabulous and have made us feel very loved and welcome. I am almost embarrassed to admit that we had meals come to us almost every night for over two weeks. I think that the hardest thing for us here in Virginia is going to be leaving in a few years. Can't think about that for a while!!!
So there are my scattered thoughts for now. Maybe next time I will put up some pictures of the baby!!
Lilia just grows more and more dear to my heart with each passing day. I just love to watch her little personality grow. She is such a sweet sensitive little cutie. Everywhere we go she smiles and waves to strangers. At church she says "hi!" to EVERYONE and even grabbed some random childrens' hands in the hallway the other day for an impromptu round of "Ring Around the Rosy." She ADORES her baby sitter that lives behind us and any girl over the age of 4. She also loves Baby Ivy. She wants to make her smile and hold her hand. She always tells me when Ivy is sad and loves to point out when "Baby Ivy is looking at you!" 
Two kids are no walk in the park, but Lilia really does make it easier on me. She has recently become very independent and loves to go and play by her self in her room. She will go lay on her BIG GIRL bed and read stories for 20 min or so and never make a peep. Sometimes I go sit in there with the baby and read with her because I miss being around her! (She will go for 15-20 min regularly throughout the day.) 
She is so smart. She learns so many new words every day and REMEMBERS everything. The other day I said something about tuna... maybe I was talking about dinner - I really can't remember, but Lilia said to me " Mimi feed the black kitty tuna?" My mom used to leave a can of tuna out for the feral black cat that lives in her neighborhood. I couldn't believe that Lilia remembered that from like 6 months ago! She is very perceptive and we have to be careful what we say around her because she picks up on everything. I told Cliff one night after he had gotten home from work that that particular day "had really kicked my butt." Lilia without missing a beat said "I kick mommy's butt." Oops! 
She is soooo beautiful to me too. Actually I think she is just beautiful to everyone. Everywhere we go people comment on her hair and her doll-like features. I hope that she grows up to know how beautiful she is. A few months ago she started calling herself "chubby" and it broke my heart. While the pediatrician is carefully monitoring Lilia's weight because she has always been on the bigger side, we don't want her to develop a complex. Lilia eats well and we try to get her lots of exercise, but I know that she picks up on the comments that are made in her presence. It was cute for her to be "chubby" as an infant, but we have had to politely ask that our friends and acquaintances steer away from that particular word as Lilia remembers. I don't think she fully understands the meaning, but I hate to see her use it to describe herself. Instead of talking about "chubby cheeks," we say that she has "peaches and creamy" skin. That is a big hit. Apparently mommy and daddy have "peaches and creamy" skin now too - I wish!!
