Loving Austin

We've been here just shy of one week and already love it!  We haven't yet unpacked 30% of our stuff, we don't have a couch, but I already feel like this is "home."

When we arrived late last Friday night, the little boys kept saying, "New house! New house!"  We came in the door and the first thing Tian asked was, "Where's Nana?"  Aww.  He's going to miss seeing her and Pappy every week.  My three boys ran all over the house, checking out each room and the backyard.  Yay! We have a backyard again!

Hugging the floor
We went upstairs and I showed the boys their room.  They were so thrilled, they tried to "hug" the floor.  Thank God they seemed to understand the move.  I had prayed that it wouldn't upset them, that they would know we were all sticking together, that no one would be left behind or moved somewhere new.  From the minute we stepped in the house, they just "got it."  We had been showing them photos of the house for several weeks, explaining which room was which and stating (over and over again) that Daddy, Mommy, Hannah, Kenzie, TJ, Travis and Tian were ALL moving to a new house!  Ken even put the pictures of the new house up on our Apple TV so that it was always there to discuss.  That time spent preparing them has paid off.  They've slept great, adore their new room, and love riding bikes on the cul-de-sac.

The older three kids were happy to just be here, but were also eager to meet neighbors and our friends' kids.  So far, three neighbors and their kids have popped over to say hi, even bringing us yummy treats!  It's a great feeling to be in a friendly neighborhood again.  On Monday, my sister and niece moved to town, too!  My kids are beyond thrilled to have their cousin so close.  (They've already spent four nights together.)  I'm happy to have my sister nearby, too.  It's not the house next door with a tunnel connecting the two, like we always talked about when we were little, but it will do.

Here are some snapshots of our past few days.  See the complete album here.  Eco-Art Fest album here.

Chilly waters of Barton Creek at Zilker Park

Nom nom at Magnolia Cafe on SoCo


Making a compost pile at Eco-Art Fest

Ripping paper to add layers

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