ode to joy

Home is wherever I'm with you. 

old mcdonald had a song

3 weeks after starting lessons. 

As always, your sidekick is always right by your side. 

moving day

After what seems like FOREVER....it was finally moving day! We said goodbye to our old home. This house will always hold a special place in my heart; it was where we became a family.

We're finally home.

And slowly (but surely....) we're making it our own. 

the house that built me...

...and the one that will hopefully build you.

Look up "The House That Built Me" by Miranda Lambert. Listen to these words. I hope that you never feel this way, but if you ever do, I hope we are able to provide you a safe haven like this one always was for me.

This is the house that built me:

My room was where those 2 windows on the right are

We moved in when I was 10, and this is where I lived until Bella was born. Those first few weeks after we had you this is where we stayed. My entire childhood is contained within these walls. This is where your dad picked me up for our first date. This is where we fell in love. I have so many memories of this house, and I'm sure you do too. Your grandparents don't live here anymore, but to me, it will always be home.

We've called the house we live at home now for 7 years, but hopefully very soon we will have a new house to call home. I know there we will make tons of new memories.

 Preparing the lot, Bella supervising

 Framing

We walked through the house and
you picked your room this day

Our Room

Office

Ellie's Room

Bella's Room

We are so happy to be able to provide these things for you, and we can't wait to make a million new memories here together. I know right now it's hard for you sometimes to grasp the reasons why your dad is away so much, and why I'm always so tired. But know that EVERYTHING we do is for you. Every sacrifice we are making now is to give you girls more than we had growing up, because ya'll deserve more. I hope that this will always be "HOME" to you as your granparent's house will always be to me.

"Every year, KIPP employees from other departments like Finance and Marketing participate in "Shadow a KIPPster" Day, so that they know what it's like being a KIPP student. She was picked because she is one of our best and brightest."

                            -Ms. Bonilla, KIPP Dream Principal

first haircut

Someone got their first haircut! You'd been bugging us for weeks now that you wanted your hair like Bella's (monkey see, monkey do).

You were such a big girl during the entire thing. You stayed super still, and weren't even scared. Way to go, baby!

piano lessons

For about a year now, you've been saying that you want to learn how to play the piano. I'm sorry to say that we kind of brushed your requests to the side, never really thinking you were serious about it.

This Christmas, you asked us to please buy you a piano....so the inevitable happened; we enrolled you in lessons. I'm so glad that this came from you, and not something we imposed on you. I really hope that you stick with it, as being musically inclined is really a gift, and one that I think will set you apart from everyone (even though I think you're already one of a kind).

I can't wait to see where this new adventure takes you. Like always, we are infinitely proud of you.