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August 2013

Posts from July 2013

My Beach Boys

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After months of anticipation, Karter and Kaden hit the beach running!

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Karter threw caution to the wind and wasn't at all intimidated the waves.

Kaden had a tough start to the week, shoving a splinter deep into one of his heels, so he was a little gimpy and more tentative, but he loved it nevertheless.  And by the end of the week, he was going full-steam-ahead too!

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Saturday Snapshots and Snippets

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Not exactly the varmint Kim intended to trap...

 

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Taken somewhere in the state of North Carolina...first time I've ever seen this!

I guess even truck drivers have to learn how to maneuver a big rig somehow......

 

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How is it even possible that my little Karterman is starting kindergarten in just 10 days?!

Yesterday his new llbean backpack came in the mail and he couldn't wait to walk through the orchard to show Gramaw.  He couldn't be any cuter!  And I couldn't help but feel a bit nostalgic watching him walk back home looking so grown up.  Where did my baby boy go?  I hope he always wants to walk through the orchard to share the "big" things in his life.  

I do SO LOVE that child!!!

 

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What a growing season God has blessed us with this year!

The corn is mighty, might tall...tallest I ever remember!  I'm guessing it reaches 12 feet or more.

Kaden and Karter are going to look small beside any cornfield...

 

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...but Mama (who's 5' 8" herself!) looks small too!

But Kim reminds me that the proof is in the ears, not how tall the stalks are.    But still...I'm optimistic that Indiana will have a bumper harvest this year!

 

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Mama's sister Rachel lives near Emerald Isle, so Kim and I took the twins over to visit her one morning. 

Aunt Rachel is a twin herself...she is a twin to my Aunt Ruth, who passed away last month.  It is said that twins have a special bond, and Aunt Rachel hadn't seen the girls in person yet.  She got very emotional when she saw them.  I guess it triggered a whole lot of memories for her, having just lost her twin sister.

I love this photo of the three of them checking each other out!

 

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We had a wonderful visit, and I'm so glad Dana let us have the girls for the morning.

 

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A couple of new blogs in the family...be sure to check them out from the links on the right sidebar of this website.  --------------------->

Dana and Kristoffer have started a new blog about their crazy, busy family life, and Kamaron also has a new one where he shares about his outreach ministry, sharing the gospel with others. 

Emily and Zach keep adding updates about their new home-in-progress (it's going up FAST with plans to close in late August!) and Kyler and Kara also have a blog from their Cincinnati life.

 

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I'm one blessed mama!!

Thanks for making the move with me to my new blog...I plan to post daily except for Sundays and holidays (and unless unforeseen circumstances prevent me!).

Enjoy the weekend...and I'll catch you on Monday!

Toodles!!!

 


Baby Gray on the Way!!!

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My lovely daughter-in-law Anique brought some very different reading material to the beach this year.

Yes!  She and Kamaron are expecting their first BABY the end of January!!!

Yes!  We're excited...we will soon welcome our 5th grandchild into the world!

 

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Kamaron and Anique totally surprised us with the news in early June.

They came over one day for a visit and handed us a gift bag with a card explaining this was a late-Mother's-Day/early-Father's-Day gift, as Anique wrote, "...one that will be difficult to match in the future!", with a note to look on the back side.

 

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It took a moment for it to sink in!!!

WOW!!!

 

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Needless to say, the whole Gray clan is thrilled to have another...

...Baby Gray on the way!


I'm BACK!!!

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I'm BACK!!!

In more ways than one...

 

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After a fabulous, relaxing week at the beach with my favorite peeps, I'm back home now. 

You know the saying...there's no place like home!

 

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It'll be another year before I get to see a sunrise like this...so I savored it while I could!

But I'm also BACK on the photoblogging boat!

After months and months and months of endless frustration and stress with my old website building/hosting program, I jumped their ship and jumped onto Typepad.  A new format, a new set-up, a new look...it's a lot for an ole gal like me to get used to!  But dealing with the ongoing issues trying to update the old site was just getting the best of me...using up way too much time and energy and taking the fun out of blogging.  I gave it a lot of thought over vacation decided it was time to throw in the towel on the old site and start anew!

The really sad part for me is losing all that content from the past 5 years.  I still haven't given up, but it's not looking like I'm going to be able to move it here.  Not like anyone ever looks at it (except me!), but still...I guess I just like to cling to things.  Of course, I still do have all the photos, and the memories are in my mind, so it's really not all that bad, I guess.  I'll get over it.

So bear with me as I work out the bugs and figure this whole new site out.  Several of the links on the page don't work yet...I don't even quite know that they all do!  But I'm jumping in with both feet and just see where I land.

 

 

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So yes, today, instead of listening to the ocean waves as the morning sun mirrors its colors in the sand, I'm watching the sun rise over the tallest corn I've ever seen, trying to figure out how to maneuver in this new blog world I've joined.

We'll see how it goes, but I know it can't possibly be any more frustrating than the past few months of posting have been for me.

And I certainly can use a little less stress in my life...

I'm happy to say (for now, at least!)...

I'm BACK!!!