Whidbey Island, Washington!!

Indiana is our true home. It's where we grew up, where our entire family is and we will always say, "we're going home" when speaking about Indiana. But if Home Is Where The Marine Corps Sends You, then we will proudly and lovingly call Washington "home" for as long as they will allow us! I never got over the beauty of this place when we were here almost 5 years ago and it is still breathtaking today. We love this place! What's not to love.....well the dreary, rainy, winter days will sometimes bring you down.....but even on those days, the clouds will clear (even for a brief moment) and reveal those snowcapped mountains once again and it will lift your spirits. We cannot wait to hike, snowshoe, sled, camp, build fires (inside the house and outside) and just enjoy every second we are stationed here. We cannot wait to share it with anyone who comes to visit - and if you can't, then we hope you enjoy photos like this...because this is all you will be seeing for the next three years!

Welcome to Washington!

Goodbye Indiana

To say that we did a lot while in Indiana, would be an understatement! Our time there was jampacked with new things and a ton of fun. A few days before we headed out we were able to meet up with a few of our old friends from high school and their families. It's always nice to be able to see what they've been up to and how their families have grown.

The day before Shawn and his dad started the long drive, we went fishing with my family. It was a hot one at 7am, so we only ended up staying for about an hour. That hour proved to be good for Caleb, because he caught three fish. Adarrah, however, didn't have any luck.

(Look at Caleb's face in this picture:o)

The next day we headed to Chuck E Cheese, which I remember to be a zoo! I don't know if we went on a good night, but there was hardly anyone there, the place was clean and the rides were good for their ages. Even Amelia got in on the roller coaster action.

We took all the little kiddos to get their photograph taken and afterwards we were able to get a few generation pictures with Great Grandma Purichia.

Then we got a few with my parents. I know that one day we will cherish having these and we need to make a point of doing it everytime we're together.

Sweet Adarrah and Amelia. Adarrah, you are going to be a great babysitter someday!

Great Grandpa Purichia and the kids.

The next morning we jumped on a plane and headed west. Oh the fun we're going to have in WA!

Amelia Is 7 Months Old

TODAY I AM 7 MONTHS OLD!!

I am now strictly formula fed.

I am eating about 2 large tubs of food at every feeding.

I got to meet a lot of my cousins while in IN.

If you put me on the floor, I will roll from one side of the room to the next.

I am very close to sitting up on my own.

I am a pretty happy baby and will smile at just about anyone who talks to me.

I blow raspberries constantly.

I have even started saying, "dadadadada".

I love being outside and fell asleep on my second day of hiking.
I am drooling and chewing on everything...hopefully I'll get a tooth soon.

I took my first long car ride fron NC to TN to IN.

I took my first plane ride fron IN to WA.

Pretty soon I'll be a mountain lover like the rest of my family!

Whidbey Island WA

We have arrived!

We are officially islanders and are excited to be back. We arrived on Sunday, just before lunch (the kids were absolutely perfect! Except for the few times Caleb started whining saying he didn't want to fly...I then informed him we were already flying, but that we'd be landing in a little while....to which he started whining "I don't want to land":o) It was a long day and the bright sun, blue skies and snow-capped mountains were a welcomed sight. We stopped for lunch and then headed to our home for the next week - or until the Barton's decide to kick us out. This is their pad......

We're feeling pretty lucky to not be cramped in a hotel room and to have hours of entertainment just by looking out the window. There are rabbits, birds, a cat we spied this morning and a lot of deer! We have even resorted to eating apples, just to throw our cores out into the yard and entice them to come closer:o)

We went house hunting yesterday, which was a far cry from Sunday's weather - cloudy, pouring rain and cold. We were able to look at 7 houses and decided on one we liked. We put our application in and are now awaiting our approval. We'll keep you updated when we hear something.

Shawn's dad is here until Friday, so we'll be out having a great time while he's here. I'll try to get the blog updated with some more pictures from our time in IN.

Just Horsin' Around

Green acres is the place for me

Farm livin' is the life for me

Land spreadin' out so far and wide

Keep Manhattan, just give me that countryside.

If you were to ask me if I was from the city, I would say yes. Shawn always says, we're not from the city. I am 33 years old and I've never ridden a horse and I don't think I've ever even been this close to one. My cousin does not live in the country and has two horses. Last night we got to go out and ride Guss (I'm petting Maverick in the picture). I rode by myself first, to get comfortable on him before I let Caleb ride. He was a little leary at first, but what melted my heart was when we started going around the path and he yelled out (so that everyone could hear) WOOK, I'M RIDING A HORSE!! He thought it was so cool. And it was! This is something I think we'll remember for a very long time.

Maybe this country life is for me:o)

More Than Corn In Indiana

This trip home has been chocked full of adventure. After saying goodbye to the TN Capps Family (Uncle Cody and Aunt Daphne), we headed to IN for some fun with The Grannies and the rest of the aunts, uncles, cousins and extended family.

The first night we were there we got to go to an Indianapolis Indians baseball game. Caleb had a great time.

The next day we got so spend some time with Shawn's family. A few of the cousins got to play in teh baby pool and we thought this little photo would be cool to look at years down the road.Later on in the week we went to Great Aunt Patti's pool to try out our new swim gear. Caleb took to the water wings like a pro and was off swimming by himself. Amelia, however, didn't take to the chilly water and just wanted to get out and be held.We walked to the end of the canal, which we'd never done, and ate at a new restaurant.Amelia sat in real grass:o)We got to spend Shawn's birthday all together this year and we were able to get a few generation photos.Early Saturday morning we heard the horn of a dump truck out in front of Grandma and Papaw's house. Caleb got to take a ride in a family friends' dump truck and even get a load of gravel. He was pretty excited about it, to say the least. Who knows what this week will hold??!!