the great migration...

my computer, tucked away upstairs in our new house, finds itself much more abandoned these days. between playing, cleaning, unpacking (yes, i am still digging my way out of the garage), feeding, diapering, and all other tasks mommy-related, the computer gets put last on my to-do list. even though that list is imaginary. maybe if i had a to-do list i would get more done. i doubt it. i would actually get less done because instead of doing something i sat around and wrote a list about what needed to be done. i am sad that i have not spent more time chronicling this time in our life. moving to a new house is a big deal. changing states is a big deal. harper changing schools is a big deal. and i have not taken the time to write it down for posterity.
i love our house. i feel at home. i love riding down the road and seeing all the cows and horses and trees and hills and knowing that this is our home. my children will have the gift of living somewhere clear and beautiful. i love that they have a room to make a huge mess in and that the door to that mess can be shut. i love that the kids are thriving. harper's transition to a new school has been relatively smooth. there have been moments that have caused a bit a strife, but she has handled herself with her usual confidence. watching her at this school makes me realize how much her last school was like prison. without question i find a challenging school to be important, but not at the cost of their childhood. i find myself entertaining the thought of homeschooling more and more every week. maybe one day we will walk that road. calvary is making huge leaps dealing with sensory processing disorder. he has seemed so much more balanced. i attribute that to having more of a desire to be outside playing, running, and riding his bike. it is amazing how much these activities serve as a calming agent on his life. there has been a notable increase in his anxiety. we have to check for exits on every bathroom, i have to account for every place i will be INSIDE the house, i am not to go outside at all, the gas tank has to be full, we all have to be not only in eye range but close by when playing outside, and the list really could go on. we are loving him through all of this and for the first time in a long time i am not totally pessimistic about kindergarten in the fall. before i tried to convince myself that everything would be okay. now, i am actually starting to believe it. without question there will be days that are rough for him (and consequently tough for his teacher and classmates) but i know that there will be good days too. he is excited. and since we live so close to harper's school i have made it a point to go and eat lunch with her once a week. she loves it and it is also led to calvary being much more excited about the prospect of joining the fun. we always peek in on the kindergarten classroom on our way out and usually they are sitting on a rug listining to a story or watching a movie. everything seems so calm and peaceful. i think calvary was surprised that the kids were not tied up and being prodded with hot pokers. oliver jack has not tried to run in the road. he has not tried to jump off the stairs. he has not attempted to draw on any walls. he has only stolen apples out of the fruit bowl, chips left on the counter, over filled his water cup, put his hands in a bucket of paint, find my stash of bendaroos, turn on the water to bathtub countless times, taken the backs off and batteries out of countess toys. he has napped well and slept well. he has snuggled and played. he has been happy to be emancipated from the car for what used to be at least 2 + hours everyday. finley has been super cute. she, just this week, has started showing interest in being down on the floor. she has shown signs of trying to crawl. she loves playing with her brothers while harper is at school. she loves being toted around by harper once she gets home. even though she is 9 months old and still very much like most 5-6 month olds, i feel like she has just started growing up so much. i love that kyle does not despise his commute. he traded his 5 minute commute for a 30-40 min commute and he has handled it with such a good attitude. i miss having him home for lunch everyday, but now he gets to go and eat at his parents house and spend some time just to himself. having that time to think non-kid thoughts must be invaluable. i wouldn't know :) i love that have so much more time in the day to do stuff. i don't have to choose between cleaning or playing anymore. i can do both.
obviously i believe that this has been a good move for us. we are still waiting for the dust to settle a little more, but the days have been good. i am ever grateful for the blessings that God has given us.