First, a moving update...
We are still working on various house projects to make the house more saleable. Everything is much slower with a toddler. Saving Noelle her from mortal peril (i.e. ingesting paint or cutting off digits with the power saw) and keeping the cats from diving at the walls as I spackle has extended the length of several projects. (I can lock the cats up, but Noelle, not so much.) Fortunately we've had a couple neighbor gals come play with Noelle for an hour or two which helps tremendously. We hope to have everything complete by early next week.
No, we haven't started packing yet. We have to finish the house first for potential buyers to take a walk-through and to get the nice shots and video of each room for the Internet. Then we can start boxing up knick-knacks, wall art, and the like.
We will be traveling down to Chattanooga on Monday and Tuesday August 4 & 5. Eric will be either driving a U-Haul with our belongings and our VW chugging along behind, or he'll drive our car down while someone else handles that particular headache.
Noelle and I will be flying. Our relationship with our little munchkin and each other are worth more to us than attempting a 12?, 13?, 14? hour journey in the car. (Noelle doesn't do long trips in her car seat. The last 2 hour trip we took was filled with tears, kicking, screams, 2 extra stops to run around outside, and still more tears. We figure since she was introduced to a car seat only 4 months ago, we'll cut her some slack and she'll catch up eventually.)
But back to the flying thing-- me alone, without my husband, in a large unfamiliar airport and time on our hands (2 1/2 hr layover in Charlotte), with a short little kid who runs fast in airline terminals (and elsewhere) and hates the plane seat belts...yikes! Rather than give in to my tendency to be a worry-wart though, I'm working on viewing this journey as an adventure and an opportunity for further bonding with my daughter. (I would love to hear your ideas for keeping a toddler safe and happy while flying. Feel free to post a comment -click below on "Comments".)
This is where I ask everyone reading this post for PRAYER:
-for Eric's safety while driving
No, we haven't started packing yet. We have to finish the house first for potential buyers to take a walk-through and to get the nice shots and video of each room for the Internet. Then we can start boxing up knick-knacks, wall art, and the like.
We will be traveling down to Chattanooga on Monday and Tuesday August 4 & 5. Eric will be either driving a U-Haul with our belongings and our VW chugging along behind, or he'll drive our car down while someone else handles that particular headache.
Noelle and I will be flying. Our relationship with our little munchkin and each other are worth more to us than attempting a 12?, 13?, 14? hour journey in the car. (Noelle doesn't do long trips in her car seat. The last 2 hour trip we took was filled with tears, kicking, screams, 2 extra stops to run around outside, and still more tears. We figure since she was introduced to a car seat only 4 months ago, we'll cut her some slack and she'll catch up eventually.)
But back to the flying thing-- me alone, without my husband, in a large unfamiliar airport and time on our hands (2 1/2 hr layover in Charlotte), with a short little kid who runs fast in airline terminals (and elsewhere) and hates the plane seat belts...yikes! Rather than give in to my tendency to be a worry-wart though, I'm working on viewing this journey as an adventure and an opportunity for further bonding with my daughter. (I would love to hear your ideas for keeping a toddler safe and happy while flying. Feel free to post a comment -click below on "Comments".)
This is where I ask everyone reading this post for PRAYER:
-for Eric's safety while driving
-for our belongings to arrive in one piece
-for Noelle and I to have a happy and uneventful journey
-for a smooth, healthy transition into our new home and life
-for our house to sell, soon and very soon!
-for our new church family in Chattanooga
-for our friends we leave behind in Richmond
(Please feel free to post your prayers here on the blog.)
Now about that blog title...
Since I won't have Eric's help in corralling Noelle in the airports, I decided to take the suggestion of several moms and purchase a child-leash. I searched the Internet and found several great options, but ended up finding something great today at Target. It's actually a harness with a long looped strap for the parent to hold. I was afraid Noelle would hate it and hold a strike by laying on the floor refusing to move (this is what our cats did when we tried to put them in cat harnesses once...). But the fact that this harness is actually an incredibly cute and cuddly puppy dog (she loves dogs in a big way) won her over.
In fact, she couldn't be happier wearing the safety device. She hopped and skipped proudly from store to store as we ran our errands. Then when we turned the harness around so the doggy was on her tummy instead of her back...oh, the oo's and ah's and cuddles that ensued! It was truly a love fest with her "Rah-Rah" (that's what she calls dogs, 'cause that's the sound they make).
Oh, I wish you all could have seen her! She was so happy that her personality oozed out everywhere. Eric and I fell in love with our daughter all over again. She also drew quite a bit of attention at the restaurant and stores we visited. Folks stopped us several times to chat with Noelle...and sometimes even with us. With that furry dog strapped to our sweet munchkin, the 'cuteness factor' was at an all time high. What a fun evening we had as a family!
Several times this evening I whispered, "Thank you Jesus!" for finding a workable solution to our mommy-daughter trip (yay! for the inventor of this fabulous device!), but mostly for the precious gift of FAMILY.
Now about that blog title...
Since I won't have Eric's help in corralling Noelle in the airports, I decided to take the suggestion of several moms and purchase a child-leash. I searched the Internet and found several great options, but ended up finding something great today at Target. It's actually a harness with a long looped strap for the parent to hold. I was afraid Noelle would hate it and hold a strike by laying on the floor refusing to move (this is what our cats did when we tried to put them in cat harnesses once...). But the fact that this harness is actually an incredibly cute and cuddly puppy dog (she loves dogs in a big way) won her over.
In fact, she couldn't be happier wearing the safety device. She hopped and skipped proudly from store to store as we ran our errands. Then when we turned the harness around so the doggy was on her tummy instead of her back...oh, the oo's and ah's and cuddles that ensued! It was truly a love fest with her "Rah-Rah" (that's what she calls dogs, 'cause that's the sound they make).
Oh, I wish you all could have seen her! She was so happy that her personality oozed out everywhere. Eric and I fell in love with our daughter all over again. She also drew quite a bit of attention at the restaurant and stores we visited. Folks stopped us several times to chat with Noelle...and sometimes even with us. With that furry dog strapped to our sweet munchkin, the 'cuteness factor' was at an all time high. What a fun evening we had as a family!
Several times this evening I whispered, "Thank you Jesus!" for finding a workable solution to our mommy-daughter trip (yay! for the inventor of this fabulous device!), but mostly for the precious gift of FAMILY.
Unfortunately I didn't have the camera with me this evening. So these photos were taken when we arrived home.
2 comments:
We had a "Kid Kuff" for Matthew and David when they were shorties, and it provided wonderful peace of mind when in busy places.
Hey, if you guys need help getting the house squared away.... don't forget that Ernie used to paint for a living. We have also moved twice with wee ones - once all of 1800 miles from California. We are also expert packers (especially Ernie - Mr. Marine), so if you need any help....
Ernie & Nancy
Dear Johnson family,
My family, the men's prayer group and other members of your new church family have been fervently praying for you each and every day. I will include my personal prayer.
Dear Heavenly Father,
I pray that you provide our new pastor and his wonderful family the energy and strength to overcome the challenges, both physical and emotional they will encounter in the next few weeks. Please help their home to sell quickly, Noelle to have an easy transition in both travel and adjusting to her new home and for safety in their journey to Chattanooga. Help us to be faithful to our new friends and support them in this new journey. Father, we are excited but will also be praying for your church in Richmond. Open our hearts and minds and keep us looking forward in furthuring your kingdom. In closing, I pray that you pour your blessings out on this family. We know that we must continue our ministries and our outreach as well as take on those developed by Pastor Eric. Thank you for revealing yourself so unmistakebly in these recent days.
Amen
sincerely - Jonathan Shields
Chatt. First Church Of The Nazarene
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