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So on January 22, 2012, we said goodbye to West Texas and hello to East Tennessee!  Our life seriously seems to have been in transition, umm since Elin was born!  Such is LIFE.  So much has happened, I have no idea where to begin!  Let's just say, we left everything we know (and I mean EVERYTHING), in Texas to come to Knoxville, Tennessee where we know NOTHING!  Well we know one thing... we better become VOL fans quick!! This place is swimming in bright orange, the area code is 865, that would be "VOL," (Seriously!?!), and you dare not say "Roll Tide,"  (whatever that means!).  I also heard a woman say the other day, "Well if ya want a small wedding just get married on a VOL football  saturday because NO one will come!"  HA! Seems a little on the crazy side of team spirit, but I didn't say that! All silliness aside, no matter if I am living here...

Or in Knoxville, here... (Quite Different, I know...but it has character and potential :) )

I will be just fine, because home for me is with my little fam, Keith, the Jake man, and sweet little "E."  And everyday I remember the night we decided to move here, Keith and I were playing out our future.  We had two options, to stay in Lubbock near our family, with lots of wonderful friends, an amazing church, and a somewhat planned out future for our children (HA!) OR we could take a huge step of faith and OBEY God and move 1187 miles away.  I said to Keith, "I just don't want to disobey" and he said, "We're moving." Yikes!

So, we were so blessed to receive a great relocation package from Keith's company that assisted with the move in every way imaginable.  We closed on our house the day after we go here, but the entire thing needed paint, a fence and a few other small things prior to moving in.  So we lived in the residence inn for 7 weeks (we had planned on 2 or 3).  Lets just say 7 weeks in a hotel with two small children is quite interesting! 

Jake loved the hotel life.  He loved having fruit loops everyday for breakfast, homemade cookies at 3 o'clock on the dot, and lots of swimming and more movies than I want to admit.  He was the official key swiper, "alligator" (elevator) button pusher, and laundromat  quarter loader.  He made lots of friends of course, the "cookers," Nancy and Suzie and the housekeeper, "Miss Tammy." He insisted on taking his dirty plate to the sink in the kitchen for them and often made his bed "to help Miss Tammy."  The staff was super sweet and spoiled the kids like crazy.

And little "E" turned 11 months there.   

In her 11th month, she got her 5th tooth, was still trying her hardest to get that walking thing down, and she also really developed a confident tone in her babbling. She has got all kinds of sounds and she is CERTAIN about what she is saying! She really started balking at baby food too.  Not that she wouldn't eat it; but she much preferred table food.  She also loves to drink from a straw, she looks so proud of herself when she does.  New words were, "Dink" for drink, "Te"for keys, "e" for eat, and "dake" for Jake. Oh how she loves her "Dake."

Elin just did her normal thing while in the hotel, unloaded the dishwasher, unloaded the toys from the bottom of the closet as well as all toiletry items from below the bathroom sinks.

 She read, and read, and read it seemed; as well as played with the same few toys that I had packed for the hotel for her.  She didn't seem to mind, but I was bored for her some days!

                                                   

 One cute thing that developed while there, is she somewhat demanded her night time "chat" with Keith.  Her crib was set up in our room, and she would just talk away at him when it was bedtime for her ( and him...he was going to bed pretty early those days!)  The days he stayed up later it was like she would babble (again with authority) until he would go in and have their little chat. He hated it:)

Another funny thing she started doing was carrying things in her mouth.  I don't know if it felt good on her teeth, that she was working on getting through, or if it was out of convenience!  Often times she would carry something in each hand and then an additional item in her mouth.  (Jake commented, "Elin sure has some funny tricks!")

Sweet "E" also got sick for the first time... pretty good for being almost one! But it is still so sad when little ones feel crummy! Just look at those eyes...

While we were living in the hotel we also talked a lot about love & celebrated Valentine's Day while living in the Residence Inn.  We made cards for grandparents and cookies for the staff as well as some watercolor hearts with special things we love about Daddy written on them for him. 

   

Elin also turned ONE while we were in the hotel. (BOO!) I was really hoping that we would be in our home by her birthday but we didn't quite make it.  So we wound up celebrating her big day with the SMALLEST PARTY EVER, but still special, a few weeks late. Pics to come, grandparents and great grandparents.

Well that's plenty for now, maybe too much for some.  More later from the "Knox Box" as Keith calls our house here.