Joel and I have been married for 14 years. In those years we have lived in 9 different homes. How, may I ask, does a couple who moves that much ~ and theoretically purges that often ~ acquire so much stuff??? Seriously. A little less than a year ago I unpacked our china and crystal for the first time since 1996. (I'm a skeptic and a cynic so it makes perfect sense to me.) That was a commitment to stay where we were - believe me. We even threw the boxes away. If that isn't a great example of God laughing at our plans I don't know what is. Instead, tripping over, buying, and moving into a new home all within a three week process was in the scrolls. Who knew? And all those horror stories of kids who hate their parents and grow up to be bitter, resentful, victims of childhood because they had to move? Fergeddaboutit. Their enthusiasm continues to surprise me. I wish I adapted so well. But we're wading through the boxes and settling in. I'm actually looking forward to the holidays for a different reason this year - extra time off to unpack and hang pictures. Anyway, until then, the door is always open and you're always welcome. Please visit anytime.

The slideshow is a collection of photos I discovered that hadn't been posted yet or of things that have happened since the last blog (a month ago?) There are some missing that I haven't uploaded yet including choir performances and a trip to the Pistons game. You'll no doubt hear Shannon telling her story of getting on the big screen at the Palace. Yep, fifty thousand people saw that one - except her mom, who was in the bathroom. For a mom isn't that kind of like a man being in the bathroom when your team scores the winning touchdown? The best part is that every time Emma or Joel tell the story to someone they always include the sentence, "And mom missed it!"

Anyway, it looks like we're rounding out 2008 with a new chapter of large proportion. Who knows - it might even be good for me. We've only been here 23 days and I've already unpacked the china. C'mon - that's gotta be step one in someone's 12-step program, right?