Raising 4 Monkeys: South Carolina and Emporia, VA...

Well, we have started planning our move to South Carolina. I have mixed emotions.
I am a Virginia girl...An Emporia, Virginia girl to be exact. Even though, there is absolutely nothing there, it's HOME. It has a certain smell, a certain scenery, a certain hold over a person's heart. There's nothing like the smell of fresh tilled soil, peanuts, and pig manure *lol, I had to throw that in there*, and seeing all of your cousins, aunts, and uncles in Walmart at 4'o clock in the afternoon and seeing the good ol' Emporia police and Sheriff's department have someone pulled over on the little stretch of 58 between Lawrenceville & Southampton County.
My kids are Virginia Beach, Virginia kids...they love the smell of salty ocean water, the feel of sand under their feet, and seeing the jets fly low from Oceana...and they love the jet noise. We have made sure since birth that they know that the jet noise, though loud and obnoxious during your favorite tv show, is the sound of FREEDOM. It's the sound of men & women signing away their lives to the Navy to serve and keep them free. That noise is like a lullaby to them...it puts them to sleep.

Then there is South Carolina...
I am looking forward to the move. It will give Greg and I some time to rely on each other. To get to know each other again. Time that we need. I need the change of scenery...it's a new start for us. We found our dream house that we are both in love with. We hope that it stays vacant until we can get there. We are looking for a new church and trying to mentally prepare ourselves to leave Forest Hill & Thalia Lynn behind. I have to prepare myself to leave my family and friends behind which is going to be hard. Right now, we are 2 hours from "home" so I can jump in my car and head to Emporia for the day and not think anything about it. But, once we get to SC, that's going to be hard since it's an 8-10 hour drive with 3 kiddos. I'll miss my sisters and my brother the most. Amy & I have gotten so close as we have gotten older. I can't imagine not being able to drive down to go shopping with her for the day or go to the movies with her...and our sisterly gossip is the best! My baby brother, David, and I are also really close...He is still the baby that I will forever have to take care of, just because. I will miss our chats and his drunken random phone calls on the weekends, I will miss him telling me how goofy I look with all the piercings and asking me why I did something. As for my other 2 sisters, Katie & Kelly, I am sad that I will miss the births of my 2 new nephews/nieces. I have gotten to be there for everyone but Brianna's...because I was living in Michigan.
I will miss hanging out with CJ and his making me laugh. I will miss Melissa, we are so much alike in so many ways. I will miss doing the pageants with her and going out to eat and getting pierced. I will miss Sheree and Mark...Just because I love them so incredibly much. I will miss Katie B...who has been there for me through so many things. Then there is Tim...my friend from Liberty University who sets me straight when I am wrong. I will miss Lettie, Goldie, Courtney, Karen and all the ladies from M4C (though I haven't been to a playdate in ages). So many people that have touched our lives in such a short time (well except for CJ...I've known him since we were young). I will even miss Lang...because he drives Greg up the wall and he likes my cooking!

Mine & Sheree's Shamrock tattoos...B + S= BFF