Best Friends Forever.

I am getting misty eyed just uploading the pictures to this post.

The sweetest friends you could ever hope to have took time out of their Fall Break to come visit us.

If you've read this blog for any time, you know about Aubrey's BFF Lauren.

The two of them met at a Gymboree class in Oklahoma before they turned one-year old and have been two peas in a pod ever since. 

It had been over a year and a half year since the girls had seen each other.

They've written letters, sent little packages, and texted (via their Mamas' phones).

And when they finally met up again this past weekend, it was as if no time had lapsed since their last playdate.

It wasn't just Aubrey who was able to spend time with her bestie. Words cannot begin to describe the hole in my heart not having Keri 5 miles down the road.  She is absolutely wonderful -- a genuine friend and an incredible mom. Everyone needs a Keri in their life. I miss mine SO much!

Time went by way too fast, but it was such a sweet weekend getting to be back together again -- the "Original 4"!

Coming Up for Air

This poor old blog.
So neglected.
I had to look back to see what the last post was about -- how sad is that?

So.
Time for an update!

We left Oklahoma the first week in June and went to Kentucky to visit family.

Wait, let me back up a second...

I had one last Mom's Night Out with my best friends in Oklahoma.
They gave me a scrapbook that they had all filled with pictures and favorite memories of us together.
I cried (hard) right there at the table at Othello's.
These ladies were sent straight from Heaven.
I miss them so much my heart hurts...

The day before we bid adieu to Oklahoma, Aubrey was going to see her best friend (Lauren) one last time. That morning her mom let me know that Lauren woke up with the stomach bug. When I broke the news to Aubrey she was beyond heartbroken. She had been working on a special photo album to give Lauren filled with pictures of the two of them since they were 1-year-old. We decided to go to her house and let them say their goodbyes through the window. It was the most heart-wrenching goodbye I've ever witnessed. Aubrey (and I) cried the entire way back home, poor Mina even started crying because of us! Best friends are so special -- it's devastating when you have to say good-bye.

Here was the front/back cover of the album (notice the broken hearts), and a snippet of what Aubrey told me to write on the inside. My favorite line: And I hope that you know I love you more than rainbows.

Goodness...it was such an emotional time!
That afternoon we packed up a trailer to take to Kentucky and unload long-term storage items (we really didn't want to bring EVERYTHING to Cleveland for one measly year!).

The LONG drive from OKC to KY has never been easy.
This was our first time to travel a long distance with BOTH girls and a 12 foot U-haul.
It was...an adventure.

And in case you're wondering what was going on in the photo above...

After over 13 hours of (delirious) driving, we rolled into Kentucky just in time for a gender reveal party!

My sister is going to have a baby boy! I'm going to be an aunt!
We don't have many boys around our family, so this will certainly be a fun change!

The rest of our time in Kentucky was crammed packed with visits and trying to find some time to just relax!

 

Before Daniel drove back to Oklahoma to finish up the rest of the packing, I wanted to have a celebratory dinner in honor of his completion of residency. To say we are proud of him would be a massive understatement. 

Because of timing and logistics, the girls and I stayed in Kentucky while Daniel officially graduated from residency. A fellow resident wife sent me this pic of the graduation. Daniel also won the RSNA Research Award. Seriously...the man is a stud!

There were five graduates in Daniel's class, and they each had a slideshow to chronicle their life up to this point. Here was the slideshow for Daniel...he's come a long way! :)

Dan Riherd from Ashley Riherd on Vimeo.

We kept ourselves busy while he was gone by going to Holiday World, for starters...

Aubrey and Mina had a BLAST. They each rode every ride that was available for their age/size.
I didn't take any pictures during the waterpark, but they both cried when it was time to leave. The true sign of kids having fun! :)

We also made our way to a nearby zoo...

(Aubrey's perfecting her "wink")

We even squeezed in some fun time with friends!

This is Miss Aubrey and Miss Vivian sharing a sweet hug while they played on the most incredible playground I've ever seen! Miss V's mama and I are childhood friends -- I'm sad we didn't get a picture together! Then again, it was blazing hot that day and we were both puddles of sweat after chasing our littlest ones around all morning!

Then we had a fun visit with my bestest friend since preschool Sunday School! Aunt Lay Lay!!

And last but most certainly not least...(before Daniel left for Oklahoma) our dear friend Ann Wade drove ALL the way to Owensboro to see us! Daniel actually planned it (Husband of the Year Award) and had her bring her camera. Check out her blog to see some of the photos she took! I am absolutely obsessed with them -- she captured our crazy little family perfectly!

And lastly, both my sister and I were together to celebrate our Dad on Father's Day!
I can't remember the last time this happened!

In fact, we were able to spend so much time together, we all started dressing alike... :)

It was the perfect couple of weeks to get ourselves geared up for the big move to Cleveland!

A Double Scoop of Bittersweet

It's hard to prepare a 4-year-old for a 1,052 mile / cross-country move.

Especially when she LOVES her friends, her school, her whole entire life!

We've read books, incorporated her in packing up boxes, let her choose toys/clothes to donate, and talked about moving for awhile; but I knew we needed something concrete. 

A way to give her closure on saying good-bye.

A last Hurrah!, if you will.

So, with all the luxurious free-time we have before the big move (major sarcasm), I invited all her friends (playgroup and school) to an Ice Cream / Park Farewell Party.

We hired Roxy's Ice Cream Social and stamped FREE! on an ice cream notepad to hand out to our guests. We brought lots of sand toys, ice cream bubbles, ice cream cone sidewalk chalk, and lots of bottled waters.

It was the perfect, low-key way for Aubrey to see and play with each friend one last time.

{Maddox, Owen, Edie, Milan, Scout, Lauren, Evie, Sydney, Graham, John, Claire, Logan, Landry, Jack, Jake, Ellie, Nicholas, Andrew, and Gracie.}

The kids all had a great time.
And the ice cream was seriously delicious...even mixed with a few tears.

It was a memorable, bittersweet day.

Easter Happenings / Ramblings

After a long Spring Break, Aubrey was more than ready to hop back to school.
Probably because I told her the class was going to be having an Easter Egg Hunt!
Can you tell "somebunny" was super excited about it?!

I noticed as we walked into the church that none of the other kids had their baskets.

Evidently the flyer sent home before Spring Break said Monday was egg drop-off day and Wednesday was the actual egg hunt. Poor Aubrey -- all decked out in her bunny dress, basket in hand just ready for a good old time. Luckily she handled the news well, "That's okay, Mom! This means I get to wear my outfit again!"

And wear that outfit again, she did!

Here she is -- two days later -- just as excited as before! 

(Have I mentioned before how much I love this girl?!)

I'm going to be honest, I kinda struggle with Easter.

I get a little squeamish when I feel like Jesus gets trampled over by a bunny.

So, I try to find ways to include Him in secular events.

Maybe it's totally lame or maybe even on the fringe of being sacrilegious, but well...here's what Aubrey and I came up with this year...

Just two days later, it was time for the Laws Annual Egg Hunt!
My sweet honey-bunny and my little chick-a-dee grabbed their baskets and were ready to go!

It was, as always, SO MUCH FUN!
And I love that Jennifer incorporated framed scripture verses throughout.

The girls were all smiles and giggles! 

(Except when I had to get Mina out of the bounce house when there were bigger kids wanting to bounce!)

So, one unexpected event took place this year: Aubrey took one look at the Easter Bunny and announced, "That's just a person wearing a costume, Mom!" When I pulled her to the side and asked her why she said that, she said, "Mom, I have eyes -- I can SEE that it's just a person wearing a costume." What do you say to that? So. Well. I guess that does it for the Easter Bunny. She still humored me and let me take her picture.

There was no way Miss Mina was going to sit in that bunny's lap. It scared her half to death, and honestly, I didn't feel it would be wise to force the sweet girl to do it.

When it came to the actual hunt, I was curious to see how our littlest chick would do.
She was downright precious with her basket propped on her shoulder like a purse (she LOVES purses). She spotted a pink egg and opened it immediately to see what was inside.

Aubrey found tons of eggs, all the while keeping a running inventory with each stride. 

When she saw that Mina only had one egg, she voluntarily gave some of hers to little sis.

It was so sweet, and Mina was pumped to discover new treasures inside! 

I don't know why the girls have a confused look on their face in the picture, but Daddy sure looks handsome. :)

Little Sidenote: Right as the whistle blew for the kids to take off and find eggs, a little boy fell hard and just laid there crying. While his parents were trying to encourage him to get up, Daniel dashed off and collected tons of eggs for him. It melted my heart. He's the best.

Last year while I was helping Jennifer set up for the egg hunt, we spotted a ladybug. Jennifer said, "Next year, you'll have your new little one here! I just know it!" (Read more about it: last year's egg hunt and this story is featured on Chickabug.) It was so, so special being there as a family of FOUR.

Later in the weekend, Aubrey and I set up a little Easter cupcake decorating "shop" while Mina napped.
I'm really trying to make an effort to do some Aubrey-focused activities during those rare moments it's just the two of us. I let her have full reign when it came to decorating, and she had an absolute blast.

Aubrey asked me to take a video of her and her "Cupcake Shop" -- I must say this a super random video. 

*And just so you know, we moved Mina over to the table after filming. ;) 

By the way, did you see that post-nap cowlick?! Love it!

Each night starting twelve days before Easter Sunday, we did our Resurrection Eggs as a family.

I'm hoping this goes smoother as the girls get a little older, because most nights it ended up being a fight over who got to open the carton and color-coded egg. Talk about DRAMA.

On Good Friday, Daniel took Aubrey to our church for a self-guided walk-thru of the defining moments of the crucifixion. At the end, there was an opportunity to nail one of your sins to the cross. Daniel said Aubrey nailed, "Yelling at Mina." Too bad this got nailed on the 10th day of the Resurrection Eggs. ;)

Easter morning we made resurrection rolls. 

I think we might make this family tradition...it was so nice to be gathered around the table, reading the Word, and making the story of Easter more hands-on for the girls. 

Phew...it was definitely a full week leading up to Easter!

I am thankful for all the moments that created opportunities to talk about the amazing, miraculous love of Christ. What an incredible God we serve!