Heavenly Father's Timeline is Perfect

We've lived in New Bern for a little over a year now. We moved here because Adam got a job promotion, and it allowed me to stay home with Arden...huge blessing! She was 4 weeks old when we made the move. We moved on her due date. Heavenly Father knew I had to have her early, because we were going to be moving. Perfect timing.

New Bern is a quiet place where almost everyone drives 10 miles below the speed limited. The downtown area is beautiful...I can't say the same about the rest of it. If you want to go shopping, you'll need to take a 45-minute drive to a town nearby. What's also 45 minutes away? The beach! I've never been to the beach so much in my life. Arden's been to the beach 4 times before she was one! We've been able to see 6 of the 7 NC lighthouses. Old Baldy, we'll get to you someday.

Life in New Bern has been nice. I've met lots of friends from church. I also have a couple of aunts and uncles who live here, and my sister Catie lives only 45 minutes away. Funny how I've only seen them a handful of times since we've moved here. Life is busy.

Pretty much ever since we got here, Adam's been itching to get closer to home. A posting for a grocery manager would pop up in Raleigh, Fuquay Varina, Charlotte, Winston-Salem. He'd always post for them, but he'd never get offered the position. He didn't have any connections there. As time went on, it seemed less and less likely we'd ever get out of this place. Adam was thinking he'd have to settle for an assistant manager's position just to be near our family. Our lease expires Nov. 30, and we opted to rent month-to-month...just in case. Then, last week, a position opened up in High Point. He posted for it, and they called him for an interview. Adam made a few phone calls and sent a few emails...he has connections in that market! He was one of only four applicants, which is remarkable, and the guy said Adam was at the top of the list. Really?! It seemed too good to be true! The guy said he would let Adam know by Friday. Friday came, Adam got a call, and he was offered the position. Hurray!!! He starts one week from this coming Friday.

I will miss my friends in New Bern. I didn't even get a chance to say good-bye to most of them. As of Thanksgiving Day, I'll be living in Greensboro. Adam will come back to New Bern on the Friday after Thanksgiving to get the moving truck packed up. After unloading it in Greensboro on Saturday, he'll come back to New Bern for his last week of work. I'll be car-less in Greensboro, but my mom will help me out. She's soooo excited! She already found an apartment for us. We've signed the paperwork, and it's ours.

So, you see, Heavenly Father knows what's waiting for us. If we're just patient, all will work out for the best. We're so incredibly blessed!!!

Breakfast...

It's the most important meal of the day!

This little munchkin has officially weaned herself!

My baby's growing up...*sigh*

This is November?

Today was absolutely gorgeous! I couldn't believe it was a November day. I promise it was like in the mid-70s. We headed over to Union Point Park for a little picnic and stroll. Arden absolutely loved all the birds in the water. She kept pointing at them. At one point, this duck sounded like it was laughing, so Arden did, too. So cute!

Pointing...her favorite pastime!

There were some interesting looking ducks. A couple were just black and white!

Check out that string of drool! Did I mention she's finally cutting her first tooth at 13 months?!

She loves to swing!

Kidsville!

There's this really cool playground in New Bern called Kidsville. I've always wanted to check it out, so we did last Monday. It's like a little city for kids, and the whole thing is made of wood. There are a few movable parts, though, so it could be considered a death trap...but it's pretty awesome nonetheless!

Of course, the first thing we hit were the swings.

Cute little mermaid! Not sure what Adam is...

Weee!

Now this is how to work a zipline. :)

Adam spotted this toad just before he loaded up the car. hehe :)

We had a great time!

Books-a-Million

A couple of weeks ago we headed over to Books-a-Million for the first time. I was hoping they'd have a children's area like Barnes and Noble, but it wasn't to be. Arden loved all the books and grabbed every one she could get her hands on. In the end, I didn't leave empty-handed. I'm now the proud owner of Bananagrams! Anyone want to play?

One-Year Residents

We moved to New Bern exactly one year ago today. It was Arden's due date, although she was almost 4 weeks old at the time. I must say it doesn't really feel like we've been here a year. I still feel like a newbie. I do have friends, but I don't hang out with them as much as I'd like. I'm still such an introvert. I'm pretty much always at home with Arden. Isn't it sad that we've never invited anyone over for dinner? Not just in New Bern...but since we've been married. I'm not sure what our deal is. We really need to step out of our comfort zone and be more social.

Our lease expires on Nov. 30th. For some reason our leasing agent doesn't feel the need to return our calls...don't know what her problem is. We were thinking of moving to a different place, like an apartment, to save a little money. Moving just isn't worth it, though. We're looking to renew our lease for another 6 months. Adam is hoping to find another grocery managment position a little closer to home within that time. We'll see what happens!

Jump, Baby, Jump!

I got this doorway jumper for Arden months ago. She seemed to like it at first, but then she started to cry every time I put her in it. She never jumped in it, either. So, I put it away for a few months. I decided to get it out yesterday to see if she liked it now. I put her in it during my shower, and she loves it! She jumps and spins and jumps some more. Too cute!

Stake Conference

Last weekend was Stake Conference. Adam didn't get much sleep the day before due to the fact he had to get up earlier to watch Arden while I went out for a Girls' Night (yay)! So, he opted to sleep after he got home from work. I decided to go anyways. I was about 30 minutes late and had to park a little far from the convention center. Once I got inside the building, I stayed in the hall and never stepped foot in the ballroom. I really have no idea what the speakers said. I was hoping to at least see Catie there, but that didn't happen, either. About 10 minutes before it was all over, Arden got super fussy. I went ahead and called it quits. I called Catie once I got to the car, and she said she would come by the house later that afternoon. She did, and Arden loved every second of her visit.

She's very interested in reading about Jungle Babies!

Yay Aunt Catie!