Memories

Well, here we are again, getting ready to take on another move, a new city/state (kind of...we lived in Syracuse 9 years ago, so it isn't completely new), packing, unpacking and adjusting.  I really don't mind moving...it helps make you clean out closets, purge and have a garage sale (which I do all of those things often anyway...I HATE CLUTTER).  This move is a little different being that we own our house here and Josiah will experience his first move that he has friends he will have to part from (he was only 9 weeks old when we moved here).  He loves his little friends and asks daily (more like 10 times a day) who can come over to play, if we can go to someone else's house or if we can meet someone at the park!  Poor child is majorly going to miss his little friends and I will too!!!  I love all of the children he has developed relationships with (and I love their mommies too).  This will be a tough place to leave!  We love it here...and most of why we love it is the people we know and love.  Ironically, more than half of those friends are moving as well at some point in the near future.  Regardless if our friends are Clarksville residence of life or friends we have had the privilege of spending Army life with we will miss each and every one of them!!!

Tonight I spent some time putting Josiah's old clothes in space saver bags (and by the way, they actually work).  We are trying to cut our rubbermaid storage in half because we are downsizing a lot to move to NY, but I can't bring myself to get rid of his baby/toddler clothes.  I hope that we use them again someday on another sweet and precious boy (maybe Jeremiah or Titus or whatever other name we love).  As I was going through his newborn clothes I had so many memories go through my mind (and some were spoken to Josh as he is collecting his Army gear to turn into Ft. Campbell).  I must have said 100 times while doing this "Man, I honestly cannot remember Josiah EVER being that SMALL."  or "How did Josiah ever fit into this?"  I loved the outfit we brought him home from the hospital in!!  So cute!  I just put it up to my nose hoping to smell the sweet baby we were (and still are) blessed to have.   They just smelled like laundry detergent, but the memory of him in those clothes are still very strong in my head and heart!!!!!!!  I found tiny, tiny little socks - I am not sure they ever fit his chunky monkey feet, but we put them on him anyway.  I found sweet little hats and the swaddle blanket we have pictures of him in at the hospital.  All of those precious little nightgowns that he wore those first few weeks and many, many more cute outfits that made him even cuter than he was.  I am so glad to have those memories in my heart still after 3 and a half years.  (I am getting teary eyed just thinking about it).  Josiah has grown into such an amazing little boy!!  A boy that Josh and I were just talking about tonight...how he has become so silly!!  He does the silliest things that sometimes drive us nuts, but always makes us laugh!!  Like tonight in the car, I was telling Josh how he asks questions all day long.  He wants an itinerary the moment he wakes up of what we are doing that day...and then before going to bed he wants one of what the next day will bring "after I eat breakfast...what are we going to do?"  So, I was telling Josh all day long he asks things like that (I am not complaining, because I love having conversations with him)...I was giving an example like "what are we going to eat?" From the back seat, Josiah says "Mommy, we already ate dinner!!"  LOL.  I had no clue he was even listening to me...Josh and I just cracked up!!!

So, although I am kind of sick of going through our house and reorganizing before the packers come (and if you are a military family you know that it doesn't matter what you do the movers are still going to pack it in a disorganized fashion and you will end up redoing all of it on the other end of the move), I have really enjoyed going through his things especially and reliving his little life!!!  I love remembering him in those clothes and shoes...memories of things we did while he had a particular outfit on.  I hope to never forget those memories!!  We are blessed to have him...and as the time goes on that we only have him, it makes me even more grateful for his little life!!!  It makes me realize just how miraculous a baby/child is!!!  I have hope and faith that he won't be our only child, but if he is the LORD BLESSED US WITH HIM AND THAT IS MORE THAN WE EVEN DESERVE!!!  I can promise you one thing....there isn't a day that goes by that I don't thank the Lord for him and Josh being in my life!!!!!!!