Road Trip - Atlanta

Thompson and Avery just returned from a quick road trip to Atlanta to visit a few of Avery's girlfriends from her college and Camp Merrie-Woode days. We stayed with Catherine, Avery's college roommate from all four years at Salem. College friend Jeanne and camp friend Lauren came over Wednesday morning with their children for a playdate and lunch. It goes without saying that we had a great time and simply enjoyed seeing one another, each other's child(ren) and catching up. I was reminded again that of the many blessings of such friendships, it is wonderful to be able to pick right up where we left off, all the while seeming like we saw each other yesterday.

Thomas and Sam Flores, Sam and Francie Thompson, Anne Bradley Maxwell & Thompson

Big Brother - Big Bed - New Room

Last night marked Thompson's first night in his new room...and while the room is far from being "finished", it was a move nonetheless. As he reminded us last night and again this morning "I'm so excited!"

In preparation for the arrival of Baby Jones and given the spatial layout of our home, we decided to move Thompson into a new "big boy" room and keep his original room as the nursery. This decision called for a bit of rearranging: moving our original home office (Thompson's new room) into the bonus room to create a playroom-office.

After four days of moving furniture, sorting through keep/donate/discard piles and organizing files, we are pleased with the layout and function of the new playroom-office.

As for Thompson's "big boy" room, we had temporarily moved a full mattress and box spring into the room while awaiting the arrival of his twin bed from Bobby's parents. After looking at the near-empty room, Bobby suggested we set up the full bed and offer Thompson the opportunity to sleep in his new room. Was there any doubt in his choice? The new room it was! Suffice to say, he was ecstatic! He even started emptying some of his dresser drawers to bring his pajamas and underwear into the new room. Oh, and we couldn't forget the garbage truck!

Selfishly, we like the new arrangement as it is MUCH easier for the 3 (or 4!) of us to pile on the bed for reading books and prayer time. Additionally, we like that this allows Thompson to adjust to sleeping on a larger mattress a bit higher off the floor without bedrails. We still have work ahead of us to "finish" his room, but for the time being - it's a welcome change for us all. Now, he keeps asking when he can set the crib up for the baby!

4th Reflections

We're back home from a weekend in Cashiers with family to celebrate the 4th of July.

Graham arrived via airplane Friday morning and Thompson was excited to pick up his Aunt G from the airport and head to the "mountain house". We enjoyed a leisurely Friday afternoon followed by dinner on the deck where we had to pull out our long sleeves to enjoy the cool summer evening under the stars and the near-full moon.

Saturday we hiked along the Chattooga River where we discovered a great fishing, picnic and swimming spot. Bobby got in some fly-fishing, managing to catch several small trout! And yes, Thompson walked every step of the way (I'm thinking a good 2-3 miles). On our way back into town, we stopped by Rusticks to see Annie and Poppy and then by our favorite ice-cream spot - SweeTreats - for just that, ice cream made to order! Back at the house, we enjoyed relaxing in the hot pool and watching Thompson demonstrate not only how big he's getting by standing in the center of the spa with his head and shoulders now out of the water but also how he can put his whole head under water. After grilling out hamburgers and hot dogs, we relaxed on the deck awaiting the night-time sky in hopes of catching a few fireworks displays. And to our amazement, we saw 8 shows before retiring for the evening!

Sunday morning found us nestled at the bottom of Whiteside Mountain at Summer Chapel, one of our favorite summer church spots in Cashiers. (If you are ever in the area between Memorial Day and Labor Day, be sure to make place to attend!) We enjoy the family atmosphere, folk music and fellowship. Thompson is always captivated by the musicians and their instruments - guitar, bass, piano, fiddle, banjo and mandolin - with his favorite Summer Chapel hymn this summer being "Down by the Riverside". And no service is complete until the old bell is rung!

As you can tell, it was another great mountain weekend. Here's to all those men and women who fought 233 years ago and continue to fight for the freedom that we, as Americans, are blessed to have.

First-time Movie-goer

Yesterday morning we took Thompson to see his very first movie on the big screen. Our local theater offers a free G and PG movie on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings during the summer, so we decided this would provide the perfect setting for a first-time movie-goer. And as you can guess from the picture, we saw "Charlotte's Web". Thompson did great! He was remarkably quiet and sat in his chair or in our lap the whole time. He made sure to point out how big the TV was, saying, "that's a really big TV." And of course, no movie-going experience is complete without popcorn! As one final note, for those of you who know the story, I'm sure you are wondering how Thompson dealt with the end of the movie. Afterwards, he told us "I didn't cry but my eyes were pumping out tears."

Baby Jones Update

Baby Jones's 18/19-week ultrasound was this morning with the entire Jones family present - Thompson included. It was amazing to see God's handiwork in the creation of this new life. The baby's heart was beating strong at 168 beats per minute...measured 19 weeks 3 days...and everything looks great! We are scheduled back in one month. A couple of the fascinating things we saw included the imagine of our baby's spine, which showed with clarity the individual bones and curve of the baby's back, and the four chambers of the baby's heart. Many thanks to those of you who continue to pray for a healthy pregnancy and healthy baby.

Cousins

Thompson with his cousins Tilley and Wyatt over the Father's Day weekend.

VBS

Thompson is enjoying his first experience with VBS (Vacation Bible School) this week at our church. Through the theme of the Australia's "Boomerang Express", he's learning about God's great love for him and growing in his knowledge of and love for Jesus through stories, scripture, crafts and music. Needless to say, he is having a great time!

Anna and Thompson ready for day one.

Thompson with Pastor Bill pulling the cord to blow the train's whistle.
Needless to say, Thompson was on "cloud nine"!

And if you are wondering about the status of the crayon-colored carpet...it's still there...we've been so busy since Friday, that we've yet to find the time to work to remove it. We'll keep you posted!