We Made It

Marley and I made it to Nacogdoches! We dropped Asa off at his unit at 5:00 Monday morning, and then Marley and I hit the road. She was an absolute angel the whole time! I bought Mary Poppins on DVD and had Asa set up the portable DVD player for her before we left, and she watched it at least 3 times. She slept for a little while in the morning, and then we stopped at Panera in Joplin to have breakfast. Then she played, read books, watched Mary Poppins, and talked all the way through Tulsa. I had a minor turn-around in Tulsa, so it took a little bit longer than I wanted it to, but we got back on track.

I stopped at a playground in Glenpool and we had a picnic and played for a while. Marley had a blast at the picnic! She loved sitting on a blanket and eating out of an ice chest... she thought it was awesome! Once we got back on the road, she took an almost three hour nap, and we didn't have to stop again until we got to Henderson (about 45 minutes away)! And the only reason we had to stop there was because I needed to use the bathroom. Marley could have kept going all the way home!

My mom was here to greet us, followed by Joel a few minutes later. They were so excited to us! I was excited to, but I was so drained from singing, driving, talking, and dancing the whole day. My mom made my favorite meal (chicken pot pie) and my sister got home from work just in time for it! Marley LOVED seeing everyone... she couldn't stop smiling all night! She went on tons of trips in the backyard with Papa and wouldn't let him sit down and rest for a second. All the way home, she would randomly yell, "Mimi! Papa! Dede!" and that didn't stop once she saw them! My mom made MArley her own little bed once it was time to go to sleep. We both feel asleep quickly, but Marley didn't sleep very well. Fortunately, she is getting more used to it each night!

Asa got safely to Fort Polk, much later than we got to Nacogdoches. He was exhausted and still has no idea what he's really doing for the next month. Supposedly we will be able to go visit him on the weekends, but we are not 100% sure.
We spent all day today visiting people and relaxing at my mom's house. First, we went to Bill and Mary's house and Marley got to meet her cousins Levi, David, and Trinity, and her Uncle Tim and Aunt Amber. It was so fun to hang out with them for the morning, and even though Marley was shy I could tell she was happy to be around some other kids. I can't wait until we have more kids and we get to be in that environment all the time!

Next, we went to Donna's house and spent a few hours with Billy and Grandma. We had fun exploring the yard, looking at the new house, and eating lunch. Billy and Marley were really happy to see each other, and aside from a few sharing problems, it was blast. When we left, Marley looked like she was about to fall asleep, but somehow didn't take a nap the rest of the day! We spent the afternoon relaxing in the backyard and playing in the sprinkler. And by the time we came inside at 5:00, Marley was exhausted! She ended up going to sleep for the night at 6 pm! I was nervous about letting her, but it ended up working out just fine. She needed the sleep!

I am so happy to be here in Nacogdoches, but I do miss my hubby! Marley and I will enjoy our time here with everyone for the next month. Asa took the laptop with him, so I don't know how often I will be able to blog, but I will try my best! We will have a lot going on, and lots of beautiful pictures to show off!