a new adventure for aunt jen

i've been trying to find time to post about my sisters recent move to texas!
after moving to san diego right after college and living here for 9 years,
she was ready for a change and took the opportunity to start anew when a job
offer came her way.

she moved just south of austin this past weekend but before she made her
trek across the western states, we visited kate sessions park for a little photo shoot.
i have some wonderful shots of her, but as a courtesy need to get her permission.
i will share one i snapped of her and her nephews.  it was the only one where all
three were smiling. {getting scout to cooperate was near impossible}.

finn {10}, aunt jen, and scout {6}

 

we will miss aunt jen.

she's been a constant in the lives of the gerber family for so long.

beyond c and i, she has been the boys' biggest supporter.

 

when i shared the news of jen's move with finn oliver,

he frowned and responded "but jen is my favorite aunt."

i let him know that she can still be his favorite aunt.

she just won't be physically here in san diego anymore.

we can and will stay in touch with her regularly.

 

then he said "but she basically raised me mom".

i chucked and thought, where was your father and i the past
10 years?  australia?  *grin* 

 

what finn was trying to say is that aunt jen has been there for him

through every special occasion in his life since birth - for every one of his birthdays,

exhibition nights at school, piano recitals, skate nights and they've enjoyed many
sleepovers.  auntie jen is like a second mother to him. 
{and definitely a more fun one}

 

as jen settles into her new life,

there are empty places in all of our hearts as we will miss her.

all those happy memories we have will remain with us and

skype sessions and phone calls will hold us over until we see her again.

 

to make aunt jen's move to texas easier on everyone,

christopher and i only spoke of her move as one big exciting adventure.

our family loves adventures, so the boys could relate to jen wanting one.
 

jk rowling, the boys' favorite author, 

says it so well in her book, harry potter: the half blood prince:

 

"let us step into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure".

 

here's to many adventures ahead for aunt jen!

 

chicago

come on babe,
why don't we paint the town,
and all that jazz...
- all that jazz, from the musical chicago

i can't get this song from chicago out of my head today.

my sis, jen took me to see the musical here yesterday for my birthday!!

it was so entertaining.

the venue, like ljph, was small so every seat was excellent.
not only was the venue wonderful, but the actors, choreography
and dancers were uber talented. watching them made me want to
start taking swing dance and jazz classes again. SERIOUSLY.

i'm pretty sure i was tapping my feet the entire production which
may have been annoying jen {but if so, she never let on} *grin*

and there's more.
a friend of jen's, that she has known since her high school,
was IN the production - SO cool. he played the character amos,
roxy hart's husband.

if you are familiar with even the movie, you might remember the
song cellaphane, a solo sung by amos.  that was jen's friend.
he rocked it!  {and we stuck around to tell him this after the show}.
it was FUN afternoon at the theater.
i'll remember it for years to come.  thx j. xo

~ we arrived back in san diego just as scoutie's soccer game started.
i had c filling in for me on the field {coaching}, since i didn't think i'd make it,
but since i was in white jeans, i sat back and watched my little lightning bugs play.
i got to see scout score 2 goals too and maybe his biggest grin ever.

a sister or a puppy

the best way to get a puppy is to beg for a baby brother -
and they'll settle for a puppy every time.

- winston pendelton

several times over the past six months, finn has asked christopher and/or i for a baby sister.
the first conversation occured when i was setting the table:

finn: mommy i really want a baby sister

me: (almost dropping a dish) why would you want a sister finn? you have a perfectly good baby brother.

finn: but he's not a girl mommy. we have 3 boys in our family, and one girl. we need another girl.

me: we do have 3 boys and just me, but i think four is the perfect size family for us.

i thought the idea was out of his head but it came up a second time.
finn crawled into bed with me on a lazy saturday morning.
scout was asleep and christopher was in the shower and finn started kissing me all over my face.

me: WOW. what is all this sugar for buddy?

finn: i'm making a baby sister mommy.

me: *shocked* um, that's not how you make a baby finn.

finn: well how do you make a baby mommy?

me: (OMG - he's 5 yr old - why is he asking this question). why don't you ask dad.

finn: (walks into the bathroom where c is) dad, how do you make a baby?

christopher: silence

finn: are you listening? how do you make a baby? mommy said to ask you.

christopher: we'll talk about it later ok?

finn got distracted and later never came.
i don't think neither of us were ready to answer that question - not YET at least.
luckily, c was able to distract him by talking about plans for the day,
but that came out of nowhere.

it was just another reminder that he isn't a toddler anymore.
he's a curious little boy with alot of questions.
c and i have discussed getting a dog, but it's a few years away.
we want to them to be old enough to help care for it (we really need more space too).

i've always loved the look of a beagle,
but i don't know anything about the breed.
i figured we were still years away and i had time,
but if finn doesn't let up with the sister talk,
a dog might be closer in our future that we planned. *smile*