Oxford, Mississippi

In November Josh interviewed for a position here at Ole Miss in Oxford, Mississippi. I already knew that he is awesome at what he does and they would be lucky to have him. So he was indeed offered the position and he accepted on November 30, 2012. We began planning our adventure, found somewhere to live in Oxford in a neighborhood called Twelve Oaks, and we began the process of packing up our home in Boone, North Carolina. It was a lot to get packed but somehow before Christmas we had everything ready to go. The day after Christmas we made our way back to Boone with Jake and his girlfriend Kathryn. On the 27th we made our way to Oxford and got about 30 miles or so outside of Atlanta and decided to spend the night. On the 28th we finished our adventure to Oxford and then unloaded all of our many boxes to be put away in just the perfect spot. Makenzie did very well during the move.

Josh started his new job on January 2nd and he has LOVED every minute of it. He is excited to be working here and loves the people that he has met along the way. Makenzie and myself also just jumped right in to figuring out the town and finding somewhere for me to work and for Makenzie to go to school. Makenzie goes to First Baptist Church Weekday Education in Oxford, Mississippi and I also teach there as well. This great town has so much to offer. The pride, spirit, and friendliness are just a few reasons why we are enjoying our time here in Mississippi.

A New Church Home

We have been visiting churches in this area the entire time that Josh and I have lived here in Blowing Rock/Boone, NC. When we moved into Boone closer to our jobs we decided to visit places closer into town. It wasn't until our daughter Makenzie was born that we really felt called to attend somewhere regularly and become completely involved. I think that this was a calling from the Lord. We know that it is the right thing to do to raise our children up in a Christian home. Josh has baseball season during the Spring semester and as Makenzie got older I began to take her with me to First Presbyterian Church. The first Sunday we were there I was reluctant to take her into the nursery since I had never left her with anyone besides a close friend or family member before. She from the moment she walked into the nursery loved it. She had a big smile on her face and ran right into the arms of the loving nursery worker. She didn't even look back to say goodbye which made me feel comfortable enough to go on up to the service. The people here are so warm and inviting and make us feel that we are at home. They have a great children's ministry and it's a place where Makenzie can really get involved and have a lot of lifelong friends. As soon as baseball season eased up Josh has been able to come with us to church. He has found himself enjoying it and meeting people as well. He likes the traditional style of worship so we both enjoy the 11:00 service together. We have been called to take the "discovery" class and learn more about the Presbyterian faith and then after these have been taken we are going to join the church and have Makenzie baptized. We are looking forward to this and can't wait to share this special time with everyone. Here are a few pictures of her Fourth of July Sunday- July 1st, 2012.

Makenzie Ann Porter and the Daily Life of the Porter's

Makenzie is now 1 year old. She had her pictures taken by Kayla Morton with Everyday Photography at Bass Lake in Blowing Rock, NC. She did such a great job. I think that we need to use her for everything that we do together, big and small events. I think also that it would be fun to have her at other occasions than just birthdays, such as MerryLand graduations. She was very personable and made sure that Makenzie had her own cupcake for the cake smash. She also had balloons that Makenzie could play with and laugh with. She also had the letters that spelled out one so that Makenzie could play with them. It was a rather chilly day but we still kept with the same outfits for Makenzie so that she could show off that she was about to turn one.

We have not blogged in a while and we are excited to report about the daily happenings of Makenzie Ann Porter. Her birthday was on May 31 and she enjoyed her time with the family fully. We celebrated with Daddy a few days before her birthday, we celebrated on the day of her birthday with her class and her Nana and Papa, and then on June 2 she had a birthday party where lots and lots of friends came and celebrated with her. She had a great time. Here are a few pictures of her fun times for her birthday.

Makenzie Ann Porter

Makenzie is being welcomed quite wholeheartedly. We have received so much support and love and just can't wait to actually meet her. Right now I have come to experience what being pregnant is really all about. I have started having more indigestion, heartburn, sour stomach, and I am thankful that it didn't happen until this last part of pregnant because if it had been in the beginning I don't know if I would have been too happy with this whole process. I am now 28 weeks tomorrow- Sunday March 27th, 2011. We have 2 showers scheduled. One on April 9, 2011 at Mary Stiles house given by Brandy Sappington and Mary Stiles for Jennifer Wilkie and myself and the other is on May 7, 2011 at our house 760 Blairmont Drive given by Marie Hamrick (my Mama), Carolyn Burgess, Natalie Burgess, and Andrea Lunsford. I am so excited to see everyone and to welcome Makenzie in with love. Here is a new addition that we made in Makenzie's room last weekend. I have a few belly pictures to come.

For your info:

We are registered at Babies R Us and Target! The Target website has 2 accounts for us for some reason but the one that actually has things registered on it is the one to use. The other one doesn't have anything on it at all except for a gift card symbol. Thank you!

Baby Porter

It has been a long time since I have posted on this blog but now that we have a new addition that is going to be added to our family, I will make a conscious effort to update this as often as possible. September 12, 2010 was the last date that I had my lovely visitor and we discovered in October that we were pregnant. I made an appointment at Watauga Women's Center and they had me have my blood tested on a Wednesday and then again on a Friday to see if my hcg levels were elevating over time. They were and they determined that I was pregnant. Then we made that first appointment that is to be had at 8 weeks. I attended this appointment a little bit early- about 6 weeks because of previous issues with getting pregnant (back in April/May). The doctor that did these ultrasounds was Dr. Shirley. At 6 weeks the heartbeat was not well defined and we were asked to come back the next week to have another look. At 7 weeks and 3 days we saw/heard the heartbeat. At that time the heartbeat was at 145 bpm I do believe. It was so fabulous to see this and we couldn't be happier. On December 8th we had a nurse visit where we gave all of our family history to see what the baby and myself could/could not be at risk for in the future and then on December 29th we had a regular gynocologist visit. After this we had blood drawn to test for Down's Syndrome and Spina Bifida and both of these things came back negative. This was a very good thing. Then on January 20th we had an ultrasound to determine the sex of the baby and they said that IT'S A GIRL. We had another ultrasound on Wednesday February 9th to take another look and the doctor still confirmed that it's a girl. Her name is going to be Makenzie Ann Porter. We are so excited!

Some other things that we have done over the past few weeks is to order the changing table and the crib. Josh put these things together fast and was more than happy to see his finished product. I think that he felt needed and excited to get this done because he just wants the little one to be here now, as does the rest of the family. Josh's Mom has gotten us a diaper bag that has many colors on it and also a pacifier that is an Alabama pacifier. You will see this in a few pictures. More to come...

The Back to School Blog

Josh and I have both started back to school and very successfully I might add. Josh has gotten the opportunity this semester to teach a weight training class. He has never taught a college level course before and he is very excited about it. He has 14 people in his class and I personally am very excited to help grade their tests when they take them. I secretly love this and used to help my Mom grade papers when I was growing up in Belmont. I have nine very lovely four year olds in my class. There are seven girls and two boys in this class. I can't believe how many girls there are but they all seem to get along so that is a good thing. I have also started taking two classes online this semester as I work towards getting my birth through kindergarten licensure. I know that some of you are thinking, wow, isn't she ever going to be finished with school? I feel like this sometimes too and hope that I can get these classes out of the way fast and get this licensure.

Maggie and Lady still are doing well. Josh had a few mishaps with Maggie getting away from him while he was taking her out so now I have this job of taking her out pretty much everyday so that she won't run away anymore. We'll see how long that this lasts for. She is like houdini! I'll keep everyone posted on her whereabouts.

Summertime in the Mountains

It has been a while since I have posted anything on here. We have been through many exciting things since I last wrote. I have seen many friends that have had babies, school year has ended, preschool graduation has happened, and the mountains are beautiful. Josh and I just celebrated our 2 year anniversary on June 21, 2010. We went to the grand Linville Caverns and looked at the inside of a cave. It was so cool to see the stalagtites and stalagmites and stand on the rails above a bottomless pool. It would be scary to fall in there. You would never get out or be found. I am glad that we didn't fall in. After all the groups that go there you would think that this would seem quite scary. We purchased a chess set in the gift shop that is onyx. It's pretty cool and I'm glad to add it to our living room. It's black and white so it matches the decor in the room. After going to Linville Caverns we adventured to the Blowing Rock in Blowing Rock, NC. I hadn't been since I was a little girl and Josh had never been before. We enjoyed the views and took pictures of the flowers. It was beautiful! It makes you thankful for God's creation. He was smart when he created such a tranquil place. For dinner we ate at The Speckled Trout where I actually had crab cakes. They were delicious and accompanied with a cheese and vegetable casserole and rice pilaf. Josh had fresh trout stuffed with shrimp and crab meat. He said that it was so yummy that he didn't know what to do with himself. After dinner we relaxed together and watched a movie at home. It was our idea of a perfect anniversary celebration.

I never thought that it could be possible but I love Josh more today than I did when we first got married. I think that I love him more everyday and am finding out the true meaning of being married. He inspires me to be a better person and helps me to realize what true love is all about. He is off to Philadelphia today to enjoy the NATA and get to see some friends from UNCG which he always loves to do. I will keep you posted with things from the convention.