It's late Tuesday night here - Joe is putting the last of his things in the truck - he'll be pulling out in the early AM - headin' for Forsyth, GA - he'll be there for a few days doing orientation & then will head on down to Richmond Hill (our 'new' home town, 15 mins from Savannah)

This is Levi's new way of smiling - he scrunches his nose up a little and squints his eyes - he's sporting his latest injury: a fall that hurt his nose

Reading Barnyard Dance for the thousandth time, I love that he loves books, he continually brings us books to read to him - he'll hand one to you & then turn around backwards, ready to back into your lap for a good read

I'm always behind the camera - I'll occasionally ask Joe to please document my existence, as I photograph his every endeavour - me sipping wine on the back porch during the late afternoon

Sunday - a quick break from packing

"It never fails to amaze me how a society that participates in the viewing of violence, sex, mean-spiritedness, and idle gossip as entertainment can become 'outraged' seeing the act of breastfeeding" - a line from a newspaper clipping Grandma sent me on the topic of breastfeeding.

Completely random fact for your day: dryer lint can be added to your compost pile.

And I did it all in my Jerry Garcia tie!...

Finished! - a newly passed Master of Science

Joe with Dr. Warren

In the forestry school courtyard - waiting for the verdict

Joe & Susan - Susan was an enormous help to Joe with his stats! - she's a PhD candidate in the forestry department working on similar quail research

Really close friends in graduate school, it's funny that Joe & Max both defended this week - and both start their new jobs next week - we'll be an hour away from Max once we move to Savannah - he'll be a manager on Groton Plantation in South Carolina

"And I did it all in my Jerry Garcia tie" - my favorite Burnam quote of the day

Carrie made the day by watching Levi for the entire afternoon while Joe and I were on campus

Today is here

Years of work, and the grand finale is hours away - Woohoo!!! - Joe started taking night classes for this degree in Fall of 2003! - Congrats, I love you! - Many pics to come...

Wednesday already

I can't believe it's Wednesday already - suddenly it's here & Joe defends tomorrow - I'm getting nervous for him - and then he'll be gone next Monday & I won't see him again for several weeks - there's still so much to do & pack - I haven't even begun to empty the attic yet, what a job ahead - the weeks ahead seem daunting, especially here alone with Levi, he's a full time job by himself

July rains

Packing mantra: do we need this / do we need this many / do we use this / can we part with this? REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE

As more & more of our 'stuff' finds its way to the local Goodwill drop off center, I experience something akin to 'buyers remorse' - except it's more like 'parting regret' - coming from a lineage of packrats & misers, my genetic predisposition is to hoard - I picture a news clipping Carrie has on her refrigerator door: it is a photograph of Ghandi's worldly possessions at the time of his death - the entire collection would not fill a shoebox - genetics can be modified by environmental conditions and therefore, it is an axe rather than a scalpel I am using to 'trim' away our possessions

Thursday night

Thursday - such a busy day, I'm exhausted tonight - I have a yard/gardening gig on Thursday morns for a lady in town & then this afternoon was one of my last times working for Locally Grown - 230 orders tonight, a record! - LG will be one of the things I miss the most when we move - it's such a part of my weekly routine & the food is amazing - we've renters lined up for our house here in Athens & Joe will begin the search for our next house when he arrives in Savannah on the 17th - He defends his thesis NEXT THURSDAY AT 1 O'CLOCK - so give him a thought!

Liza & Cory's wedding

We went to Jennings this past weekend for Liza (Joe's oldest sister) & Cory's wedding - a wonderful day in a beautiful setting - an old plantation home with towering oaks & and expansive lawn - Levi was the ringbearer & kept himself busy the entire day running & exploring

Oops! I changed him out of his tux too early! The wedding party & Levi flirting with the flower girl.

handsome in his customized tux

After attempting multiple pics with a squirming child, Joe & I decide to just get a good one of ourselves - notice Levi running in the background!

getting ready to be pulled down the aisle - Levi occupying himself dismantling the flower arrangements

Joe with two of his first cousins - making all the children second cousins