Ella Barnes Running Club

Ava's new love is the running club at her school. She is too young to be on it but they allow her to run if I run with her. We have had so much fun and she is doing so well. Fortunately, she has some experience in "pacing" herself and most of the other kids just want to go all out and burn all of their energy in the first half mile. We are so proud of her. Last week her club ran a fun run at Texas A&M CC and Adiah was kind enough to run with us. Ava blew us all away. I hope she sticks with it because I really think she has the ability to go far with this.

If someone knows how I can turn these pictures please share...

Mrs. Collins, Ava's running coach and wonderful 2nd grade teacher.

A little warm-up before the race.

And she's off..

A small part of the running club.

After the race

Just a Normal Saturday in Corpus

The view from the incredibly long line.Watching the sailboats...what a wonderful way to wait in line. Getting tired of waiting...The Christmas tree forest. I was expecting extravagant. Ella Barnes sponsored tree. Australia



Adiah's school sponsored India but we didn't get a picture with that one. Oops!

I am really starting to feel the very near move tonight. I don't know why it is hitting me so hard now but ouch! I am really going to miss my life in Corpus. Today was such a beautiful day. 85 sunny and windy. Perfect. The sun was hot and the wind was cool. Just the way I like it.

The girls and I started our day off by going to the Art Museum of South Texas with our friends. Well, it was supposed to be fun and festive but, after waiting in line for about 45min just to get in and then waiting in line to see the Christmas tree forest everybody was just ready to go. I was a bit disappointed with the exhibit. I expected so much more. At least Adiah and Ava were able to spend some time with Karston, Camee and Kayden.

While we were waiting in line or, while I was waiting in line and they were running around playing, I was able to enjoy the beauty of Corpus Christi bay. You may laugh at that last statement but, it was so pretty and I am going to miss it every day.

Later this afternoon the girls and I took a walk down to the bay and they ran and played with the tumble weeds and I sat and texted pictures of them to Jason. I had never seen tumble weeds until this fall. They are so strange to me. The girls loved running wild and we had a great time.

BFFs Kaitlyn and Ava

Halloween 2010

Halloween was fun this year. Momma and Daddy came to visit, Ava was baptized and we went trick-or-treating. Oh yeah, there's nothing like halloween in Corpus Christi. For some reason everyone seems to participate in some way or another. The neighborhood next to ours is huge and it is a candy haven. We can only make a couple of streets before our bags are full and our kids are done.

Adiah was Moaning Myrtle from Harry Potter. Apparently she is a ghost character who lives in a toilet at Harry Potter's school. Ok, I just went along with it. She has gotten so far into those books. Once she started reading them she never stopped until she finished the last one just a few days ago.

Camee is Adiah's BFF. She was a cat. I love the glasses. Adiah is going to miss her very much.

I don't think that I've ever seen so many adults dressed up for Halloween. These people are hilarious. And no, I didn't dress up but I wish I had.

Ava was a little Senorita or a salsa dancer. She had to have high-heels for this costume but they only lasted a block before she switched to her tennies. Karston was the scientist from Phenius and Ferb. Duffensmirts??? He was perfect.

Not too far into it this is where I found Adiah.

Kayden was a pretty ballerina.

Hahahahahhahahahahah. I think this guy is hilarious! Hahahahahah

Goodnight Ava!

We were so glad that Mimi and Papa were able to trick-or-treat with us. We don't get to see them much and it was a great time. It was also perfect because Ava was baptized that day as well. I feel a bit funny posting pictures of her baptism on fb but it is a perfect way to let friends and family who weren't able to see it get a little glimpse of our special day.

I'm so proud of my little Ava!

Goodbye Corpus

Moving again...I guess that's what we do. It's only been two years and here we go again. I realize that this is all God's plan but it sure is a pain. Don't get me wrong, I am excited but I am also sad and scared a little bit. Georgia is so far away from everyone and everything that is comfortable and familiar to me. Thankfully, the locals will have a much more severe accent than us this time.


I didn't realize how "country" I sounded until people here started asking me to "talk". What??? I sound funny? No, I sound just like you do. Well, no I really don't. This was one of the first things I learned here in Corpus. That one was easy and painless. Along with learning about my accent I also learned a few more things during my two short years here.


The first lesson that I learned was that no matter how much you put yourself out there you will not feel settled and a part for about 6 months. I met a girl named Bridgette about a month after moving here and she helped me understand that very important lesson. However, I couldn't see it at the time. I was told by many people that it was totally up to me and if I was going to make friends then I would have to "come out of my shell and get out of my comfort zone." Well that I did. For those of you who have known me for some time you know that I do not like to make small talk and I am very uncomfortable in new situations especially when I don't know ANYONE. OK, I was not myself. Yes, I got out of my comfort zone but who in the world was I? Not Allison. I was so eager it was embarrassing. Everyone that I met got a hand shoved in their face, "Hi, I'm Allison." It was a bit pathetic. I went to NNL meetings with Bridgette and was determined not to look like her shadow so I would make my way around the room introducing myself to everyone and pretending to be interested in them and somehow make conversation. I had nothing in common with these women and knew that I would not form lasting friendships with them. It was horrible. So not comfortable. But I did it. Because that's what everyone told me I had to do. Bridgette and I did not stay in touch but she helped me through a very tough time and helped me realize that I was OK and it just takes time.


Another person who really helped me was Ms. Bea, the librarian at Ella Barnes. She allowed me to volunteer in her library and while I was there she introduced me to so many people and really pushed me to get involved in different activities. She was definitely a big support and a great friend to me.



Another major leason learned was how important it is to be involved and be "a part" of a good bible based church. We spent a lot of time floating from one church to the next trying to find the perfect fit. Each time I thought we were there we would go looking for something else. We were looking for perfection and we were not going to find it. Hopefully, we won't make that mistake again.

I learned to enjoy year-round flip-flops and intense heat. I learned to enjoy the smell of salt and fish in the morning and just be thankful that we live so close to the water. I've come to appreciate rust on the doors and light fixtures outside and now I'm not critical about how worn the roofs look and how fast the homes weather. Basically, I've learned not to judge a book by it's cover. Because that's what I did when we first came here. I was not impressed and not happy about much of anything. But now I have seen Corpus Christi for what it is and what it can be and I have loved it. I never dreamed that we would have all of the opportunities that we have had in this town. There are endless free activities for our family to enjoy. We will miss the Hooks and especially the IceRays. I'll never forget the first time I saw them throw real stingrays on the ice after they scored. I will miss the Texas State Aquarium. I can't count how many times we went there but every time we would notice something new. I never went on the Lexington but that's OK. I got to see it from the harbor bridge tons of times. I think that's enough for me. I will miss eating at Laguna Reef , a hole in the wall resturant on Laguna Madre. I am sad that I won't be able to run The Beach to Bay relay marathon again. But, I will always be proud when I say I ran the third leg over the Island bridge. I will never forget the first time I ran on Ocean drive and was completely beat-up and choked by an insane amount of sand. And yes, I will miss the wind terribly. When people complain about the excessive wind they have never experienced real intense heat with 100% humidity and no wind. Welcome to Tyler, Tx. Not pleasant. I have a feeling that that is what I will experience in Georgia and that does not appeal to me at all now that I have discoved something so much better. Wind!!! I will miss being able to see the bay from Ava's bedroom window when I stand on my tip-toes and lean really far to the right. I will definitely miss our walks and jogs in the evening. Running straight into a 20-40mile per hour gust of wind. The water is beautiful and worth every second of it. I will miss taking the long way home after dropping Ava off at school just so I can look at and appreciate the stillness of the water. I will miss Ella Barnes Elementary and all of my friends that I have grown to love and appreciate.

Of course, I will miss our beautiful beaches. For those of you who don't think they are beautiful you just haven't been at the right times. I will miss finding tons of sandollars in the water after a hurricane or tropical storm. It was really hard for me to search for them at first. Digging my toes into the sand with water up to my waist is not very high on my to do list. It's a thrill though when you start finding them and then you don't want to stop searching. We brought about 25 live sandollars home on Labor Day weekend. I will miss watching Jason take Adiah, Ava, Cole and Sadie out in the blow-up boat and playing out there for hours. I will miss being able to watch the release of the sea turtles as they make their way to the water for the first time. And knowing that only one will live a full life. I am sad that I never slept out on the beach with a fire. I was really looking forward to doing that this fall. I will miss seeing the massive amounts of stars that you can see out on the Island at night. It's really unbelievable.

I will miss feeling like I'm on vacation when I walk outside every day. I love to look at the field of grass and mesquite trees across from the entrance to our neighborhood. I will miss the endless amounts of 5K, half marathons and triathalons. No, I never participated in a triathalon and I never will (I hate to swim) but I loved knowing I could if I wanted to.

Above all else I will miss the Bright family. They have been our support and basically have become part of our family. I have loved watching all of the kids play and fight and grow. Well, I didn't enjoy the fighting but I guess that's just what happens when five kids are together every day. We trained for and ran the 3M half marathon in Austin, went to the Air show, played on Bird Island and the kids spent a lot of time playing "City". I still don't know exactly what "City" is but they sure did make a mess with it. Tents were all of my house. Cans of food on the stairs for a grocery store. Whatever it is, they had a blast. We spent endless days watching the kids in the pool laughing and talking. And of course plenty of time at the beach. Amber introduced me to political events and I have actually started to enjoy learning about it. We met Rick Perry, Medina (she's crazy), attended a debate (honestly, I don't remember what they were running for but I enjoyed it). We attended the Tea Party in San Antonio and saw Glenn Beck speak, a Tea Party in Corpus and the 911 memorial service. I never would have attended any of these events if I had not met Amber. So thanks Amber for opening my eyes to something new.

I hate that I won't be able to see Kayden on her first day of kindergarten and hear about how well she behaved until someone took something from her on the playground and she socked them. I will miss how she snuggles up in my lap but ONLY when she feels like it. I hate that I will miss Amber's graduation in December and Ava won't be able to ride home with her everyday and have her as teacher like we talked about so many times.

When I moved to Corpus Christi I didn't think that I would ever find a friend. And now I have tons that I love and one that I'm going to have a very hard time leaving. It's so amazing how God puts people in your life when you least expect it and takes care of you when you think you are at your worst. He carried me through our adventure in Corpus and I know that he will carry me through our adventure in Georgia.

Back to School Vacation

Off to San Antonio for our last hoorah before school starts.

Adiah loves to go to the Alamo. This is probably the 6 or 7Th time she's been there. Occasionally, on Saturday's they have exhibits outside to show the weapons etc. that were used at that time. The people working the tables wear period clothes and she gets excited about this every time.

My future history buff

We had a great time at our hotel.

Ava loved the pina coladas.

We ate at Chunky's-famous from Man vs. Food. It was so good. Normally I couldn't care less about where we eat or what we eat but this was good. I will definitely want to go back. Jason said his burger (jalapenos and a slab of cream cheese) was the best burger he has ever had. This is a San Antonio must.

My beautiful family.We got to roast marshmallows and eat smores at the hotel. The girls loved this.So did I. Yum

This was a great ending to a wonderful summer.