Sorry it has taken us so long to update, and I am going to start off by saying this post will have no pictures of Hank…sorry! Our camera came with us but our charger got packed on the moving van, so who knows when we will see it again!

Well, we all made it to Washington safe and sound! Jason, after driving for 3 days and 2400 miles, and Hank and I after a long 7 hour flight (not to mention the two days of packing/moving without Jason before the flight). My wonderful mom, Nana, came with us (and I am not using the word “wonderful” lightly here because she was a life-saver on this trip!) All 4 of us met in Portlnd, OR on Friday night and stayed the night there and then headed up to Centralia, WA the next morning. We are currently staying with Dr. Polley who is the head of the practice where I work. She is so kind and gengerous and opened her home to the entire Bynum family, including one toddler tornado, until we get into our house. And, we will hopefully have a house soon! We actually closed on Monday evening, but we have to wait on Fannie Mae to finish thier part, so we might not get the keys, to said house, until Thursday.

In the meantime, I started my new job and it has been crazy! There is so much to learn, and I am actually a little (make that a lot) out of my league here! But everyone is so kind and very willing to help me in this process, no matter how SLOW I am. This is a good thing and I really couldn’t find a better group of doctors to learn from. One of the really neat parts of the clinic is that it is truly a Christ-centered enviornment. I have been prayed with and for more time than I have been corrected, so I am couting that as a win! Before we left on this journey my dad remided me that God has a history of using “the most unlikely canidates”. So, I constantly remind myself that this is exactly what I am, an unlikey canidate and I want to soley be used by God. And, this makes me feel a little better about my frighteningly obvious lack of skill.

On another note, Jason and Hank are doing really well. Hank has had a little trouble adjusting due to the fact that the sun comes up at 5am and doesn’t retreat until well after 10pm. He also has lived on a diet of french fries and chicken nuggets for a week, and until we can move into our own space this will probably continue. So you can imagine that he has been a little WILD! Considering all of the major life changes he has been through, I think he get major points in the flexability department (many more than his momma!). And, Jason by night is a computer wiz, and by day is the BEST stay-at-home Daddy. I came home from my first day at work and both of them had black eyes! So, needless to say, they are having a blast. Hank is currently OBCESSED with the soccer ball and wants to “kick it” all day every day.

I think that is about all the updating I have in me at the moment but I promise some good pictures as soon as possible.

P.S. It is freezing here and there is NO HUMIDITY. I have seriously been wearing sweaters everyday, which we didn’t actually pack because who thinks to packs sweaters in June?!?! Lucky for us Nana scoped out the local outlet mall and now Hank and I are nice and warm in our long-sleeves!

Jason and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary on June 6th! I have spent a wonderful and crazy 5 years with the man of my dreams, however our anniversary evening this year was not so wonderful! Jason’s sweet parents (and Aunt Lucy, of course) came up to keep Hank so we could have a special evening to celebrate. It has been a really stressful week, planning for our big move and trying to squeeze in time with all the people we love, so we were not really in the mood to be super fancy. I put on a dress and flip-flops (see, not too fancy!) and Jason took me to my very favorite restaurant in Nashville, Germantown Cafe. We waited at the bar for a few minutes, had a glass of wine, and adult conversation. It was truly lovely, and no sooner had we ordered and Jason has a beautiful lamb shank in front of him, that his phone rang! Grammy was on the other end, concerned because water was coming up through the carpet! We pay for our food and inhale few quick, mouth-watering bites (just enough to leave you longing for more) and head home to assess the damage. And, damage there was!!! After calling my dad and the emergency plumber, it was declared that a water pipe had burst under the floor in our bedroom. So, the plumber, Jason, and my Dad commenced to sawing large holes in the walls and floor of our bedroom. They found the leak and stopped it, but not before setting off the smoke alarm and, cue screaming Hank, for the one-millionth time! Finally the water stopped leaking and we all made it into bed to await the “Anti-mold” guys at 9am. They came and ripped out more carpet and more wall and I am currently typing in a man-made wind storm of fans. We also have boards with nails sticking out everywhere where the carpet was ripped out, just beckoning my son to tumble over them and gouge his eyes out. Did I mention that Hank bursts into hysterics every time he hears the fans, which translates into every second we are home and he is awake. It is going to be a glorious 3 days! Oh by the way, we are in the process of packing to move across the country next week…SUPER fun doing that in a Category 3 Hurricane. If you read the last post carefully, you will also note that our stove is broken…HA! What can you do but laugh at this point!

I thought it might be fun to look at at our anniversary from years past…

Year 1 (This is not the actually picture. We have a picture but can’t find it and this was taken around the same time)

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

Year 5

Jason,
I love you! Dave Matthews said it best (sorry for the super cheesiness, but it is exactly how I feel):

“See you and me
Have a better time than most can dream
Have it better than the best
So we can pull on through
Whatever tears at us
Whatever holds us down
And if nothing can be done
We’ll make the best of what’s around”

There is no one else on the planet that I would rather spend the night fixing broken water pipes with! Thanks for always making the best of whats around. You are my hero! Happy Anniversary, Love. I hope we have many more, and I have a feeling they are just going to get crazier!

On Friday we got the opportunity to celebrate a very important person… My Dad or, as Hank calls him, Elvis! It has been a busy year full of changes and we really just wanted to slow down and take some time, as a family, to let him know that he means a lot to us! What better way to celebrate than with a homemade, semi-disastrous dinner?!? Jason grilled some steaks, which were excellent, but our oven broke in the middle of roasting potatoes, so those were not so excellent! Also, my first go at the cake tasted like soap, probably from the pan, and luckily the second cake was a little tastier. My Dad, as usual, was a very good sport and appreciated all our effort. He even went as far as to say, his birthday was even more special because now we will remember it for a long time! HA! Leave it to me to make it “memorable!”

Everybody BLOW!

Peas in a Pod!

That is DANGEROUS, Elvis!

Yum Yum

Hank got him an Elvis magnet!

We LOVE you, Elvis and maybe next year we will have the perfect party!

WE HAVE A HOUSE! Well, technically we wont own the home until our closing date, which is currently set for June 25th. However, our offer has been accepted by all parties involved and we are now on the road to being home owners. We are so excited and ready to post some pictures of the house! Of course the pictures don’t really do it justice, but it is as close as we can get.

Font Porch

View from the front door looking into the Living Room(don’t mind the girl with goofy grin in the dining room!)

Living Room view from the stairs

Dining Room

Downstairs Bathroom

Kitchen

Guest Room (Gross paint color will be changed!)

Hank’s Room (will not stay yellow!)

Little “nook” in Hank’s Room

Hank’s Bathroom

Master Bedroom

Closet (Awesome!)

Master Bathroom

Somehow we managed to leave without getting any pictures of the backyard or the garage. Both are great and we even have a privacy fence! We are so excited and continuing to be prayerful about this big decision. God has made this whole process possible from day one and we are so thankful for His provision!

Jason and I got back into Nashville last night after a busy 5 day trip to Washington. Our intent in traveling was to find some sort of living accommodations and I am happy to say we did! In fact, as we speak, we are smack-dab in the middle of buying our first home!!! We feel really blessed and assured that God has paved the way for this big decision. We are purchasing a home that was in foreclosure, so there is still one more step int the process that could cause the deal to fall through. Our Realtor, who is amazing, is very confident that things will work out in our favor, but there is a slight chance that they wont. SO we have decided not to post a bunch of pictures until we know for sure (which should be sometime this week!).

In the meantime, here is a little recap of our trip. We spent most of the time with our Realtor and Leasing Agent looking at homes and signing about a million (extremely intimidating) documents.

Our first day of house hunting (look how excited we are…after seeing about 20 homes a day, we were a little more lethargic looking)!

We even went on a special date in Olympia. We ate at the most fabulous seafood restaurant, Anthony’s, right on the marina. It was so delicious and we got to watch the sailboats come in and out of port…so FUN! Also it was really amazing to be looking out over salt water and see huge mountains. It was really beautiful!

On our way home we had a stop in Las Vegas. They even have gambling in the Airport! Since we were only in the city for about 20 minutes, we tried our luck on the slot machines…

…we lost $7

Hopefully, I will be updating soon with pictures of the house. We are praying a lot and keep all of our fingers crossed!

Well this week is when Jason and I head back to Washington to find a place to live. We are excited and nervous and overwhelmed…mostly that is me being overwhelmed, this is not an emotion Jason routinely exhibits. Anyway, we both have a lot on our minds these days and that probably won’t change much in the near future. We are asking for prayer in this crazy time. We got new this weekend (3 days before our trip) that we may have some complications with our house loan, and it may not be possible for us to actually buy a house until we have lived WA for 30 days. So, we might be renting for a while. That wouldn’t be the worst thing ever, but moving across the country, starting a new job, adjusting a toddler to an entirely new way of living, and then moving AGAIN in a few months is a little more than I can process. However, we are certainly a bit nervous about buying a house 2400 mile away from anything we know. On top of this we can’t fully make moving plans until we have a place to move too…all of this is supposed to happen before June 15th (including our family being totally moved). So, needless to say, we are relying on God to lead us through this uncertain time! We ask you all to be in prayer for us too. We know that His hand has been in this process the whole way and we are hoping that we have faith and clarity of mind to hear His direction clearly. I am taking a camera this time and I hoping to post some picture along the way, so stay tuned!

In the mean time, here is our “Mother’s Day Family Picture”! Both my boys make this day really special and I am so thankful for them!

As a mother, Mother’s Day has grown so much more special to me. Not
really because I get a gift or get to choose were we go to lunch, or
feel like I get to be in the spotlight all day. It has become so
meaningful to me because it is a time of reflection, not only on my
personal journey as a mother but that of the courageous women who have
gone before me. Something about experiencing labor and the trials of
motherhood allow you to see your own mother in a whole new way! I
have been so blessed to have so many women in my life who have
graciously mentored me though various seasons and have made me the
person I am today. One very special person who has contributed a great
deal to my life is my mom. If you are blessed to know her, I am sure
she has touched your heart in some way. She is independent, strong,
and generous. She is fearless, she doesn’t easily quit, and she can
get anything done! She has had a hand in raising three of the most
diverse children on the planet and somehow managed to not squelch our
personalities but enhance each of our uniqueness’s (if that’s even a word). Life has dealt her many difficulties and she has not always chosen easy paths, but she is a fighter and a survivor. She has fought endlessly for her children in circumstances that seemed insurmountable to most. She has fought for us and fought with us, and she has won each impossible battle that she has faced! My mom and I are so different in so many ways, which at times can be both frustrating and hilarious. But in so many of her differing qualities I find a strength and a perseverance that I will continue to strive for.

With our big move ahead it would have been so easy for her to lay on
a guilt trip and be angry at us for taking her only grandchild
across the country. However, instead she has been supportive and
excited for our family. She has shed tears with me about the fears and
the realities of this major decision, and she has even started planning
her first trip to visit the West cost. Her support has been invaluable
to me during this time and has shown me kind of beauty that can only
come from a mother’s love. As we both enter a new season of life,
I hope she knows that she is why I am feeling extra blessed on this
day!

Hank got a special treat last night… A bubble bath! Daddy always has such fun ideas!

Bubble Kisses

Grumpy came up to visit us last weekend and, of course, to run the half marathon! Jason, Hank, and I got to go to see him run. Hank was so excited to watch Grumpy run and even cheered on all the other runners!

Taking a cheering break to wear Daddy’s shoes

We found Grumpy at mile 4! RUN GRUMPY RUN!

We even got to see some more friends! Ms Julie and Ms Sharon from my work…they ran the whole 26.2 miles!!!

And we saw Chris…look closely, he is fast!

After mile 4 we went around to the finish line at the Coliseum. To say it was crowded would be an understatement. So, the Bynums found the only square inch of shade available and parked ourselves. We kept ourselves pretty entertained until Grumpy found us!

We found Aunt Alex and her buddies!

Alex and Chris

Grump was a little worn out…it was HOT!

Grumpy finished with GREAT time and we are so proud of him! In fact, since Saturday hank will randomly break out into yelling “Run Bumpy!” and take off running…super cute!

The Flowers Girls invited us to play at the zoo with them this week. Of course, we accepted… I would NEVER turn down a chance to go to the zoo and Hank would NEVER turn down a chance to see Charlotte!

We saw a few of our favorite animals but spent most of the time playing in the bouncie house and on the playground…which is awesome!

Hoe cute are these two?!?

Tackle!

Don’t worry! Miss Charlotte can hold her own! Maybe that’s why they play so well together?

Sweet Caroline

It took us a little while but we finially found the smaller kids playground which was really fun and way less crowded. We had to do some major “off roading” in the strollers but it was totally worth it!

Charlotte was kind enough to share her sunglasses with Hank!

We love these girls! We are keeping our finger crossed that they make a move for the West coast sooner than later!