first day of preschool

august 23rd, 2012      nine o' clock.

i fixed her a big breakfast this morning.

cinnamon oatmeal, toast, strawberries and milk.

("wow! this looks delicious!" ha) 

she started getting fussy but i tried to insist she eat,

since it was going to be a whole three hours before i saw her again :)

i washed her hair in the kitchen sink, like my mom used to do with us,

threw on her clothes, 

asked her to please find a special place to put the 7 necklaces she had on, 

and out we went.

she was so excited and couldn't have been more easy to drop off.

we got there extra early.

she smiled the whole time.

she picked out her name tag and walked right in.

her face lit up when she found her own cubby (#17) and got to put her purse inside.

(her backpack is not here yet...bad mom).

she washed her hands, school rule, looked all around and sat by the train tracks.

i held eli, knelt down to give her a hug and told her i'd be right back.

"ok... bye mom." 

she said it quietly but happily.

i was relieved, although i fully expected it.

but as soon as i turned around, tears.

not hers - mine!

i held it together til i got to the car.

i buckled eli up and starting full on crying.

it was so unexpected, i was laughing at myself.

i hadn't had an ounce of this feeling all morning.

i heard it was really common for moms to cry after dropping their kid off for the first time,

but i honestly thought it was silly and knew that wouldn't be me.

wrong.

my sweet ives... not quite all mine anymore.

i'm so proud of her and love her so.

whew.
august is too much for this mama!!!

for your information:
i bought myself a journal today,
so maybe this will be more short & sweet :)

new address

1052 berkeley avenue

menlo park, california

94025
come visit! 

swing of things

 yes, we are still alive!  

time has just been eaten up by getting settled in and finding a little routine. 

moms looove themselves a routine. 

i don't really think of myself as a "routine kind of mom" 

(especially compared to friends, i'm pretty chill)

 but i definitely function 100x better when there's a shape and purpose to the day. 

so i guess you could say i'm super laid back within my routine :)  

well who cares!

a routine is being found and we're the better for it.

 anyway, i don't do well with describing big changes

 like moving across the country to california 

and everything different and new (at least not on the blog), 

so i guess that's why i called this short & sweet in the first place.

 so i'll try to keep it that way by just saying we are so happy here, 

kevin is enjoying his job, working long hours,

 i love my tiny house although we live outside, 

the kids love everything and life is feeling sweet. 

 of course it's still exhausting

 (does anyone have a friend/cousin/grandma/friend's cousin's grandma around here 

who remotely likes children?) 

but that's motherhood

and i feel more in my element here than i ever did in cambridge (that's for sure), 

even though it was a great experience. 

that was a really long sentence. 

so here's to cali and hopefully catching some of it on the blog! 

california

this morning at the ferry building in san francisco 

          kevin is finished with classes (woohoo!)

and has two free weeks until his actual graduation.

we left the kids in texas and came to san francisco for a few days.

it is beautiful and we're having so much fun. 

actually, we are here to find a house!

kevin accepted a job offer in palo alto a few days ago, 

so we are here to find a place to move to in just a few weeks.

crazzzyy!

i am sad to still be far from my nieces and family, 

but so proud and happy for this opportunity for kevin 

and excited to live in such a beautiful place with my little family. 

we arrived yesterday and found our house within a few hours of landing. 

i can't believe it. 

it was the first & only house we looked at -
just something i stumbled upon online,

and we both LOVED it. 

it is old, small and so charming.

it has a wonderful backyard (ahhh!) and no stairs!!

we walked through, got so excited and DONE.

i can't wait to start decorating and get settled in.

since that is miraculously done, we have the rest of the week to chill.

we spent all day around san francisco, eating and walking and soaking it in.

it's nice to have some free days to get a few more things done:

--find the market

--visit kevin's office

--visit a preschool for ivy

--get kevin a bike

--maybe a piano for me?!

i can honestly say i did not anticipate moving to california

but i feel so blessed and so happy. 

God is good. 

cantabrigians

well, here we are. i have to say i never thought i'd live in the state of massachusetts, but guess what? i do. we do. 2 weeks tomorrow. Lord knows i'd be lying if i said it's been an easy move, but here we are nonetheless. it's getting better each day, and i know soon it will feel normal - whatever our new "normal" is. and it will be great, because it's ours. (it is 8PM which is like 3 AM in my world and writing starts to get sappy/weird this late).

so aaaanyway, i'll try to just stick to the facts:

--we are here for kevin to get a masters at harvard.

--we live on the 3rd floor of an 1890 red brick building in harvard square. kevin walks to class and we are 5 minutes from cambridge common (a great park). it's old, charming and super cute because mom & cindy were in charge. however, no ac, washer/dryer in our apartment or elevator in our building (helloo stairs!) but i'd say we've already adjusted. we're young & agile... we'll survive!

--the weather has been amazing and we stroll to the park daily.

--we're attending a new church, i've joined the women's bible study and we've been blessed already with the sweetest ladies bringing us dinner for a few weeks. amen to that.

--parking is scary and makes me cry.

-- i found the cutest grocery store in our neighborhood and that's a big deal.

--ivy loves riding the subway and gets mad if we drive anywhere.

--we have our first visitors coming tomorrow!!! yea nana & pop!

this photo selection is random some may think.

#1 ivy sitting at our front door, waiting for the cab.

#2 this morning on our bed

#3 + 4 random apt pics.

this post probably makes no sense, but i am tired and just wanted to acknowledge on my blog that we moved, ya know - minor detail.

here's our new address:

the mcconnells

27 everett street #5

cambridge, ma 02138

goodnight everyone!

update

{charles river - cambridge, ma}

hi friends!
well, the spring is coming to an end and summer is almost upon us. that means one thing again for us this year: change. kevin's program in st. andrews is completed (except for the dissertation he'll write from the states over the summer), and with that, our wonderful adventure abroad has come to an end. ivy and i arrived safely in houston last week while kevin is finishing up some odds and ends. there is so much i could write about our experience, but i think i will just say here that it was everything i hoped our year would be. kevin pursued this particular spot mainly for his professional path, but i know it was also partly for me. i really loved it and will forever be thanking him. so many people and places will be greatly missed! especially our friends - the taits, the hays, the buchanans and gibbs in particular. they made our year a million times more meaningful and fun and we're already planning a reunion- somewhere, somehow!

we are now "home" in texas for june (except for a few little trips), and then we'll head up to charleston to be beach bums for the rest of summer! my body is itching to get there! it has become home away from home for us and i can't wait to get on the beach, watch kevin take ivy in the ocean, walk to the lost dog, go to harris teeter, have a date downtown... but mostly to start getting ready for our second babe. i'm getting so excited! i've got my OB all lined up and for some reason am really excited to meet her. haha... maybe because i haven't met a doctor yet during this pregnancy (you only see midwives in scotland) or maybe because she just looks so nice in her picture! either way, i'm looking forward to it and the rest of the summer. (who isn't?)

come early fall, we'll be moving our little family to cambridge, massachussettes! kevin will be a student (again? again.) in the education school at harvard. HGSE if you want to be official. i'm so proud of him and am really excited to live in a new part of the country with him and our two littles. i've never visited boston, but you can bet i'm loading up on books, websites, guides etc. i kinda enjoy the process of familiarizing myself with a new place and noting things that look fun to see and do (and eat). in fact, the first thing kevin did when we decided on harvard was place an amazon order for me so i could read and research to my heart's content. haha...

life is so bright right now. thank you all for your friendship and love. it means so much to me!
love, chaiss

SUMMER ADDRESS: {july & august}
the mcconnells
po box 581
folly beach, south carolina
29439

packages/deliveries to:
1207 e. arctic avenue
folly beach, south carolina
29439

2

#2 will be joining our nest this summer!

we are so happy. and tired.

but mostly happy!

my new niece!

Esther Lee Kanneganti

November 2, 2010

7 lbs 13 ounces, 20.75 inches

3:01 AM

winners of stat predictions:

time: me! guess: 3:30am

weight: trev guess: 7lbs 12 oz

length: mom guess: 20.5 in

i love her to bits and can't wait for ivy and kevin to meet her :)

welcome to the family, esther! we're so excited you're here!!

CONGRATS GEN & PRAV!!!

st. andrews

specifically, here:
3 Howard Place
St. Andrews, Fife
Scotland KY16 9HL

We’ve had an incredible first week, and might even say we already feel at home (though our flat is certainly not indicative of that). This whole transition – finding a flat, parting with family, overseas flights, time changes with Ivy, figuring out stroller rain covers, currency changes, Kevin starting class, etc. – could potentially be a nightmare, but, by the grace of God, has truly been a smooth and even sweet process (a few deep breaths and loads of chocolate are mandatory).

Really, it has been a blessing and we are grateful for the prayers. What a faithful God we serve. We have already met wonderful friends (from Texas and with a little girl!) and may have found a home church. It’s been an exhausting but exciting week and we’re looking forward to whatever comes our way! (especially internet in our flat).

isb

what a sweetheart.

it's safe to say, we are all smitten.

so excited to be an aunt!!!!

congrats trev & kathryn!

back in beaumont...

for a couple of weeks. actually, the last couple of weeks we'll ever be here in my family's home. my parents have gone and bought themselves a place in houston. so they've gone and sold our house (our house!) too. they've even gone and started moving things out like couches, chairs, books and bowls. (i couldn't find anything to serve ivy's banana in this morning! what a silly thing to have to worry about at grandma's house.)

there are so many memories wrapped up in this dear house: she has helped a family of six turn into a family of twelve in a matter of three short years, has put up with the likes of one ancient dog and two evil cats, has graciously opened her doors for two spectacular weddings, countless birthday parties, bridal and baby showers, and the most glorious christmas parties this side of heaven! it's a sad farewell to a lovely place, but i'm grateful our schedule this summer has put us right here to enjoy these last few weeks with my family... one rainy day at a time. hellooo humidity!

{our shadow bend abode december 2008. photos by gentry kanneganti}

goodbye texas, hello summer!

(don't be fooled by this tiny load)

Well, we've packed up every last drop of our life on Eaton Street - the place where we spent our second year and a half of marriage... Sept 08-May 2010, to be exact. The place where I walked around and around our little neighborhood, expecting our first babe, and then around and around again with stroller in tow :) Although it's always felt transitory, we've enjoyed our little life here, and I'm regretting that I didn't take pictures before packing it all away, but I'm sure they're captured somewhere.

It's a little sad to leave life as you know it, but actually, it's mostly exciting! We're ready and looking forward to starting the next chapter in Scotland. Kevin is going back to school to grab another Masters at the University of St. Andrews. We loooved the little town (and by little I mean the smallest town I've ever seen) when we visited a few days ago. It is quaint and charming, green and ancient, right on the coast of the North Sea. We found a little place (and by little I mean the smallest place I've ever seen) that will be just perfect for our family. School starts in September, so in the meantime we're basically on summer break (aka we're homeless). There's plenty going on to keep us occupied and we'll just be here and there (aka wherever we want). Here's to the next adventure and a long, happy summer!

Here's a peek of our lovely future town...

And the charming bed & breakfast we stayed in. Hi Jackie!

FiVe Pilmour Place

our cool bathroom

and bedroom {excuse kevin's hiney}