Happy Spring! We have been busy taking in all of the sunshine and new friends in San Diego! In March, Jackson and I went to Disneyland for his first time. We had a blast and made many wonderful memories.
Jackson and I also had a wonderful chance (thanks to Bapa Lar!) to go back to Chicago for a very quick visit to see friends. We were so blessed!
Nana and Papa came in for Easter weekend and we celebrated all weekend long! Baskets, eggs and candy, and of course my favorite memory of the weekend was when Jackson ran into church yelling (with his hands raised for emphasis): "He is risen! He is risen!" What a fun time! We were surprised by an earthquake at Easter dinner over at our friends house, but everything was fine in the end. We are so blessed.
Thanks to Matt's Uncle Dan-O for sending me this link of today's Herald. What a proud wife I am! Check it out: HeraldNet.
Well, we've been in San Diego for three weeks now and it is finally slowing down a little. We love our church (Eastlake Church) and I have even gotten involved in a Mom's Group every Wednesday where I can have fellowship with other stay-at-home-moms and more importantly, Jackson gets to play with other kids. Jackson and I walk every morning with our new friends, Samantha and her beautiful children Ella and Noah and we are awaiting the arrival of Stephen any day now! It's great to have friends already in a place that feels more and more like "home" each day.
We are all finally in San Diego together! How wonderful to be a family and be together again. Matt and I worked on painting and prepping the home two days before my parents flew down with Jackson. Matt and Jackson hadn't seen one another in over a month and their reunion was beautiful. Jackson wouldn't leave his daddy's arms and was carried all around the San Diego International Airport. Their love for one another is so strong! :)
Here are some pictures of our new townhome as we continue to get it set up the way we like it. It's starting to really feel like home as the walls get painted, the furniture gets placed, and the pictures get put on the walls. Jackson is finally sleeping through the night again and taking regular naps. We are loving the 60 degrees weather and the meals eaten together.
Jackson's new room is all about transportation. He loves BIG trucks and cars that zoom!
This is our kitchen.
Jackson loves reading in his reading chair in his room.
I found this adorable little table and chairs on craigslist. Would you believe that it was lemon/lime green with bahama fabric on the seats when I bought it? Nothing a couple cans of black spray paint and a trip to JoAnn's Fabric couldn't fix!
We have had a very busy past couple of months! In August, Matt made Chief and in late September we decided to extend our time with the Navy and reenlisted! Two weeks ago I left my position teaching Kindergarten in Skokie, IL so that Jackson and I could follow Matt to our new orders in San Diego, CA! Jackson and I are living in Seattle with our families until Matt finds a new home for us, and we are grateful for the extra time with our friends and family in Seattle. It was painfully difficult to say goodbye to all of the wonderful friends we have made over the past three and a half years, but such is the life of a Navy Family. We are excited to meet our new friends and make our new adventures in San Diego. We are determined to life life together, however we can do it.
I put together a small compilation of our Holiday Season in Seattle for your viewing.
We are all safely in Seattle for the Holiday Season. We were sad to say goodbye to Chicago, but we're all excited to see what God has in store for San Diego.
All our Love,
Matt, Nicole & Jackson
P.S. Jackson wasn't having any of Santa this year- oh noooooo. It was pretty funny actually, but not for him. :)
This has been an amazing past couple of months for us. We have been tested and blessed so much. On October 18th, Matt decided to get baptized
up at the Great Lakes Church in Kenosha, WI. Our dear friend, Dave Nelson, was the person who baptized Matt and we were so blessed to be able to
have him do the honors. I got most of the baptism on video, but bear with me and the poor cinematography.
After prayer, discussion and weighing the pros and cons, Matt and I have decided to continue with our service in the US Navy. I say "our" service
, because I have been and will continue to be alongside Matt for each step of his journey in the Navy. We have taken orders to San Diego in
December and because of the last minute decision to continue with the military, we were not given much time between signing orders and moving. I
had to give my notice for the middle of the school year at the school that I have made my home for the past three years. I love teaching at Madison
School and I will miss it so much, but I know that the best decision is for Jackson and I to follow Matt wherever he goes. After Matt made Chief in
September, it was too much to walk away from, and we really had to look at how we could best provide for our family in the future. With the economy
the way it has been lately, we couldn't put our hopes in Matt getting a job in the civilian world. While the decision was a difficult one to make, and I am
so sad to leave my home of Chicago, we both are at peace and know that we are trusting in what the Lord has to offer for our lives. Please continue
to pray for us and all of the transitions we have in the next few months.
Hello Again All- We continue to use our amazing digital camcorder and I want to give everyone the option of viewing them all or only a select few. Here is the link for my channel on youtube (copy and paste this into your browser):
http://www.youtube.com/user/nikahrife
You can "subscribe" to it, which will let you know when I upload new videos, therefor you don't have to check all the time. I hope this is helpful to some, or all.
We are uploading videos of playing with Jackson as I type. So glad to have a MacBook!! :)
Here are a few videos of our life lately. Jackson has been a delight, learning to say more words and do more things on his own. Matt finished up the six-week long Season to be initiated into the Chief's Mess of the US Navy and I thought we would share some of these things with all of you.
My user name on youtube.com is 'nikahrife'. There are lots of videos on there as well.
Here are a few more pictures of our summer. I didn't have access to all of my pictures last night. A new hit at our place this summer has been the Snuggie. I used one at my mom and dad's house in Seattle and had to get one right away. It might be warm here in Chicago, but Matt keeps the house CHILLY so I've used it all summer. I've included a pic of Matt and I on the couch with my Snuggie on. It provides such versatility, as you can see, I'm able to change the channel on the TV, blog on my laptop and be near my Sweetie. Awesome.
Hello Everyone! We are back for a quick update. The Rife Family has been very busy this past couple of months. We all visited Sun River, OR for a week with G-Pa and G-Ma Dime, Uncle Josh and Aunt Nette and then Jackson and I stayed for another week in Seattle to see some more family. Grandma Binkley flew back to Chicago with us and stayed for three weeks, completing July for us. It was a WONDERFUL visit and we are still talking about "Gramma" (one of Jackson's many new words). I went back to meet Kindergartners at the end of July and fell full-time into the school year first week of August. Monday will be my first Institute Day with my colleagues and Wednesday will be the official first day of school. I am posting a link for my Snapfish.com album with a few pictures of my classroom for this Fall. I applied for a technology grant in May and was approved to have a SMART Board installed into my classroom. I've been hard at work creating interactive lessons that I can share with my Kindergartners this year. What a fabulous resource!
I can't believe how fast the summer goes with a toddler under your feet. Jackson learned to walk and now run in July, and he is learning new words each day.
As if we couldn't feel blessed enough, Matt made Chief at the end of July. We have been planning to exit from the Navy in November of this year, but with very few jobs available right now, and such a huge promotion... we are starting to think twice about that decision.
Enjoy a few pictures of our busy life and hopefully I'll be more diligent with keeping it updated in the future.
We have started a Family Blog so that we can keep in touch with all of our friends and family throughout this new and exciting time. Check back often for updates and pictures.
