Settling In

Hi from Jacksonville, NC. We have been here three weeks, and are starting to learn about our new home.
One really sweet thing about living here is we are close to a beach. We are within a 20 to 30 minute drive of three different beaches, and are already taking advantage of it. Logan and Brady were excited to see the ocean for the first time. They were a little cautious of the water, but loved playing in the sand. Brady had his first taste of sand when he promptly grabbed it and put it in his mouth. Instead of spitting it, he tried to chew the sand, and I had to watch him closely from then on. Logan enjoyed collecting shells in a bucket and building sand castles.
Since we were without kitchen supplies for our first week here, we had to eat out almost every meal. We have most of the major restaurant chains here, along with some great local restaurants. Bojangles has become one of our favorite places to eat, with it's famous chicken and biscuits and sweet tea.
The boys are starting to adjust. They really enjoy going to the park next to our apartment, which has several walking trails surrounded by tall pine trees. They are also excited about the apartment pool and playground. Logan and Brady each got a fish (in place of Laney) and love feeding them and watching them swim. Logan named his fish Blue Fish (so creative) and Brady named his (red) fish Stop (it's his favorite word).
We have started to attend a Baptist church, which is close to our new house. Chris and I found a Sunday school group to join, and are enjoying getting to know some new friends. I was already invited to a few play dates with some moms in our group, which we really enjoyed.
We are excited to learn more about our town and watch as they build our house.

We moved!

It's been a while since I've been able to post. We have had a very busy summer so far, and we look forward to things slowing down soon.
Our lives have been changing so quickly, we haven't even had a chance to take it in. Chris got an interview for a Sports Director position at Camp Lejeune, NC in June. Within a few days he was offered the position and we accepted it. He is so excited for this move, which is a big step up in his career. Chris will be in charge of planning sports and youth sports for a community of around 50,000 Marines and their families (a community of about 140,000 people). He will also be in charge of the gyms, along with recreation equipment rentals. This is the perfect opportunity to use his college degree and make a difference in peoples' lives.
The past 6 weeks have been full of packing, moving and seeing all our friends and family. After accepting the job, we were told that Chris had a start date of August 1. We quickly put our house on the market, and started packing our things. Within a week, we put in an offer to build a new home and found an apartment in Jacksonville, NC (the town that surrounds Camp Lejeune) that we could rent for three months while they build our house. Unfortunately, our boxer, Laney, could not make the trip out here and stay in the apartment with us, so we had to find a new home for her.
The boys and I took a trip out to St. Louis to spend some time with my parents and see everyone before we had to move. We also tried to pack as much friends and family time in as we could, while we were still in Kansas City. It seems like we were going non stop for the last few weeks, but it was totally worth seeing everyone.
The moving truck came and took all of our things several days before we could move into our new apartment, so we traveled to my parents' house to stay for a few days, before making the rest of our trip out here. God really blessed us as we traveled to NC. The boys did well, and both cars made it safely.
We were able to move into our Jacksonville apartment two days ago, with one little challenge...our things have been delivered to Camp Lejeune, but will not be delivered to the apartment for seven days. Thankfully, we brought our air mattresses with us, and some extra clothes and towels. I am not too excited about having no place to sit and no kitchen supplies, but it has given me a new respect for the military families that have to go through these moves on a regular basis.

Checking out the beach after Chris's interview at Camp Lejeune.

Saying bye bye to Laney dog (Brady says it best).

Stopping by on our way out of town to say bye to our BFFs, the Sobey family.

Stacia and I.

Logans BFFs, Jenna and Beca.

A traditional Alger/Sobey dinner.

Another BFF of Logan's, Trayton.

Logan's first train ride at the STL Zoo.

Slip and slide time with grandma and grandpa and cousins.

Pea Pod get together in KC.

Pea Pod get together in Springfield.

Stopping to see another train.

Visiting with great grandma and grandpa.

Marrah girls.

Marrah family visit.