The Big Day

Well, it has finally arrived. The big day. The day we arrive in Pearland, TX. 

OK, well it's actually tomorrow, but I am so ready now.

I am past the point of extreme sadness and so ready to finally get into my new home and get settled. The boys are in desperate need of structure, routine, and some home cooked meals :)

I'm thankful I'll be flying with my mother in law Char so I don't have to get the boys and luggage all to the airport by myself! Since my father in law is driving there with Ryan we'll all be reunited when we arrive, and that will be our final round of goodbyes when they leave to head back to NY. :/

The final goodbyes will be coming to an end soon and as Lisa has assured me, it will get easier and my sadness will ease up. Last night I had to say goodbye to my Dad and it was rough. Today I'll say goodbye to my Mama, which will also be rough.

On a more positive note though, last night we got to see Amanda who is Aidan's Godmother, and one of my very best friends from High School. It's not often we get to see each other, even when we're home in NY..... so it was super special that she and her wife Alyssa were able to join us last night for a little mini bday party for the boys.

Oh, and she and Alyssa are expecting a little boy in September too!

 Even though yesterday was Mason's Bday I decided to make it a joint bday party for both boys because we'll be in TX with no family or friends around for Aidan's birthday on July 28, so I wanted to make sure he got some special bday love too :)

We had a few family members who couldn't make it but we also got a surprise visit at the end of the night from Aunt Linda, Theresa, Kara, Breana & Charlie. The boys had a blast showing off and they both appear to have been infatuated with cousin Kara.

I love this pic of Aidan being all suave talking to Kara. If only he understood that the chick he was hitting on is his Cousin (whose diapers I used to change I might add)....

Well the next time you hear from me I'll be getting settled in Texas! Once there I'll have some more stories and pics from this leg of the trip...I just haven't had time to get it all down in writing!

See you in the SOUTH!!

The hardest goodbye.

Don't get me wrong, all of my goodbyes with my friends have been hard, and a close few were especially hard. But one was the absolute hardest and I'll tell you why at the end.....

JESS

Jess because we became friends when we were both pregnant with our first babies, which bonded us. The fact that Aidan & Austen became best buds and the A Team bonded us even more. Then we were pregnant with our second babies together again, and both the M babies were added to the mix. Mackenzie & Mason are fated to be married someday forever uniting me and Jess :) Plus if you know mine and Jess's parenting style, it's very similar. Instead of coddling an injured child, we both tend to say "Well, I TOLD you not to do that!!" Heehee.

MICHELE

Michele because let's face it, she's the best neighbor/friend ever. She was there when we had babysitter issues when Aidan was just one year old...and has been there ever since. From sharing cups of sugar to helping out when kids are sick (or even mommies for that matter), Michele was always there. I loved getting deliveries of fresh picked fruits and I loved sending over cookies and sweets when I baked too much! Her boys and mine get along famously and she will always be Mommy #2. It will be hard to find a neighbor/friend that will leave an impact like Michele has.

KRYSTA

Krysta because ,well, hell, a young energetic chick with no kids of her own who loved my kids and was willing to give up a Friday night with her friends to watch them so Ryan and I could go to the hospital christmas party and resident dinner each year? That's a keeper right there. My boys love her and she loves them. That's all a Momma needs. Oh and she likes Loopy, so she'll always be awesome in my book. She held my hand while I got my nose pierced and came to hang out with me the day I had my wisdom teeth out so Ryan could go in to work for a few hours. She was basically babysitting me that time ;) oh yeah, and she's fun too, I guess I should point that out as well ;)

SARA

Sara is the most recent addition to my close friends, but it doesn't mean I'll miss her any less! Always someone to have an afternoon cocktail with me and always around to hang out when I think the kids might just be pushing me to my limit. In fact Sara was my breathing coach when the boys were pushing my buttons. "Steph, breathe in, and out" LOL. I'll miss having Colton's blue eyes on my Photoshop editing queue and I'll miss hearing Sara come running up the steps of the deck looking for someone to have a glass of wine with.

However as much as I love all my friends there is one in particular that was EXTREMELY hard to say goodbye to.

LISA

Lisa has been there for me since I first arrived in Allentown, PA not knowing a soul and starting my very first job as a medical laboratory technician. Lisa has been the friend I have had the longest while in PA and I feel I have a special relationship with her that makes it that much harder to say goodbye.

When I first got here and was training on dayshift (I was hired to work 2nd shift) Lisa knew that Ryan wasn't around a ton since he was busy being abused as a surgical intern and that we didn't have family here. The only way I can describe what happened next is that Lisa took me under her wing. She took me out to get ice cream and nachos with her little girls (then 6 & 9) and from that point on a great friendship formed. Not only would I consider Lisa a great friend, but since there's a 10 year age difference between us I consider her somewhat of a big sister too. She's already been through the baby and toddler stages of parenthood and is always there when I need advice. Hell even now, when I was still in tears from the pain 5 days after my wisdom teeth were removed, it was Lisa's simple text of "did you call the oral surgeon?" that lit a fire under my ass and got me to call, thus finding out about my dry sockets.

I've thoroughly enjoyed spending time with her and her family....Emma is 11 now and Allie is 14....it is so weird to think about how little they were when I met them, and how grown up they are now. I love watching how they interact with my guys like they were their own little brothers :)

                            taken last summer

While I said many of my goodbyes last week, I didn't have to say goodbye to Lisa just yet because I knew she was watching the boys for me last night so we could go to Ryan's graduation dinner. So picking up the boys this morning after their sleepover was finally the time to say goodbye. 

It sucked. 

Many tears were shed and I even sobbed a "what will I do without you?". 

I must admit seeing Allie and Emma crying was tearing me up but when I finally tore myself away from Lisa after the 100th hug goodbye, and I saw Allie sitting on the front steps crying as I drove away, my heart was absolutely broken. It's hard enough to be sad as an adult but for these sweet girls to be sad hurt so much more. I tried to call Ryan to tell him I was on my way back to the hotel but I was sobbing so hard he actually asked if I needed him to come drive me back. I was still fighting back tears with all my might when I got back to the hotel...and still fighting them back now. Like I said, it was the hardest goodbye.

As we said our super tearful goodbye this morning she handed me a letter. I still have yet to bring myself to read it because I know I am going to bawl....just like I bawled when I read the collection of quotes she had gathered for me last week. 

I know that luckily she'll always be a phone call or text away, and with facebook we'll be able to keep up. And hell, I know I'll have to come back to do the girls's senior pictures anyway ;)

I will miss everyone here in PA that I became friends with, and rest assured even if I didn't mention you personally you are in my heart. My time here in PA would not have been the same without the friendship of each and every one of you all. From playdates to slacking off at work together I'll miss all the good times!!

So long, PA, you will forever be in my family's heart.

And now if you'll excuse me I'm going to have a good cry.\

The first leg of our trip......

So even though I don't technically arrive in Houston until June 26 I had to leave PA a little bit earlier due to the fact that our house had to be packed up by today in order to be shipped to our new apartment. Can you believe that our shipping pods had to be picked up at our house on June 17 in order to arrive in TX on the 25?? 

(We also had a few things that just wouldn't fit in the 2 pods that we had ordered. So we had to do some math and price out the value of the items that didn't fit and see if it was worth spending the $1000 on another pod. Basically, it wasn't worth it...but hey I get a new mattress out of the deal!!)

 So instead of sleeping on air mattresses with no food in the house I decided to head back home to NY and spend some time with family while I had the opportunity, while unfortunately Ryan has to stay behind to finish up his last week of work.

Last night I had the chance to stop at my cousin's house ( I had to borrow a pack n play for Mason to sleep in while we're here) and got to catch up with a large group of my family. We have lots of June Birthdays (Mason too) in our family so it was an impromptu birthday/father's day celebration...and it was soooo amazing. My cousins Theresa and Tom got to meet Mason for the first time and it was fun to watch all our kids playing together. Makes me sad that my kids haven't lived close enough to make this a regular occurrence.

 Me, Auntie Linda, Tina (and her daughter Sienna), Kara & Breana

 Auntie, My Dad, and my boys

TWINS!! My Dad and his twin sister just turned 60 this past week <3

Mason's favorite part of our visit was climbing into the baby walker and running around the house. He was literally picking it up and walking around carrying it instead of rolling. Oh gee.

 As all babies are, Mason was drawn to my Uncle Jim. He's like the baby whisperer!

I'm also very excited that Stacy is in Frankfort for her annual "summering". Stace is one of my best friends from high school, and she and her family spend half their year in Vegas and half their year here in Frankfort....and it's that time of year!!! We got to see Stace and her little guy Carter last summer too which is awesome, but this year there's a new little addition to her family: baby Katherine! I can't wait to meet her and to let our boys hang out together again! 

I will be heading back to Allentown for the weekend since Ryan will be honored in a "graduation" dinner on Friday night. His Parents, Adam & Don, and his Aunt Deb will all be joining us and since the house is empty we'll be crashing at a hotel. Once the weekend's celebration is over, Ry, Adam and their Dad will be hitting the road and driving both our cars to Houston. Char and I will be flying down with the boys on the 26th. I'm sure I'll have more updates and stories for you before then!

Why, oh WHY are you leaving???

I'm sure most of you know already why The Lawless Family is heading to Houston, TX but some of you may not so forgive me if you already know the scoop.

photo by EGM Photography

Disclaimer before I start: RYAN IS NOT AN EMERGENCY ROOM DOCTOR...and he will hate you forever if you ever imply that.

Ryan graduates from a general surgery residency at Lehigh Valley Hospital this Friday, making him a full-fledged General Surgeon/ Attending Physician. He will have full rights to practice general surgery and either join a group or start his own practice.

Not in his plans though. 

Ryan wants to be a Trauma Surgeon, which means he has to do a Surgical Critical Care Fellowship before this can happen. Basically it's more school. Yay. He will still be a practicing general surgeon and will be able to moonlight as such at other hospitals in Houston while he does his fellowship, but since he's an adrenaline junkie and is amazing under pressure I'll think he will do great as a Trauma Surgeon.

After this step in Ryan's training he will be able to settle down and find a job as a Trauma Surgeon/Attending Physician. (again, NOT in the ER.....stay with me here people).

The future is still totally unknown and could go in so many directions....perhaps Houston will love him and offer him a job after his fellowship...or maybe we'll be so homesick we'll head back East. 

Sigh. Who knows?

Back to blogging!!

I used to be sooooo good about blogging about all the fun or silly stuff Aidan did or said...then we had Mason and life got a little more hectic...and I blogged a little less.

Then my business started up and got super crazy and instead of personal blogging I was spending that time business blogging...and then got so busy with everything that I couldn't even keep up with THAT!!

Well, that's about to change!

While we're in Houston I won't be working a real day job (my job as a Medical Lab Technician). It just doesn't make sense to train for 4 months or more if you're only going to be staying a year.

I'm going to try and keep Stephanie Lawless Photography going but basically I have to rely on Ryan handing my card out to the nurses at work and hoping business blooms as it did here in PA.

Sooooo what will I do with all my newfound free time you ask? I'm going to start my personal blog up again!!!!

This is where you will be able to keep up with all the Lawless Family Adventures in TEXAS.

Blogging is great because it allows you to tell the story that may accompany a silly photo ( and you know my kids have plenty of those!)

So stay tuned if you want to keep up with the Lawless's

XOXO Steph

ps there is an option somewhere on here to sign up for email notifications when there's a new blog post in case you don't want to miss updates posted on Facebook.

I'll leave you with a few final pics taken with friends in the last few weeks:

 The Hendricks and The Lawless'

 Steph and the best neighbor/friend ever, Michele

 Steph & Sara

Last Cocktail night with Sara, Krysta & Lisa

Aidan and his best buddy Austen