Becoming Buckeyes

Soon, the Joneses will be buckeyes -- we're moving to Ohio next Friday! I will be beginning at Ohio State University this Fall in the Communication Studies Doctoral program. We are excited about this new chapter, but also are very much going to miss our Muncie friends and church. I am telling everyone, though, that we will have room for guests in Columbus -- so come visit! Eliana is getting excited about her move as well and wanted to support Mommy's school:

Peek-a-boo

Jeff is always able to make Eliana laugh. Exhibit A:

Great Grandparents

Our beach vacation was sandwiched between visits to Eliana's Great-Grandma and Grandpa Thompson and Great Mom Mom and Pop Pop Jones. As I mentioned before, Grandma and Grandpa Thompson were celebrating 60 years of marriage.

On their wedding day:

At their 60th Anniversary Party:

I was unable to snap any pictures of Grandma and Grandpa with Eliana that day, but they love her (Great Grandchild #5) a lot! :)

After our beach vacation, we were able to have a brief but wonderful visit with Jeff's grandparents Mom Mom and Pop Pop Jones. Pop Pop gave Eliana some blocks, which she really enjoyed. During our visit Mom Mom kept saying (about Ellie), "Well, of course she's beautiful ... she's a Jones!". :) Please pray for Mom Mom as she is facing some serious health issues. Eliana clearly has a special bond with her.

Thank you for your love and support, Grandma and Grandpa and Mom Mom and Pop Pop!

Photo Shoot

I will post a few more vacation pics soon, but we just received the 6-month photos our very talented friend Victor Replogle took for us. He did a great job (and we think we have a pretty good model too!):

Beach Vacation

I'm sorry for the long time since my last post, but the last week and a half have been a (very fun) vacation whirlwind!
We started our journey off with a weekend in Illinois celebrating my Grandma and Grandpa Thompson's 60th (!) wedding anniversary. Almost the entire family (6 children, 14 grandchildren, 5 great-grand children + spouses & lots of extended family) was able to gather for a special time of honoring them and thanking them for the example of their God-centered marriage. Grandma and Grandpa -- we love you! :)
The day after our Illinois excursion, we flew East to join Jeff's family for a week-long beach vacation in Delaware. While we were unsure of how Eliana would do on her first flight, she was the consummate traveler, not fussing one bit ... yey!

On the plane

The beach vacation was bittersweet because we missed Allan, Jeff's Dad -- he loved the water and would have loved the trip. However, having the entire family together was a huge comfort and we had a wonderful time together -- relaxing on the beach, swimming in the ocean, playing mini golf and tons of board games, cooking dinners, and strolling on the boardwalk. Of course, Eliana had many 'firsts' during this trip (first time in the ocean, for example), which is always exciting for a parent. :) Below are a plethora of pics ... I am bad at choosing ... haha ...
Beach Baby
She was scared of the ocean at first -- but by the end of the trip she loved it!

Relaxing is exhausting

Kisses -- I love her little sunglassesFamily
the Jones' Clan
A requirement in the Jones' household -- a goofy family pic. Even Eliana is being silly!
Eliana loved spending time with Uncle Christian ...

Honorary Aunt Kara...

Aunt Krista ...
Uncle Kevin...
Grandma Jones...

Daddy...

and Mommy...

And we enjoyed spending time together as well. :)

This post is getting forever long, so I'll post some other vacation pics soon!

Fourth of July

We had a great 4th which included celebrating with family:

After a wonderful cookout meal and even better company, Jeff, Eliana and me headed out to hear the Indianapolis symphony perform an outdoor 4th of July concert.

"No photos, please..."

The show concluded with a fireworks display. Although we weren't sure how Eliana would handle all the noise, she loved them and was completely mesmerized! Check out her reaction below:

The Island

I met these two lovely ladies when I worked as Creative Arts Director at a local church. Although it makes me feel old, they were in the high school youth group I worked with at that time. We have been friends since, and they are now Sophomores in college. Eliana loved hanging out with them at our local smoothie place The Island the other night.

Kayla and Lauren -- you both are amazing! :)

Seven Months

Eliana is now seven months old! She is still rolling everywhere, and is trying oh-so-hard to army crawl. I think she'll have it soon, and then I know life will never be the same when she becomes really mobile! :) Eliana is a very sweet and cuddly baby and loves to be carried; so much so that we are trying to teach her that playing on her own on the floor is a good thing too! Each month her personality blossoms more and we enjoy interacting with her in different ways. We love our girl!
Some pics at 7 months:

Fun with Grammy Thompson

Last week Eliana, Grammy Thompson, and I went to New Harmony, IN for a few days of rest and relaxation. New Harmony is a small town with an interesting history; it was founded as part of a Utopian experiment in the early 1800s. Well, utopia didn't work out, but New Harmony is still a very peaceful place to visit, with lots of spaces to think, pray, and be. Although we overestimated how much time we would have to rest while toting around a six-month-old (hehe), we still had a wonderful time!

They had bikes available for anyone to use, which I took advantage of...
Cutie

One of many sculptures ... this is St. Francis feeding the birds

Pretty

Eliana loving the swimming
The girls

A Wedding -- Part 2

We were also able to spend some time with family during the wedding weekend because my grandparents (Dad's side), as well as my aunt, uncle, cousin & her family live in/near the same town. Eliana was able to meet her Grandma and Grandpa Thompson for the first time, and loved seeing them! She will see them again soon to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary! :)
Eliana also loved meeting her great-aunt and uncle Mathews, as well as my cousin and her beautiful little girl.
On our way home, we also were able to meet up with our VanWynen relatives for dinner on the road. As you can tell from the picture below, Ellie was very cranky from missing her nap and being in her carseat for hours. They love her anyway. :)

With cousin Jordan

My cousin/maid of honor Kaitlyn