The "5 W's" of We 4 Pooles

In English class, I remember studying the "5 W's": who, what, when, where and why. (For my dear friends and husband- you English teachers and English majors- I do know that there is truly a "6th W- How"; however, How was simply not catchy!) My teacher drove home day after day that these five details were the fundamentals of clear and concise communication. According to her, this formula was the best method by which to grasp the full story. Seventeen years after receiving a B+ in Mrs. Herren's class (because I did not complete the Christmas ornament extra credit project(!)), she is still correct and still my favorite teacher in my twenty years of school.

WHO are we Pooles? We are a happy little family of four that began only four years ago next month. Josh is a commercial banker with the Bank of Yazoo. He is a patient, kind and loving husband and father. My name is Anna. I am an attorney (hence all of the school) but do not practice. Our oldest daughter is two years old and her name is Ansley Grace. She lives into her middle name even at two as she shows us daily about unconditional kindness and the sweetest love. Emma Kate was born only fourteen months after Ansley arrived (SURPRISE!) and continues to be the "spice" of our home!

WHAT should we say about we four Pooles? As you many of you know from being a part of our journey thus far, or simply from the URL of this blog, our life has been one led by a fast pace thus far! A wedding, a move, two daughters, 3 trucks, 2 SUVs, 3 dogs, and one cat in sixteen months speaks for itself. We would not change a thing about life thus far (except for that one cat, right Josh?!); however, we now live our lives at an intentionally slower and simpler pace. It has been a beautiful time as we learn to enjoy each season of our girls' little lives. Josh enjoys his work very much and is thankful for those with whom he works. He also loves anything outdoors- from hunting anything in any season to mowing the lawn- you can most often find him outdoors! I enjoy my family most. They are my sunshine, my source of laughter and pure joy. I also love to read- again, hence the twenty years of school and still would love to teach or go back one day! Ansley enjoys reading too which thrills my soul. She also loves to color and be a little mother to her Elmo and her baby dolls- what a nurturer already! Emme- now she keeps us on our toes. Truly, she is the reason that I am starting this blog, but more in our WHY section (shameless plug for readers to continue unless they have gotten bored already at which point, this sentence is a moot point). Emme's spirit is completely opposite than Ansley's- still precious and sweet, but completely opposite! She is feisty, active, unafraid, curious and incapable of sleep. She makes us laugh constantly throughout the day and often Ansley and I find ourselves just watching to see what she will do next. I shudder to think what our teenage years will bring!

WHEN did Josh and I meet you ask? Four years ago in February- 2005- best year of my life!

WHERE do we Pooles live? We live in Jackson, Mississippi. We are fortunate to have our families so close to us. Josh's family lives in Ridgeland, Mississippi which is ten minutes from our house. My family, the Gibsons, live in Madison, Mississippi which is about twenty minutes from our house. Thanks be to God that our families live so close or our last two years with two babies fourteen months apart would have been MUCH tougher. We are forever grateful for all of their help and support.

WHY start a blog? Great question. Many of you reading have asked me time and again (and again) to join Facebook. I have declined thus far for fear that it would take over my free time and I would become obsessed with checking to see how many "friends" I had. However, many family members far from us have also asked for a more routine way to keep up with our girls. I thought this blog would be that great avenue. Also, I have truly enjoyed reading many of your blogs and thought to myself for months that I would love to start one for our family and friends to keep in touch better. The catalyst for my finally getting around to this blogging that I so often hear of was one of Emme's many doctor's appointments last week. Our Em, while precious and spunky, has been sick about every three weeks of her life since she was nine weeks old. Therefore, after this last illness, her pediatrician advised that we keep Em pretty quarantined (not his word- mine) until April. . .no Kroger, no Walmart, no church- just our home and our parents' homes. You would have to know me to understand what this suggestion meant to me. I am an extrovert in the most extreme definition of the term. I love people. I love any and all conversations. I love going anywhere- Kroger was even a blast for me with my girls. So, to hear that it would be best for us to keep Em out of the public for a couple of months to try to keep her healthy was distressing for this people-lover. I want to stay in touch with all of our friends and family and a phone call is not always (or most of the time) possible with two little ones who deserve my full attention- so the blog is born!

My hope is for this blog to open a line of communication between our family and yours. I don't know how good I will be at keeping this blog current- I will do my best as time allows. Please always post (or whatever they call it) us a message. I would love to hear from all of you and know how your family is doing in your hometown. We miss you all and hope for a healthy Summer so to visit many of you. Until the next time- here are some current pictures of our girls from the holidays and previous fun months!

Mrs. Herren, I do hope I did you and your untold dedication to us proud.