Christmas Countdown

Could there really only be 12 days left until Christmas? Wow! Ever since I becamse a teacher it is a lot easier to enjoy this time of the year since I am off for two weeks.  So really my countdown is already at 4. Four days until Winter break.  Hooray!  The plan is to spend a ton of time with my growing children.  I have been keenly aware that since Jacob is a freshman, I only have four Christmas' left with him under my roof. We are going to start the break with a trip to visit cousins and make an important appointment for Jessa as well.

Part of why I was gone for so long, specifically in October was Jessa managed to break BOTH wrists within one week of each other.  October was a very trying month for me.  It takes a lot of extra time to help a child who has very limited use of both her arms.  I had to help her bath, get dressed, write homework, etc. Since these fractures became #4 on the left wrist and #2 on her right wrist in three years, she has been sent to a specialist at Children's Hospital in Seattle.  The timely is really perfect.  No one has to miss school (which is work for me of course) and we get to stay and linger on the west side and spend some much needed away time from the day-to-day life around here.  It will be a great trip.

Please keep us in your prayers as we travel and say an extra one for Jessa.  She is really nervous about the appt and what they are going to "do to her".

Back among the Blogging

Has it really been four months since I blogged???

There has been a lot of changes in my life over the last four months. One being that I returned to work on my Master's Degree.  I just finished my first class since coming back and I got an A! I am so very excited because this was by far the hardest class I have taken yet.  It was an educational research class and required A LOT of writing.  The professor said my final paper was by far the best in the class!!! Now, I am sure he said that to everyone, but it still made me feel very good.

I have four classes to go and should be done in May, which is perfect timing to have another fun-filled summer with my children. It was so great to have the summer off with them this year. We enjoyed the new home, with the pool and just spending time together.  I can't wait for more fun again.

Only three short weeks until our winter break from school!  I have already finished the first three weeks of assignments for the current Master's class, so it should be a breeze this month. There is a lot of fun events going on for my family. Jacob is playing freshmen basketball and will have seven games over the next three weeks. Joel is playing basketball as well (something new for him) at the middleschool and he has four games. Jessa has a choir concert and xylophone band concert, plus SHE is hosting her first-ever Pampered Chef Party next Monday. I am busy at school and chaperoning for DECA.

I am planning to spend more time in the blog world, so I can't wait to catch up!

Where has the time gone?

We officially moved on June 30th, but we have been without internet since then.  We love our new house and have been very busy getting unpacked. Plus I was gone to camp for two weeks.  July has been very eventful!  I will post more later, but God is good...

Moving Countdown

This the week! We were suppose to sign papers on Tuesday, but we have been told it will be later in the week now.  We are planning to make the big move on Saturday.  I am so excited, but so nervous at the same time.  Packing, packing, packing!  That is what we are doing all week.  Feel free to come over. :)

House Pictures

We had the home inspection today.  There are only a couple of small items that need to be fixed by the owner before we move it.  Both of them are electrical. Somehow the grounding to the pool has been disconnected!  Apparently electricity, water and humans don't mix.  Also one the burners on the stove didn't work, but  that could just have been a disconnect element.  The stove is pretty new, so I doubt there is anything wrong.  I posted all the pictures I took on facebook, but here are a couple of my favorites...

Did I mention it had a pool? The house is on .54 acres

The owner is a master gardner!  All the poor plants are going to very upset that I am taking over their care!

House

All the paperwork is signed and to the mortgage broker.  We close on June 15th.  God is so good.  We have the home inspection tomorrow, so I will take some pictures and post them then.

Strength arises as we wait upon the Lord!!!!

House - 11th hour

UPDATE: The owner and us came to an agreement last night on the house I have desired for almost 3 months!  Kevin and I have signed the contract, but the owner still needs to sign to make all of this official.  A little nervous, but I feel God's hand in this!  I will tell the whole story as soon as the house is official...

Well, this is proving to be a fun process!  The original offer was countered, so we chose to look at another house.  We put an offer on that one, but it became a little bit of a bidding war and we didn't have the arsenal to win it.  That's ok, because the owner is a new single mom and I am happy that we could help her get even more money for her house.

Kevin asked me to call the nice lady with the original house that got all this going, so I called her last night and she is letting us come over today!  I am excited!  We are also going to look at a house in West Richland.

By tomorrow we will have a house I am sure of it.

Offer on a house...

We put an offer on a house yesterday.  It isn't the one I have talked about, the owner never got back to me.  I don't think she is ready to sell the house she has lived in for over 40 years!

The offer needs a response by noon today.  We should know something soon! I will post more details about the house when I find out if we will be the new owners.

Desire vs. Content

House Update: Kevin and I were preapproved for a mortage on April 4th.  As of April 22nd, we do not have a house.  The nice lady has not gotten back to us about her home, so we have to move forward.  We have three houses to look at this weekend.  Our mortgage broker said he needs two days to create the sales contract.  I have a feeling we will be signing our sales contract on April 30th!

Since Kevin and I got married, we have been living in the duplex that he has lived in since 1992.  Our landlord is wonderful and has NEVER raised the rent. Ever!  We have 3 bedrooms, 1 3/4 baths and an unfinished basement that is liveable.  We are content.  There are several things that we would like to update around here to make day to day living much easier.

We I got divorced 3 1/2 years ago I made three goals that I called my "Divorce Goals".

1. Buy a mini-van - did this in May of 2007
2. Take the kids to Disneyland - did this Spring Break 2009
3. Buy a House (only unfinished goal)

Kevin and I have been discussing the house thing for about a year.  My parents sold their house last fall and we considered buying it, but I just didn't feel it was the right thing to do.  I really feel like God has been working on me to be content with my life.  I am somewhat of a perfectionist and I always want things to be better.  The house could be cleaner, the kids to get better grades, my students should be learning more.  You get the picture.  So last fall I put the idea of buying a house on the back burner.

Now Kevin and I have an opportunity to buy a house that has become the desire of my heart and I have really felt God's hand in this.  I mentioned to a co-worker that we were considering buying a house this Spring and she told me about a house that a friend of her's is going to sell, but it wasn't on the market yet.  So I drove by and it is exactly in the neighborhood I want to live and I loved the look of the outside.  I knocked on the door and met the nice woman.  Her husband and her are the original owners, back in 1962 and her husband passed away last year.  She let me look at the house last Friday.  It's not perfect, but it feels like home.

Right now we are waiting to see how much she wants for it, what the actual square footage, is and what the mortgage company is going to say we can afford.  We have the down payment and she knows we want to utilize the $8,000 first time homebuyers credit.  I have been praying for her because I know this is a big step.  She raised her family in this home and has lived here almost 50 years!

I am really hoping that a decision is made by sometime during spring break.  I am content where I am and if we decide to stay in the duplex, we are going to make a few changes to utilize the space much better.  My desire though, is to buy this home and finish my goals!  I would love to have the 5-year plan done in less than 4.  My master's degree will be done in August and I can start a new chapter of my life.  I can't wait to see what God has in store...

Venting

Proverbs 29:11 A fool vents all his feelings, but a wise man holds them back.

Ironically I read this verse not 5 minutes after receiving a work e-mail that usually would require LOTS of venting.  Thank you Lord for your timing. 

Daniel 3:16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego asnwer and said to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer in this matter."

I think these verses are going to NEED to be my seasonal life verses right now.  Feel free to borrow them if you need to too!

Strength and Love

I have added Cale's Recovery as a blog I am following.  You can read his story from the Tri-City Herald today. His wife Kathleen grew up at the church I attend and graduated from one of the high schools I teach at.

Please keep Cale and Kathleen in your prayers.  The most urgent need right now is Kathleen needs a car to borrow in Greenville, North Carolina for a couple of weeks.

Cale was originally not expected to live and now he is fight very hard.  God is being glorified through this sweet couple.  There is a beautiful picture of Kathleen kissing Cale's hand.  He is currently in a coma and they have no idea when he will wake up from it.

Don't Worry Now!

When you feel like you are all alone
Just like your best friend up and gone
Don't worry now
Don't worry now
I've been there yeah, I know how it feels
To wonder if love is even real
Don't worry now
Don't worry now
It's gonna be ok
                   ~Britt Nicole

I sang this chorus to my daughter the other day as I held her like a baby and she sobbed over some feelings she was having about her father. I suspect there will be many chances to repeat this memory.

First post of 2010

Whether you say "Two Thousand and ten" or "twenty-ten", 2010 is here!  Can you believe we are 3 weeks into it today?  Wow, where has the time gone?  Well, I actually know the answer to this for me.  I teach in two buildings and we are just about done with finals.  I have also started a new Master's class and it is kicking me in the rearend REALLY HARD!  This class is a research class, so that means LOTS of writing; something I really dislike.

So for the next 8 months there is no "New Year's Resolutions" or great bible studies for me, although I am excited to lead a "Secret Keeper Girl" bible study for mom's and daughter's this fall.  But for now, it is just me and my classes.  I am half way there.  I am so thankful these classes are only 6 weeks long.  By week 5 I really start to drag and half the time end up skipping the assignment.  I really need to stop this, so I guess that will be my goal for 2010...

My heart has been filled with love for those who are grieving.  I know too many people in the last few months who have lost beloved family members.  My family has been touched by those who are grieving and we want those families to know we love them, pray for them daily, and are thankful all of them will have the opportunity to spend eternity with them.  One mom in particular I pray every morning she will have the strength to get up for the day.  That's it, but I know it is the first hard decision she makes EVERY day.

I have learned to be more thankful and accept imperfection.  I am thankful I have everything in my life.  I don't like everything, but I am learning to be content with the things that God provides.  After all, he didn't ASK my opinion.

Don't forget to go over to Rachel's Writings today and wish Rachel a Happy Birthday!  I hope all of you have a wonderful rest of January.  I am sure I won't be posting anytime soon.  See you in February...