Getting Settled

I realized when I was just reading my last post that I need to post about the sale of our house. I'll try to do that next time. We're supposed to close the 21st so please pray everything goes off without a hitch. Thanks!

I wrote this the other day because I didn't want to forget our first day or so in our new home:

When we pulled into our driveway in Cedar Creek, TX, Sunday night, Aubrie wanted to know where are animals were. In fact, the next few times we pulled into the driveway, she asked again about our animals and where they were. She’s apparently very excited about the prospect and has been paying attention! (By the way, don't know if I've mentioned that the place we're renting has 5 acres, goat fencing and a chicken coop so we're all set.)

Monday was supposed to be cleaning day since the moving van was coming with our stuff on Tuesday. I say “supposed to be” because like most best-laid plans, not much cleaning took place. We were in need of quite a few things from WalMart so we headed off to Bastrop which is about ten minutes away. Now, I wasn’t sure if there was a WalMart, let alone where it was. So, I pulled into McDonald’s, laptop in hand to get on the internet to find out. Todd asked me later why I didn’t just go inside and ask someone, but I really didn’t want to hear the possible answer that there wasn’t one. Turns out, the WalMart is just about a block away from McDonald’s so I was really glad I opted for the internet; that would have been too embarrassing.

It’s been a while since I’ve been to the store with all three kids, and like I said, we needed quite a few things. I was worn out when we were done. We were headed home when we realized we needed to look up a couple of more things online. Back to McDonald’s we go. This is where things really started to go awry. My car wouldn’t start after we were done. So, the nice people next to us give us a jump and back to WalMart we go to have the car looked at. I was pretty proud of myself (first sign of trouble; what's that about pride and a fall?) Now, I had already eaten at McDonald’s the day before (which is difficult for me in the first place), but that’s all there was at WalMart. While they’re checking out the car, we eat our fish and chicken. We then find out that they are not able to detect anything wrong with the car. (Jill, you will remember that this happened once before at church.) However, the nice man at WalMart said that the car was starting now. Off we go again.

I unload the stuff at home only to find out that several of the things I bought were the wrong size – mainly different light bulbs we needed and some sheets. Now this seems minor enough, but it was enough to get me near the edge. What happened next sent me over. We (okay, I) decided that it would be a great idea to put all the girls in the same room to sleep so that we could have a play/school room for them. This was the first sleep time that I had put them all together. Not such a brilliant idea, but remember, I went to WalMart w/three children. I have no brain power left. Skip ahead about half an hour. Aubrie locks the door to the girls’ bedroom, and I can’t get it open. Neither can Emma. I lose it now. There is screaming (I’m sad to say) on my part, tears on theirs, and I call Todd to ask him when he is coming home. While the girls are upstairs not getting a desperately needed nap, I am crying, cleaning the kitchen and wondering how long it takes to get from Buda to Cedar Creek. Meanwhile, the girls are not getting along and Jessie scratches Emma’s face – looks like she was in a fight with a cat. Lovely. I'm now feeling like the worst mom ever. Ever.

Anyway, in the midst of my meltdown, I thought about Africa. I thought about how much more stressful the days’ events would have been in a different culture, in a different language (that I wouldn’t know very well, if at all), where there is no WalMart (not that I'm a particular fan of WalMart; it's just so good and cheap). I have to say, and not in a trite way at all, that the last of my Africa grief is gone. I am now very content to allow the Lord to work out His plans for our future in His timing. And that, despite the days events, was very valuable to me.

So Much to Say, So Little Time

Things have been so busy lately that I've barely had time to read a blog let alone post to my own. Let me catch everyone up really quickly, and I'll try to do better in a week or so.

Todd came home Sunday to help get us packed up for our move to Cedar Creek, TX. Monday, we changed our movers and our load date to Friday. Tuesday, our realtor came to our house with two offers on our house. Wednesday, we signed a contract on our house. Today we continued to pack like crazy. Todd is still there while I sit at Judy and Jerry's house with the girls asleep (finally) and get caught up on the blog world that I've missed. After the truck comes tomorrow, we'll spend another night here and then head to Grand Prairie.

We'll stay there a night and then head to our TX house on Sunday. The plan is to clean, sleep on air matresses and hope to get some sleep until our stuff gets there on Tuesday. So, I may not be back for a while. I have all kinds of pictures from our church's fall fest which was so much fun that I'd like to post when I get the chance - may be close to Thanksgiving by the time that happens!

Tribute to Uncle Larry

Sorry, I took the pictures off because they were causing the whole page to jump. Maybe I can put them back later...

Todd's Uncle Larry passed away last night, and Todd is driving as I type to come back to MS so we can all ride to Dothan, AL, tomorrow. I expect he will sleep most of the way there since he didn't get back to Buda until 11:40 last night. I hope you enjoy the pictures from our cousin Kristy's wedding. They are just a little taste of Larry's incredible handiwork, and I thought it would be nice to share their beauty. Ironically, the wedding was over a year ago, and I just ordered these pictures yesterday which were ready for in-store pick-up today. I was just cleaning out my emails and realized that I had never ordered any of these great pictures that cousin Patty took. I'm so glad that I did so that I can post them tonight.

The wedding was absolutely beautiful, but my favorites have to be the lemon topiary trees. Once the sun went down, all the lanterns, candles and luminaries were lit, and it was even more amazing - truly a dreamland.

I would have posted some snapshots of our wedding from eleven years ago which Larry also did, but those are all packed up along with tons of other books and pictures so that our office doesn't scare people who come to see the house. Someday really soon, when we're all settled, I'll try to remember to post those, too.

The Perfect Fall Day

We had a surprise visit this weekend! Todd called on Wed. morning and told us he was headed our way. He got here early Thursday morning (like 1 am early) and was able to stay almost all weekend. We didn't tell the younger two that he was coming home because I wanted to see their reactions when they woke up with him in the house. Before I knew that he was coming, I had told Jessie that she could sleep in the bed with me. I warned Todd that if/when she woke up during the night not in Mommy's bed, that we might have a visitor. Sure enough, at 4 am she comes to our room wanting to know why she was still in her bed. Finally, I got her attention so I could show her that Daddy was in the bed. She climbed up there so fast and was the cutest little cuddle buddy. I don't think we could have pried her from that bed if we'd wanted to. We didn't want to, of course. Aubrie joined us later that morning, and her reaction was equally as precious. Emma had made plans to spend the night with a friend, but we got in some special time with her Thursday afternoon.

We crammed in as much "Daddy Time" as we could. It was so wonderful to have him home for a while and so hard to say good-bye today. Since we weren't with him on his birthday last weekend, we had a little party of sorts today. Jerry had been home in Dothan, AL, and came back with one of our favorite things - oysters. Now, one of the things that Todd claims sealed the deal in our relationship was that I ate oysters on the half-shell. We love them, and so do the girls. Well, Aubrie hasn't quite made up her mind, but Emma and Jessie are on board. Todd and Jerry shucked them in our backyard, and we couldn't have planned a better day for an outside meal. The weather was so nice and cool and no bugs! It was great to not have to spray the girls down before we went out.

We got some great pics of the afternoon including Todd's "cake" which consisted of his favorite cookies (oatmeal chocolate chip) made into a sandwich of sorts with whipped cream in the middle. If you are grossed out by oysters, probably best to skip the pictures.

Bunko Night

I had never heard of Bunko until I moved to Mississippi and was pregnant with Emma. I subbed for a friend of mine, and I have to be honest, I thought, "This has to be the silliest game ever." You sit around a table with your partner and another team and try to roll sixes. That's it. No strategy, no skill required. Which, as it turns out, is a good thing since I'm doing good to count how many sixes I've rolled. Seems I can't talk and count at the same time, go figure.

Anyway, we've had some turnover and some babies born so we made an executive decision not to have Bunko last month. I was so disappointed! The girls I play with are so much fun, and I really look forward to spending time with them. Since I'm more home bound than usual, it was really sad to not have my time with them. Most of the girls are in my Sunday school class, but it's just not the same as our time together every 2nd Monday of the month. For instance, I don't think our SS teachers would be too thrilled if we decided to talk about the woes of nursing babies for half an hour like we did tonight. It's just that kind of group where we can talk about quite a lot. I also love this group because, aside from a few rare exceptions, we are gossip-free. It is just so great and makes me really proud of our little group.

So, in the midst of missing Todd and being stretched really thin, tonight was just what I needed. Some really good food and great atmosphere (Thanks, Lori.) and wonderful friends. Just the thing for what ails me.

"Down in the valley, the valley so low,..."

I have tried not to blog much about Todd being in Texas for fear that I would run off anyone who regularly or randomly reads this, primarily because it would mostly be whining, and who wants to read that all the time?

But, since this is one of the most difficult times in our lives, I feel a need to share it, or at least a part of it. I think it will be good for me. Tomorrow marks the eighth week that Todd has been away from us. That I've been without my best friend. That the girls have been without their daddy. That I've had trouble sleeping because I hear every little sound and because Todd is not in the bed next to me. I'm truly running on fumes, and the tiredness I'm experiencing ranks right up there with taking care of a newborn.

This is a time I'm full of questions and doubts, not about the big things since I know and have seen many times before that God's plan is always the best and is always worth waiting for. I hate waiting. Really. I think that it is probably the hardest thing in the world. To trust in what we can't see ahead, for what we want to happen, especially when we want it to happen sooner rather than later.

Last week at our church we had our Global Impact Celebration. I normally love this time when I get to visit with missionaries and see what they're doing, but to be really honest, I couldn't even make myself go. I think, for one, that I could not have held it together long enough to have a conversation with anyone, and once I break down, it's all over. So, I skipped the stuff I normally go to, but, alas, I was not out of danger. The speaker from the IMB chose to focus his attention on one country Sunday morning. You guessed it, Mozambique. To my friend, Tiffany, who was trying to see if I was holding up, thank you. I'm glad you couldn't see my grief from where you were!

Then, on to Sunday school where we were one of the classes chosen to have a missionary speaker come and tell us about their work. More Africa. This time tears I could not hold back. More loneliness at not being able to have Todd sitting beside me squeezing my hand.

I truly do not know what God's plan is for us, where we'll be down the road. Isn't that kind of stating the obvious? No one does, not really. I pray that by His grace we will still be seeking Him and wanting all that He wants for us. So, if we cross your minds, do you mind praying for us, most especially for a speedy family reunion! Thanks!

35 Odd Things About Me

My friend Chelsea emailed this to me, and then another friend, Mer, had this on her blog, and it looked like fun especially after my ranting the other day.

35 Odd Things About Me - and this doesn't even scratch the surface!

1. Do you like blue cheese salad dressing? yes, with really big chunks of blue cheese

2. Do you own a gun? I personally don't, but if we're counting Todd in this, I'm not sure how many we have!

3. What's your favorite drink at Starbucks? caramel frap

4. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? water or coffee

5. Do you do pushups? only when I can't get to the gym and am feeling completely flabby

6. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? my engagement and wedding rings

7. Favorite hobby? reading and drinking coffee (at the same time!)

8. Do you have A.D.D? no

9. What's one trait that you hate about yourself? quick temper

10. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment: Why won't Aubrie go to sleep, why won't Jessie go to sleep, why won't Emma go to sleep?

11. Name 4 drinks you regularly drink. water, coffee, coke, and chai - only in the fall and winter, though

12. Current worry right now? When will our house sell, when will we find a new home?

13. Current hate right now? being w/o Todd!!

14. Favorite place to be? on a date with Todd

15. Do you like to travel? Yes, yes, and yes!

16. What color shirt are you wearing? khaki

17. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? no, too slick!

18. Can you whistle? not at all, sounds terrible when I try

19. Favorite color? red

20. If you could would you be a pirate? nope

21. What song do you sing in the shower? Actually I usually don't in the shower - sing lots of other places, though.

22. Favorite girl's name? Emma, Jessie and Aubrie!! I also love Elizabeth, but it got shot down - twice!

23. Favorite boy's name? John, actually is the only boy's name we ever had picked out, just in case.

24. What's in your pocket right now? nothing

25. Favorite bedsheets as a child? Raggedy Ann and Andy.

26. Worst injury? Due to quick temper mentioned above, I ran my bike into a tree when I was seven, and pieces of it got stuck in my eyelid. My second grade pictures are lovely. I'm sure mom was so proud...

27. Do you love where you live? yes, and I love where we're moving, too

28. How many TVs do you have in your house? Two

29. Who is your loudest friend? Brenda and Sharon, and when we're all together, we're pretty unbearable. If it happens to be in public, our husbands want to hide! So glad to be closer to you two!!

30. How many pets do you have? None, for now, but we're hoping to change that pretty soon.

31. Does someone have a crush on you? What kind of question is this??? No, and like Chels said, I wouldn't want to know about it if they did!

32. What is your Favorite Book? Ever? So hard. Most life-changing that I can pretty much re-tell w/o looking is The Hiding Place.

33. What's your favorite candy? anything dark chocolate with mint

34. Favorite Sports Team? Don't really have one, but I have a new-found love for the SEC; the competition is pretty fierce, and I definitely prefer college to pro.

35. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up? Can it really be time to get up already?