Who am I?

Lord, I'm amazed by you... Who am I that you are mindful of me?
Just two of the songs on the CD I am listening to. Wonderfully soothing & uplifting today.

It's been a quiet morning at work, which is unusual. I am cleaning out a file cabinet and throwing away old junk.

I have been thinking about our new home and town.. what it will be like, finding a church, new friends, etc. I know I will miss things here but I feel myself backing away already. There are still four months before we actually move. It's hard to think of fall kickoffs at church for the fall programs, knowing we will be gone in a short time. I'm sure it must be hard for the boys too, with school coming up in just two weeks.

My prayer focus this week is that God would reveal his plan for the house sale, and the boys settling into the school routine. I love my family and want them to be secure and comfortable.

The song playing right now is You are God alone... From before time began You were on your throne... And right now through the good times and bad You are on your throne and you are God alone. Unchangeable, unshakable, unstoppable... that's what You are. Wonderful to be able to release the stress of life and just focus on Him.

Thousand Dollar Thursday

Ok, I didn't win the money today, but I did actually know the song at least. We're so close on the house. I'm working on a couple of projects in the AIR-CONDITIONED house tonight. I'll make Brnadon go out and water everything tonight.

Really not looking forward to leaving my lovely cool office for the bus... but maybe today the newer bus will have not broken down and will still be in service on both of my routes.

Today's picture is because I have to hold on to the surety that autumn will be here soon... along with cool temperatures, fog and beautiful multi-colored trees.

Getting the house ready to sell

We have made so much progress in the past month... and yet there is still more to do. The boys have been awesome about their part in the process.

We have made 2 trips to the dump, and probably have one more next week. The garage door was replaced today - hurray! The picture was taken with my phone and I think it's a pretty good picture.

I am starting to have anxiety about how long it might take to sell. My head says "God has the right buyers preparing now and they will be ready at the right time." However my emotions are on a roller-coaster of what-if's. I know the move is the right decision and have no regrets about moving forward. I just wish the unknown was know-able.

July Heat

I am officially tired of hot weather. At least there is a breeze today and the California smoke has mostly gone away... but it's still hot. I wonder how I will deal with it in the Midwest... those hot, humid summers.

It has been a long two weeks of waiting to plan and planning to wait. We are officially moving forward - finally. The moving company has done their official survey, and the realtor has been contacted and our first remodeling and painting projects are 95% done. Next focus is the garage door, the family room floor, and exterior paint. Looking forward to making progress and getting the house listed. Praying it will sell for the amount we would like to get.

However, God has been arranging this for a long time (looking back more than 1 year... ) so we have to believe that He has a plan for how and when the house sale will take place, and who will buy it.

Point A to Point B

I guess I didn't post this specifically before... I have accepted a job offer in Bloomington, Illinois, with my company. I work in the training dept. and they're consolidating all of the main training to the home offices. I'll have my same job, title, & co-workers... but we will get to be in the same time zone.

Mike is excited, except for the part about driving across the country in late December. The boys are unsure, but not negative.

The plan is to sell our house in the next 6 months and move between Christmas & New Years. We have SO much to do in a very short time. My hope is to have the house ready to list around the first week of July.

It's 2,100 miles, so mid-winter it will probably take at least 5 days of driving. The adventurous part of me is excited. I've never lived in the Midwest. It's close to several big cities. Another part of me is unsure... new church, new climate/weather, politics of a big corporate office, Mike's job, etc. I haven't had regrets or doubts about the decision so far. Feeling at peace and that it is the right decision for us.

Monday evening

The confession - I did bring work home today. I didn't do much of it though. Mike is home from work now, and I'm ready to quit for the evening.

Seth did pretty well today. No pain meds, and not much complaining about the overwhelming load of homework. He's going to try school tomorrow.

One of his friends has called a few times and really wants (1) Seth back at school and (2) Seth to commit to staying at Sprague through their senior year. I told Seth I didn't know if that could happen. He said that's his goal right now. I think we have more talking to do...

Another Monday

Ok, in the past 10 days, Mike's truck died, Seth has been/still is sick, Brandon had 3 baseball games, I still had 40 hours of work to complete, plus the "Big Decision" to think about and a bathroom to paint and finish.

The truck - is mostly dead. Paid almost $150 to find that out. It costs more to fix than it is work in Kelly Blue Book, so it is likely to stay dead. Of course it has a full tank of gas and brand new tires. It's just sitting in the driveway for now.

Seth - had a fever of 102-103 for 5 days with unexplained pain in his abdomen. Not appendicitis, tumor or abscess, according to x-rays and CT scan. The fever left last Thursday, but the pain has persisted. So far we are counting an Urgent Care/ER visit, 2 regular doctor visits, multiple blood draws, 2 heavy-duty antibiotics and Vicodin. We are currently waiting for a referral to a gastrointestinal doctor.. should hear by Wednesday. He is stressed out about finals next week, plus missing homework.

Baseball - Brandon's doing well but I am so tired of the routine. We're going until Monday 6/16.

The Bathroom - Is painted with 1 coat. I love the color but I think it's too dark for most people. I will probably go back to the drawing board. I don't think ragging it will look good, but I may try it to see.

Work - Oh my... Fortunately I won't have any groups here until July. I am buried, but I am trying really hard not to take work home with me. I've been successful at that for 2-3 weeks. No promises tonight since there is no baseball game or practice.

The Decision - We are feeling pretty confident about our decision, but are waiting to meet with Pastor Ben another time. He asked us to wait two weeks and make sure we are seeing an overall picture, pros and cons.

Ok, that's the short version. I am amazed at how much it helps to actually write this out and send it away to cyberspace. No one reads it but me... but the act of writing gets it out of my swirling brain.