A lot to say, a lot to do

We've been very busy and so I've neglected to set aside time to post on the blog. We all feeled settled in emotionally at our new home. Unfortunately it's that "cluttered at-home" feeling which might be why it's feeling like home. I have to tell myself to take a deep breath and dig my heels in. With a lot of hard work, this home can get to an orderly, decorated state which we lived in while the last house was on the market. It doesn't have to be perfect like I kept that one but I would love to one day buy a nice dining room table and have a room to put it in. My parents helped me unload the last of the items we had stored in the storage unit. Almost all of it was deposited in our dining room to join the many other boxes sitting there until they are unpacked and contents find real homes. Pictures are soon to come as I think we've gotten a lot done in the four weeks we've been here.

In other news... Braewyn is daytime potty-trained!! After several weeks (ahem, months!) of giving it half-hearted attempts, a week ago she walked into the bonus room wearing a t-shirt and panties and I said, "We're going with panties from now on." I almost reversed back to diapers after she wet her pants standing on the front porch as we were leaving for Bible study last Thursday (a week ago). Matthew encouraged me to keep her in panties and stick with it. Thankfully we did and she had been doing great... when I remember to escort her to the bathroom every few hours. I think we had a great milestone today as we attended our church's Harvest Fest with her in panties and no accidents in her Pooh Bear suit! On the way driving there, she said, "Need to go pee pee." We asked her to stay dry and she did all the way there, walking across the street, around the building, getting a few pieces of candy, signing in at the registration table and then heading to the bathroom!! Yeah, Braewyn!! I think the key was buying super cute Disney princess panties which she loves.

Philip is doing so well with his school work. Yes, it still takes a lot of work to get him motivated to start (especially after a few tv shows; I know, those mornings I'm shooting myself in the foot!) and not play with toys which are still floating around the disorganized bonus room floor. I'm so excited to look for an old book case at Goodwill and buy canvas totes to store all the toys. He has not only gotten super at writing his letters but is now asking me how to spell words which he then writes. And his drawings! I need to take pictures of his drawings to post as any piece of paper he gets his hands on, he'll cover the back with adorable pics of trees, animals and even his own rendition of The Fantastic Four which are his newest favorite super heroes.

We did have a great Halloween with attending Harvest Fest as I mentioned (games, rides, chili cheese fries!!), resting at home for a few hours, and then Trick-or-Treating on our street. We met about half of our neighbors. I was so excited! They all seem very nice. There's even a family with three kids who are homeschooling too. We hope to go to the park together sometime. After finishing collecting candy, we left our light on to provide some for other trick-or-treaters. I smiled every time the doorbell would ring and Philip would cry out, "We have customers!" So precious.

Bittersweet

Today my dear sweet 95-year-old friend Mrs. Cordie Hawkins passed away. I was heartbroken the moment Matthew told me as I've not seen her in a month. But in the same moment I rejoiced! Mrs. Cordie has loved Jesus for most of her life and now she is in His presence. Also she is free from her earthly body and all it's ailments. And also she is now reunited with her husband, her parents and three of her children who passed away before her. I cherished my friendship with Mrs. Cordie as our conversations allowed me to see things from her perspective, one that did not involve the fast-paced, materialism-driven culture in which I live.

Mrs. Cordie was born in North Carolina and then moved to this area as a girl. She married and had nine children, six boys and three girls. They had a farm and built a house on that land in the 1960's. She lived in that same home until her death. I have been blessed to get to know all six of her still living children who all live nearby. I don't know how often I will see them from now on as it was at Mrs. Cordie's home I ran into them.

After telling Philip that Mrs. Cordie has died and now is in heaven, I asked him if he was sad. He said, "No, I'm not sad. Don't you remember that we're going to heaven too and we'll see her there!" It made my heart soar.

I do praise God for that hope. It's not a hope like "I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow." But instead a hope to come of what has already been promised to me.

"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful." Hebrews 10:23

"Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him." 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14

Here is Mrs. Cordie with Philip and Braewyn.







I love you, Mrs. Cordie. I'll see you soon!!

Moving from here to there

This last week has been hectic yet exciting. I thought moving would be a breeze but honestly after living with our old house "show ready" for almost 5 months, the transition of packing and bringing everything to the new house was a little unnerving for me. Thankfully we had several friends and family members help in the move (Thank you, Mom & Dad, Ruth Ann, Michael, and Jennifer & Gregg!) and then my Mom and Aunt Cindy a few days later. Elise, bless you for the yummy meal!

I praise God again for blessing us with this beautiful new home as it really meets all the criteria we were looking for. I pray it will be a house where our family and friends can come and feel the love of Christ through us. More pics to come as we get the kids' room finished and devise a plan to organize the bonus room.