Seven!

Looks like we'll be spending a quiet New Years Eve. Since we've been battling coughs, colds and sniffles for the better part of 2 weeks, we thought it prudent to spend the evening at home resting, and resolving to not get sick in the next few weeks.

Today, I did laundry. Lot's of laundry! And now, I have to sort it all out, toss the old stuff and the small stuff and hopefully some too big stuff and then pack it all up in suitcases and boxes. I'll leave a few outfits out and do a last load of laundry on Saturday before they pack up the washer and dryer.

Tanner and I packed the kitchen, so now we have one pot, one frying pan and paper plates and cups for the rest of the week. It looks like we'll be all done with our packing on Saturday, so it will be sleeping on the floor and living out of suitcases from then on. I know that the last thing I will pack will be my espresso machine. It's just too grueling to have to wait until 10:30 to get my shot of espresso. I think it's funny that it always takes me until 10:30 to get out of the house. The kids get up at 8:00, and between getting them dressed and breakfast, I never leave the house before 10:30. What am I going to do when Kate starts school?

Today, I feel excited. No doldrums. That wasn't the way I was feeling yesterday or the day before, but today I feel only excitement. I keep pinching myself to make sure that this dream is finally coming true. Also, people have been so encouraging the last few days that I really feel upbeat and determined. Thank you so much. I'm feeling such a boost of joy, and I know it's because of the great suppot that my family has once again kicked in to high gear.

Here's hoping that you all have a great new year, and that it's full of as much excitement, vim, and vigor that you can possibly pack into it.

A little humor

Perhaps these two photos best describe the differences between Oregon (on the left) and Texas (below).

NINE, EIGHT!

Time is going by way too fast now. The house is almost entirely packed. We just have our clothes, a few dishes and the pantry to pack. I keep wondering if there is anything that I can do, but then I realize that I really have to wait until Friday to finish packing.

The last few days have been a lot of fun. Yesterday, we celebrated our 7th anniversary by having dinner at Pazzo's. Of course, it HAD to be Pazzo's. We spent our wedding night in the hotel attached to Pazzo's, and we had our first lunch as a married couple there, so of course we went to Pazzo's. We've been there every year except for one, and that was because we were out of town. Pazzo's is famous for 2 things: gnocchi and lemon drop martinis. Yum, to both.

Today, I launched a final sally on Target with my three girls, my sister and her two girls. Sniff. I cried in the car on my way home. It makes me wish Texas wasn't so far away. Kate gets to spend the night with her cousin tonight. I guess we're trying to get in all the family time we can get.

I ordered all of the utilities turned on, and am working on ordering a phone line. I think it will be weird having a land line for the first time in our married life. Good news, I have 5 violin students lined up in C.S. Isn't that wonderful? I didn't expect such a wonderful blessing. God is being faithful.

TEN!

The official countdown has begun. We're getting excited and just a little nervous. After all, we've never even seen the house in Texas. I keep wondering if I'm being just a little bit idiotic!

We've started to look for a little truck in Texas. We're hoping to find a little mazda or nissan so that we'll be able to transport supplies easily. We've bought a fixer upper, and we're pretty sure a truck is going to come in handy.

Well, this week Tanner has to make sure that all of our stuff is assembled from the vast array of family that we have here in good ol' PDX. He has to pick up a bunkbed, clean our stuff out of the barn, check the attic and the tool shed, take down the Christmas lights, and box and bundle it all up before this weekend. My checklist is to get the garbage, water, gas, electricity and phones all lined up in C.S., pack up the kitchen and arrange for swimming lessons. And then we have decisions to make like: do we take my dresser or even the girls dresser? (They're really rickety and splintering.)

Anyway, Saturday and Sunday are the official time to pack up days and our day of departure depends on the weather forecast. I think I need a paper bag: breathe in--out--in--out.

I was just thinking: what am I going to do without my mom's library? I'm so used to being able to go over, pick out a book, read it, return it, pick out another book. I can tell that there is going to be a lot of adjusting in Texas.

Reagan's Birthday

Uh, oh. Happy Birthday, Reagan??!!

I was planning to buy Reagan's birthday present last weekend, but the snow and the ice kind of detered me. I didn't want to risk it, so we stayed home. Yesterday, it became apparent that we had to do SOMETHING. So, we decided to risk a trip to Target.

I suggested to Tanner that perhaps he should test out the roads before we put the girls in the car, but he just shrugged and said it wouldn't be a big deal. So, we packed the girls in the car with extra blankets, jacket, socks, etc... The garage door opened, the car backed down the drive and we got stuck. The rear wheels made it about 1/4 of the way down the drive, so Tanner got out and shoveled and scraped and dug until I could pull the car back into the garage. Then we waited in the car for about 30 minutes while he shoveled the snow from the drive. I kind of felt a little guilty as I sat in the car all snug and warm and watched my husband battle the drifting snow, but I knew I wouldn't be any use. I'd probably end up coughing and hacking with every other step, so I sat in the car and waited with girls. Finally the task was done and we were able to get on the road. It took us another 30 minutes to get to Target, but we did get there.

We headed straight for the toy section and let Reagan wander up and down the aisles. She played with a few, discarded a few and finally seemed to settle on one: a barbie electric guitar. So, we picked a few supplies: goldfish, fruit snacks, twizzlers and eggnog, and then headed home. And we got stuck again. I mean really stuck. Our rear wheels started to slide and the chains didn't seem to make much of a difference and we landed in a pillowy, wet, snow bank. Luckily, Tanner had decided to bring the shovel, so out he got and startd shoveling, and scraping and digging. A couple of guys stopped and helped push the car onto the road, for which we were very grateful. As we started up the hill to Safeway, we saw another car in a similar predicament. Tanner figured he was already wet and cold, so we stopped to help, excuse me, Tanner helped. I sat in the car and watched. All in all, it took us an hour and a half to get home, but get home we did.

That's not the end. This mornig I woke up and realized that I had forgotten to get a muffin or something like that for a birthday cake. And, yes, I realize that I could have made one, but I'm sick. Really sick. (sorry to everyone I infected at Target.) So, Tanner headed out this morning, wisely leaving his family at home, to find a birthday cake. He brought home a tiny, ice cream cake from Baskin Robbins, helped another stranded motorist, and bought me a cappuccino. So, at least now Reggie will have a birthday party, even if it is a small one.

It's begginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Wow! What a snowfall. Isn't it wonderful when the whole city shuts down because of a few inches of snow so that you can almost hear the snow crackling as it falls?

My apologies to everyone who is stuck at home and wishing they were at work. We were praying that the girls would get a last blast of snow before we left for Texas, and I guess God saw it fit to blanket the entire country in arctic weather. Woops. :-) I am thankful that God gave the girls a good chunk of snow. Looks like it will be an entire week of snow angels and snow men. Luckily I have a carrot.

A few days ago, Kate asked me if it ever got really cold in Texas, and I told her no. She started to cry. When I asked her what was wrong she said, "Christmas won't ever come!" I guess that's our fault. We've been telling her that first comes Daddy's birthday, then it will be Mommy's birthday, then it will get REALLY cold, then Reagan's birthday and THEN Christmas.

We've been busy making cookies and candies, and in between that we've been packing. We have a list and we've been checking it twice. Looks like everything is in order and all lined up. Though I'm sure there will be plenty of hang ups once we actually start the journey.

We're laughing again!

A quick note before I go to bed. Just found out that the average garbage bill in C.S. is $14 a month for a 70 gallon container, with brush removal and oversized garbage removal (i.e. refridgerators, washer, dryer, etc...) Don't worry, they also provide a reasonable rate for carcass removal. Only $4 a carcass, but if your a vet they have a flat rate fee of $20 a month.

Of course we know that in the electric department we will pay dearly. After all the summer gets REALLY hot, and our A.C. is going to be running 24/7, so...

One month to go!

Yup! It's almost here, and we are so very excited. We've started packing the things that we know we can do without for the next month. As most of you know, that's pretty amazing considering the spartan surrounding we already occupy. But, since Tanner might find this month pretty busy, especially the weekends, we've decided that we can do without certain pots, pans, dishes and toys...mainly toys. If any of you know someone that is having a baby, especially a baby girl, please tell me. I have TONS of baby girl clothes that I'd like to give to someone, but I don't know anyone having a baby girl. I know people having boys, but no girls. Hmmm...

I am priviledged to have a baby that finally sucks her thumb! Oh, I've wanted one for a while, but all of my others prefered pacifiers to their fingers, but Georgianna has a decided preference for her thumb. YAY! Unfortunately, she has also rejected the bottle which means our drive to Texas might be a little more complicated than we anticipated; nevetheless, I am still trying to give her the bottle, so perhaps she'll adjust and acquire a taste for it.

We've calculated our budget for Texas, and discovered that in order to be poor, survive and BARELY scrape by we need to make a whopping 1K a month. We started to laugh ourselves silly. We feel like we could do that standing on our heads with our eyes closed. I guess we'll see once we get there if our budget calculations are correct. All in all, when people start complaining about the economy, my answer remains the same, "Why don't you just move to Texas?" or as Tanner says, "the best _____ country in the Union."

I think it's amazing how God is providing for us so that it will be possible for Tanner to really concentrate on school. We've been so apprehensive about doing this because we know how stressful school, work and family can be, but God seems to be providing in an amazing way. It looks like if it really came down to it, I could get a job to support the family without having to leave our kids in daycare. I thank God for this opportunity and for his provision.

Just a little note about the blog.

Those of you that are getting this email about our blog can also click the link at the bottom of the email to access the blog page which has pictures and eventually will have videos. Also, if you know of anyone that would want to get these emails, please send me their email address and I will put them on the list. Feel free to print this out and share it with the memebers of our family that don't have email/internet access. Thanks, Noelle.

It's leveled!

Good news. The contractor managed to get our house leveled this week! We are so happy to have that part finished. He also figured out why there was water under the house. Apparently, the house next door is rented out to a bunch of young girls, and one of them ran over the sprinkler head. So, every morning the water has been flowing in a steady stream onto our property, down the slope and under the house. So, he fixed the sprinkler head and figures that once everything dries up he might have to come out and do a few minor adjustments to the house, but that's it.

So, our next project is the windows.

We thought that the heater was broken, but apparently it's just that the gas is turned off to the house, so we might be able to save a penny or two there. We'll find out when we get to C.S. whether we'll have to replace it. The funny thing is that we could probably heat the house with a couple of space heaters which is what we were planning to do once we go there. If the heater is in good working condition we'll probably just go with window A.C. for a while so that we have enough money to fix the bathroom.

D-day is approaching, and we can tell that the Lord is preparing us for the move. Our hearts are ready, and Lord willing so will our bodies and minds. We pray nightly for our girls that they would have a smooth transition, and that they would be able to find good friends very quickly. We are also praying for a church and friends for ourselves as well. We hope that God finds that it would be good for us to have these things, and that He would give them to us.

Advent begins on Monday, and we've decided to use the Sermon on the Mount as our guide this year. We think that it is instructive to us on how to live and serve God and thought that you all might find it interesting as we make our way through chapters 5, 6 and 7 during the Christmas season.

I can't stand all this Texas beaurocracy!

I told my mom this story, and she remarked, "You make Texas sound like heaven." And frankly, I have to agree. It is heaven.

We spoke to our contractor on Friday, and he said that we needed to make sure that there was power at the house so that he could do his work. Imagine my frustration when I realized that it was too late to call the utility company, and that if the power didn't get turned on right away, it would mean a delay in the remodeling since this was the only week available to do our house for the next month. I have to admit that I fretted about it quite a bit over the weekend. A delay in the leveling would mean the house might not get finished by the time we arrived in C.S.

I woke up on Monday and immediately called the utilites company. It was 9:00 our time, 11:00 down there. The operator asked all of the pertinent questions: address, phone number, social security, mailing address, and then she asked me when I'd like service to begin. I said, "As soon as possible." Her response? "So, you mean this afternoon?" I gasped, "Um, yeah." Hehehe....read it and weep. Those of you who have ever tried to get electricity turned on and off out here in the good ol' Northwest know that it takes a couple of days. But...that's not the end of the story.

The next step was to call the contractor. Tanner apologized for the delay, but notified him that the electricity would be turned on in the afternoon. The contractor said, "No problem. I ran in to a couple of glitches with the city over the permits." Tanner groaned. Permits???? Not our favorite subject. The contractor continued, "I figure, I'll get it cleared up by this afternoon, so I should be able to start work in the morning."

Huh? that was our response. I thought, "You call that a glitch?" That's a news flash compared to what we're used to.

Later he called and apologized for causing an unnecessary delay. The permit process is rather new in C.S., and after he talked with the permit department (which consists of about 3 people) they told him that he didn't need to wait for approval, he only needed to notify them about what he was intending to do, so apparently he COULD have started today.

Huh?

I have a feeling that is going to be an oft repeated phrase for us.

Looks like we found a job!

Isn't it funny how God works? We've been praying for a job since June, and about 3 weeks ago, Tanner thought God told him to start asking everyone that we talked to in Texas for a job. My initial response? How embarrassing! I am so glad I kept my mouth shut and told my husband to go for it. If God was telling him to do it, then just do it! I can't tell you how many times I cringed when I heard Tanner talking on the phone with a realtor or a construction guy and I heard the inevitable, "So, do you have any jobs available? No? Oh, well, uh, do you know anyone that has a job available?" So many times I wanted to scream, "STOP! I can't take the embarrassment anymore." For some reason I didn't. I can't say it was because of anything special, I think I just kept chickening out. I didn't want to get into an arguement or something like that.

Well, we decided to call refrences that one of our contractors supplied. Imagine my cringing soul as I heard the conversation winding up and prepared for that all embarrassing question. I could hear the lady on the other end say very politely, "Well, no, actually I don't have any job openings. I'm sorry..." I figured that was the end of that and then she said, "But, you know, there's this company that's always hiring...it won't make you much maybe 13-18 an hour..."

I checked the company out online and became very excited when I discovered that not only does it have positions open to work in its office, but also that it had openings for at home offices! Tanner filled out the online form on Saturday and got a response this morning! So, I've filled one out and we'll see if we can't both get a job.

Trying to potty train

Reggie is almost two and showing signs of being ready to potty train. I decided to give it a try this week and so far there have been 2 poos and 4 pees. Before anyone gets too excited, they all happened on the floor not the toilet. For some reason I have feeling God is sitting up in heaven watching my gyrations and just cracking up with laughter. I think that's why it's sunny today.

We've begun the countdown.

This afternoon we ordered the PODS for all of our belongings. They'll be dropped on January 2nd in the evening, and we'll have the weekend to get them packed, and they'll be picked up on either the 6th or 7th. We're planning on taking off early on the 7th, so that we can make it through the passes during the afternoon instead of the evening. Hopefully, we'll arrive in Sacrament that evening and we'll spend it with our friends, and then head on down the next day to Disneyland. If all goes well, we'll be in College Station by the 16th. That's only 60 days to freedom!! (If you've ever been to Texas, you know what I'm talking about.)

I think the hardest transition for us will be learning to speak slowly. Already, we've had several frustrating conversations with locals down there requesting that we speak more slowly. Sort of makes me feel like I'm from New York rather than from the Northwest. (If you've ever been to New York, you know what I'm talking about.) So, if you guys do give us a call, remember that we might be learning how to talk at snails pace.

Here's a funny story. We visited Galveston in June, and witnessed an unusual occurence: the heavens opened in a downpour. It rained for 3 HOURS! All pedestrians disappeared. The beaches were deserted. And cars ceased to exist. Tanner and I felt very odd as we drove our rental around the empty streets. We decided to stop at a dimly lit Starbucks which was the only sign of life in that town. We also figured it would be relatively safe. We thought maybe we were missing something...

We parked, ran through the downpour, and made it into the comforting, brown glow of Starbucks. I ordered the usual and so did Tanner. Everybody was talking about the rain. They were shocked that it was STILL raining. It had been raining for TWO HOURS! AND in the day time. We discovered that was the reason for the empty streets. "After all," one of the customers remarked, "it is dangerous to drive in the rain." We frowned. Cleared our throats, and said, "In Portland it can rain for a month solid." The whole room grew very quiet. Someone finally asked, "You mean it rains every single night?" We gently corrected him. "No, ALL day, ALL night, without ceasing." There was a gentle chuckle of disbelief. So we said again, "No, really, all day, all night, nonstop for about a month." Jaws dropped. Heads shook. I doubt any of them will be visiting us soon.

Looks like we found a good contractor

Well, we just hired a guy to level the house for us. That's the first major step in a big project. We've praying and asking the Lord to send us someone of good repute who could get the job done before we arrive in C.S. One of the obstacles has been that all of the good contractors have been busy because of the last couple of hurricanes, and they've all told us that it would be 6 months before they could get to the house. Today we spoke to a contractor that said that he could work on it Thanksgiving week because no one was lined up for that week. Yay! AND he gave us a quote for about $4500. It's just amazing how God is providing for us, and He uses all of these circumstances to remind me that we are indeed in the palm of His hand.

OR as C.S. Lewis put it in his book The Silver Chair: He didn't tell us HOW things would turn out. He just told us to WHAT we should do.

How much to fix the foundation?

Looks like it's going to cost a pretty little penny to get the foundation fixed. We finally got our first bid today...hehe: 10K. Not bad, actually. We got the house at such a good price that there is a lot of wiggle room when it comes to repairs.

Tanner spoke on the phone with city permits. It was probably the most eye opening experience we've had so far. College Station is considered to be one of the more "liberal" towns in the area, and very "invasive" when it comes to government control, so we were bracing for the worst when it came to what types of permits we would have to get and how much they cost. Imagine our laughter when the permit officer said, "well, it's going to be a little steep. It's $15 for the first 1K in estimated repairs and $5 for every additional 1K." Um, so that means we're looking at permit costs of...$60? Hahahahahaha! Tanner kept probing for the "hidden" cost items until finally the guy asked, "Where are you guys from?" So, Tanner responded, "Portland, Oregon." You could hear the permit officer grinning, "Oh, the left coast?" Then he proceeded to explain that they just have general permits. There's a permit called "Rennovation and Remodeling", and you just list what you're going to rennovate and remodel and they issue the permit. Yeah, it's that easy.

We have two other contractors bidding the foundation job tomorrow, so we'll be able to get a really good picture as to the price and how long it will take. Thanks for all of your prayers as we take the next steps in our Texan adventure.

So...we bought a house

Yes, we've actually done it. Of course most of you already know this, but we really, truly bought a house or, perhaps more accurately, a home. It's a major fixer upper, and I have a feeling that this blog is going to spend a lot of time telling all of you how it's going, what our next project is, and the latest "findings".

I'm excited about it because there seems to be nice sized backyard for the girls to play in, and we'll be located in a great school district, which was important to us since we won't be able to send them to a private school. And trust me...I don't think I'm cut out to actually homeschool my own kids. LOL. Kind of weird when you think about it...

So, I figured out how to post pictures of the house, including the "bathroom" which is kind of disgusting and will probably be on our priority list but will have to come after: leveling the house, replacing broken windows and doors, installing heat and a/c, fence the yard, then and only then will we work on the bathroom.

Luckily, the inspection came back that the house was mold free as far as the inspector could see. There are always small blessings that God gives us to remind us that we are indeed in His hands.

I have to admit to being sad at leaving good ol' PDX. I'm sad that Kate won't get to celebrate big number 5 with her favorite cousins. I'm sad the Reggie won't be able to see Charlie and the Georgie probably won't remember any of the family that we leave behind. I hold on to the realization that this is God's work and God's direction, and the He is faithful to give us what we need. He honors our commitment to Him and will give us every good thing. I hope that we all see a lot of visitors our way, and maybe even snag a few hearts for the best place on earth.

Welcome, Georgianna!

We welcomed Georgiann Rose into our family on September 24th. What an event. Everything went smoothly, and we came home on the 26th. So, the sleepless nights have begun, and we now know why so many people stop at having two kids. Three is just hard. No more one on one. You end up feeling slightly disconnected. I feel distinctly priviledged to have three extraordinarily different girls. Not only in looks, but in temperament and intelligence. They will be a continuous source of excitement and wonder for us. I can tell that they will challenge us to never, ever assume that they ALL like the SAME things.

Does this describe us?

Last night, I stayed up late reading A Patriot's History of the United States by Larry Schweikart and Michael Allen. Tanner and I are trying to prepare for the United States History CLEP. If we can pass the test, then it means one less class that Tanner has to take at A&M. Which would cut his semester hours from 18 to 15.

Anyway...I stayed up late reading this book and came across this quote which seems very descriptive of us. It's Alexis de Tocqueville when he visited the USA in the early 1800's: An American will build a house in which to pass his old age and sell it before the roof is on...He will plant a garen and rent it just as the trees are coming into bearing; he will clear a field and leave others to reap the harvest; he will take up a profession and leave it, settle in one place and soon go off elsewhere with his changing desires. If his private business allows him a moments relaxation, he will plunge at once into the whirlpool of politics.

So, I am comforted to know that I married a true American.

Ready. Set. Wait.

Yes, that seems to be all that we're called to at the moment. We're poised and ready, but haven't gotten the signal to go yet. Everything is packed except for the dishes, our clothes, and a few toys for the girls. And still...we're waiting. We're waiting for our latest edition to make her first appearance. We're waiting for realtors. We're waiting for mortgage brokers. And chiefly, we're waiting for God. We don't want to make a premature move, so we've decided to wait until we have a very clear signal from him that indeed it is time for us to move.

We know where we'll finish our journey, but not the exact address. We know the route of the journey, but not the exact dates. And we know how to pack for the journey, but not the exact amount.

So...we wait. And Lord willing, we will accomplish what He has put before us.