Hiatus again

Well, when I look at the last time I posted, I am amazed. It's been 3 weeks since I posted last and time has disappeared. Lots of changes with our family...

I thought I was going to finally get back to blogging with my HUGE number of followers. ;-) Thank you to the 4 of you that always prayed for me and stayed in touch. Anyway, I am going back to work (as of tomorrow) for the first time in about 7 years. Ugh. The feelings I have gone through over the last few weeks have been exhausting. Life is about to change. Again.

I am THANKFUL, but SAD, SCARED,  and a tiny bit excited. I was hoping I could stay at home another year since my youngest is a senior. But, with one in college and another on the way, it just isn't feasible. Gotta get more money coming in!

Maybe when we get in a groove after the new year, I will be back and can at least check in once a week or something like that. For now, I wish you all a

MERRY CHRISTMAS 

and a 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Let's try this again ~

Hello everyone!

I had hoped to get a blog facelift before beginning again... it's just not in the budget. Time or money. So, for now I will just give a short and sweet update of sorts.

When I was last blogging, we were jobless and living with the in-laws. Yep... for real. One of those challenges God allows you to go through to grow you. You know? Well, I wouldn't say that we grew as much as He would've liked us to, but I choose to believe that there was some growth. I just can't actually put my finger on it.

After 13 L.O.N.G. months, hubby took a job in Utah. A world away from the south. We may have lived in 5 states since our girlies were born but it was always in a southern state. However, we were so happy for him to have a job that we really didn't care anymore.

My blessings

The climate would be different and the culture would be different. We knew that. Lots of prayers went up about both of those! We moved a mere 2 weeks before school started last year. Our oldest was going to be a Sr. (I couldn't imagine much worse than starting a new school as a Sr.) and the youngest a Jr. It was rough for a bit but God was faithful. He got us into a brand new house in a great area of the Salt Lake Valley and gave us a mild winter.

          Wasatch Mountains                                                                 

  

             So excited to have lots of Canada geese up here!                                        

                                          

We have now lived here 13 months, hubby LOVES his job, our big girl is in college (3 1/2 hrs. away!) and our baby is a Sr. I am still a stay-at-home mom but desperately needing a job. That is the new focus. Ugh.

For now, here are some pics of where we are now in our lives...

The girls had to represent. ;-)

The family at Provo Falls

Our pretty boy ~ Zippy

Our weird but wonderful cat ~ Baby

One of my favorite of her Sr. pics

The first visit home from college...

(Forgive me for the funky spacing... got to get back in the swing of things.)

Until next time...

Enjoy your blessings!

Still Wandering Through Our Desert...

I thought I would give a quick update to those few of you that are wondering where I have disappeared to. We are still staying with family in Texas and still job searching. We thought that we were moving to Alabama and spent 6 weeks of prep, etc. but all that came to an abrupt and unpleasant end. The afternoon before moving we found out we weren't going. Even without all of the headaches it caused, it was an emotional upheaval. Kind of like a death in the family. Hard to explain and hope I don't ever have to go through it again.

We are learning to live in small town Texas again. Because our internet access is so limited, I haven't been able to keep up or catch up with any of you. I hope to be able to do that before too long. I feel like I have lost a part of me.

So, for now, we wait...

Hope you are all doing well and having a great  F
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                                                                                     L! 

Hot in July

Well, where should I begin? It's been so long since my last post, that I am not even sure I can remember what has happened... but there have definitely been some new experiences.

We were able to experience the 4th in small-town TEXAS. The drive down into my home state was a bit nostalgic. With  little fireworks stands scattered along the side of a 2-lane hilly road... just as the sun was beginning to set. Made me wish I was a photographer to catch small-town America.

We have been met with a few challenges... one shower for 6 people due to some plumbing issues, no cell phone service, no TV, and virtually no internet. Enough said. However, we have had gracious hosts as we wait for what God has planned. We know we are blessed to have somewhere to go.

Now, the girls and I are house sitting for a family member, and as I write, a conure sits on my shoulder bobbing up and down. "Skittles" has taken a shining to my James Avery necklace and is convinced he can take a bite out of it. Did you know that conures poop a lot? Even when sitting on your shoulder? Yep, when it is time to go, it is time to go. Ick! Not used to that. Never will be. At least he is a little thing.

Here, I am able to visit my aging parents. Normally it is only 2 - 3 times a year so this is a blessing. It is sad to see the changes in them. I know that it is all a part of this life, but to see their memories fade and their feebleness increase... well, it's a bit heartbreaking. So thankful for this time with them.

So, we are off to begin a new day here. One that won't be free from challenges I'm sure. (Did I say that it was hot-as-Hades down here?!) With God by our side, we will make it through. And will be stronger for it.

Bless you all~ 
I have missed you!

Woe's and Armor

It's been almost a week since I stared at this screen waiting for just the right words to come. I try not to read back over any old posts, but at the end of last week, I was looking for something in particular. That is when it hit me. It seems like all I have posted other than tips are "woe is me" words. Yikes! Apologies to the masses. Well, all 16 of you. :-)

Indulge me for a moment if you will. If you are a regular reader, you know that my family is going through a season of change. Better yet... a season of uncertainty. Today marks the 4 week countdown to having to be out of our home. Hubby's job and the closing on the sale of our home are 4 weeks from tomorrow. We DO NOT believe in coincidences and know that it has all been orchestrated by God. We know without a doubt what a HUGE blessing it is to be able to sell a home right now. And, to close on the last day of a job? NO COINCIDENCE.

So, where do we go from here? That is something that God has not yet revealed. We would appreciate your prayers as we begin to pack up our belongings. Prayers that we will never waiver in our faith that God will provide. Prayers that we as a family will allow His peace and comfort to be felt at every turn. And that His plan will be revealed very soon. Thank you so much to those of you who will join us in these prayers!!!!

Before closing, I decided that I would share with you the ways that satan has been on the attack. We were making a quick trip to Dallas to celebrate a niece that graduated from high school the night before. Only one hour away from our destination, our truck broke down on the interstate. Not a comfy place to be when the Texas temps are soaring for this time of year. Fortunately there were huge shade trees across the feeder road where we waited for almost an hour to be towed.

We piled into the rescue truck with the lovely scent of old dirty sweat (of one) and newly acquired sweat of four. Not pleasant to say the least. After about a 15 minute ride, we rounded the corner to feast our eyes on something out of "Deliverance". No, I am not kidding one iota. It was a sea of broken down vehicles. The "shop" as you might call it, had employees crawling out of the woodwork like cockroaches looking for food. The food they spied were my 2 beautiful teens. It was CREEPY AND DISTURBING. If I were a betting woman, I would almost bet there were more teeth in my 2 girls' mouthes than in the sum of all of theirs.

The good news was that hubby's truck could easily be fixed and that it shouldn't take more than an hour and a half. "Bubba" had to go get a burger first. Seriously. So, the girls and I looked for shade to stand under and to get out of the line of sight. The only shade to be found (other than under the trees with the 5 "Deliverance" dogs in a pen) was across the street. We retreated to the shade and soon realized it was like being on stage. The girls were easily ogled from there and even began to get honks and waves from passersby. If it wasn't so comical, I would have been vomiting. VIOLENTLY.

Fortunately, Hubby had called the father-in-law and he had driven the hour to retrieve us. We left with him in the comfort of the air-conditioned car in search of food. Upon returning, Hubby's truck was fixed and we were on the road to civilization. And none too soon.

The night went well and we enjoyed celebrating the niece's accomplishment and being with extended family. The next day, we experienced downtown Dallas through the eyes of our girls. Hubby and I used to work there but many things have changed. I will post on our findings and pics tomorrow. We had a good time.

The next attack came upon returning home. My debit card was denied when I went to pick up our beloved fur babies. After being embarrassed and VERY UNHAPPY at the vet, Hubby found out that someone had stolen my card # and put almost $700 dollars on it! In Virginia at Waly world. They didn't just use my #, they actually made a fake card that was able to be swiped. GRRRRR. Hubby is at the bank this a.m. getting it taken care of. At least the company was suspicious and deactivated the card so that these hoodlums (I am restraining myself...) couldn't do any more damage to us.

Needless to say, satan sees that we are vulnerable right now and is doing his best to break us. But he is mistaken. We are strapping on the armor of God and WILL NOT let him win!

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.   ~Ephesians 6:10-11

Something's brewing...

OK, so I admit it. I wish I hadn't promised to write down what has been going on at our house. As you can see, I put it off as long as I could. Here's the deal...

Friday afternoon I got a call about showing our house at 8:30... A.M... Saturday morning. Seriously? Yep, they even got here 5 minutes early. I had to tell the realtor to go to the front door so we would sneak out through the garage. They were inside for 25 minutes. Now, from our experience, that is pretty good.

We secretly watched from down the street as they drove off and thought that we would now be able to relax and enjoy our day. Phone rings around 12:30p.m. They want to come back at 2:00 and bring the mother or grandmother... whichever. And so we watched and waited again. 45 minutes this time. That's a long time people. Something's up.

I didn't care at this point, I just wanted a nap. The next call came at 4:20p.m. and it was our realtor... with an offer. For real. Back and forth a couple of times... By 8:00p.m. we were signing a contract. Seriously. Less than 12 hours from beginning to end. Ugh.

You wonder why my emotions are all jumbled up? You want to know why I wasn't swinging from the chandelier dining room fixture? Because it all happened so fast. AND, this is the big one... Hubby's job is ending on the same date we are scheduled to close on our home. There is nothing else planned beyond that date. Zilch. Nada.

So, I let sin creep in. The fear... the anxiety... the worry. Yes, I know that God will take care of us. He always has. Yes, I know that God has plans to prosper us and give us hope and a future. Of course I do. But will everything come together when we think we need it to? Will we have a job before this one ends? Will there be suffering?

This, my friends, is where I let Satan stick his big fat ugly foot in the door. I can see God at work. I realize what a miracle Saturday was for our family. We are blessed. But I'm still struggling. It makes me feel weak...