One More Week

Only one more week until we pack up the uhaul and head to our new home. There are so many emotions running around in me right now. I want to see EVERYONE before I leave and yet and I don't want to have to say goodbye. I don't enjoy goodbyes. I never have. But this place have become my home. It is the first place I have felt at home since we moved away from Maine. These wonderful people have become my family away from family.

It's almost as bad as when I had to say goodbye to my Mom and Dad the first time. That was gut wrenching ... emotional ... and I didn't enjoy it one bit. It was harder than I ever thought it would be. Now ... I have grown and matured and I deal a lot better with separation than I did then, but it's still so sad.

I'm so thankful for technology and being able to stay in touch. And I know I will make new friends where I am going. It's going to be an awesome adventure!!
We
are
ready.
The kids are tired of waiting. I'm tired of packing!! LOL! But most of the house is packed. There's not much more for me to do. Meals have become ... interesting. There's just not a lot to make!! Prepared food, which I hate, is so easy right now. Sandwiches, mac and cheese, more sandwiches ... I can't wait to unpack my new kitchen!!!

Let the ADVENTURE BEGIN!

A great day!

We all have those days. Those that stand out. Those that put a smile on our faces. Well, yesterday was one of those days for me. It wasn't much, but it makes me smile!

A couple of fun things happened yesterday. Todd was home for lunch and Colin asked him to come outside for a minute. So, he went out and Colin asked him to hold on to his bicycle seat for a second. Colin got on the bike and started pedaling and then yelled to Todd, who apparently was holding on for TOO long, to let go. Todd let go and away Colin went across the bumpy lawn. He did that a few times and then called to me. He wanted me to see what he had accomplished.

He was riding with training wheels just the other day but they broke. I guess he was determined to ride it himself!

So, I went out with my plate of lunch after Todd left and sat on the step. I held onto the seat to steady it and let go as soon as he started pedaling. He would crash into the fence, swing set or trees and turn around and come back for more. Next thing I know, he tells me not to hold on and that he wanted to try to do it himself. It only took a few tries and he was off on his own. Now all he wants to do is go outside to practice riding by himself. He is so proud of himself and so am I. What awesome determination he has! He set his mind to it, and he got it done! Amazing. If only more people had that kind of determination AND confidence in their abilities!!

Alyssa was next to put a smile on my face. She asked to run with the puppy. She had seen us all doing it and wanted to do the same. She held onto the leash and kept repeating, "Come on!" to Canela! Of course Lyssa only says "come", but that's okay. Canela wasn't quite sure what to think and got dragged a couple of times, but it was so stinking cute to see Lyssa walking the dog and TRYING to run.

Last night after we were done with our dinner we were playing with Alyssa and all of us were on the floor rolling a ball around to each other and then the dog joined in chasing the ball. We talked, laughed and just had a good time. It was a good day! Good time spent together! We need more of those moments. A day for smiles!

Boxes

Boxes, boxes and more boxes. They just keep stacking up. Sorting, organizing, de-cluttering, then more boxes, boxes boxes.

Do you ever feel like it's never ending? No matter how much you go through and sort and throw away, there always seems to be more stuff to go through. I'm getting close to the end and I am so thankful! I have some kitchen stuff to pack, food storage to box up, and clothing, bedding and toys to organize and stuff into yet another box. Aren't boxes the most wonderful invention!!

I am constantly daydreaming about our new house ... where I will put things ... will it all fit ... how I will do things differently ... the new kitchen, floors, appliances, light fixtures, bathrooms ... I am totally excited!!

I think I need to get to bed early tonight. I need some extra sleep.

I am thankful! Thankful for all of Heavenly Father's wonderful blessings in our lives. I am thankful for how everything keeps falling into place. I am thankful for Todd's excitement about his new job. I am thankful for awesome friends whom I will miss dearly. I am thankful that Heavenly Father placed these friends in my path. They have blessed my life immensely. I am thankful for a wonderful family.

I feel blessed.

I am thankful for boxes!!

Back from our trip!

We spent the last week with family. Some we hadn't seen in 8 years and others 10. What a fun time it was...minus the close quarters!! We were packed like sardines into a trailer with a total of 22 people. Sleeping was fun! Bodies we all over the place! When Todd's parents and brother came over for meals, there were 30 people. We had a pretty good system and it went fairly smoothly most of the time.

I surely wouldn't want to live like that all the time, but it was fun for a short time.

The only time anyone had issues was when I went to take group pictures. Yikes!! But in the end it all worked out just fine.

While we were there Will, Todd's oldest brother, rescued a puppy that was going to be taken to the pound. I fell in love. And so did my family. Todd as well. That was a shocker to me. We ended up bringing home a 3 month old Chihuahua/Terrier (we think) mixed puppy. She is so sweet! Our cat is 3 times her size!!! That should be interesting. The best part...she's too small to knock us over, too small to jump on counters or tables, and too small to make a huge mess when she poops!! Haha! We are excited!

Now on to the packing!

Time is getting short

Time keeps getting shorter. I keep looking at the calendar the the days keep slipping away. Until this week it felt like our move date would never come. Now it feels like it's coming too quickly. Ugh!

I have been doing tons of laundry so I can pack it away. I need to pack up my kitchen, but can't decide what to pack. This is the part of packing I don't really like. I can be very organized ..... until it gets really close and then I have a hard time knowing WHAT to pack and when. It's more a product of stress than anything else. I consider myself to be a pretty well organized person. And then the stress hits and messes that all up!

Now I need to pack up the office supplies. I want everything to be packed up by the time everyone shows up to load the moving truck. I have been involved in helping people move, in the past, where they had not packed anything at all. Talk about crazy. I just couldn't wrap my head around that. And I was a teenager then. I found that we get a lot more help when we have everything packed in boxes and ready to go when the crew arrives. It makes life so much more simple .... for everyone!

So, today we will spend getting rid of all the trash that is leftover from the previous owner. He left lot of junk. Every year we have taken loads to the dump. Today will be our last one. Dealing with another person's trash is no fun at all. I am hoping to leave the house in much better condition than when we moved in. Floors will be vacuumed, cupboards will be wiped out, bathrooms will be clean, and the garage will be swept.

Even though I'm excited and thrilled about our move .... I am nervous. Starting over can be a little scary sometimes. The questions roll through my mind .... will I find a dear close friend in the new area .... will I be able to find my way around quickly .... will my children make friends quickly and feel at home .... I guess we will find out soon!

Todd's not done yet!

Yesterday we were given some very disappointing news. Todd needs one more class to graduate. He hung his head and sighed. He's been working so hard to get his degree and now it seems there's a road block on every side. It shouldn't be this hard, but he transferred schools several times. He sent an appeal to MO Western last week and we prayed hard that it would be approved. Yesterday we found out that is was denied. He has to take yet another class. Our prayers did not fall on deaf ears! Heavenly Father sees the bigger picture and knows what we truly need. If the appeal had not been denied we wouldn't have heard about another waiver he could get.

Todd works for the Air Force. He's in the Air National Guard. Currently he is working in HR and does not enjoy it. That doesn't even begin to describe how unhappy he is in his job. I'm being nice. They were very kind when the man came back from Washington, D.C. and took his old position back, Todd's job in CE. Instead of getting rid of Todd they found him a new position. THAT was a WONDERFUL blessing! Especially in this economy! I have reminded Todd and myself of that several times. We are truly blessed.

He got a new job in Jefferson City, still with the Air Force, working with the Partnership Program with Panama. He will be utilizing his Spanish daily, which he LOVES to do. Okay, love isn't a strong enough word either. He gets giddy when he uses his Spanish skills. He's like a little boy in a candy shop!

The new job is an Officer's position and is funded by the Army. They don't usually let enlisted hold an officer's position. There is a waiver for that!! So, we are waiting on the waiver.

Once he has his degree he can go to Officer's school (AMS - Academy of Military Science) and then he will be an officer and can hold the position.

The new waiver we found out about yesterday would allow him to be an officer without a degree, with conditions that he finish his degree within a certain amount of time. We are praying HARD that the waivers are signed!!

I just got a call from Todd!!! His new Commander is willing to sign the degree waiver!!!!!! Hallelujah!! Prayers are being answered!!

When Heavenly Father closes a door....he truly does open a window! I mentioned to Todd yesterday that maybe we needed this trial so that we could find the new waiver. There is always a reason, we just can't always understand it a the time.

The new and last class he is looking into will possibly be August through October of this year and AMS in January 2011. Please continue sending up your prayers in our behalf! We appreciate all the love and support!

Home Schooling

This topic has been floating around in my mind for the past couple of days. I have a handful of friends who Home School their children successfully. They are amazing women, wives, mothers and many other things too! Their ability to teach their children daily in addition to the normal everyday tasks is inspiring.

There are those individuals out there who think that a child who is home schooled will come out socially awkward. I think it's just the opposite. A lot of times these kids come out more well rounded and more intelligent. If you haven't noticed, there are kids in every public school who are socially awkward. I don't think it has anything to do with whether or not a child sent to public school or is home schooled at all.

I have been frustrated to find myself in conversations with others who very vocally condemn and degrade those who choose Home Schooling. Sometimes they have the gall to say these things, unknowingly, in front of my dear Home Schooling friends. I cringe inwardly when people talk down about a choice that others have made. It frustrates me and I wish I could bring their attention to the fact that they have just said something offensive and hurtful.

While I agree that we all have our opinions I also feel that we need to be careful about how we share them. I have very strong opinions about many things, but I try very hard to say them in a kind manner. Now, I am not perfect at it, and can say that I have offended my fair share of people, but I work on it constantly.

I had once thought I would home school my children. I was very certain that they would NOT attend public school. I had very strong opinions about sending them to such vile places and refused to think that I would do otherwise. Then a dear friend asked me, in the most kind and loving manner, if I had prayed about my decision to home school. I had not. I didn't think I needed to.

I pray about every major decision in my life, why wouldn't I think to pray about whether or not to home school my children? I took some time to ponder and pray and was blessed with a very clear answer.

All of my children have been attending public school. I've found that I don't have the temperament to handle home schooling. Sending my kids to school has been a blessing. Two of my children have needed extra help or special services to help them along. If they had been at home, I wouldn't have been able to give them that.

To all the successful Home Schooling Mom's out there, I salute you! You are amazing.