I'll Be Back...

I won't have internet for a while, but I'll be back as soon as I can.


Keep us in your prayers!


Love you, my friends and family!

This is the House That Jack Built, I Mean Paul

It's official!  We are all moved out of our house, and onto the next chapter of our lives.  Just a quick, quirky side note, for those that know me best, you know I start my catalogs/magazines from the back (nooo, not books), so I praise God for all these character building places in my life right now. : )

We made sweet memories that will last our lifetime in the house that Paul built just for us.  

An Empty Kitchen

Kitchen

School Room

School Room

The semi trailer made it to our 'holding place' (thank you Tracy & Shannon) Tuesday morning at 6:30am.  The trailer did have a blow out just 7 miles from our house.  However, the Lord had already made provisions.  A friend manages an 18 wheeler tire "re-treading" warehouse and service trucks that fix trucks with flats.  : )  Isn't God good? He took care of this for us as well.

Our Last Few Days in Laredo

Friday the kids said, "Good Bye" to their homeschooling friends.  Paul finished up 2 different meetings with local groups he participates in.  We packed, napped, and did some more packing.

Life Center Meeting

Builder's Assoc. Meeting

Home School Group

Cole playing ball

Peyton & yummy cupcakes

Peyton wrapping furniture

The girls

Becca in a box

She found an empty bedroom to fall asleep in

Cole and Westley

Cole and Ethan

We are thankful to those that gave us their time and helped with the packing, hauling and loading.  You helped us sooo much.

Still Packing

I'm too tired to post pictures.  Let me just say, we're STILL packing.  We're down to the last 24 hours now. Closing is Monday at 10am, and the buyer will be here Sunday at 5pm for a "quick" check of things.  I'm sure it's just to make sure we didn't rip the plumbing out of the walls and take all the ridiculously priced fixtures.


I know we all feel like we have too much 'stuff', ok, maybe not ALL of you, but for sure 99.9% of you.  To see it ABSOLUTELY, COMPLETELY fill up a 53' semi-trailer is flooring me right now tho.  Looking around we are in the stage of "just throw it in a box" already and let's be done!  All of my labels, and color dot sticker system has fallen by the wayside.  It was great in the beginning, but as people showed up to help us pack & load (don't misunderstand, I'm BEYOND THANKFUL for the help) it came down to a sharpie and a request to list a few of the main things on the outside of the box.


::Sigh::  Does anyone really enjoy the process of uprooting their lives and moving to a new place?  Yes, as believers it's exciting to see what the Lord has planned for you, but the process itself is such drudgery. 


I'm not down, discouraged, disheartened, just "done".  : ) 

Quick Trip

We just came back from a quick, 24 hour round trip to Houston.  We went with the intentions of looking at this 5 acre piece of land Paul's parents had been calling about for the last 5 days.


We saw the property, and the house that is there.  The work would be endless, the sweat equity tireless, and depending upon who you ask, the house is 'liveable'.  I thought I'd post a few pictures.  I feel strongly compelled to let you know that I am a city girl.  Since having 6 children, 4 of which are wooly, frontier conquering boys (with the exception of 1 bookworm boy), my heart now longs to live on a piece of land.  To have a garden to feed our family from, farm animals, nature all around us and room to run and explore on.  


We only desire to be where God wants us, and at His right time.  I don't know where we'll live in Houston.  I don't know if this particular property is in our future.

As of this moment concerning the house we've discussed the possibilities of living in tents (totally joking), tearing down the house, pouring a slab and building.

Paul outlying the endless possibilities...

...the face of a boy that doesn't quite see potential

In this midst of the task of packing up, selling our house in 8 days, I keep meditating on Psalm 46:10, Be still and know that I am God.  Followed by Jeremiah 29:11, For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Moving Sale

What was I thinking?  
Well, you can't schedule a stomach bug and the right time for it to strike your family, right?  Of course it started a few days before the yard sale (that's a good time don't you think~NOT). All that last minute work, was put off to the absolute last few hours before we began throwing our junk, I mean stuff, out the door.


Once the ad hit the paper on Thursday, those lil eager beavers began knocking on the front door.  "Buenos Dias", esta listos por la venta?" Huh?  Ohhh, am I ready to start my Saturday yard sale on Thursday? Ha, don't you know I have six kids, we're trying to continue homeschooling through this season of sorting, packing, moving (oh yeah, still haven't graded those math papers yet, and they have a test on Monday), wait, can't pack till we have a moving sale and get rid of half this stuff, my hubby is working his tushy off outside of the home with 2 of the older boys, a.k.a. my helpers, and now I have throw-up and diarrhea taking over my house.  Wait, how do you say all that in Spanish??
Um, no, I'm not ready, please come back on Saturday.


At 2am, just 4 hours before the 1st person showed up (yes, I'm serious), the "bug" struck Paul down.  Well, really not down, because he jumped up and bolted out of bed. Victim no. 7 had been claimed.  Which left only 1 lil front toothless boy, standing tall, all alone, and absolutely clueless.  He said he won't get sick because his nose is always stuffy at night, and that the germs can't get in there.  :)


We were GRATEFUL to have 4 people helping us out this morning ~ thanks guys.  Our 8am yard sale was maxed out by 7:45am.  A few hours later we loaded up the left overs of "surely someone would want this treasured item" stuff and dropped it off at the church for their sale in 2 weeks.


Paul asked if I was glad to have the things out of here.  Yes, I told him, but, as I looked around all I saw was still sooooo much stuff to pack.  Is it possible for a family of 8 to become "minimalists"?  
Let me know if you have it figured out.

We're Moving!!

Today after much prayer, prayer, prayer and quiet conversations between Paul and I he finally said it officially....

"We're moving to Houston."

I know this is the first time some of you are hearing about this, but it has been in the works for many months.  Paul's job slowed down to a snails pace, nothing was coming in.  We put the house on the market in July.  The first of August a couple looked at the house (the week we went to Houston for the home school conf.).  The Lord had sent a cash buyer and they liked our house.  After negotiations, another looong walk through, an appraisal, a signed contract, inspections, money in escrow, it really looks like we have sold our house.  We are closing around October 24th.  ((((Yikes)))))


We are totally, and completely walking in faith.  There is not a job we're moving to.  There is not a location that we know we'll be living in.  We only know that family is there and that we're going to mooch off of each one of them until they give us the boot.  NOOOO, not really!  I wanted to see if you were paying attention ~ and I see that you are : )


I'll keep you posted on what's next for us, until then, please remember us in your prayers.