Soon and very soon...

...we are going to leave this house! This might be my last post for awhile because I'll pack up the computer tomorrow and we're moving Thursday. The house isn't ready for the final inspection yet, so though we'll move our stuff in, we'll be sleeping in the "carriage house" of a kind couple in our church. Packing is going well; I think we'll be ready when the movers show up bright and early Thursday. I'm going over tomorrow afternoon to clean the new house with some helpful friends. I've got a little hitch in my back from all the heavy lifting and moving I've done, but overall, I'm doing pretty good! The Lord has been reminding me this week of important instructions regarding trusting in Him and not leaning on my own understanding, keeping a quiet heart, looking at uncertainties as an adventure, and just being grateful that I have a place to live.

My biggest worry, which some out there will appreciate, is moving my kitty with the least amount of problem. Since we're going to be living in one little place before we actually live in our house, he's going to have two new locations to deal with, which is very hard on such a territorial animal. I'll probably have to keep him in his carrier some of the time. So just pray that he'll make the transition smoothly and not take out his stress on any rugs or bedspreads. :-) The Lord has His eye on the sparrows, so I'm sure He must look out for the pussy cats, too!

We Remember

On Friday afternoon, Lori and the kids were over. I was cooking dinner and Jessica was hanging around chatting. She'd gathered some small flags that were on the counter, and after gazing thoughtfully at them for a moment, she asked, "What's Memorial Day about?" I had to collect my thoughts for a moment, because frankly, I hadn't given much thought lately to the holiday weekend or the reason for it. But I was glad I was able to tell her that this is the day we remember veterans and those who gave their lives in service to our country. I seized the "teaching moment" to tell her a little bit about World War II.

This evening we watched the national Memorial Day Concert on PBS. Such a moving tribute with music and speaking and video footage. I was in tears several times because of the heartbreaking stories of families who had lost loved ones, or welcomed back those who had been forever maimed. I was ashamed of myself for being so caught up in my own little world and problems, that I often forget the war that's actively being fought and those being killed or injured every day. It seems so unreal sometimes. I usually pray for our troops, but I think it's important that we also pray for the families.

I wish this horrible war would end. But most of all, I want this war to end in such a way that no soldier died in vain, an echo of Vietnam. Our greatest battle must be fought through prayer, for our wrestling isn't merely against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers and the rulers of the darkness of this world. Praise God that He holds all the kingdoms and rulers in the palm of His hand!

There are two people I hope you'll remember in prayer with me this Memorial Day: one is a young woman named Hannah. She is the sister-in-law of my good friend, Chris. Her husband, a soldier from Fort Lewis, was killed in Iraq last August. They had only been married about a year and a half, and they had a baby boy shortly before he left. The other is a father of 8 who is serving as a Navy chaplain in Iraq. His name is Tim and he is often exposed to danger and is on the job every day trying to minister to the spiritually needy around him. We pray for his safety till he comes home the end of the year. Thanks.

Tagged!

Okay, I've been tagged by Penny and Lori to list seven things about myself and then tag seven other people, but I'm going to skip the second step because those people that I would tag have already been tagged! So I hope I'm not doing something "illegal"!

1. I am very dusty at the moment because I was working in the dusty new house all afternoon.
2. I love chocolate.
3. My right eye looks smaller than my left eye.
4. I have arachnaphobia, which is really inconvenient when you're cleaning out a spider-infested garage.
5. I'm really excited about moving to our new house, new neighborhood, new town! But it's not real at all because the new house isn't even done and we're moving in a week.
6. I know God answers prayer!
7. I'm really tired and can't think of anything brilliant for #7!

So there. ;-)

Building Progress

There is a lot of trim in the new house, and taping it off for painting took hours and hours of time, though the painting itself went quickly. You can see my dad working on the trim around the French doors. The black and white toile wallpaper looks darling in the little powder room with the white wainscoating and black lights! In the kitchen the granite countertop is now in and my mom is excited about the double oven. The masons have been working on the stonework out front which makes the house look so charming! And finally, the water picture is a scene about 5 minutes from our house. We're just across from the Bremerton naval shipyard.

I Should Feel Old

My first nephew turned 13 today!! Yikes, where has time flown? He was just a little dimple chinned baby at the hospital! Now he's almost 5'6" and a real teenager. Jessica turned 11 yesterday. When she got leukemia at 18 months, we really didn't know what her future would hold. Would she live? Would she have enough growth hormones to grow normally? Praise the Lord, she's perfectly hale and hearty, is the right height, and everything is growing as it should in this young lady's body! She acts a bit blonde sometimes, but she's a loving and joyful little ray of sunshine.

The house is a bit of maze of boxes at the moment. My books alone took a ton of boxes. Pictures have been coming down and everything feels generally unsettled. A lot is happening in the new house this week, sparking extra hope that it will be ready for our move next week. That's what we're praying for anyway!

Silly Kiddos

Lori's family came over on Mother's Day for dinner. We were standing around chatting shortly before they left, when this pot came scooting into the room. Fortunately I was able to grab my camera and snap a picture of this peculiar 9 year-old snail! Will (4) was having so much fun under the blanket. I told him to stand still for a picture. I laughingly said, "Smile!" He replied earnestly, "I am smiling!" I have no doubt he was! What a hoot those kids are. Of course I'm not prejudiced at all. :-D

Another Week

Currently listening: the soundtrack from Hidalgo. Beautiful! It's got all the elements of a great soundtrack from a great movie. I love the little Arabic sounding touches in some of the music.

It's been a bit of a crazy week. Yesterday we had a moving sale. Garage sale, yard sale...whatever you want to call it. But I figured people might be more lured by the words 'moving sale' and I was right. The cars just poured in, especially in the morning. We sold most of the bigger stuff we wanted to sell. And I made a fair profit on my stuff.

Garage sales are a great opportunity for people watching! We saw the friendly, the shy, the fat, the skinny, the rich, the poor, the immigrant, the old, the young, the fast shopper, and the leisurely shopper. Some people were super chatty. I'm not by nature adept at small talk, but I'm a good listener, which is all some people need to tell me their life's story! One older gentleman pointed at our Mercury Grand Marquis and asked what year it was. I wondered if he was interested in buying it, which seemed a little odd. I said it was about a '94 (it's '96) and then he proceeded to tell me ALL about his own car which is the same model, about the same year, which he bought for $500 and has dumped thousands of dollars into for one thing or another. He expressed utter contempt for the car. I nodded and made sympathetic noises. Whatever, mister. Another woman went on and on to my mom about who-knows-what and her philosophy of life, spiced with a few choice words. Some people, especially Hispanics, wanted to barter for everything, even if it was already priced ridiculously low. One little girl, about 3 or 4, was totally enthralled by garage doors, and was having a regular fit begging her mom to go in our garage! Her good mother was firm, though, and that was that.

So anyway, it was kind of fun. The sun came out part of the day, but it was still a tad chilly. We were totally exhausted last night. My dad's been working harder than a one-armed paper hanger, so he's snoozing at this very moment.

Special prayer request: the new house has to pass the final inspection before we can live in it. We have to be out of here by June 1 and we can move our stuff into the new house that week, but we can't actually live in it till the final inspection and occupancy permit. That means a lot of stuff has to fall into place with the perfect timing these next few weeks. We have faith that God, Who brought along a buyer for this house in 2 days, is fully able to do another miracle! When we move in, we want to totally move in, cat and all! So please pray for this all to happen.

5,000 Words

If a picture is worth 1,000 words, here are 5,000, representing some activities this week! Cheeky is as lazy as ever. Through my dusty lens, you can see the progress on our new kitchen. Yesterday, I spent a day with friends on their farm. I went horseback riding, made soap, and we went to the beach. Fun, fun!

Enough already!

This picture came to mind when I was balancing my checkbook and lamenting the hundreds of dollars I'm spending on gas! I even drew a little screaming face next to one of my gas entries. The last price at Costco was $3.17 a gallon, which is cheaper than many other places. When will it stop??