just an echo...yoo-hoo

Mom says the echo in this kitchen makes her "nuts." I happen to LOVE the fact that our kitchen's spacious enough to bounce a little sound...that's a good thing in my book.

Anne's walking everywhere now...mostly circles around the island in our kitchen, checking for items in all the bottom cupboards within her reach. I think she loves having the space and freedom to wander without getting plowed over. I love it too. She loves grabbing the plastic juice pitcher and toting it around with her...the little "hostess with the mostest."

The boys are enjoying the apartment space next door to us. It's attached by a doorway off the kitchen, and hopefully by spring (once demo'd) will become a great family room for our extra large family. For now, they launch all-out NERF wars against each other in the empty 2 bedroom/kitchen/family room space. I imagine if I were a shirtless, sweaty, NERF gun toting, 8 year old boy...this would be my heaven on earth too. I like that when the door's closed I can't hear their mission-control chatter and dart-blasting shananigans. Oh, and no more head shots across the kitchen to mom...that's priceless.

The older girls use that same space (when the boys aren't there of course) for quiet reading. Yes. Love my girls and all their "quiet reading." sigh. Balance is a good thing.

Closet space is amazing here. Something almost unheard of in a home this old...but well planned out and amazing. So the little girls love their bedroom closet space devoted soley to girly toys...like their mini-kitchen, and baby dolls, and dress up. Truly magical. I want to be a princess too some day.

I happen to love space, and sunlight, and room around the dinner table, and even more importantly, the kind of things you can't see when you first walk in...
like quieter breakfasts as everyone moves around the kitchen effortlessly. Or more relaxed evening meals. Living with less tv time, cause there are more things to do, and more space to do it in. The kids found the old phone left from the previous owners, and spent the first few days here playing "hotel" and "hospital" and any number of pretend games that required workers, and phone orders, and heaven forbid imagination.

Certainly, I thank God at the end of each day for the gift of this house, for the means to provide for it, and for the opportunity it offers our family...to grow, to share, to love. And to understand and appreciate all the goodness that comes only from Him.
It is perfectly imperfect...an old home full of love, and hope, and promise...not to mention a little dust, some scuff marks on the walls (doesn't take long for those to appear), and an echo... (yoo-hoo).

back online...

Oh, what a week or two it's been...

We are officially "home."

And loving every bit of it...even the crazy stuff. Cause it's the crazy stuff that we'll laugh about and remember best someday anyway. It might take me a few days to share all the crazy stuff...but I intend to. From the packing, to the hauling, the walking away from our home of 6 years worth of beautiful memories. That was harder than I had imagined. Crazy doesn't stop when the pick-up truck loads do...toss in some parent teacher conferences, and a basement full of water, and what?! I still need to cook dinner?!
Not shaken though...I am blessed. GOd is so good.

Thank you all for your patience and prayers as we struggled through this crazy amazing blessed life journey. It feels really good to be home.

(Oh, and I haven't forgotten! The Perfectly Imperfect retreat was just that. I will share more on that as well. Very cool how God works to bring us together...some faces I'd not seen in years, many new friendships formed...awesome!)

Now, I need to get back to labeling and figuring out what all these light-switches go to?!

first family dinner

On Thursday we closed and took posession of our new home. Woooohoooooo!! To say we are excited is an understatement. So excited in fact, that immediately after our meeting at the bank, we gathered up the kiddos and celebrated with our first of many firsts...first family dinner in the new house. McDonalds chicken nuggets never tasted so sweeeet.

Praising God for the blessings He's brought us. He is so good!


Crazy-busy weekend here....means moving will have to wait till next week...will keep you posted as I'm able.