Our New Place

Front View of House.  Can't wait to get some water on that lawn!

A sidewalk goes through these trees and rosebushes along the side of the house to the back patio.

The West Side Yard has some more bushes and trees.  The one on the right will be great for climbing.  There is also a built in jungle gym over there.

View of Living Room from front door.

View from southeast corner of living room.

View of dining room and kitchen from stairway.

View of kitchen from dining room.

Okay, so I like this kitchen a little bit!

Laundry room off the kitchen.  Garage door to the right, backyard deck to the left.

Upstairs now, 1st door to your left.

Master Bedroom.  2nd door to your left.

View from western master bedroom window.  Mountains are even closer than they look!

Upstairs 2nd door to right.  This will be Ruby's and Daisy's room.  1st door to the right is another similar bedroom that will be Simon's.

This picture from the dining room doesn't do justice to the view.  You can see the whole lake and valley.  It is quite lovely.  This picture shows the raquetball court entrance and the large backyard shed to the right.  See how the sidewalk slopes right down to the stairs and doorway.  That is why we have a mold problem in there.

It isn't quite the garage that we left behind, but it does have some cabinets and nice storage space!

Nice big deck.  Just needs a new paint job!

The other half of the laundry room is a mud room. 

Next level down to the left of the dining room is a large family room.

To the south of the family room is another bedroom that will be for an office/guest room.

Downstairs from the family room to your right is the furnace room with this large unfinished storage area.

Turn your head to the left.  Yes, those are shelves on your right.  I'm not on my home computer so I can't edit these pictures to make them stand up right.  This is the basement hallway.  To the left is the sewing room.  Go forward and turn left leads to the unfinished room and the boys' room.

Once again, sorry for the angle, but I am in love with this sewing room!

Another tilted picture.  The boards are actually the ceiling.  This is a large empty room that might be for storage, or a playroom or theater room someday.

This is the downstairs bedroom where Nathan and Brandon will sleep.

Tilt again.  Inside the boys' closet is another large closet that is all shelves.  Perfect for displaying lego creations and other treasures!

View of back yard from deck.  You can see how large the court building is.  I couldn't get inside to take pictures because there were too many wasps building nests around the entry.  I went directly to Wal Mart and got some wasp spray that I'll be taking up with me next time.  They were everywhere!

In this picture you can see how the yard is kind of terraced.  you can see the jungle gym in the background.

This is a view from the very back of the property.  .6 acre gives us lots of room to play with.  there is a driveway up through the back portion of the lot that goes up to the shed. 

View of mountains from front of the house.  I can't wait to start exploring them!

We're hoping to get posession of this house by this weekend or early next week.

I think it is real enough that I can finally get excited!

...

Little Tender Mercies

I have been dreading this day. 

I knew Dallin and Nathan would be leaving early in the morning and I'd be here in someone else's house on my own. 

I am a major wimp when it comes to my husband being gone, so with Nathan being gone as well, I knew it would be tough. 

I stayed up late trying to figure out the kids' schedules for their once a week charter school experience next year. 

Sarajoy would NOT go to sleep.  She was so cranky, and both Dallin and I were trying to get things done. 

She finally fell asleep just as Brandon came upstairs crying that his stomach hurt. 

I stayed up with him after Dallin gave him a blessing.  I put some essential oils on him.  He threw up. 
After he settled back down, I set up the baby monitor so I could hear him and went downstairs to bed. 

When I checked on the goldfish and the gerbils, I noticed a large yellow-sac spider crawling on the walls.  I was too tired to find something to squish it, so I just closed the door and went to sleep. 

I woke up to Sarajoy.  I woke up to Brandon throwing up again.  I woke up to Dallin's alarm clock. (his cell phone vibrating on the air mattress is quite the frightening awakening!)  I woke up when Dallin said goodbye. 

I remember at some point being really nervous.  I was scared about the spider, I was sad about Dallin leaving, I was scared that my babies would wake up early and I'd have to make it through the day on very little sleep.  I was sad that Brandon was sick and worried others of us would get sick.  I said a prayer.

Simon woke up pretty early.  I turned on his show and went back to bed.  Sarajoy woke up, but went right back to sleep.  Simon came in and crawled in bed with me and went back to sleep.  He NEVER does that!

So I got to sleep until 9:30 when Daisy woke up!

Soon after that, the girls were playing in the playroom when they came screaming up the stairs, "There's a huge spider in the playroom!"
Sure enough, it was that big yellow-sac, and I got him! 
Such a relief to know that spider isn't wandering around when we're all sleeping on air mattresses or sleeping bags!

Since things about our house seemed so up in the air, I decided to spend some time on the MLS looking at houses.  It made me really sad.  I felt really down about not getting the beautiful Woodland Hills property.  I felt sad about not having our house anymore.  I felt sad that there was NOTHING good on the MLS.  I felt worried and upset about not knowing what was going on with our new house.

I hopped in the car to run some errands and got a phone call from my Realtor.  Good news.  We'll be able to sign on our new house within a couple of days, and the bank lowered the price because of the mold.
Just what I needed to hear, just when I needed to hear it. 

Brandon was feeling much better by lunch, and had showered and was dressed and eating before dinner. 
The kids all ate and enjoyed their dinner.
They cheerfully helped me clean up the house.

I think I might just get a chance to curl up with a good book for a little while. 

I'm so grateful for those little reminders He sends to let us know He is with us.

...

A Stranger in My Own Land

The closer we got, the more impossible it seemed. 

I swear, my posessions were reproducing before my eyes. 

Had it not been for a very large group of very awesome people, I would for sure still be trying to empty my house of all of that STUFF!

It was truly embarassing how much stuff we had!

But my heart is so full of gratititude for people who came once, twice, and a few even came three or more times to help me meet the deadline. 

Even now I sit in my friend's lovely air-conditioned home instead of a trailer or a tent. 

July 21st came and went.  It went quickly!  I couldn't believe how quickly the days went by as we worked and packed and hauled and fit together the giant jigsaw puzzle that the storage pod was!  And then a whole day just to clean the big, empty house. 

Towards the end of the day, I shed tears of sheer frustration and exhaustion.  I had no room for emotion. 

I was grateful that we got to meet the new owner.  His story helped me feel that it was right for us to move. 

We've driven by the house a couple of times since then, but still no emotion.  Just gratitude that the horrible ordeal of emptying that house is over. 

Over the weekend, we finished off the last 2 of 4 family reunions we had this month.

We also discovered that there is toxic mold in our house we are trying to buy.  It has thrown a wrench into our moving-in plans. 

I finally got a chance last night to think about what I would sing for Sacrament meeting today.  Dallin suggested Each Life That Touches Ours For Good.  It seemed like a nice song for a missionary farewell.  Our lives have been touched by watching Guy Foster grow into a man. 

This morning, I drove over to my friend's so we could practice a couple of times before church.  She was kind enough to agree to play for me at the last minute. 

I saw Jen Crafts getting her mail and thought about her new baby.  I drove by Sister Bean's house and wondered how her battle with cancer was going. 

And I felt strange. 

A stranger in my own neighborhood. 

Not my neighborhood. 

I don't belong to any place in that neighborhood anymore. 

I went in and sang the song. 

I had forgotten about that part:

When such a friend from us departs,
We hold forever in our hearts
A sweet and hallowed memory
Bringing us nearer, Lord, to thee. 

I did quite well, really.  I don't think my voice even cracked.  I held a straight face and kept that emotion in. 

All the way to the car. 

Then the tears came. 

Oh, how I still want to belong there.  I hadn't anticipated what a loss it would be to not belong there. 

I knew I would miss my friends, and even miss the house. 

But knowing something will happen and actually experiencing it are two different things!

I miss you, 15th ward. 

I miss the neat little houses with neat yards and the shabby little houses with shabby yards and all the lovely lived-in houses that are a little less-than-neat because of little people who live there. 

Mostly, I'll miss belonging there with my friends.  I won't be far from my friends, but not belonging creates a distance I hadn't expected. 

So I am sad, but mostly I am thankful for the 7 wonderful years of belonging.

For worthy friends whose lives proclaim

Devotion to the Savior's name

Who bless our days with peace and love

We praise thy goodness, Lord above.

Thank you, friends! 

...

Warm Welcome

Our house is a disaster.  All of our large furniture, including table, couches, and bed frames are all out in the storage unit.  The floor space is covered with boxes and rubble.  (That terrible stuff leftover from packing that you can't quite bring yourself to throw away. )

And I don't like to do that kind of cleaning on Sunday.

So what could we do?  Where could we go? 

After a buffet-style dinner of chicken ranch tacos, (yes, I made that up today) I suggested we go up to the new house again. 

"YAY!"  The kids all shouted.  I was especially hoping Simon would stay awake to see it this time.  I'm really curious about how he'll take the whole thing, especially since he cheers, "Simon's house!"  whenever we pull up to our driveway.  I gave him a popsicle, hoping it would keep him awake on the way. 

It didn't.  

We decided to wake him up since he'd only been asleep for a few minutes.  He was pretty excited, but not so keen on me calling it his new house.  He was especially against that idea since there were neither toys nor lunch available inside.  He seemed to be very excited about the back yard.  He didn't have the best of luck.  After a few minutes of exploring, he started to scream.  I looked over and saw him being swarmed by several hornets.  Since I was holding the baby, I hollered for Dallin.  It seems that Simon found a big rock to throw that actually had a hornet's nest on the bottom of it.  His poor little foot was stung, but he took it like a man.  About ten minutes later, he was throwing rocks in the front yard.  He was throwing them into a big bushy pine tree.  It was funny cause some of them were actually landing on branches.  I told him to throw one last rock.  He picked up a big huge one and threw it, and apparently hit another hornet's nest inside the tree because he was once again swarmed and stung on the hand.  Very sad. 

I also have to mention that he found the armrest cover from Daisy's carseat and was wearing it as a shoe.  He likes to put stuff like that on and sing the "Wooden Shoe" song from the "Funhouse Frolick" CD's we have.  It made him look extra special hobbling over to me with his two beestings and his special shoe. 

Soon after we pulled up, Brother Simmons across the street asked if we have a closing date yet.  We met him last Sunday when we were up looking at the house.  Awhile later, when we were exploring the damage from this afternoon's rainshower, Brother Sessions came over to explain.  He said that about once a year, they get a big gully-washer up there  and all of the water from the cul-de-sac washes down into our driveway/garage.  We were thankful he could shed some light on that situation.  That will take some thinking to get a good solution for that problem. 

Then, as we were about to pull out, I was startled to see a man at my car window.  He apologized for startling me, introduced himself as Brother Weekly, and invited us to the weekly Sunday evening block party.  We went over to the cul-de-sac and met a few families, including the Weeklys who lost their home to the bank and we're buying it.  They were amazingly friendly for people who had good reason to resent us for getting their house.  Then we got invited to another party where someone from the ward was sharing leftovers from a wedding they catered.  So we went around the block to another house and met a lot of people. 

It was overwhelmingly wonderful. 

We were taken in with such warmth and eagerness.  Family after family introduced themselves and had a lot of good things to say about the ward and neighborhood.  We had some delicious crepes and enjoyed a fondue fountain.  Brother Sessions came and took Sarajoy out of my arms so I could help the other kids with their food.  Next thing I know she's being passed around by the teenagers.  She stayed with them in their little group for at least a half hour before she got fussy. 

We could have kept visiting all night if the kids hadn't started to get restless.  We had at least 10 different people tell us to let them know when we'd be there so they could help us move in.

Leaving our ward here is going to be SO SO SO hard. 

But at least it looks like fitting in to the new ward will be so easy!

What a comfort.


...

The Next Step

My friend was saying the other day how she held her breath all through the moving process. 

I've moved 2 other times, and it didn't seem quite like this.  I think I was young and overconfident or something.  It was a lot of work and stress, but I never questioned whether things would work out.  I just expected them to.  Maybe I should take a lesson from that, but holding my breath much more adequately describes what's been going on here. 

Maybe it is because when circumstances force you into a situation out of your control, you just know things will work out because it isn't your fault.  But this wasn't a circumstance.  This was just an opportunity that we wanted to take a shot at.  Nothing about this whole process has been sure from the beginning.  Heavenly Father is really letting us make this decision.  While I absolutely recognize his hand in my life and in what has happened so far, we are not having any visions about what is going to happen in the next 4 weeks.  I know that whatever happens, He will make it all better, but I would rather not make a really big, bad mess for Him to have to help me clean up! 

In the past 7 days, we have been :
Excited about selling our home and buying a home in woodland hills
Negotiating with the bank over a home in woodland hills
Becoming overwhelmed by the expense of the woodland hills home 
Deciding NOT to sell our home, but stay here and refinance
Discovering that there is no inexpensive way for a seller to get out of a Real Estate Contract
Looking at other homes in our area
Finding a home in Elk Ridge that we like
Having our offer in Woodland Hills accepted
Discovering some alarming safety hazards in the Woodland Hills home
Putting an offer on the house in Elk Ridge
Withdrawing our offer from Woodland Hills
Feeling sad about moving and sad about losing the Woodland Hills dream
Having the bank tell us there are multiple offers on the Elk Ridge home
Visiting the home again and falling in love with it
Putting our best offer forward
Filling a portable storage unit with half of our belongings and sending it to storage
Having our offer accepted on the Elk Ridge home

So we reach the next step

A sigh of relief

So we can hold our breath some more.

Two weeks, Two home inspections, and Two loans to go. 

I know that everything will work out for our good.  I am trying to keep it in perspective, but I am not a person who likes to wait.  I like to know and plan and prepare!  I like to be organized and in charge. 

I expect that we will be moving into our new home in Elk Ridge before the month is through.

I'll act on that for now.


...

Just A Day

Today I woke up to the phone ringing.  It was the Pack Rat place telling me that my storage unit would be arriving in about an hour. 
We couldn't help it-- when we heard the loud beep. beep. beep., we all ran to the driveway door to watch.  He backed up, unlatched the unit, chained it to the lifter, and then plugged in this cool remote control.  He proceeded to lift the unit off the truck and set it on our driveway with the remote control.  I was almost as excited as my 2 year old son.  The one year old could even tell it was something exciting and wanted out of her high chair to be a part of it.
After Scriptures and eating an eggs, rice, and sausage mix made by Dallin, the boys and I got to work. 
We emptied the garage of all the boxes and shelves, plus packed a few more. 
It was hard work, but it felt good to be making some progress!
At 3:00, we enjoyed some ice cream bars that we discovered in the freezer.
Nathan went down to Dallin's office to do a standardized test.
Sarajoy went down for a nap.  I was exhausted.  I sent the kids downstairs and climbed in bed and read until my eyes wouldn't stay open. 
Then I slept. 
It has been so long since I had such a lovely nap!  It was heavenly!
I woke up at 5:30 and fed the baby.  I heard Dallin and Nathan arrive home.
Ruby and I made some bowtie noodles with alfredo sauce.  We had a orange-spinach-apricot smoothie with it. 
We're on Ruby's 7th day of 8 til 8. 
We took her to the mall to get her ears pierced.  I think I was almost as nervous as she.  Thankfully, it didn't hurt a bit.  She looks sweet with her star-shaped ruby studs.  I just love that her birthstone is a ruby, and it also happens to be her favorite color. 
Since we were at the mall, we had to stop by Hallmark to look at stuffed animals. 
Dallin and I paused for awhile at the Willowtree figurines.  There is something about those figurines that is so moving for me.  It is amazing that such a simple carving can capture feelings and memories in such a powerful way. 
We got a few groceries and a balloon boquet on the way home.  She'll be 8 in about 6 hours.

Bringing Ruby into the world was one of the most powerful and wonderful experiences of my life. 
I never really felt complete until she was born.  I yearned for that little girl. 
They never could tell us for sure on the ultrasounds if she was a girl.  They would say probably, but not for sure. 
I was nervous about trying to birth without pain medication.  It was hard, but so beautiful the way Dallin and I worked together during labor.  Once I got in the birth tub, we were alone.  Dallin and I worked and focused together while the midwife dozed on a chair. 
When she was in my arms, all chubby and curly haired, it was pure bliss!

When I brought her home, I felt more powerfully than with any of my others that I was bringing a piece of heaven into my home. 

I need to remember these things more as I interact with this thoughtful, ambitious, creative, stubborn, helpful, beautiful bit of heaven.

Dreams

I have a dream that my family will live in a nice house on a large, wooded piece of land where my children and I can experience nature on a first hand and daily basis.

I have a dream that my family will be comfortable financially and have the ability to work toward paying off a house early.

These two dreams had a very big fight today.

At my expense. 

Nobody won. 

I am glad that this day is almost over. 

May my sleep be dreamless tonight.