CLOSED!!! Really!

Can I tell you, this is the blog that I have been waiting to write. Greg and I have been waiting for a very, very long time for this. As of Friday, Mar. 26, 2010, we are no longer homeless. Hallelujah, Praise God!!!! In His perfect timing, the closing process on our home is now complete. It only took about 5 very long months, 8 attempted closing dates, 1 break in, 3 deadline extensions, and 1 brilliant realtor. HGTV really missed out on about 3 seasons of the most intense and dramatic reality show on television. Real Housewives of Atlanta have nothing on what really goes down at the A P T in Hiram.

In this process, God is really answering our prayer of making this test a true testimony. Now, our focus is shifting towards renovating this house, and making it our home. It's time to plant some seeds. We've found our place here, so now it's time for us to figure out what to do with it. I cannot describe how blessed we are to have met some amazing friends in this area. The move was so difficult, but the people here have welcomed us with open arms.

One day last year in the middle of worship, I was singing in the choir at Pinelake....I remember it clear as day...God spoke to me. We were singing "Forever God is Faithful, Forever God is Strong, Forever God is with us"..... Anyway, God said, "Why are you worried about where you're going to live, and your future home?" "I already know where you're going to live and I already know what house you'll live in." God is too perfect to end sentences with prepositions, but you get the idea. This was so comforting to me. Forever, God is faithful, and Forever, God is with us.

We decided that since selling our home was complicated, buying one should be as well. Since we love a great challenge, we chose a home that was a short sale. Believe me, there is absolutely nothing short about it. I highly encourage anyone that wants to add a little bit of chaos to their lives to try this. My advice is to not plan any T'giving dinners at your new short sale home until 2012.

I am not sure what God's reasons were with His timing. I do know that He and I have become much closer, and much better friends through this process. Through this time, my priorities have changed. I never realized how materialistic I was, until almost everything I own was packed into storage. I've found my identity in Christ, instead of in the groups and activities I was/am involved in. I've learned that my importance level isn't based on how much my jeans, purse, or shoes cost. Brand named foods do taste better than generic....if they're purchased with Publix BOGO free and a coupon. And, I love, admire and respect my husband so much more than I ever have.

The road ahead will be hard work, but as I mentioned before, we love a challenge. With God, all things are possible. We hope God's timing allows us to be in our new home by the end of April or beginning of May. This is just in time for summer. So, pack your bags and plan your road trips to come see us. Our disclaimer is you have to come to church with us. I promise you'll never be the same. God is good!

Psalm 27:13-14

13 I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

Psalm 27

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—

so why should I be afraid?

The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger,

so why should I tremble?

2 When evil people come to devour me,

when my enemies and foes attack me,

they will stumble and fall.

3 Though a mighty army surrounds me,

my heart will not be afraid.

Even if I am attacked, I will remain confident.

4 The one thing I ask of the Lord—

the thing I seek most—

is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,

delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating in His Temple.

5 For He will conceal me there when troubles come;

He will hide me in His sanctuary.

He will place me out of reach on a high rock.

6 Then I will hold my head high above my enemies who surround me.

At His sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy,

singing and praising the Lord with music.

7 Hear me as I pray, O Lord.

Be merciful and answer me!

8 My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”

And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.”

9 Do not turn your back on me.

Do not reject your servant in anger.

You have always been my helper.

Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me,

O God of my salvation!

10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,

the Lord will hold me close.

11 Teach me how to live, O Lord.

Lead me along the right path,

for my enemies are waiting for me.

12 Do not let me fall into their hands.

For they accuse me of things I’ve never done;

with every breath they threaten me with violence.

13 Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness

while I am here in the land of the living.

14 Wait patiently for the Lord.

Be brave and courageous.

Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.

I just love this Psalm. It's been so assuring during this time of transition.

Update on the House

The update on the house is that there really is no update. We were not able to close on it a couple of weeks ago like we were hoping. Greg got the call that morning that it wasn't going to happen that day. Since he took off that day, we ran errands instead. We got some paint samples to try out in the house. When we got to the house we saw that the former owners broke in and stole more things. They stole some sinks, pipes, light fixtures, faucets, thermostats, etc. Ugggghhhh, so frustrating.



We were both so mad that we honestly had to just not talk about it. We didn't call anyone but our realtor, and the neighbors that said they saw the guy there. We basically cut off any communication with our friends and families so we could try to get a grip on everything. We slept on it that night before we could even think about trying to process what had happened. These previous owners knew we were supposed to close that day. They came in a couple of days before and took all the stuff. They were foolish enough to not realize that all the neighbors remembered what they drove. However, the neighbors didn't pay attention as to why they were there...not that they were supposed to, but the fact that they were observant, or nosy :), was helpful.



So, we've had to start over with another inspection. The bank had to rework some numbers for us considering it was their fault we didn't close, and the house wasn't ours at the time of the incident.



What we are learning, and I put strong emphasis on the word learning, is that God is in complete control, and that His timing is perfect. Maybe this was protection from Him as to what would have been our responsibility if we had closed that day. God sometimes puts us through situations to strengthen our character, to remind us where our help comes from, and to mold us to where this test can be used as a testimony to share with others. God never wastes a hurt or trial.



The verses in Scripture where we have found our peace this past year are these:
Psalm 27:13-14

"I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord."

The New House

We should be closing on our new house Friday, the 29th. I pray this works out. Our realtor is telling us that the bank may need us to wait until the end of Feb. to close, but hopefully this won't be necessary.

Greg and I wanted to make a list of things we are looking forward to with getting a house. It's amazing how much you can take the little things in life for granted, when you don't have them anymore.

What we won't take for granted in our new home......

1- The private bathtub. I haven't taken a real "bath" in a year. Showers don't cut it in a woman's world. It's a germ issue thing...I don't like bathing in hotel, dorm or apt. bathtubs.

2- My own yard where Kirsten can play outside

3- A garage, and a designated parking place....no more defrosting our cars in the morning after a hike across the parking lot trying to find our car.

4- No more loud, active and vocal upstairs neighbors....enough said.

5- A real refrigerator with an icemaker that works and it's own water dispenser.

6- A microwave with a spinning plate

7 - Cabinets with knobs on them

8 - A pantry

9- A laundry room without mold in the walls

10 - My washer and dryer on the correct sides of each other so the doors don't open in the way you have to lean over them

11- More than an 800 square feet of living space

12 - A bathroom with double vanities and a door to the toilet

13 - clean and sanitized floors

14 - walk in closets and storage space

15 - ceiling fans

16 - room for guests

17 - mailbox in my yard and packages delivered to my door, not at the office

18 - not having to drop off a rent check in person to anyone

19 - painting walls

20 - not having to iron clothes in the kitchen

I am aware that some people in our country and in others consider the way we've lived the last year as a luxury. I am truly grateful to have a place to live, and a roof over my head, but it is time for a new home. It's time to plant ourselves in GA. Praise God for blessing us with this move.

Christmas, Christmas and More Christmas

This is the 2nd year I haven't been able to decorate for Christmas. :( It's disappointing to me, because I LOVE Christmas. The cheesier the decor the better. I am all about being sentimental. I can't wait until we finally get settled. I pray that next year I will be able to decorate, and make goodies with Greg and Kirsten. I look forward to watching Christmas movies, hosting Christmas parties, driving crazy distances to see over-the-top Christmas lights, and sending out Christmas cards again. I want to take Kirsten to Stone Mtn. every year to write her letter to Santa. I want to serve those less fortunate, and make birthday cupcakes for Jesus, and have a birthday party for Him. As my Mother In-law says, "This will come, this is only temporary." I praise God for the selling of our house in MS. Now, my prayer is for Him to reveal to us our new home. I know He's preparing it for us, and handling details we may never know. I look forward to the day when He says, "Here you are. This is where I want you planted in GA."

Traveling for Christmas is hard. This effort consists of packing for 10 days for 3 people... one being a 2yr. old, presents for both sides of the family, Chloe, our 4 legged first born, and goodies and entertainment for the car ride. This is a lot to fit into a Camry. Don't get me wrong, it's been more than fabulous seeing everyone, but maybe Christmas isn't the best time to do this. Christmas is about family, but maybe this means immediate family. Maybe it's the rest of the year that's about the entire family. I don't know, this one is tough. I know we aren't the only ones with relatives in other states. It's a tough call, you want to be able to have your own traditions, but you want to spend time with the rest of the family too...what's right? This year, for us it was best to travel. God only knows what's best for future Christmases.



Our first adventure was to see Greg's side of the family in New Orleans...Destrehan, LA to be exact, but it's easier to say New Orleans. It took us about 8 hrs. to make a 6 hr. drive. LA was about 40 degrees warmer than GA. As soon as we crossed the LA state line we no longer saw red and green Christmas decorations. Everything was Black and Gold. We made it just in time to catch the Saints game.



We had such a great time catching up with family we haven't seen in years. We ate shrimp creole, meatballs and french bread. Conversation consisted of the Saints going to the playoffs, Mardi Gras parades, and the never ending effects of Katrina. My Mother In Law's friends that she refers to as "the YaYa's" stopped by to catch up. I call them the girls from Sexy in the Crescent City...always a pleasure, always a blast, ALWAYS a laugh.

My Father In-law took us to Mr. Roo's for lunch on Monday. Mr. Roo's is one of Greg's and my favorite places to eat. They have the best poboys in NOLA. They're always consistent. I'll post pics.

Sooooo goooood! Greg had the muffaletta and I had Mr. Roo's special.

As if that wasn't enough to make the day complete, we met Mover Rich from Imagination Movers in Target. He was super super nice. I apparently was more impressed than Kirsten was. As you can see in the picture below, she was more impressed with the toy train on the shelf behind him. His wife loved Kirsten's hat (she's wearing it in the background) I made her. She asked me how to do stripes because she's learning how to make hats too. I took Kirsten's hat off and showed her how. Yeah, we totally bonded.

A great ending to a great visit.

Christmas Party With The Girls

Tonight was our Bible Study Group's Christmas Party. We've spent the last 12 weeks doing Beth Moore's study on Daniel. This study was challenging to say the least, but it was so worth the challenge. We all made a commitment to learn back in September. Not only did we learn about Daniel and his faithfulness, we also learned about his God. The wonderful thing, this is also our God.

Through the study of Daniel, I met some amazing women that I was privileged to spend my Monday nights with. Who needs Monday Night Football when I can spend time getting to know God and these wonderfully gifted women? I am so blessed that God placed each of these precious women in my life.

Our Christmas Party was at O'Charley's in Hiram. The food was great, but the company and fellowship was even better. We were each greeted at the table with little bags of Christmas goodies. Also, our entertainment was the little game we played for our ornament exchange.

I love these ladies and I am so blessed to know each of them. God has placed us all in each other's lives for a reason. I can't wait to start our next Beth Moore study, Stepping Up, a study of Psalms.

To my girls, this is my prayer for you...

Phil. 1:3-6

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Best Gift

This weekend was the eagerly anticipated Best Gift production at Pinelake Church. I say production because the word program can't justify the greatness of Best Gift, and program is a word that's too easily stereotyped. I am so excited that I was able to take the trip to see it. This was such a bittersweet experience for me. This was the event that I have been bracing myself for since we moved. I've always been a part of the choir, so this is my first year to deal with not being in it. I am a visitor now :(. However, this was also the first year I actually got to sit in the audience and see it with my husband. It was such a blessing to have him with me.

Best Gift never ceases to satisfy me. It always manages to go above and beyond my expectations. After all, it is all about the way I see it, right?....Totally kidding. I credit the splendor of Best Gift to Obedient Leadership, Prayerful Teams, and Faithful Servants. Sprinkle this with some amazing talent given by God above to all involved with the sole purpose to glorify HIM.

On top of this being an amazing production, God blessed me with a personal gift during the show. He answered a question that I forgot I had asked Him a long time ago. I won't go into details, but about 4 years ago, I wanted an answer to something and never received one. It was nothing huge, and God owed me no explanation. But clear as day He said, "That's why! Now know it's not about you (me), and see I am working on a bigger plan here...but you (I) do play a part." I was so blessed, humbled and honored all at the same time. God is good, and God is faithful!

I honestly can't say whether or not this was my favorite Best Gift because I am partial to the ones in which I got to participate. However, this was some of my favorite music. It was beautiful, and every song had a wonderful message. To see and hear from the audience what I haven't really had the opportunity to before, made me appreciate everything even more. I didn't know what to expect, and as I mentioned earlier, I was amazed. The choir was absolutely beautiful, glorious, and just freakin' awesome. I am so blessed to say that at one time, I was a part of such a wonderful group and ministry.

I love going back to MS and visiting Pinelake and my friends. They are all so precious, and they always make me feel welcome. I miss being a part of this ministry dearly. I really grew as a Christian through that experience. It's so great to be able to call such a godly group, family.

We had a Best Gift after party at Lea Anne's house and it was so fun catching up with my friends I haven't seen in a while. I can't wait to go back for Christmas and see them again. Only 12 more days!