Week of Madness

It has officially been one week in West Plains. I think the city celebrated by shutting off the power. Sitting here in the dark with a little power left on my new fancy phone.

The past week I  have been unpacking boxes and JM has been hacking away at large bushes that border our property in the front. that about sums up our last week.

Nothing is quite real yet, and I am not sure when it is going to be. Still feels like we are going to go "home" at some point.

I think our big struggle will be to find a church home here, somewhere where we can be served for a while, and then a place where we can serve...and not be lost in the crowd.

3-2-1Blastoff!

Moving Monday finally came. After a few delays, JM set out at 9, and the other three vehicles left at 10:30. My van was basically.chaos for 4 1/2 hours. One of our two cats didn't respond well to the anti-anxiety meds...so she meowed for the entire time add that to the kids with movies and snacks....we were a mess. Finally all parts parts of our caravan made it. We signed papers and became owners of two homes. Yikes.

Unloading went very fast here. He had so many people come to help. It was so nice. One of his co-workers's wives even brought us about 5 bags of groceries so I didn't have to go to the store. What a blessing.

My dad and our friend, John, assisted in the move....amazing. It was nice to have them around. Needless to say, we all crashed that night.

Tuesday we went to breakfast with my dad and John, and.returned to find our power shut off - it ended up being 108 degrees that day. The night before, a coworkers' wife offered to watch the kids on Tuesday so I shipped D and R off to play at their house...another huge blessing. We spent the day unpacking in the heat at our new home. Welcome home.

Packing the truck and the weekend of homelessness

On Saturday, July 30, we started loading the truck at 9. We had a lit if family and friends come to help, which was a great blessing. Two girlfriends came to give me moral support...Melissa and Kelly, which I needed, desperately. I was stressed and tired...oh and cranky. Due to a late booking of the moving van, we got a smaller truck than we wanted and it was a very tight fit. The guys from JM's work just kept shoving and we packed both of our cars and my dad' s truck as well. But after rearranging sad stuffing in the cars it all fit. Yeah!

Then began living with my parents...which for a sort time was fine...my step-mom says that my dad and I have similar personalities, so it is hard for us to get along sometimes...but all went well. They were great, and I think they like spending a bit extra time with the girls.

Church on Sunday was very hard. I cried while Joanna prayed for us in Sunday school and cried a lot during the service. It seemed like the songs were meant for us....and the sermon as well. It was about Jesus being sent to Jerusalem for a purpose ( which if course, was to die on the cross). It seemed that God was telling me that we are being sent to West Plains for a purpose as well.

Of course, lots of tears after the service...hugging friends...people who have become family to me. Knowing that I won't see them often sucks. God blessed us with an amazing church family that I hope to find here in the WP.

Finally Connected!

Hi all. We have had a crazy week and I plan on updating you soon. But tonight I got a fancy phone that can do all this fancy internet stuff...so I can finally update you all on our adventure so far.

T-Minus 15 Hours and Counting

I have been thinking for a while that it might be interesting to write about my experiences in this "big transition." My friend, Jen, said I should have a blog and call it "Big Life, Small Town" and since I lack the creativity to think of another name, this is what it is. Even if no one ever reads it, I think it will be good for me to share my thoughts and musings in some sort of outlet.

How we came to move in the first place--July of 2010, JM's work offered him a position at the main office. We said yes, and the waiting began. After a long year of waiting for our house to sell, we decided to rent it out and finally just move. Not an easy decision, but D needs to be in preschool, so we have to be there before it starts. The decision to move, house shopping and the like happened in about a month and a half. The move has come on so quickly I don't think it is hitting home quite yet.

All week, I have been farming D and R out to family and friends for visits while I pack. It has been a lifesaver. Thanks, all.

Today is the last day of packing the house before the big move. We (along with sturdy friends and family) will be loading up the truck tomorrow AM. Then we become transients (aka staying with my parents) for two nights. We officially close on the house on Monday, so I guess that is when the real "adventure" begins.

So, thanks for reading. More about the moving process later.