Misc. March

Today is Easter! It was a beautiful day to celebrate our Risen Lord with our church family and with our extended family over ham, potatoes, and yeasty rolls. Easter pictures to come in a future blog post…

I’ve been kind of AWOL here on this blog and that is because we MOVED! A week ago yesterday was the big day (though Ed & I cleaned the new house on the Thursday night before and moved hanging clothes and boxes and such on Friday) and it went really well! We had super help, pretty good weather (as opposed to the snow/hail/wind/sun crazy weather we had on Friday) and we were all in, with all beds assembled and made, and the old house cleaned, by 5:00 p.m. It’s been a busy week of sorting and organizing and getting used to things, but it already feels like home. Pictures to come in a future blog post. This week is spring break so I am hoping for LOTS of unpacking and organizing to be accomplished and hoping for more opportunities to meet and get to know our new neighbors…more on that later.

This blog post is about stuff from earlier in March, so let’s get rolling:

These two goof balls are best friends. This is how they were watching TV at my parents house the other day. Who but your best friend and sister would willingly let you use them as a mattress and pillow?

Becca insisted on shooting hoops in the freezing rain a couple weeks back. This was right after the “time change” so it was light much later into the evening, so she was thrilled that it was still light out even after she had finished her homework and piano.

A couple weeks ago, Ed & went to the BibleTech conference that Logos puts on in Seattle. Well…Ed went to the conference and I just had fun. We left on Thursday evening, ran some errands together (which hardly ever happens), and even went out for dinner at one of our favorite places, Johnny Carino’s. On Friday the conference began bright and early so he was off and gone. I slept in a bit and then had a leisurely Starbucks breakfast in downtown Seattle with my AZ bestie and another Logos wife who came as well. Then they headed north to a mall to meet some other friends and I went to Ikea. Going to Ikea by myself with a new house in mind to shop for = a dreamy couple of hours! I had lunch at Panera (where I happened to see our pastor & his wife who were in Seattle bringing relatives back to the airport – how coincidental is that?) and ate some absolutely amazing mac & cheese. I can’t even believe I’m blogging about mac & cheese, but it was seriously delicious. Creamy & cheesy goodness in a bowl.

I did a little more shopping on my own and then headed to meet up with the Logos wives and friends for some more shopping and dinner. Lots of laughs and girl talk is always good for the soul.

I spent a quiet evening in the hotel room watching cable (did you know there’s such a thing as gluten-free cat food? I don’t ever see commercials, so I didn’t…and I think that’s just plain weird) – specifically a show called “Say Yes to the Dress” which is hysterical and sad all at the same time.

On Friday I got to hang with the two Logos wives from AZ for most of the day. We went to the original Starbucks,

Pike Place Market,

the Gum Wall (GROSS!),

an antique store, and the waterfront.

Here Tam’s trying to make the ever-important decision of which pressed penny to purchase for the scrapbook of her trip. We {{heart}} pressed pennies!

The AZ wives were wanting to head to the Space Needle, but I wasn’t super excited about that and kind of wanted to start heading for home, and Ed wasn’t too excited about his last workshop anyway. So, they went off to the monorail and Seattle Center without me and Ed & I headed back north towards home. We made several stops, including an AT&T store to get my voicemail fixed, Hobby Lobby (what a good husband to go with me to HL!!), and of course, Chipotle for dinner!

Hopefully since this is spring break, blog posts will not be so scarce…

There’s been some stuff happening…

Sorry for the lack of blogging lately. It’s not for want of activity around here, that’s for sure. We’re busy with regular life – school, work, GEMS, track, music lessons – not to mention packing and a little weekend away for Ed & I (which I will blog about at a later date, after I get all my friend’s photos from her camera…I chose NOT to haul my camera around for that one!)

Our house here is sold and all done and we’re “renting” the house back until we can get into our new house on March 23. Things are gradually getting organized and packed, but I am NOT looking forward to the unpacking just yet…largely because I am not organizing everything *before* it goes into a box because I don’t yet know how it will be arranged once it’s out of the box. It will be a process, that is for sure.

In the meantime, we have to keep this Everson home maintained, and unfortunately the washing machine (which is staying with the house) decided to start leaking. Several weeks back it got “off-balance” and the plastic door gasket became warped. A week or two later the gasket cracked and therefore I had water on the floor of the laundry room. Ugh. I emailed our realtor, because that’s what everyone does when their washer leaks, right?

No, actually I emailed him because he used to work at an appliance store and I wanted his advice on who to call to fix it. Our realtor got right on the job, emailing a buddy to get us a used part (for free, no less) and encouraging Ed to fix it himself. Ed watched a couple YouTube videos and went to work.

He took that thing apart, which pretty much caused me to hyperventilate, given Ed’s known un-handyman-likeness. He put the new-to-us part in, put it all back together, and lo and behold! No more leaking!! Way to go, Ed! Oh, and YouTube. And the realtor. And the realtor’s buddy who gave us the part.

Ed better watch out…now that he’s proven himself yet again, I just might have some more handyman jobs for him at the new house…

October Baby

Sunday night Ed & I watched the movie, "October Baby." I intended to only watch a bit of it and to watch more another evening. But I couldn't stop watching. It gripped me. There was no phenomenal acting (though I did think it was quite good acting) or astonishing special effects or suspenseful twists and turns. But the story..the story gripped me. I loved it.

What really surprised me was my reaction to the end...the 19-year-old college student moves out of her parents' home and into the dorms...new & wonderful boyfriend at her side...and says a tearful good-bye to her parents, and especially to her father...and I found myself sobbing.

Sobbing. Truly.

Why? Probably because it was like watching me with my parents and Sarah with Ed & I all at the same time.

My heart could not take it. 22 years ago. And three years from now.

Three years!

And then that will be me, sending my first-born off to college. I have that lump in my throat just thinking about it.

Anyway, me sobbing really has nothing to do with the movie. Watch the movie.

I have this friend

Yesterday a dear, sweet friend called. I hardly ever see her, even though she only lives 10 minutes from me...soon to be 20 :(. But we have known each other since 1995, and we have been through the stuff of life together. Births, deaths, birthday parties, miscarriages, craft nights, job changes, moves, and countless other things. She knows me. And she gets me. And I probably drive her crazy because she's the stable one in this friendship. :)

Anyway, yesterday she called and I just wanted to laugh and cry all at the same time, because you know what she said? She said, "I'm so excited that you're going to get to move, but I bet it's hard not to wish it was the other house and not to compare this house to the one you lost."

Oh, yes. You hit the nail on the head, friend.

I am SO excited to move to town. I know in my head that the excitement about this new house will come...and I know God will work it all out for His glory...and the fact that today we signed papers on this house in Everson is nothing short of a miracle. But I am so grateful for my friend who just was able to catch in my voice what I wasn't saying. That's a good friend. A true friend. I pray I can be that kind of friend to those I love.