I AM here :-)

Well, we've been officially moved in to our home for almost two months! Wow...that is just really awesome to say. So sorry for the gap in posting, but we've been trying to settle in and unpack and start back in the groove of school. We've settled in and I think we are back in the groove for school...but unpacked? No, we are still living out of boxes and there are quite a few things sitting in the garage, just waiting to see the light of day once again...such as my sewing stuff! I know it will all fall into place soon enough...so no worries :-)

So what have we been up to? Oh, so much really...

The kids and I enjoyed harvesting the fruit from our Pomegranate tree. We've made pomegranate slushies and plan on making jelly as soon as I get some canning tools. My hubby and I enjoyed a lovely Pomegranate Mojito too...yum!

We've also had a few things repaired and have had a landscaper come out and plan with us about our yards. That has been fun. Though we really wanted to be able to get our backyard and our front yard fixed up right away, we found that we could only afford to do it in steps. So the first step was our front yard and it is so nice to see it coming up green and lush :-)

We are still enjoying our backyard and finding much to appreciate in it...

The sunset just before a storm was coming in. Lovely!

The kids have been enjoying the space in our yard for running, jumping and playing. Liam has been practicing his ball throwing too :-)

We also have been enjoying observing the many birds in our yard...Western Scrub Jays, Mocking Birds, White-Crowned Sparrows, House Sparrows and a few finches. The bird life around this area is amazing! Not to mention the other creatures...Tule Elk, Muskrat, Fox and unfortunately...black widows and mosquitoes! Blech!

Life is falling into place here and we find that each day is glorious. Sure there are things that go wrong...attitudes aren't always happy and frustration occurs, the clutter is occasionally appearing and the floor needs sweeping...but oh, there is such an amazing feeling of joy and contentment...yes, contentment :-)

And, we are finding a little time to dance amidst all the day to day :-)

Blessings,

Sommer

The Day is Upon Us!

Last Monday, we signed the closing papers...Friday, we were told that the keys were ours and the house was officially ours! Such a blissful feeling indeed!

We'd already been packing some, but we began packing in earnest as soon as we heard that and today...I am making a final push to pack up our many belongings. Wow...how does one acquire so much?

We move tomorrow. We hired movers...with 4 kids and a long drive, we decided this was best. I'm so glad we did.

As we get settled I will share more. On top of unpacking, I need to sit down and finish planning out our school year and then get going with it. We will be starting much later than usual but that is okay...we look forward to starting our year in a new home!

I may be a way from here for a few days, but I will be back as soon as can be and I look forward to sharing views of our life again with you:-)

Blessings,

Sommer

Anticipation

I've been eagerly anticipating the UPS man. Not for any special trinket or new book, but for two rather large boxes. What might be in these boxes do you ask? Well, more boxes, packing tape and packing materials :-) Yes, I've been waiting for the arrival of moving stuff! And today they finally arrived!

My hubby and I don't really enjoy moving, but this move is one I am very excited about! In less than 20 days we will be loading up all of our possessions and heading to our new home. What joy...what bliss!

Despite the fact that there are a few things needed to repair and maintenance on this house, there has been nothing glaringly bad. Just to be expected of a home that is almost 50 years old. The closing process seems to be moving a long smoothly and we are awaiting the day we can get our keys.

I must say, the home buying experience has not been easy for us and really not very fun. I've had to feed off my 3 year old's enthusiasm to keep mine going ;-) But the Lord has blessed us mightily and has made things work out JUST RIGHT! Really, we couldn't have come up with anything better :-) I may share more about this once we are moved in, but suffice it to say...God knew what we needed and though we had other ideas, I can see the rightness in what we have now.

So....the packing begins! Prayers will be appreciated as we de-clutter, simplify and pare down. It feels a tad overwhelming to see all we have to pack up.

Lots of love,

Sommer

Patience Pays

It seems that when you are patient, good things often happen...or at least the right thing ;-) Dan and I have been house hunting for about a year now. We started looking in one location with a certain price range, size in mind. As time went on, the Lord gently directed us to a new location and a different price range and caused us to have willing hearts for a different size home. We had OUR ideals...but God had BETTER ones :-)

In the end, we have a home in a location that is farther away, smaller and...just right for us!

This year has been hard and I have fluctuated from being content, hopeful, discouraged and depressed. But I was learning much and I am still learning that even when I am scared, discouraged, uncertain...God is ever faithful and knows exactly what we need.

Above, you see the front of our future home! Barring any major issues found in the inspection(and we are hopeful there will not be anything horrid) we will close on this lovely August 20th!

God has truly blessed us. This home was built in 1963 and it has a lot of those fun little things that you can often find in older homes. It also has brand new paint and carpet. The kitchen(which you can see a little in the above picture) has sweet little details that I will share later. The refrigerator space is tiny and so I am doing a search to locate an appropriately sized one before we need to be there. Also..the oven is TINY! But I love it :-)

And what is more...the price was awesome! And in California that is hard to come by. The only real downside is my husband's commute. But at least he works hours that it shouldn't be as bad as we had expected.

The crowning glory of this home though...a lovely backyard. Having lived in a tiny apartment for almost 6 years with no backyard and 4 active children has been, shall we say...NUTS! But this backyard is going to be awesome! It is very big, has a lovely shed, and several trees..two which are good sized and provide splendid shade in the heat. There is a lovely pomegranate tree as well. There is also a covered patio...great for eating on and a nice spot for the dog to lay on in the heat of the day. Oh, yes, we are already planning for dogs...oh, my yes!

Here is a picture of the children on the edge of the shade provided by the largest tree. As you can see, it is much more than what we've been used to :-) The kids are very excited. I look forward to getting it green again and working on a garden of some sort.

Really, God has graciously kept us from bad choices that were too expensive. We have slowly been shown what was right for us and in being made to wait we have been blessed. I know that something could go awry in the process. But I am very much full of confidence in what God is doing and have faith that all will continue smoothly. Things have fallen into place with this house that are for certain the working of God.

As we get closer to moving in and after we have gotten into the house, I will share more pics of the home. There are cute little bits that I want to share with my friends. Thanks to all of you that have been praying for us on this journey. I would have never gotten through it without you :-)

Lots of love to you all,
Sommer

Happy Independence Day!

"Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations; and He will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave...There is no retreat but in submission and slavery!"

"...Gentlemen may cry, 'Peace!peace!' - but there is no peace...Is life so dear, and peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!" ~Patrick Henry

I find myself reflecting on these words today. Not because I intend on taking up arms ;-) But because I think we all ought to remember the passion our Founding Fathers and those fighting for America's independence had. Do we have this kind of passion...for our freedoms, our inalienable rights...most importantly for Christ?

On this Independence day I think on my own passion..or lack there of some days. Would I be a Patrick Henry(albeit in a skirt ;-))? I hope so. Do I have this daily passion for my Lord? I know that I could have more. May we work on keeping our rights and freedoms(and not just sit by complaining but doing nothing), but let us also work to keep our passion for our Lord and Saviour!

Happy Independence Day my friends!!!!

Blessings,
Sommer