downtown living

So far we have been pre approved by two banks!!!  We're talking to the third one at 1:30pm today and then talking to my financial agent who handles my mutual fund at Edward Jones.  They informed us yesterday that they would be willing to give us a home loan.  She said it would be better than what any bank could offer us.  I guess we'll see.  So far we have been getting AWESOME offers from banks.  It's so fun to shop around for loans.  It makes me feel so special to have these banks compete for our money.  ***smile***

Preacher Man was gone ALL DAY yesterday.  He didn't get home from class until 9:30pm.  Today he's not getting home from work until late so we are going to meet him for dinner.  Once again, having a home there would be AWESOME.  he could just walk over to the house for a dinner break instead of us driving all the way there and eating out.  Moving there is going to be a BIG MONEY SAVER!!  The most our house payment will be is 750 a month and that is including the home owners insurance. It'll probably be lower than that because we are not giving the woman what she is asking.  We're going to start out by offering 20,000 less than her asking price.  Just to see if she bites.  I'm thanking Mr. Sid for that bit of advice.  And the good Lord above!!

This is all so exciting.  I'm not as excited about the being a home owner (although I am LOVING the house) as I am the fact that we are going to be living within walking distance of the church, the park, the library, Amigo's preschool, downtown!!  When I say walking distance I mean all of this stuff is like 2 minutes away on foot.  VERY CLOSE!!!  We're going to use the house as an outreach to the community.  We're going to start weekly bible studies and youth events!!  ***smile***  Our house theme is "you need a place to sleep, eat, sit and talk? The door is always open. "  Something to that exstint. 

Ok, enough about that.  I must go eat lunch before little chica wakes up.  Adios!!  

  

quite times are to prepare us for the not so quite times

Today has been somewhat of a crazy day.  Preacher Man's days off are Friday and Saturday so it was suppose to be a relaxing day for all of us.  Ummmm yeah right.  With two kids everyday is a work day.

I got up at 7:30 because I wanted a little time to eat my breakfast and do my daily reading in peace before all hell broke loss. Amigo went to bed at 11pm lastnight because we went to songfest practice and walked around campus looking at the benches.  I knew that when he got up he was not going to be a happy little man.

It was so peaceful being able to sit alone while the sun was coming up.  Just me, exodus and my oatmeal. I know. I bet you're trying to figure out who or what exodus is.  I have decided, after much thought, to read the Bible through.  I'm so tired of people (preachers, teachers, parents) jamming their theology down my throat.  Yes, I minored in religion in college and grew up on the stories of Adam, Eve, Moses, Abraham, Jacob, Job, Paul, Jesus......   But a part of me, a big part, just wants to sit back and read the stories for their literary value .  I don't want to have a commentary to tell me this or that or a preacher that's going to take a verse out of context.  I want to see the story play out in my head like a movie while I read. I JUST WANT TO READ.  I have found that this type of reading of the text is so moving.  They're beautiful stories.

At about 8am Amigo came running through the house yelling "Amigo's up!"  My heart sank.  I was having such a wonderful alone time.  But them he ran up and gave me the biggest good morning hug and kiss I through the Holy word to the side and decided that the whole family should have snuggle time in the bed.  Even little chica joined in on the fun!!

The morning went on and all was well in the Preacher Man's house until about 9:30 when Amigo asked to get the Legos out.  I walked into his closet to get the sacred Lego box when I discovered the carpet was soaking wet.  When I stepped down on the carpet a jet of water squirted up between my toes. My immediate thought was "Man, my socks are all wet now."  Then, after changing my socks and putting them in the hamper, the thought crossed my mind "my floor is soaking wet."  I ran to the bathroom that is beside Amigo's room and sure enough the toilet was running all over the place.  

Let, me explain. The toilet has been clogged for a good month.  We hadn't called the maintenance guy because, well, we hate asking people to do stuff for us even if it is their job.  I always feel bad.  Especially for a "simple" clogged toilet.  So I guess the toilet got tired of just sitting there not being used and threw up.  ALL OVER THE PLACE.

 

The rest of the morning and a good portion of the afternoon was dedicated to cleaning up the mess.  It was great fun.  At least Amigo thought it was.  Bob the Builder came to his house to fix his toilet and clean his room!!!  I was super mom in his eyes.  "Wow, my mom called Bob the Builder and he came to MY house!"

To make things better we (Amigo and I) snuggled up on the couch to watch a movie about Beatrix Potter and later read three of her lovely stories!!  There's nothing like sharing a story with your child on a rainy day after cleaning up poo water all morning!!   

The van and hose cleaning the poo water up

The fan trying to dry up the carpet

houses & pumpkins

The past couple of days have been FANTASTIC!!!  Monday Amigo and I decided to have a picnic for lunch on our back porch. As we were sitting out there I couldn't help but think how beautiful it was.  So, I decided that we HAD to go to the Orchard and get pumpkins. 

It was so beautiful at the orchard. Hardly anyone was there!!!  I hate going places when they are packed full of people because it takes the whole "trying to relax" thing away. We got a wagon full of pumpkins; some to carve and some to attempt to make a pie. Then we played on the slides, hay and tractors and went running through the corn field.   Little Chica had a blast as well.   She laughed and laughed at how funny Paul and I were.  She's pretty easy going.  She likes to sit back and watch here family act a fool. 

Rachel came over in the afternoon for dinner and pumpkin carving!!  We had a lot of fun being kids with kids. Amigo wouldn't put his hands in the pumpkin.  He said "i don't want to get my hand all nasty."

Today we found out that we have been approved for a 30 year fixed loan at an interest rate of 5.75!!  Also, the realtor for the house we want VERY BADLY called and said the owner was nervous about the winter months coming up and is willing to negotiate!!  I let her know that we had all the paperwork together and that we are going to meet with our realtor tomorrow to make an offer.  So, we're making an offer tomorrow!!!!  HOW EXCITING!!!!   She is asking 109,900 for the house but our first offer will be 90,000.  I doubt she'll accept but we'll see what her counter offer will be.  Either way, we're going to try and get her to come down on her price significantly.  She's been out of the house for almost a year and she lives in another state.  The house is move in ready (refinished hardwood, new windows, fresh paint....) I plan on being in there before christmas maybe even before thanksgiving!!  Hey, we could have everyone over for dinner!!!  Either way. I pray it all works out.  We're trying to take this whole process slowly so we don't get stressed and we'll enjoy the whole home buying process.  So far, since we decided to sit back and enjoy the house buying process, it has been AWESOME!!!  We came to the conclusion that if God wants us in this house he will provide a way.  We're justing doing things one step at a time!!  The next step is an offer!!!  YAAAAY!!!!

 

searching & discovering

These past 9 months have been the most life changing. I was put on bedrest with Anna and life as I new it changed. I had a massive amount of time to sit alone in a hospital reading and thinking about life. I found myself! I began to see my true purpose in life. The key word being true.  And it's simple.  My true purpose in life is to love. To not only love those who it is easy to love but to love those who I have no reason to love. I am beginning to see the world in a whole new light. I'm not out to change or save it one person at a time. I'm just here doing what God has called me to do......LOVE.

I was raised to fear everything. I was raised that people are always out to get you and take your stuff. I was raised that stuff (money, a nice car, a nice house, nice clothes) was the most important thing in life. And the pursuit of the stuff ( the job) had no other purpose than to get more stuff. In other words I was raised to work my butt off in a job that I might not like in order to get stuff to show people how hard of a worker I am and to rub it in their face that I was not in poverty because I worked HARD. 

Slowly, throughout college, I began to question this outlook on life. I took the first step when I decided to major in psychology. Next came the opportunity to work at a State Psychiatric Hospital. While there I learnt the true power if love. Love is truly transforming!

Being put on bedrest was a blessing in the form of despair. It forced me to slow down. I was going through life without really living. It gave me the opportunity to literally sit back and look at what I was doing and what I should be doing. I decided that staying home to raise my children to be respectable and loving people was going to be my number one priority. 

The past five months of the fulltime job of "stay at home mom" have been challenging, rewarding and eye opening. I feel that I am growing right along side my kids. I am finding myself as they are discovering this wonderful place called earth. 

I've been thinking a lot about becoming a therapist. However, I feel a great need to incorporate spirituality into the therapy. As a person of faith who has suffered from depression and anxiety I have experienced first hand how important it is to go to a faith based clinic to seek help. I began to feel even stronger about this point while reading a book by the late M. Scott Peck entitled "Further Along the Road Less TRaveled."

So, I have heard the call, fought with the call, turned away from the call only to in the end accept the call. I'm going to seminary to major in Pastoral Care and Counseling. I feel a deep yearning, that I can't really explain, to work with a faith based shelter. I have found that oftentimes those suffering the most cannot afford the cost of a therapy session. I want to help. I want to be that person they can go to for guidance without having to worry about the cost. 

I have wrestled with this decision a lot the past couple of months. A part of me wants to go to an awesome grad school and become the best psychology professor EVER. But a bigger part of me knows that that is not what I have been commissioned to do. 

I know it is something that is said over and over but I am going to say it again; "each of us has been blessed with a gift."  God blessed each of us with a gift (talent, passion) in order that we may use it to be a blessing to others.