cradle cap

First a little background.. Judah's hair grows in a natural mohawk... long in the middle on top, short everywhere else.  Quite the little rock star without even trying.  

A little more background... Mercy's always pointing out to us his "eye burgers" and picking at them.  She also likes to pull apart his toes and pick at the fuzz.

So this morning, I was picking at his cradle cap and Mercy came over and said, "Mom, Judah have burgers on him mohawk!"

birthday boy

Here's our nine year old!  Zeke had a hard week missing family and friends from the Bay Area, but we did our best to make his birthday special and I think he had a good one.  This picture was taken a few days before his birthday at a local park.   We're still scoping out parks in the area, but so far this one's our favorite.  Notice the fun water play stuff in the background.  

On his birthday, he woke up to a huge birthday greeting across our otherwise barren walls, and had panakkuken for breakfast.  A little later we went to the mall so he could pick out a new skateboard deck.  When Joe went to work, I took the kids bowling.  We headed back to our house after bowling so Mercy could get a nap.  Zeke and Brooklyn had fun playing outside and he got some practice in on his new board.  He also got a special birthday Skype session with cousins.  Later, we went to Space Aliens, a restaurant with a video arcade.  Joe and his co-workers met us there after the shop closed.  Yesterday some family from Northern Minnesota came to celebrate with us.  We enjoyed a barbeque in the nice weather and had fun spending time with them.  All in all, I think we celebrated this nine year old pretty well and he knew he was (is) loved.

woe is me

That's how this blog must sound some days.  Really I don't mean to be negative.  I don't really feel negative.. but this whole move has its ups and downs, and this morning was going down hill.

Yesterday our curriculum was supposed to arrive, but when it didn't and I checked the tracking, I realized that the address was printed wrong somewhere.  So I called UPS this morning and found out where I could go pick it up.  I got the directions and headed out.  The address was on a highway that I'm familiar with, so I thought it would be easy enough to find.  Wrong!  I drove and drove, thinking a UPS distribution center would be pretty easy to spot.  I ended up in a town about 15 minutes past where I was supposed to be, so I turned around.  I headed back, this time being super careful to notice every building on either side of the road.  Peering through some trees as I passed them, I spotted a UPS truck.  I continued on until I could make a u-turn, and then went back.  Sure enough, this UPS place was hidden in the trees, with no sign or anything.  I didn't think that was very nice of them to hide from weary travelers like me.

On the way home, I planned to stop at the grocery store.  I haven't yet picked a grocery store that I like best (there is no Safeway here).  So I saw a Cub Foods along the way and thought I'd go there.  I took the exit from the highway, but then made a wrong turn and ended up back on the highway, going the other way.  Ugg!  So I took an exit and tried again.  This time I made it to the store and proceeded in with my list.  It really takes forever to find things in a new store.  If only it were laid out exactly like my beloved Safeway.  I was back and forth throughout the store several times and had to ask employees at least twice to help me locate certain items.   I honestly don't know how long I was in there.  By the time I was ready to drive home, I felt I really deserved the enormous chocolate cupcake that called out to me as I walked through the bakery.  I wish I had a picture for you.  It really was a lovely cupcake.  But my camera wasn't in the car, and there was no way that thing was going to make it all the way back to the house in one piece.  I thought there might be half of it left, because it really was huge.  But by the time I pulled into the driveway, there was nothing but a few crumbs.  Oh, it was so good.  It was a creme filled chocolate cupcake, like the kind from Hostess that you used to get in your lunch box only on very special days, only homemade looking and much bigger.  It was very moist, and surprisingly light and fluffy.  I kind of wish I hadn't tried it.  Because now I know where they are and I may just go back for another sometime.

roller?

Yesterday morning, he did it.  He's been looking like he's been close to rolling over for quite a while now.  I have to admit, with moving and everything, I wasn't in a big hurry.  I liked that if I laid him down somewhere and walked away, he'd still be there when I got back.  This boy has such a sweet, mellow personality.. he just isn't in a hurry to do much.  And that's just fine with me.  While I was getting breakfast going for the older kids yesterday, I put Judah on the floor (carpet) nearby.  He was just laying there quietly, and after about five minutes I looked over and noticed he was on his tummy!  No one had gone over to him and rolled him over (they like to do this).  He was just chillin' on his tummy, propped up by his elbows, chewing on his hands.  He's so quiet about everything.  We couldn't make a big deal about it when it happened because we didn't know!  Of course the kids all rushed over to him and congratulated him once we noticed.  Maybe I can't call him a roller yet, because he's only done it once (that I know of... maybe he's secretly rolling all over the place and is so good, he gets back to where he started by the time I'm looking... or maybe not).  He'll be six months old tomorrow (Zeke's birthday.. his half birthday).  Some have been rolling for months by this age, some crawling... not Judah.  He just likes to hang out and watch everybody.  And that's just fine with me.

looking forward

I'm looking forward to school starting in a couple of weeks.  I thought about starting a new blog at homeschoolblogger.com specifically for school related posts, but I'm still kind of a rookie at this whole blog world so I thought I should keep it simple and just do it all in one place.  Besides, our homeschool life is really intertwined with our regular daily life since school and home occur together for us.

After posting the other day about needing to get our school room unpacked and organized, I got to work.  I finally ordered the curriculum we'll be using this year from My Father's World.  A friend told me about it a few years ago, but I was already using Heart of Wisdom at the time.  I loved Heart of Wisdom for me.. it was great for Bible study and I learned a lot, but since it is designed to be used with older grades, I found I was having to adapt a lot of the lessons and come up with my own hands-on projects to keep my kids' interest.  So for now, I've decided to switch gears and go with something that already has a lot of fun activities planned out, as well as good, sound teaching.  We'll be doing the unit on Exploring Countries and Cultures, which I'm super excited about, because I have a heart for missions and love geography.  I think we'll have a lot of fun with it and when you're passionate about something, it makes it that much easier to teach.

Speaking of passion and teaching, we've set up an art room in the house too, and Joe is sharing his love of art with the kids.  Judah and I have been sick for the past couple of days, so we stayed home while Joe took the other three kids to church and then to an art store in Minneapolis to get some supplies.  They've all three started painting canvases.  I'll post pictures soon.  We've decided not to get cable here because we all tended to watch too much tv before and we'd rather spend our time more purposefully.  I really wish we had at least a few basic channels right now so we could watch the olympics, but overall I'm thankful we opted not to get it.  So far we're all reading more and the kids are drawing and playing outside a lot.  Once we finish getting everything set up, we'll be doing more art projects and crafts, and I'm really wanting to sew some things.  Stay tuned for updates and pictures of our creations!  

settling in

I don't think it's a coincidence that one of the boxes I opened our second day here contained the book After the Boxes are Unpacked.  This is a book I read about 10 years ago after our first move here (and hadn't really seen much since).  I attended a Hearts at Home conference and went to a breakout session called "Surviving Relocation".  The title caught my attention, and as someone who moved every couple of years throughout childhood (my dad was in the Navy) and also moved several times since getting married (my husband says he was on a college tour), I thought I'd see what this session was all about.  I cried through the whole thing.  It validated feelings I wasn't even acknowledging that I had.  The speaker referenced the book I unpacked last week and talked about how when you move you go through a grieving process.  There are different steps of grieving that movers experience, and it's perfectly normal and ok for me to feel things like denial, anger, depression and sadness.  Eventually I'm supposed to get to acceptance, but I think I'll allow myself to go through the steps in order and not deny the fact that this is a grieving process. 

So I started reading the book again.  And I started crying again.  But I'm doing ok.  I've actually made a couple of friends, thanks to my scouring the internet before we moved, looking for resources for when we'd get here.  Tomorrow we're going to a friend's house who I met through a local homeschool group.  She's going to walk me through the steps of what I'll need to do for the legalities of homeschooling in Minnesota.  Yesterday we walked to another friend's house.  It turns out she moved to this neighborhood (from 15 minutes away) just 10 days before we did.  And she goes to the church we're trying, and was in the nursery on Sunday.  She even offered to watch Mercy last night while I took the other kids to a Fall Rally for the homeschool group.  I did leave Mercy with her, but we never made it to the Fall Rally.  I found the address to the place online and printed directions from mapquest, but I didn't follow them correctly.  I can blame it on the torrential downpour that occurred at the exact moment I was supposed to switch highways, or the fact that I'm the new girl.  It would have been nice to go, but since we've never been, we don't really know what we missed.  There will be other opportunities to meet people.  

We are getting settled.  At least upstairs is mostly kind of done.  I don't have anything on the walls yet, which I should.  Because pictures make it seem more like home.  I kind of lost motivation to get everything unpacked.  I was doing so well... the kitchen was done early on, and I made sure everyone had bedding the first night.  Brooklyn and Zeke were required to unpack their own rooms.  Judah's is done.  Mercy's is waiting for beds that were in Joe's grandma's house, so she's sleeping with Brooklyn for now.  And the school room.  I thought I'd be finished with that by now.  I guess because it's out of sight it's out of mind too.  I really need to get it done so I can assess what's needed to begin in a few weeks.  I really like to be organized.  I did a little today.  Maybe tomorrow I can call that room done too.  And I should really get some things on the walls.  I need to see faces of family and friends (besides just on facebook!).

 God is good.  He knows me and He knows my grieving and my honest attempt to settle in here.  And He's holding me through it all.

we made it

Well I'm sitting in my new living room in a little town in Minnesota.  Yesterday my mood matched the drizzly, gray skies.  It was Joe's first day at work here and I was left at home waiting for the guy to come connect our internet... with four kids, lots of boxes, and the reality that this is our life now.  It all started yesterday morning when I went to join Curves.  I had to fill out paperwork and when I got to the part where I had to fill in my nearest relative I almost started crying.  I just skipped it and moved on.

Things have actually been going pretty well.  Really well even.  We have been so blessed by God's goodness and the body of Christ coming through when we really have needed it.  The move didn't go as planned.  Over three months ago Joe hired movers to move our household stuff and car haulers to haul his classic cars.  Both fell through four days after we left California.  I don't need to go into the details of the long story, but basically Joe ended up flying back after we'd driven half way, gathered some friends to help load a Uhaul, and moved our stuff himself.  His sister Sarah also helped by driving his truck out for us.  She spent her birthday driving across highway 80, through Utah, Wyoming and into Nebraska.  We love her.  While on the road, Joe called the church I'd scoped out online to see if they might have anyone available to help us unload when we got here.  Our sister in law in Colorado also made some phone calls, because she grew up not far from here and has connections still.  Shortly after we pulled in, we were met by some Masters Commission students from the church, Joe's cousin and her fiance, and some friend's of Melita's.. who even brought dinner for everyone.  We were really blown away.  God takes care of us even out here in the boonies in Minnesota!  

Two days later, we got to spend the day with the Peterson clan.  They are our very dear friends (family) from our church  in Vallejo.  Pastor Scott and Betsy both grew up in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area and their parents are still there, so the whole family (19 of them) came to visit and set aside a day to spend with us.  It was great to see them and get away from the boxes for a day.  On Saturday there was a kids carnival at the church, so we went and the kids had a good time.  We met the pastors and Joe was invited to the senior pastor's house that night for a pay per view UFC fight.  He loved that.  We also had some visitors come by to meet us at the house... I had joined a homeschool group online and had been corresponding with a mom a little since joining.  She and another mom brought their kids over to meet us and she's offered to help fill out the paperwork I need to file for homeschooling here.  On Saturday at the kids carnival, her daughter brought us some yummy homemade banana/chocolate chip bread.  We were warmly welcomed at church on Sunday too, and the kids enjoyed kids church.  After church, we headed down to Minneapolis to hang out and swim with the Petersons at their hotel.  We enjoyed our time together again and came to our final goodbye.  Then we headed home and went to bed.  

I guess after all that busy-ness, it's understandable why yesterday was a hard day.  Joe went to work and I was in my new reality.   I'm confident though, that God will be by my side through this huge adjustment and He'll be my strength.  I'll probably blog more as I go through this process.  For now, I must tend to my sweet Judah, who just woke up from his nap.

such sweet sorrow

Parting, that is.  I haven't blogged in a while.  We've been having a fun, busy, purposeful summer.  I can't believe our time here is winding down so quickly.  Next week (it's really down to next week already?) the movers come to load everything and then we begin our journey.  Sunday when we were up in front of church, Joe said it might just be for a season, that hopefully we'll be back.  I do hope so.  But I'm going with an open mind.  Only God knows what's on the next step. 

I've savored many sweet moments with friends and family this summer.  I'm sure some are wishing we'd just hurry up and leave already.  This whole going away thing started pretty early.  It was the beginning of June when we had the potluck/going away party at Bible study.  Then a few weeks later my sweet friend Corliss had her cookie party (usually at Christmas time, but at the end of June since I won't make it to the December one this year).  After Disneyland, I surprised when a ladies pottery painting night turned into making mugs for me to take with me.  Then dinner with a few close friends who'd love to go every month, but it usually only happens a few times a year, and we made sure to squeeze one in before our move.  And our last time to host "family night".  And the dinner for the coffee shop workers.  And our last Sunday at church.  So many lasts (for now at least).  It must seem too drawn out for some, but we didn't plan it that way.  And one thing's for sure.  I feel loved.  God has been so good, and He's blessed us with such amazing family and friends here.  I have savored each moment and will treasure the pictures and the memories.  

Now we're getting to the hard part.  The real goodbyes.  All these other going-away-ish things weren't too sad because we'd still see these people since we weren't leaving yet.  But Sunday may have been the last time we'd see some of them for a while.  And tonight we had dinner with and had to say goodbye to a special family who has become our family.  Tomorrow we'll see my mom and Kelly's family for the last time until one of us visits the other.  Sarah and Eric are so busy at camp, I'm not even sure if we'll get to see them again before we go.  Michelle is here in town, so we'll should still see each other this week.  Our kids want to have a sleepover and I want to spend time with them.  I get her kids for two weeks in September/October while she's in Russia on a missions trip.  It will be great having them at our new place, and may make it easier to say goodbye here.  Also, our super good friends are ALL (20 of them) coming at the end of the week that we'll get there.  They have family in St. Paul and will come to our neck of the woods... I mean lakes... for the day.  Another great friend is hoping to come for Mercy's birthday in October.  Knowing people are coming takes a little bit of the sting away.  I have that old Boys2Men song going through my head.. "It's so hard to say goodbye... I'll take with me the memories to be my sunshine after the rain (snow in my case)..."

I know God is going before us and with us.  And I know we'll be okay once we're there.  Joe's aunt has already offered to come help us unpack and get settled.  And I've already connected with a few homeschooling moms in the area through a homeschool group's website I found.  But I'll so miss all of our loved ones here.  I'm so glad for fun times these last few months.  I'm glad for opportunities to just enjoy the company of friends and make memories with family.  I'm leaving with a sad heart, but with a cup overflowing (make that seven mugs overflowing!).  Filled up to be poured out... I guess I better be ready to be poured out.

summertime

Wow, it's rushing by!  I haven't blogged in a while.  I've had fun reading others' blogs, but I haven't been doing much of my own.  We're trying to get the most out of this summer while we're still here, and so far we've been busy.  After Joe and I came home from Minnesota, we had "Cousin Camp" at my sister's house.  It was a crazy fun week for 10 silly kids and their moms.

 

The next week, our kids had "Mega Sports Camp" at church.  Kind of like VBS, but with a sports theme.  They had a blast.  Then, a dear friend from church, who hosts a cookie baking and decorating day every December, arranged to have a special cookie party at the end of June since I won't be here at Christmas  time.  So sweet.  So we baked, decorated, ate soup and cookies, talked, laughed and had a relaxing time together.


Last week, Brooklyn went to summer camp.  It's strange writing or even thinking about our little girl going to camp... but our sister and brother in law are directors at a camp, and Brooklyn went with two of her cousins on Joe's side of the family.  They had a great time.  She was super tired at the end of the week, but it was all worth it.  So special to have that time together.

While she was gone, I got a little packing done, cared for a baby boy with tummy troubles, and played with a two-and-a-half year old.  Zeke got to stay at camp for a couple of days with another cousin (at their house there).  The day after he came home, he went to a sleepover with his best friends here (minus one, who was at Disneyland).  Then the fourth of July festivities began... so much fun!  Now we're off to Disneyland ourselves for a few days, joined by my sister Kelly and her family.  Sadly, Michelle's family won't be joining us.. but we still have time to have fun with them before we move.  I can't believe how quickly our time here is coming to an end.  I'm really sad when I think about it but I'm still enjoying the time we have left and haven't really let myself dwell on the sadness for very long yet.  After Disneyland, we're going to a wedding and then we'll be home for two weeks packing and getting ready.  Right before we move, I'm going to our women's retreat in Tahoe.  That will be super fun but likely super sad at the same time.  I'm just enjoying every minute I have left with friends and family.. and I'm thankful that I've been blessed with such amazing friendships that I know will live on even after we've moved from here.

we found a place

It helped that we had been searching online for weeks and weeks before the house hunting trip.  I had been on real estate sites, for sale by owner sites, links from the online newspaper for the area, and craigslist.  The whole thing did not go down as we had expected or hoped, really.. but we got a place none the less.  Since Joe is going into a commission based job instead of a steady salary position, we were not able to get traditional financing for a house.  He talked to a private lender but was a little unsure of the guy and the amount he was willing to finance wasn't quite enough to find a place for this family of six.  So we decided to try to find a place we could get with a lease option (lease with option to buy).  We did this a few years ago out here, and it worked great.  So the house we found was a for sale by owner listed on craigslist.  Joe presented the seller with the lease option idea and he was willing to work with us.  So we have a place to live.  It's a nice place.  It has it's pros in cons in terms of what we were hoping to find, but I'll focus on the pros.  The nice thing about a lease option is that if we choose to buy it in a couple of years, the price is already locked in, and it's a good price.  And if we decide it isn't where we'd like to stay, we can move on to something else.  It's in a teeny tiny town.  The kids are excited because they can probably ride their bikes pretty much all over town with no worries.  There is a little restaurant there, and they make super good wild rice soup.  

I cried the first two days I was there... the reality of the whole thing really set in.  I felt bad for Joe.  As much as I tried to hide my emotions, they kept coming out.  He worked while we were there, and the work was good.  It was really busy and people liked his work.  Once we got the house thing settled early in the week, there wasn't much for me to do around there, so I took Judah to meet his northern Minnesota relatives.  Let me just say that this little guy is a fabulous traveler.  He slept the entire plane ride, did great in the car wherever we went, and was full of smiles for all the new people he met during our trip.  He's such a sweet baby.  

The family we have there is great.  They were very accommodating while we were there and made time to see us even with such short notice that we were coming.  It would really make this move easier if we were moving to the same area they're in, but it will be nice to be just a few hours away.

The three older kids did great while we were gone.  We'd never left them for that long before and I was a little nervous before we left, but they had a blast playing with cousins.  We talked to them everyday and skyped one night with them.  All in all, it was a successful trip.  Sadly, our time here is quickly winding down.  I really need to get to packing.  My excuse for not doing it before was that I wanted to wait to see what kind of place we'd be living in first, so I could picture where things would go and figure out what I need to get rid of.  Now it's just been too hot.  But those are just excuses.  Really, I dread packing for any move.  But it's time to face the responsibility and just get started so I'm not left with the huge task at the end.  My sisters and I were just talking this week about The Procrastinator, a character from the Amanda Show.  "I'll get to it.... eventually!"