He Provides

For those curious about how we are doing, settle in, grab a cup of tea, this is a LONG post (but I think a pretty good read!).

Well, we've been in our new city for 2 months.  Can you believe it?  We sure can't.  Here is my attempt at bringing you up to speed with us:

As we drove away from MD into the unknown, we were filled with sadness and excitement.  The trip down really went as well as could be expected.  Three kids and a dog on a 29 hour journey and we were prepared for some bumps along the way.  But they really never came.  We didn't get lost.  No one got car sick (including the dog-which was a major concern).  There were very little traffic jams.  There were no potty accidents.  Attitudes were gracious and the whining was minimal.  It was truly a direct result of prayer and the hand of God!

Along the drive we got to stop and spend some quality time with some really dear people, Zack's mom and Grandma, and our sweet friends the Caruthers.  Both stops provided us with some much needed rest from the road, as well as great company.

For those that spoke with us and prayed for us during this part of the move you already know that the most stressful part of all this for me was figuring out a place to live.  We have never moved with kids before and my our need to feel settled was amplified by wanting to begin homeschool shortly after we moved.  We basically had two options: live in base housing or buy.  Rentals were extremely over priced.  After much prayer and wise counsel, we decided to live in base housing.  When we were two days from arriving I called the housing office to inquire how long of a wait we had ahead of us.  (At this point we were #5 on the waiting list and had already been on the waiting list for 2 months.)  They informed us that we had about a 5 month wait!  To say I was stressed would be an understatement!  Z lovingly pointed out that God already knew where we would be living and we needed to be patient and wait on his timing.  Such a wise man I married.

So, we arrived in our new city.  All five of us and our dog in a one bedroom hotel with paper thin walls.  IT.  WAS.  INTERESTING.  The thought of living like that for five months terrified me.  "Trust.  Obey.  God will provide,"was my mantra.  Since we arrived at night, the housing office was closed our first day here.  So, first thing the next morning (three days after they told us it was a 5 month wait) we marched ourselves into the housing office to get some answers.  To set the scene: 1 husband trying to provide, 1 wife frazzled and desperate for a house, and 3 crazy kids-nuts with excitement over our new city and not being in the car.  Although the lady we talked to was nice, and sensed our urgent need for a place, she did not give us a house.  We had moved to #1 (yay) but we still had a 1-2 month wait.  No one had put in their 30 day vacate notice yet.  So, we left our number with her and told her we were praying someone turned in a notice that day.  She laughed politely, but I could see in her eyes that she thought we were a bit nuts.

That afternoon, as the kids were waking up and we were trying to load up in the car to explore our new city, my phone rang.  It was housing.  After the lady told me who she was the words, "I can't believe I am saying this." and "This never happens." were spoken.  A service member was supposed to sign their lease and move in that day.  They backed out and the house was ours.  OUR GOD PROVIDES!!!  We could move in Monday.  I was jumping up and down in the hotel room, close to tears.  We piled in the car and headed to check out our new place (we were just going to look at the outside but it was unlocked so we went in too!).

That Monday we moved in (although our stuff wouldn't come for another month).  In the next few days we met our neighbors.  Would you believe that our immediate neighbors (our houses are attached) have 4 kids, homeschools, are believers, and attend the church we visited the Sunday before.  OUR GOD PROVIDES!  Our neighbors across the street also homeschool, are believers, and attend our church.  OUR GOD PROVIDES!

Since our things got here, we have been settling into our new life.  There have been days when I am just so homesick for MD, but God is gracious and we really feel a peace about being here.  I have jumped right in our local MOPS group (I'm even taking over as co-coordinator-yikes!), have joined a bible study, and have enjoyed our new church.  The services have been so challenging for us and provided great conversation on Sunday afternoons.  The church also offers a Wednesday night program for the kids (which they LOVE) and Zack and I use that hour and a half to have a dinner date.  Every week, y'all!  I get a date every week!

We are excited about what our time here in the lone star state will bring.  I can guarantee that God is here and He has tons in store for us and our kids.  I am thankful we chose to obey and move here.  Missing the known (MD) but who knew that the unknown held so many blessings?  He provides.