ch-ch-ch-changes

My poor blog has been severely neglected for the last 6 months...but for good reason. We moved to our little house on the river in July and are loving it! There were many adjustments to be made for everyone. We miss our family and the things we grew to know so well in Houston. We miss our church and their wonderful preschool program. The kids miss having their own rooms, more space for toys, and their old neighbors. But God lives! And He is working on everyone in this family and has been since we made the decision to move here all those months ago. We may miss family, but when we get to see them we cherish it that much more and enjoy every minute that we're together. Thank God that we live in a time where we can speak on the phone or computer at any given moment. We have found a new church that the kids love and we really enjoy as well. We walked in their doors at an awesome time...they are moving locations and growing to accommodate the increasing amount of people coming to hear God's word. The kids' best friends live only 4 houses away, they have room to run and play, and how many kids have a river in their backyard? The children are all three sharing a room for now, and though they still bicker now and again, I see them growing closer and becoming more tolerant, patient, and respecting each other's space. I for one am appreciative that there is not as much room for toys and material things. I know it will make them better people in the end. Try telling that to a 7 year old! lol

The house is still a major work in progress, but we are getting projects done as we can. I think it's coming along pretty well considering there are 3 little people running around, a busy husband and a tight budget for the time being. I don't quite remember if I'd posted pictures of it before, so here are the ones of the rooms we've worked on so far.

Dining Room before:

Dining Room after:

It looks different in the dining room since this picture was taken, but not much. The banner was from a back to school party I hosted for the kids, and the carpet is gone. Now we have laminate wood floors, thank goodness!

Hmmm thought I had taken an "after" picture of the kids' bathroom but I guess not. I'll post those tomorrow, it turned out really cute. Here's some pictures of the house decorated for fall:

The other side of the dining room

Fall wreath I made

boxes I painted for my mom and mailed to her

We brought this little guy home some time in August. His name is Gunnar, he's a Lab/German Shorthaired Pointer mix. So sweet.

Then the last week of September happened. Kali Mae's birthday party plans needed to be wrapped up, my parents were coming in that weekend to stay with us and be here for the party. Chandler ended up being hospitalized due to asthma for a couple of days in the middle of the week. The morning after we got home from the hospital stay, our amazing dog Oliver was hit by a school bus and died instantly. It was a horrible week and even worse day. It still makes me depressed to even play back in my head. I made it through with prayer and family to helping to get everything back to "normal" and in order. We are blessed!

Kali Mae and Oliver a couple of months ago

I'll leave you with this:

Thankful

I already have so much to be thankful for this month. My grandmother was hospitalized for a week at the end of October, and got to come home around Halloween. I am so blessed to still have her and my PaPa, and I love watching my children make memories with them.

After their wedding 59 years ago

Nana with her granddaughters and great-granddaughter

PaPa at Kali's Mario Kart party :)

Nana and Trent last Christmas

Trent's first time playing piano with Nana

I am also thankful that our dog Brooklyn is getting better. She has been sick with an infection that caused her to stop eating and drinking. Josh was having to force-feed her every day. She just started eating on her own today.

Brookie smiling :)

Every night we say the blessing before dinner and then go around the table saying what we're thankful for. The kids love doing this and I've noticed it's helped them be more positive about their day and life in general. I pray that they can keep a grateful spirit in a society that is so focused on more, more, more. Since it's getting close to Thanksgiving I'm going to do a little something with our "thankful fors" every day...pictures to come! What are you thankful for? GOD is good!

Thankful Thursday

We had such a great day yesterday. The kids played next door, I sat out on the porch while it rained (we really needed it), and then while Kali and Trent napped, Chandler and I made homemade play dough for him and their friends. Josh has been working a lot lately, so it's just me and the kids until pretty late, so it's nice to have fun things to do together. I am so glad that they are finally adjusted to being out of school every day, it's made my days much easier! This weekend is our wedding anniversary and Josh's birthday, and we get a night by ourselves.

God has been doing some really awesome things in our lives this week. It makes me wonder why I ever worry or get stressed, because in the end He ALWAYS provides. Money has been tight (to say the least) around here lately, and we had discussed selling either one of our vehicles, or our trailer, but we never did list them for sale. Two days ago a man came by our house after dinner and asked if we knew whose travel trailer was outside. Josh told him it was ours, and the man said he wanted to buy it! It was in pretty bad shape because it had a leak, but we made enough to catch up on some things! Praise God! It really reminded me to put ALL of my trust in Him, everything I have, and to stop worrying so much. He is always here, and for that I am beyond thankful. I'm off to make "vlewverry (how Kali says blueberry) muffins" with the kids. Have a great Thursday!