We made it to Indiana

Well we are here in Indiana. It was one week ago. last Tuesday, when we began our journey. We left Statesville, NC at about 12:30 p.m. (eastern time) after pulling through the McDonald's drive-thru for some lunch on the road. We arrived in Lynnville, IN at about 11:30 p.m. (central time) that night - so it was a good 12 hour trip. The ride here was nice. The kids all did well, taking turns to ride in the big moving truck with Daddy and helping me out in the van with Clara Bea. With our friends driving along with us and also helping us get one of our vehicles to IN it made for a fun road trip. It was a sunny, beautiful green day. The sights of the Tennessee and Kentucky hills were breath taking. Fortunately we didn't have to endure the boring part of IN because it was dark by the time we arrived here.

I saw the house for the first time that night when we got here. It was very hard to sleep that night, even though I was exhausted after the long drive. I woke up at 5 a.m. the next day ready to just get-on-with-it. John and I started unloading the truck by 8 and had about a third of it done before our help arrived. The unloading seemed to go smoothly and quickly. I was tired of hearing my name being called from room to room to answer questions about where to put something. I realized there was no way that John could have done it on his own - which was our original plan. The next couple of days are bit of a blur to remember. Our friends helped us get beds set-up, appliances running, and the major stuff put into place. By Friday, I decided that we needed to just do something fun - especially for the kids. So we went to the zoo. Evansville has a pretty decent zoo. The animals were good, however I will not recommend it for it's cleanliness. Eeww.

Saturday was a tough one. That morning we met our friends, the Larsons, at Chick-fil-a for breakfast and goodbyes. We had joked the night before about just standing at the overpass of our exit and just waving to them as they drove by, maybe we would make a sign that said, "honk, if you love the Larsons". But in reality we were just trying to laugh about something we knew was going to be hard. More than I imagined it would be. John got the idea to get some shoe polish and write on the windows of their van - so we did. It was a fun way to send them off. But as we hugged goodbye in the parking lot, the tears flowed and the uncontrollable sobbing began. Not once had I cried over leaving NC and the goodbyes to different people. Many times I had surprised myself, feeling the tears well up inside but then not shedding any when I was actually in the moment. Until now. All the pent up emotions finally released themselves.

It has taken me several days to recover. I have been extremely tired, yet I can't stop moving around, doing something whether it is unpacking boxes, washing laundry or cleaning around the house. Something about turning a house into a home becomes rather important to me when we move. I can't rest until it is done. My mind spins with ideas of where to put things and how to arrange the furniture. I have changed the arrangement a few times already to try and best suit the space or size of the furniture in question. I am also obsessed with the basement here. I have turned one corner of the room into a storage area - which is temporary - waiting on shelves to be built. Another area into a storage closet. One side of the room is my laundry area - which I am enjoying. And then another side into some kind of play area/ work space for the children. I have a list made of things to be purchased, like a carpet piece for the basement, different size curtain rods, different dresser for Emily's room, piece of furniture to house the TV equipment - just random things that will make the house work for us better.

There is so much more to tell but for now I will move onto another project. I am hoping to post pictures of our new home soon. We are all doing well and adjusting slowly. It is taking Clara Bea time to adjust to the new time zone - hoping that she will fall into a later awake time soon! Pray for us to not feel so lonely and that this town will grow on us quickly. It is wide open here - you can seen so far into the horizon.

Beginning the Good-Byes

This weekend has been a marathon of activities, packing and loading, and goodbyes. Friday we had our last day at the homeschool PE class that we have been involved with from the first day we moved here. I was one of the teachers and of course my children made many friends through the class there. Tears were shed as we said goodbye to some of the homeschool moms and their children. Then Saturday I taught a marathon class at the YMCA. One hour of Turbo Kick followed by another hour of Zumba. Many of my class participants came to bid me farewell. I left there to join the loading crew at the house to help load the moving truck. Fortunately I was well prepared and the loading went smoothly and quickly. However we were disappointed that all of our "stuff" did NOT fit onto the truck this time. Because we already have friends following us to Indy for the move, they are being gracious enough to allow us to use their utility trailer one more time to transport they "left over" things there.
Then there was this morning at church. Our last day to worship at Harbor Presbyterian in Mooresville. The Elders shared in saying some nice prayers for us, it was my last day to play the keyboard (and we sang some of my favorites). The children's choir also sang in the service today. One of the songs that I taught them was The Blessing. May the Lord bless you and keep you and make his face shine upon you and give you peace. These words the children sang and it brought tears to our eyes.
Tomorrow I will be saying goodbye to some more of my homeschool mom friends in Statesville. These ladies I have become very close to in such a short amount of time. They have helped watch over Clara Bea since she was first born and my girls have made such sweet friends - 0nes they are having a very hard time leaving.
I am most thankful that the last goodbye I will have to say will not be until I get to Indiana. It is our dear friends who are helping us move. I cannot imagine finding another family like this one anywhere else in the world. They have given so much of themselves to us and our children. They have loved us unconditionally and I do not want to lose them. They are the kind of friends who are closer than family - so much so that they have become our family. We have already become nick-named as the aunt and uncle for their children and the same for ours as well. I know their presence during the move will make the transition so much easier. I pray that it will be a joyous time together with even more memories created in the days to come.

Being without a computer

I have been packing like mad around here. Thanks to some dear friends they have offered to watch the girls for me on several occassions so that I can get it all done. John flies in today and the loading weekend will begin.
In the midst of it all my computer has died. We think the hard drive has been fried. I feel like I've been cut off from some aspects of my life. I also had our home phone disconnected this week as well. So anyone who wanted to get a hold of me had to know my new cell phone number. (This was kind of nice.)In some ways it has been frustrating to not be able to look up what the weather was going to be like for the day or check my banking, check emails for soccer game schedules and so forth. I didn't realize how much I depended on my computer for many details in my life. However, God has a purpose in everything and I think that for me this time it was so that I would have no other distractions. I have been able to stay focused on my work here and the things I had to accomplish before this move without wasting time on facebook or computer games.
I'm not sure how often I will be able to blog during the next week or so. We don't have an internet connection at the house in Indiana YET! Appartently AT&T doesn't service the area we will live in - wow, we must really be way out in the country. LOL
For the next couple of days I may take advantage of my friends computer to update the blog.
The emotional roller coaster is about to begin, starting today with our last class at PE at the YMCA. Tomorrow I have a big zumba party at the Y and then Sunday is a farewell lunch at church. A lot to take in during the next couple of days.

Snakes!

So John paid to have the lawn mowed at the house in Indiana by some local guys. They called to let him know that they found a baby copperhead snake in the yard. Yikes! Meanwhile he found out from the ladies at the office that the landlord had also had some run-ins with snakes in the yard. Something that was not mentioned in the rental agreement.
I said - get rid of the snakes or find us a new place to live!
He got something from the hardware store to rid the snakes and we understand that if the grass is kept short they shouldn't return. So John is taking the lawn mower back with him this trip to stay on top of the growing grass. Plus he figures he may arm himself as he walks through the yard just in case he needs to go "Yosemite Sam" on the snakes in the grass.

Finally going through the emotions

Well, it has started. So far up until this point I have only gone through the thoughts and feelings of moving in my head. I had not yet let my heart feel anything until now. Watching my kids play with their friends this week has been hard. I have realized what good, life-long friends they have made here in NC in such a short time. How close they are to these people and how hard it will be to be without them in IN. I have also realized what these mothers have meant to me as well. Finding spiritually mature, like-minded women who serve their families much the same as I serve mine is so essential in the everyday journey of life. I love these people and have leaned on them when I have had no family around to depend upon. They have encouraged me and loved my family without expecting anything in return. How could I possibly find such dear friends again?
I had to have some conversations with my daughters about this. I listened to the words coming out of my mouth and realized that I was doubting my own advice. Did I really believe what I was telling them? I reminded the girls that when we left TN we thought we would never again have the kind of friends that we had there. It was so hard for them to leave their best friends! We prayed each night that the Lord would give them good friends in NC and that things would be even better than they could imagine. I told them that the Lord answered our prayers. Now our job was to pray that God would give us friends in IN and prepare our hearts to receive them. True friends are ones that you never lose - you just make more in other places. I joked around with the girls that they already have bridesmaids for their future weddings, friends for a lifetime. That finally brought a laugh from us all.
Isn't is funny how God gives us children to teach and remind us of things for ourselves. I feel blessed to have so many wonderful friends in life. They all have such a special meaning to me. But I cried myself to sleep the other night, realizing that I was leaving some precious people behind once again. I feel experienced in this department now. I know the pain that is to come and I guess I started going through the emotions a little early this time. I am not looking forward to the day of departure - might cry a little longer this time. Not because I will miss NC more than I miss TN, I think your heart just aches a little more each time.
You can pray for my attitude. I want to be positive. I miss my husband and I want us to be a family together again. I feel bad that he is there alone - anxious for our arrival but that I dread losing the things I will leave behind.

Storage ideas

Anyone have some creatvie storage ideas for a basement? We are moving into a smaller house that doesn't have much closet or cabinet space. I had John take some pictures of the inside and outside of the house for me, so that I could get a better idea of how to pack things up here. A lot of things I am packing again for storage. We will however have a full size basement that will serve as storage room for boxes and some extra furniture, a laundry room, and the kids play area. Feel free to comment, if you have any useful suggestions for this area.

Easter weekend

Easter weekend felt a little different for us this year. John came back from Indiana for the holiday weekend. It was great to have him around. Friday he took the girls to a movie, a daddy/daughters date. We caught up with our friends, the Larsons, for dinner that evening- felt like old times. Then on Saturday we went to the state park for a picnic lunch, some hiking, a dip in the lake, and just good family fun. Then John took me to dinner Saturday evening so I could get-a-way from the kids for just a bit. Sunday morning was the usual rush for church, with the added fun of Easter baskets. John took the girls out for breakfast to their usual spot for donuts. We enjoyed Easter lunch with our friends again and then had to leave earlier than we normally would have in order to get John on the road. All of us cried at his departure. It was so good to have him around that it was hard for us to let him go again. I busied myself this afternoon with packing some closets. It seems to make the time go by faster when I'm depressed.
All in all, it was a great weekend! I felt a little guilty though last night. I usually try to incorporate some Easter activities that reinforce the religous meaning to the holiday. This year I felt like we did nothing to celebrate Easter. It was more about Daddy being home. Oh well, there is always next year. We did however get a few pictures for you to enjoy.