I really hate that I haven’t been able to update this like I planned. Justin and I were supposed to sit down together and type our experience contemplating this move and all the prayers that were answered along the way. We haven’t gotten to that due to the move and finishing up school and training our replacements at work. Now we are in South Bend and trying our hardest to get settled and adjusted.
Justin and I had stayed up until about 11pm or so on Sunday night trying to get everything ready to head out in the AM. We woke around 1:15am and gave the cats their pills and were getting dressed and ready when we heard voices outside our bedroom window. Then a knock. Then at the front door. Our dearest and best Crestview friends had come to see us off one last time (they all had to be up for work in a few short hours). I call them friends but they are definitely family in our eyes. It was so sweet and it made the final good bye from NC a lot better and easier. I didn’t even take time to pause and get all emotional when pulling out of our driveway for the last time. God surely knew that we needed distractions to help us through this transition.
Justin’s mom, dad, and sister made the journey with us on Monday, August 4th. We met them somewhere on highway 74 and made the trek in 3 cars. I had the cats and Justin had Java. I must make a note that we were able to find Justin’s family on 74 because there was an illumination of the highway when we passed them. They had been pulled over. I just knew his dad was going to be so mad and that the trip was not getting off to a good start. It turns out he got pulled over for going too slow hahaha. He was trying to let us catch up with him. That was a blessing that he was pulled over just to see if he was ok.
Justin, David, and I had a few spells along the way of fighting the snoozes but we were able to make it here in enough time to meet Diane (our realtor) at the house to check on the improvements since the inspection. We were also able to leave our family and pets at the house while we went to sign the millions of papers for the house. As we pulled out of the driveway to ride to the office for the signing, we passed our ABF trailer getting ready to pull in.
Once we returned and the house was officially ours, we found our family already vacuuming, cleaning, and starting to unload the truck. We were met, however by Stacey (Justin’s sister) as she informed us that one of the cats (Pixel) had gotten into the walls by a small hole behind the washer. We had put one cat in each bathroom since they were still waking up from the meds and were hissing and unhappy. Oops! We couldn’t coax Pixel out but eventually Justin unscrewed a vent from the wall and pulled him out. Gotta love adventure.
Before long Justin’s boss Jason and his family arrived along with Justin’s coworker Ed and his family. They brought flowers and water and pizza! They came several nights and Ed and Jason helped Justin and David build a wall separating what was called the family room, making it our master bedroom on one side and a dining room on the other. They even helped paint. Cary sent flowers a few days later. It was definitely wonderful and a God send to have so much help moving in. Thank you guys!
Justin’s mom, dad, and sister were able to stay until Saturday and we had a lot of fun shopping and just being together. We even primed and painted while Justin was at work (he started on Wednesday, August 6th). His boss was even nice enough to let him go early the days he worked that week so he could continue to move in and spend time with family.
Justin’s family was able to experience New Community on Thursday to get a glimpse of the services we will be attending. They even got a tour of the church. On Friday we put our brushes aside and went to Lake Michigan. The dunes were so beautiful, yet not the easiest to climb haha. I’ve never seen one.
Now Justin has been at work this week and I’ve been trying to do things here and there (what I can while Justin isn’t here) and have been trying to enjoy a little bit of free time. I have been looking for jobs online and trying to find the best strategy for finding work. I know that God has it all under control and I know that even a year ago I wouldn’t have been as certain. God really has been working in our lives and I am confident that “He knows the plans he has for me, plans to prosper me and not to harm me, plans to give me hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 (Justin’s favorite verse). I just need to work on patience.
Please continue to pray for Justin and me. It’s definitely an adjustment but we are excited about what the Lord has in store for us here in Indiana. We miss you all! Please keep the emails, phone calls, and comments coming. It makes us feel at home.
Justin will hopefully be posting pictures that we have taken along the way on his flickr soon. Keep checking and email him to encourage it haha (love you honey!).
