greetings from Valparaiso, IN!! we made it! (barely...) in a nut shell, numerous vehicle problems nearly drove us crazy but we remained confident that God had some big plans for us and satan was doing his best to discourage us from them! we closed on the house on dec. 6th and started moving in on the 9th - we were so thankful for the moving company (the head guy was Bob, about 5'5", 85 lbs. who closely resembled willie nelson, but that sucker could pack a box like no one's business) however i am still up to my neck in boxes and paper!! argh! the house is beginning to feel more like home every day... the girls started school on dec. 11th and absolutely LOVE IT! it's about 1/4 the size of their school in katy (thank GOD!) and the teachers are wonderful - the kids were so excited about the new girls - i told makenna and delaney that in a smaller town it's a much bigger deal to have new kids in your class, not like their old school where kids came and went on a daily basis! they were welcomed with open arms! they've already made a few friends on our street, too, and played outside with them in the snow until their cheeks were bright pink with cold! :) and they have LOVED the snow!!! such an adventure! we have a little creek that runs by our house so they love to go out back and dig around near the creek, in the snow, for hidden treasures :) we had a few warmer days over the past week (upper 50s - balmy!!) and some rain which washed away the majority of our snow but, just this morning, woke up to a gorgeous, steady snowfall which seems to be piling up as we speak! beautiful, fluffy snow - our neighbors probably think i'm a peeping tom cause i stand at the windows and watch it constantly :) oh well. :) i've discovered that i CAN drive in the snow, it's the ICE that poses a problem! as long as we go slow and follow the tracks of the other cars i can get to the grocery store and back without incident :) so far...
we found a new church, too! it's a nazarene church that has amazing worship and the pastor is dynamic and a real people person... we still have questions about the core beliefs of the nazarene church but everything we have read and seen so far totally match up with scripture and we love the message, the people and the kids programs, too! here's the church website if you're interested... http://www.valponaz.org/ i already signed up for a beth moore bible study in january (can't go wrong with beth!!) and the girls are getting involved with their kids program on wednesday nights while mom does choir! the music pastor (worship in arts pastor, as he is called!) is a young guy and super-duper talented!! totally blown away by his enthusiasm and talent and humility in worship! and his wife is precious!! they have two little boys, she works with the childrens worship, and they live near us too - so i think i have made my first official friend! :)
wow, now i really sound like a nerd. it's been tough to be away from friends and family, especially during the Christmas season but we are so blessed by our little family and have thoroughly enjoyed spending time together over the past few weeks! i made my first turkey on Christmas Day and it turned out great! i was sooo proud of myself!! :) some yummy sides rounded out the meal perfectly - good times, good eats! the girls finally got a Wii and we have all been suffering from "Wii shoulder" for the past few days :) it's a tough game! of course, david says that i don't have to get quite so into it for it to work but i'm all or nothing, you know? swinging that tennis racket, swinging the bat, it's serious stuff! ;)
well, it's the last day of 2008 which always causes us (well, me at least!) to look back and reminisce over the past year... our last summer in maine (so sad!), delaney starting kindergarten and being promptly promoted to 1st grade, makenna having a great fall in school becoming her class student council representative (she was so excited!) and, last but certainly not least, the big move to indiana! we are so excited to see what God has in store for this next year and i will do my best to keep you updated :) which reminds me, here's our new address...
890 Dickens Lane, Valparaiso, IN 46383
we love all of you and look forward to sharing the next year with you! hugs!!!
