April: Gratitude

I think this would have been a very good fit for November, right??  But looking at how things are going it is in the right place.

Back in July, before my husband came home from a deployment, he was told there was a job opening in a lab back "home."  He contacted the lab that day, but was told within a few days that they had closed the job listing and were looking at several applicants.  But the man at the lab promised to let him know if they opened the job back up.

I prayed about it at the time (before we knew the job was closed).  We had hoped to stay here a little longer, maybe have another deployment, maybe knock out some student loan debt.  But everyone has issues with a deployment.  Hubby has issues, I have issues, kids have issues...and we were pregnant with #2!  Not to mention we have some aging and sick family members that we don't see very often.   So, back in July, I told God that I was willing to give up the financial benefit we would have from staying here, not to deal with these problems any more.  But that He was going to have to make it happen.

And that was that.

Those of you that know us, know what has happened since.  The job opened again in September, to our surprise.  We interviewed in October, we were offered the job before Christmas.  A few other bumps and bruises, and we are in fact moving back across the country.

And I should be thankful.

After all, we were given what we asked for, right?

"Are you excited to move home?"  I'm getting asked this a lot.

The thing is this.  Dealing with a horrible housing market, and talking to realtors who think we'll sell for 5K less then we paid for this house at the most - say: short sale - this is only some of the stress I feel about finances because of this move.

This is my situation.  We got what we asked for.  But I don't think I had any clue what I was really asking for.

Which is why I think it is a good thing April's word focus is Gratitude.

A Quick Message From Your Author

Right now, Simplify in my home looks like a gigantic mess.  Maybe not gigantic.  Because "simplify" happens to co-inside with "getting ready to move"  things look even crazier than normal as I am trying to purge stuff, live regular life, still adjust to two children, etc.  It looks like we may not have to pack ourselves up, but I am still packing stuff as I try to determine what is going to stay and what will go.  I'm already set up with several donation boxes. 
But soon I hope to have some thoughts about this months word, and the progress we've made.  I now return you to your regularly scheduled reading.

Febuary Focus: Simplicity

Simplify!

This is one of the words I was looking forward to! I couldn't wait to get here because I felt like I needed it so badly!  I haven't felt able to keep up with the things I have to do daily (dishes, laundry) let alone do anything else!  So I've been feeling the need to simplify what is around me.

At the beginning of the month I started reading a book called Organized Simplicity (see also www.simplemom.net).  I'm enjoying it!  We've had talks about our family purpose.  I'm thinking about my own personal top 10 priorities.  When I have priorities and purpose, I don't need to do things that don't fit!

More thoughts are coming about Simplicity this month but for now, I'll just say - I've started unsubscribing from email newsletters and removing lots of pages from my facebook likes.  It feels good to work on the digital clutter!

I'm still behind on dishes and laundry (let alone thinking about the big move - sheesh) but I'm trying to remind myself that step by step I can journey to a simpler existence (I'm one of those people that wants to BE THERE ALREADY). And if I don't make it by April the movers are going to pack up all my stuff and haul it across the country anyway.

Second Draft Moving Checklist

A week and a half through my previous list and I am NOT dead (as I am sure you knew). We are very sore and tired though. We finished up the items on my previous list (and then some, we also painted our room and got new locks) This is my updated list for the week:

Continue to hide screwdrivers from Miss Independant, I swear she finds one EVERY DAY. And yet, she is still alive. Also supervise/stop the continual box climbing.

Unpack.

Chase people selling things off my doorstep. Yes I know the side of the house needs to be pressure washed and that we'll NEVER BE SAFE without ADT (sarcasm - see previous posts about burglaries - although we are in a much better area now). Maybe you haven't noticed the hundred boxes in my livingroom but I will not be thinking about that till LATER.

After payday I will then be prepared to buy my fire-extinguishers, transitions for the floor, shelf paper for the closet, shovel and rake and several other undetermined items for my yard. (Remember that beautiful YARD that I am pretty sure I've spent a grand total of 10 minutes in)

Thanks to Dad and Dede I can head out and do some curtain shopping this week. Thank you.

Hope that the HOA does not send me a list of "violations" for another month.

The 4H club

No not that 4H club! I'm sort of a city person.

I swear I was saying yesterday that we were leaving in 2 weeks. Now all of a sudden we are leaving in 3 1/2 days and I'm starting to feel a little freaked out. Every now and again as we're driving around or visiting I already have painful pangs of "homesickness"
Today I was at the Post Office in Spokane Valley, fondly remembering how while learning to drive I hit the gas instead of the brake and ran over the parking space bumper (or whatever you call those things) in that parking lot.

It would be slightly different if I were leaving for say . . . Oregon. I'd get beautiful coasts and wilderness, Saturday markets, family (still an hour away) all within hours of my "homeland" in Washington.
In Georgia I get the 4 H's (You were wondering where this came in wern't you?)

heat, humidity, hurricaines and horrendous bugs

Lest you think I am way to negative, I promise to tell you the positive, wonderful things I find in Georgia. I hear the fireflys are quite cool.

Yes, yes, an ADVENTURE

Well, we finally got word from the Army and Bill will be starting his new job on October 27th.
All of a sudden I am feeling busy again trying to organize things and information. Looking at flights and apartments.
I don't feel much about it yet, except strange that after October 14th I am leaving Washington State (my home) for Georgia. And I won't be back. Not for a while anyway. And even then, not to stay. I don't have much time to wallow in this knowledge becuase there is too much living going on here.
The next two weeks are great. I get to work my last meetings with Weight Watchers, see Phantom of the Opera, go to Greenbluff. On the 14th I get to fly to my mothers in Phoenix and have a nice visit. Bill is going too, then heading to Georgia early to hopefully settle on an apartment for us around the 21st - ish and then Miriam and I will follow him to our new home.
Everyone's favorite expression for me has been - "It will be an adventure." Do me a favor and STOP SAYING THAT. However, I am sure you are right.

Oh - I intend to write that company about the mold

So yesterday, as I was giving my daughter a bath in my grandmothers (perfectly lovely) tub for the first time, I got a little sad that - yes - we are without a place of residence.
This week we worked our tails off and moved out of our Cheney apartment. For the first time, it wasn't into another Cheney apartment(or house I suppose would have been nice). We loaded up our PODS container all week and cleaned like crazy on Friday. I should say GRANDMA cleaned like crazy. I just tried to keep up with her, seeing as I was so sick of the place I wanted to walk out leaving it AS IS (or as we often joke about, with a bag of dookie on the floor).
In case you find it odd that I should be even slightly sad about leaving a 650 sq ft apartment, on the THIRD FLOOR, with nasty black mold (that my doctor told us to MOVE AWAY FROM AS SOON AS YOU CAN) - rest assured, I'm sure it had more to do with leaving Cheney itself.
So now we float around the Valley and wait. We had another call from Georgia with another Tentative Offer (seriously? I know, silly) that included salary this time, although it didn't match up with the "negotiation" it was still fine. This time they asked us if we intended to accept (Um, yes?).
Let's hope that we don't have to pay anything else to the apartment and that we actually get some sleep while living the homeless life. And I'll keep you posted!

Why does Blogger make this such a pain?

I can't seem to load a single picture onto here. It loads and loads and looks almost done and the next thing I know - it says "internet explorer cannot display the webpage." I'm sure you are going to tell me that it must be my internet because YOUR pictures load in five seconds and the whole things takes 5 minutes. Trust me, I don't want to know.

I'm sitting here blogging because who really wants to work on packing right?? Right???

And why didn't any of you TELL me that I have 100 posts (I know like you are counting)? Post 101 was supposed to be a pretty celebration of my vacation to Oregon. Something awesome. Instead it's a rant about my horrible internet.

On that happy note, back to packing . . .

We're sitting on the fence

MOST of you know quite a bit about our job offer already (I'm such a blabbermouth I guess) but I am still going to post about it . . .
There is a reason I have been shy on all the details - mostly because - it is still a tentative offer. So let me explain.

We have indeed been (tentatively) offered a Firearms and Toolmarks position with the Army Crime Lab at Ft. Gillem (Forest Park) Georgia. The reason it is tentative is the offer is contingent upon Bill passing the background check and receiving his security clearance (really tough for a former Marine I know). This in itself has been hard because we have no "official" dates. Sometime is September is the likely start (Nice eh? Move all the way across the country-oh-sometime in September). We've negotiated salary and turned in his fingerprints and other forms. Now we wait.
The job is a two year term position, they would like more funding and to keep him on, but there is no guarantee. The job also includes something Bill and I already experienced in 2005. However I am not into discussing it on the blog at the moment, we'll discuss it again when I feel like it or in 2009/2010. We feel mediocre about it, so that should be good enough for the rest of you that know what I am talking about.
We fully intend to take the position. We have not had any other offers and notwithstanding a few things(dude-Georgia), this job is perfect, it's Firearms, it's federal, it's a decent salary . . . he can get trained and leave if he wants.

We are moving out of our apartment at the end of this month. We have reserved a PODS and I am trying to pack up and clean out and - WOW-it is a big job. We plan on staying with friends/family in Airway Heights/Spokane Valley in the beginning of September until we leave. PRAY we get something official soon so I can firm up housing and buy our plane tickets.

Thanks so much all of you the have been able to offer to help. (Probably be calling on Toot here shortly for some help).

Wish us luck!