Time with the Cousins

The moving company finished packing up our house the Friday after Thanksgiving.  After that was done, there wasn't much left to do put to hang out with family as much as possible.  On Saturday, we went to Balboa Island with Julie's family.  We hung out while the kids played in the sand.  Afterwards, we went out for dinner and dessert.  

Our favorite dessert together, mocchilato.  Julie ordered the works -- extra gelato and mochi.  Yum!

Oh how the kids will miss each other dearly!  There's no one like family. 

We went to church with the Lee family the next day. We then went back up for dinner later that day where we said our good-byes...

We're in!

We had a very successful move. Thanks go out to so many helpers.

• The Lee family and Chad C. for boxes.
• For painting, thanks to Julie, Peter, and my wife.
• Our small group, co-workers, friends, and church attenders for doing the moving and loading of the truck.
• A special shout out to Herb and Peter for not only building the garage shelves but also making sure all the garage items were on shelves so we could actually park in the garage our first night in our new-to-us rental home.
• Another special thank you to Peter for having the ceiling fans installed, buying the garage shelving, garage wall cabinet, and the washer/dryer combo.
• FINALLY, THE BIGGEST THANK YOU FOR MY WIFE FOR PACKING NEARLY EVERYTHING. LITERALLY, NEARLY EVERYTHING!! (I would start to think I was a completely absent husband if I hadn't moved the boxes to the garage, lined up helpers, transferred utilities, got a smoking deal on the rental truck, etc. Notice that I feel that I am now only a slightly absent husband, not completely absent.)

Throughout this whole process, we have realized that God is really taking care of our needs. He puts things in place before we even know we'll need something down the road. Our prayer is that we'll find an ideal roommate to whom we can minister and love. We also hope to utilize our home to serve others. We appreciate your prayers for these last two things. Thanks.

Now hurry and come visit while there is an empty bedroom and bathroom downstairs!

We're Moving!

(By Lena) I am definitely excited to move, but the process of packing up the house has been tough. Let's start with the good... We are moving into a house! We will have about 2 1/2 times the space as we do now. The things I'm most looking forward to are 1) more space to entertain guests 2) not having to carry groceries and a 20 lb baby up stairs and 3) a backyard.

I'm a little sad to leave the area we are in now. It's a great place for young families. All my stores are so close by which makes running errands a breeze. We are also close to our church's main campus and many of our friends.

Packing up the house in 3 weeks has mainly fallen on my shoulders. I could demand more from Derek, but he has been on the phone and on the computer changing addresses, renting the truck, asking friends to help us move, etc. That just leaves me with one little helper, but she and I aren't quite on the same page.

She likes to take things OUT of the boxes, instead of put them in. She wants the box flaps to stay open and enjoys it when the boxes are either ready to climb on or collapsed so that she can slide around on them. She's definitely enjoying this process more than me!

I have to do most of the packing during Karis' naps. That means my poor pregnant body doesn't get a nap. By 8 pm I am exhausted and ready for bed! Only a few more days of this and it will be over. This time next week, we'll be enjoying our new home and still thanking God for just another one of His many blessings!