Home, Sweet Home

Hi guys!  I guess it's time to get back into the swing of things . . . I've spent too long with my head in boxes!  Here are a few pics of the new house.  We have NO landscaping, and don't plan on changing that for now.  We do have plenty of projects, though.  Since this home was never finished, we are doing a lot . . . from installing a sump pump, rain gutters, and a swamp cooler (until a/c becomes a priority) to screwing in socket covers and installing blinds.  David has done most of that while I have unpacked day after day . . . a household of 8 has a lot of STUFF!  

Actually, I am okay with the project thing.  This place is growing on me.  It feels more like  home the more we solve problems and improve the place.  I have made it clear that I am done moving.  David and I always leave the caveat that we will go wherever and whenever the Lord wants us to go, and that has always worked out for us.  And so, I hope He is listening:  I am done!  (Caveat still in place, but please don't notice it.) . . . I hope that's not too sac-religious . . . 

So anyway, are settling in.  Within a few weeks, Sarah, Rachel, and Rebecca were signed up for soccer.  (I didn't mean to, but it just fell into my lap after I connected with a college roommate down here and her hubby-coach invited Sarah and Rachel to play w/his daughters.)  Jonathan is finishing up his WOLF requirements for scouts with new den leaders just in time for his 9th b-day.  Also, a few local moms invited Ellie and me to participate in a neighborhood preschool . . . which will make my life easier.  I'll put my own teaching on the shelf for another year.  Jacob's a mite young still.  

Also, the kids were able to squeeze into testing for this district's advanced classes (ALPS).  The ALPS director is really great to work with down here, and has done a great job at helping me keep all the kids at the same school, even though some are "ALPS" and some aren't.  They even started working toward the IB and MYP programs closer to our home, and Sarah will be part of that!  Hooray!  It's all working out.

More updates later . . .