Sunday, January 11, 2009

Our Sunday of Blessings

Doug and I decided on our drive that if the children woke up on time, we would go ahead & visit our new church. No time like the present, eh? Well, despite their exhaustion, the first 2 were up a little before 7, so we all dressed, ate breakfast, and went to visit our new church. When we arrived, people were so friendly, and some had even heard we were coming!! A nice lady took us to find baby H's class and we saw our one friend, A, when we were seated. During the service, my favorite hymn, "From the Depths of Woe" was sung!! What a sweet comfort.

Then, I read:
From Heidelberg Catechism Q & A 28
Q: How does the knowledge of God's creation and providence help us?

A: We can be patient when things go against us,
thankful when things go well,
and for the future we can have
good confidence in our faithful God and Father
that nothing will separate us from His love.
All creatures are so completely in his hand
that without his will
they can neither move nor be moved.

I Corinthians 1:18-31


After church, everyone was very friendly. DH and I enjoyed meeting so many sweet people!! We felt very welcomed and loved and even excited! We went to lunch and then took the children back to our new home. Our painter did a fabulous job and was there finishing his work. He said his wife babysits!!! The children jubilantly jumped into the pool and made a big splash! It was precious to hear them so excited to have a pool. DH & I, however, did not get in!! It was warm outside, but the water was COLD. We are all excited to move in our new home and make it ours. I am excited to visit IKEA in Orlando for some exciting and creative storage ideas!

At church, the little girls wore smocked dresses and had double names, just a little comfort that made us feel like home!

We need school lunches and snacks for tomorrow, especially since our school does not have a cafeteria. While in Publix, I ran into a cute girl who was a nurse at Camp Greystone while I taught Cooking at Jr. Camp! It was wild to actually run into someone I know in Tampa!! We are constantly amazed at how the Lord has ordained this move... His little reminders are everywhere! M said her babysitter lives on our street, which is especially incredible since we only have about 8 houses on our street!!! We will try not to steal her sitter, but it's nice to know a sitter lives near us!

Our new church felt like home. Our house is beautiful, and our children are adjusting. That's not to say we haven't had some challenges... when we sat down, Doug and I both wondered who around us needed to use the bathroom. We then discovered that either we stepped in dog poo poo or someone around us had. We were reminded that we are all dirty and sinful, yet saved by grace. It was funny to be stinky visitors!! After the service, our son, A, vomited in the church parking lot and then fell asleep in the car while waiting for us. We were excited to make new friends, and lingered while he rested. The same thing happened again in the car, but thanks to my smart Mama, we had a garbage bag handy!

The Lord has truly blessed us with an amazing place to stay this week. We have flat screen tvs in every bedroom, a brand new front loader washer/dryer, a dishwasher, a living room, 3 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, a beautiful kitchen, etc. I have already made lunches for tomorrow and will have everyone in bed by 7 since their day starts an hour earlier than it did in Raleigh!

Mimi has arrived to help with H & K, and my parents arrive tomorrow afternoon! Tomorrow will be exhausting as boxes and furniture are unloaded once the movers arrive at 8am, but it is so exciting to see our home begin to take shape as OURS!

2 comments:

Preppy Pettit said...

Awwww...So happy, you are happy! Isn't Church just the best place to find new friends?

Hopsy said...

From the Depths of Woe is a favorite of mine too! In fact we used to sing it at Greystone staff meetings! I am SO happy you met so many wonderful people that you shared things in common with. Also, how wonderful that the children are doing so well. You must post photos of the home when it starts to come together. Also, yay for seeing someone from camp! You should actually call Diane in the office and she can hook you up with the other camp families in your area! I am happy to send you her email if you wish!