Please Pray

To all of my faithful blog readers, I would like to plead with you to please pray for us right now. I am not sure how much you all know about our housing situation in Tomball, but here is the story. We found a house that we love in Tomball. Unfortunately the man currently living there has not paid the landlord rent and she was in the process of having him evicted. Her court date was scheduled for Tuesday, January 8 but it was pushed back to January 18 due to a technicality (out of the landlords control). We decided to try and persue other housing options at this point because we didn't think we could wait that long to decide. We looked around at the very short list of other options and in the end decided the house would be worth the wait. Stacie, the landlord, informed us that after the court date, the tennant would have 5 days to make his plea and then he would have 3 days to get out of the house or be physically removed. Stacie told us that the tennant was in the process of buying a house and so she thought he wouldn't be a problem. She had been able to get a verbal agreement from the man that he would be out by this Friday and he asked for a day to clean the house and then we could move in on the 26th. We went ahead and scheduled the movers and started setting up the utilities for the house. Yesterday afternoon I recieved a phone call from Stacie and she told me that the tennant was not cooperating. She had filed for the Writ of Possesion (I think that is what it is called and it is were the guy has 48 hours to get out or he would be removed) but that it would not go in effect until Monday of next week. She doesn't know if the tennant is going to be out of the house on Friday and she has advised us to stay in Round Rock until she can have him removed. Unfortunately we have movers coming tomorrow and we have already rented the Uhaul for Friday-Sunday. Dave and I are extremely frustrated with the whole situation and are really tired of having to deal with this situation. I am asking for prayer because it is so easy for me to get really angry and stressed out right now and I know that I need to remain calm and trust that God will take care of us. I keep repeating Matthew 6:25-34 but it is so hard to see clearly through this situation.
Love you all and we will keep you updated. We will not have internet access after tomorrow, but we will try and keep you informed as best as possible. Feel free to call if you have any advice or questions.

Whistle while you work

I just finished my big cleaning project of the day which was to clean the bathrooms. I was able to clean the guest bathroom this morning during Ally's nap and while I was cleaning the other bathroom this evening, I set her in her walker next to the mirror in our bedroom and she had a blast looking at her reflection. Emily sat on my bed and watched cartoons. I hate that I have had to sit Emily in front of the television so much this week, but it is the only way I can get anything done.

I had big plans to take the girls out today but I completely lost track of the time. I did make a Starbucks run which brightened up our day a little. I really wanted to take Emily to the bookstore to pick out a book because I packed most of her books away and I think she is tired of the ones I left out. I thought it would be fun to let her pick out a book. Maybe I can still do that tomorrow. I am really excited that Dave will be coming home tomorrow night. It has been a long couple of days without him. Emily keeps saying "Daddy, no work!" throughout the day. I really think that she thinks he has been at work the entire time he has been gone. When Dave tucks Emily in bed at night, she asks him if he is going to work. Usually the answere is yes, unless it is the weekend but Dave and I always wonder if she thinks he only comes home to eat and then goes back to work after she goes to bed.

Busy, busy

I cannot imagine what life must have been like for my mom having five kids under the age five. I am exhausted from taking care of Emily and Ally the last two days as well as trying to pack and clean in my free time. I have spread out the cleaning so that I do one or two large things a day so that by the end of the week all we need to do is spot clean before we head out the door. I feel like the move is finally coming together. Dave ordered the Uhaul today and I set up the movers. Most of the apartment is packed and really all that is left is the things I need to use everyday. I am really looking forward to putting this move behind us.

My outing with the girls today involved McDonalds and Target. I was going to take Emily to Chic-fil-a but the one closest to us doesn't have a playplace. I didn't realize that until we drove up. We settled for the McDonalds next door and it was a good choice. I had so much fun watching Emily play. There was a three year old boy trying to show her how to climb up the play area, but Emily just did not get it. She finally figured it out on her own. When she got tired of usuing all of her strength to lift herself up the steps, she would sit and cry for help. She got a couple of the kids to pull her up. I was very amused at some of the tactics she was using as well as how well she could interact with all of the kids. I let her run around for an hour and then I had to run to Target to pick up some extra storage bins for packing. When we got home I put the girls down for their naps and tried to get some packing done. Now I am exhausted and I still have to clean the fridge out. I hate cleaning the fridge because I have to throw so much good food away. There is no way to take it with us and I have eaten everything that I can.

My Dad's surgery went well last night. He has been in a lot of pain today. I found out last night that my dad was working on my mom's car in the street and someone drove by and ran into the car. That is why it fell on top of him. The other car just drove off. I cannot believe someone would do that. They probably had know idea my dad was under the car.

I also found out last night that my Grandmother past away. She was my Dad's step-mom and I didn't really know her that well. She has had alzheimer's for a really long time. My dad was always trying to witness to her and she never thought anything of it. I know he feels really disappointed knowing she died and wasn't a christian. I feel bad for my dad having to go through this with everything else that has just happend to him.

Day 1

Day 1 of Dave being away has gone really well. Ally and Emily have been in good moods for the most part and they took a nice long nap this afternoon. For our outing of the day we went to Starbucks. I know that doesn't seem like much but the weather today has been rainy and cold and I really wanted to just stay inside all day. I knew that for my sanity I should probably get out, even if it was for a coffee and milk run. I have done a little bit of packing here and there as well. According to my plan for the week, I am supposed to clean the stove-top and the oven. Hopefully I will be able to do that this evening but I am not going to over-due myself. My priority is to take care of the girls. I was able to talk to Dave during his lunch break and he said he was having a good first day. He has learned so much from working in Georgetown and Marietta and he is able to put that to practice and ask all the right questions starting out.

I talked to my mom today about my Dad's progress and he was going to have surgery at 4 pm today to fix his ankle. I have not heard how the surgery was or if he was out or not. I really wish I could go and visit him but there is so much to do here right before the move.

In case you are wondering about the picture, the outfit that Emily is wearing is all her own idea. I have packed most of the toys Emily owns and so she has started digging in her toy bin for things she has not played with in awhile. It makes me think that she really doesn't need all those toys since she doesn't even play with most of them. Oh well. I guess that is the fun of being a kid.

Never a dull moment

I apologize for the gap in my blogging this week. Allison is feeling much better and she has not had a fever for about 4 days now. She has had a stuffy nose and been a little crankier than normal, but she is active and lively again. The moving process is still moving along. Jeff and Dorcas came and helped us pack this weekend. It was really nice to see them and they helped out a bunch by taking care of the girls and packing up boxes. Dave and I were relieved to get so much paking done and now I don't have to do everything by myself this week. Dave left town this evening and we were really sad to see him go. I was glad to be busy this weekend with packing so that I did not have to think about him not being here this week. I am worried about having to take care of Emily and Ally all by myself. I am usually so glad when Dave gets home from work and I can do anything. I am not going to have an outlet and I am really scared about how that is going to effect me. I bought some girly magazines and have plans to rent some movies that Dave would never watch with me so I hope that will help. I also plan to get out of the house at least once a day so that Emily doesn't go crazy. I would love to take her to the park but the weather is supposed to be bad this week. Anyways, Dave, we love you and miss you and we hope you have a great first week at work!

On a more serious note, I got a call from my mom this afternoon and she told me that my dad had been working on the brakes on her car and the car collapsed on top of him. She didn't know how bad it was but she said that my dad was talking and seemed to be doing alright. It wasn't life-threatening and that was the important part. I talked to my mom again a bit later and found out that my dad broke one of his ankles and he will probably need surgery on it. I was really relieved to hear that he didn't have any other injuries.

Ally May update

Last night Ally May went to bed with a temperature of 103.7 degrees. The doctor told me that her temperature probably would not go over 103 after she started the medicine she was perscribed so when I felt her and she was burning up, I got really worried again. I called the doctor and he told me just to give her Tylenol and Motrin. I put her to bed with a very light shirt and blanket, ran the humidifier next to her bed, and turned down the heat so it would be cool in our room. This morning when Ally woke up, I took her temperature and it was 100.1! I was so relieved. I gave her all of her medicines, fed her and put her down for a nap. She slept for a while and when she woke up I checked her temperature again. It was normal. She even looked a ton better. Her eyes looked bright and cheery again. She played in her gym for a good amount of time, smiling and looking for her sister. She is still needing alot of sleep today, but I am so relieved at how well she is doing. She is no longer a hot potato and when I give her kisses, my lips don't burn. Emily keeps telling me to make Ally a couch bed. She has done really well with me having to devote most of my time and attention to Ally the last two days. If the weather was a bit warmer I would reward her with a trip to the park. Hopefully a Starbucks milk will be enough. (If you don't know the story about Starbucks milk, my mom works at Starbucks and she always buys Emily a milk from there. They sell an organic milk that has added vanilla flavoring and Emily loves it. She can drink the whole thing in a few short seconds. Whenever I tell her we are going to see Grandma, she always asks for Starbucks milk so it is a great treat/bribe.) I can't wait to have a backyard to let Emily run around in. Before we know it, Ally May is going to be right behind her!

Ally May cont.

I took Ally to the doctor this afternoon and the doctor checked her over. Ally has two ear infections and a bright red throat. Her fever keeps going up and down but it hasn't gone away. She got a perscription which should make her fever go down alot and should also heal her throat and ears. I feel so bad for Ally but I am glad that we know what is wrong and can fix it. Ally's smile always brightens up my day and not seeing it makes me sad. I just want to cuddle her up and take away all her pain. I guess I will have to make due with watching her sleep peacefully and slowly get better.
Emily had a great time at the doctor's office. Of course she usually does well when we are not there for her. She is always curious to see what the doctor is doing but I hope she never tries to imitate him. They gave Emily a sour lollipop as we were walking out and Emily had a great time licking it for the next two hours. Of course she didn't want to eat dinner after that.

Ally May

Please pray for Ally May. Yesterday when I picked her up from the nursery at church, I could tell she was not feeling well. After she got up from her nap, I took her temperature and it was 103.5 degrees. I gave her some Tylenol but you could see it in her eyes that she felt bad. At around 9 pm, I was getting ready to feed her before putting her to bed for the night and I took her temperature again and it was 103.7 degrees. After I gave her more medicine and put her to bed, I called the after-hours number to the doctor's office. After about half an hour the doctor called me and told me to give her a bath, give her medicine, and if she still had a temperature in the morning to bring her in. This morning I took her temperature right when she got up and it was normal, but as the morning progressed, she kept getting warmer. I took her temperature again around 10:30 am and it was 101.7 degrees. I knew I should probably get her to the doctor. The only spot the doctor had available was at 4 pm today, so I have to wait until then to take her. I took her temperature around noon and it was 102.5 degrees. She is still eating well, but she won't smile and she is really fussy when she is awake. The only time she has been awake is too eat and I gave her a cool bath to make her feel better. She does not have a runny nose or a couch, so I just don't know what is wrong with her. I am really worried about her because she looks so miserable. Please pray that she gets better quickly and that the doctor can tell me what is wrong.

The weekend!

Today has been a very relaxing Saturday for us. We woke up and had a special breakfast together. I used to do something special for breakfasts on Saturdays when we lived in Georgia, but since we moved to Texas and Dave was working every Saturday, we never got to enjoy that time together. Now that everything has settled down a bit and Dave is home on Saturdays, I have started the tradition again. It was nice to sleep in a little and get up and eat together. After breakfast, Dave took Emily to the park and I took Ally to the mall. We thought it would be nice to spend some quality time with each of the kids. Dave and Emily had a blast at the park and Ally did great while I walked around the mall. After lunch and naps, I took Emily with me to the grocery store and Dave stayed at home with Ally. He said it was probably the most time he has spent with her by himself since she was born. Emily did great at the store. She even experimented with a couple of different fruits that she has never eaten before. After we came home from the store, I let Emily help me make brownies. She did really well with the exception of one dropped egg. I really enjoyed getting to spend time with each of the girls individually today. Things have been so stressful and hectic, it was nice to have a quiet day.

Yesterday was not such a quiet day. My mom called me as I was waking up and asked if it would be alright for her and my youngest sister Johannah to come and see us. Of course I love the fact that they are so close and can do that. Johannah had been wanting to go to the hip thrift-store downtown called Buffalo Exchange and my mom said she would take her if they could come see us for a while. We all went and had lunch with Dave and then we were going to go downtown. Johannah was driving her car and she left a few minutes before we did. As we were hitting the busy section downtown, my mom's phone rang and I could hear sobbing and yelling on the other end. Johannah had been hit by a massive RV. We hit the traffic from the accident and we were trying to get to her as quickly as possible. She was screaming on the phone and my mom was yelling at her trying to find out if she was hurt. I took the phone from my mom and tried to find out what was going on. I was so amazed at how calm I was but my heart was pounding so fast. We pulled up behind the RV and there was glass and car parts everywhere. Johannah's car was destroyed. The back window had been blown out, the back end of the car was completely smushed, and the front was all messed up because she had been hit into a car in front of her. I found out that Johannah was so upset because she had glass on her and her car was smoking. Apparently her air bags had deployed and caused dust to go everywhere. I was so amazed at how fast the cops came, swept up the debrit, and directed us all off the highway safely. After all of the police reports were taken and the tow trucks came to pick up the car and the RV, we were able to leave. I found out that the woman driving the RV was traveling to see her kids in south Texas. Her husband had just passed away and her kids had convinced her to make the trip. My heart went out to her. I just wanted to go back and give her a big hug. I had to drive my mom and sister to Kyle, which is about half way between Austin and San Antonio. One of my other sisters came to pick them up from there. I talked to Johannah today and she is doing well other than a stiff neck. I am so thankful that she was not seriously hurt.

In two weeks we should be settling into life in Houston. There is still so much that is up in the air at this point. We are praying that everything goes smoothly and that we can settle down for a little while. I would be glad to stay in one spot for 2 years, but Dave thinks that is unlikely.

Tomorrow we plan to go to church and then watch football (at least Dave will watch football). I hope the day is as relaxing as today was.

(Love you Nanna!)

Crazy Day

Today has been such a crazy day. I was looking on craigslist this morning for housing in Houston and I came upon the first house I looked at on our house-hunting trip. The landlord had told me that another couple was lined up to rent the house and that they would most likely get it because they were there first. I didn't put much thought into the house after that but it was a really cute house and I wished I had gotten there first. I was really excited to see the house on craigslist and I immedietly called the landlord to ask what had happened. He told me that the other couple had found another house and we were welcome to the house if we wanted it and that we could move in on Sunday. I called Dave to ask him what he thought and he said yes, so we jumped at the opportunity. I have been going crazy trying to make phone calls and get things worked out. I went to try and get a money order so that we could send a deposit for the house, but it turns out that they only accept cash or debit cards and since it is almost pay- day, we did not have enough money to cover it. So I called Tom back to ask him if we could just bring the money with us on Sunday. It turns out there were a couple of delays on his part and that the house might not be available until next weekend. That was a big blessing because I was just so overwhelmed trying to get ready to move in 3 days. I told him it worked out much better for us to move in next Saturday and he said we could just send him the money next week. Phew! So it looks like we might finally have a place to live. The rent is less than we are paying now and we will have a backyard and a frontyard for the kids to play in. Thank you to all who have been praying for us and please keep them coming! Please pray that everything works out on Tom's end of the deal and that he doesn't go back on his word. Pray that we can get everything together to make the move next week.

The picture today is of Emily in front of the house during our house-hunting trip.

I would also like to state that I am not a certified doctor and that my medical advice should not be taken over your own doctor's advice. Please do not poke people to decide if they are sick or not (even though chances are if they laugh, they are really not that sick).

Couch Bed

I have a funny story for all of you Emily fans out there. Emily has been sick alot lately and she usually just lays around on the floor or couch when she is not feeling well. My mom used to make us a bed on the couch with all of our pillows and blankets and she would let us watch TV when we were sick. I always felt comfortable and safe when she did that for me so I decided to make Emily a bed on the couch a week or so ago. I let her watch cartoons and sat with her and she loved that. Well, Emily is all better now and yet everyday she still asks for a couch bed. Yesterday she woke up from her nap and kept crying and trying to convince me she was sick. She said her side hurt but I poked around to make sure she wasn't really in any pain and she started laughing. She still wants a couch bed and to watch cartoons all day. I want the couch bed (Emily's word for it) to be a special thing for her when she is sick but she loves it so much.

Moving forward

This weekend was a very high-stress weekend for Dave and me. We are supposed to be moving in a week and we still don't have a place to live. We have a couple of leads through craigslist but we are still not sure what we are going to do. We posted a want add on craigslist and have gotten a couple of hits from realators but I am not really sure how it will work out. Do we have to pay them if we decide to use them? I also found someone who needs someone to sublease their apartment because they just bought a house. The rent is really good, it is extremely close to Dave's work (2 minutes to be exact), and it would be on the bottom floor of a brand new apartment. The cons are that it is an apartment and we were really hoping to rent a house, we would have to move in 6 months (again), it is smaller than the apartment we have now, and we would move in on the 21st and Dave would have to start work the very next day. We are still waiting to hear how the eviction hearing goes for the house we want to rent. If everything goes well we should hear by tomorrow. I would really love to rent the house but their are cons to that as well. We would have to buy a fridge and a lawnmower. But I think the pros are greater. It has a backyard and a 2 car garage! Anyways, please keep praying for us. Dave and I are pulling away from each other in a time when it is crucial to stick together. Please pray for patience for both of us. Emily seems to be feeling alot better. She hasn't had a fever for the last two days but she still looks pale and is acting fussy. I took her to the park yesterday afternoon and she had a blast running around with the big kids. It was fun to watch her so carefree and just enjoying life. Ally is doing very well. She is getting bigger by the hour (it seems). She is sleeping through the night and eating very well. When she smiles at me, it makes my day. Emily is a great big sister. The other day she kept giving books to Ally and then she sat and read to her.
Sorry there are still no pictures. I have to figure out how to hook up the camera to this computer and all that fun stuff.

Goodbye Round Rock, Hello Tomball!

It is official, we are moving to Tomball, Tx. We left Wednesday night to drive to Tomball where Dave was going to meet with his new boss to discuss official business of us moving and I was going to look for us a place to live. The trip did not go as well as we had hoped. We got to the hotel late that night and booked the last available room. My mom had come along to help me take care of the girls, so she had to share a bed with Emily. We all woke up really early Thursday morning and none of us had slept well. Dave's meeting was not until 10 am so we ate breakfast, checked out of the hotel, and made our way to the local Starbucks were we sat and enjoyed our much needed coffee. After Starbucks, Dave went to his meeting and I went off in search of a place to live. I had two appointments to look at rental houses which I had found through Facebook and craigslist. The first appointment was an 1100 sq.ft. 2brm/2bath house. I really liked the house but the landlord told me he had met with another couple the night before and that they would probably pass the credit check and get the house. He told me that he had townhouses on the other side of town that were 1400 sq.ft and had 3brm/2bath. We followed him over to the townhouses which were alot older and the disign was very box-like. Each room was separated and it just felt very crammed. I didn't want to be too rash in my decision making so I told him I would like Dave to take a look later in the day (Dave got to take a tour later that afternoon and he hated it. Phew!). My next appointment was for another 2 brm/2bath house in the same neighborhood as the first house. I immedietely fell in love with the house. It was very spacious and had a huge backyard and a 2 car garage. The downside is that we would have to buy a refrigerator and a lawnmower. Also, the landlord is having the current tennant evicted because they have not been paying their rent and she is not sure how long the process takes. They go to court on Tuesday but she doesn't know what happens after that (If you know anything about the process, please let me know). I would love to be able to rent that house. It is beautiful and plenty of room for us. I really want a backyard for Emily to be able to run around in and the house has that and more. Dave would have a garage to do projects in and there is plenty of storage space. But it is all up in the air right now and that is extremely frustrating. After we viewed the house, Dave called and said his meeting was over. We met up and discussed what we had done and I found out that Dave's company is not going to be paying for us to break our lease at the apartment we are living in now. We still owe 6 months of rent and to break the lease is going to cost us almost $4000. This was the worst possible outcome of the meeting. I had assumed that because the company was transfering us, they would of course pay for it. They are only willing to pay for the Uhaul and gas. Dave and I were very discouraged by this news. We continued looking for places to live during the afternoon and decided to stay an extra night in Tomball. Dave and I do not want to live in an apartment again. We do not want to get stuck with their stupid move-in and move-out fees. We are not sure how long we are going to be in Tomball and therefore we don't know what kind of lease to sign. To make matters worse, the company wants Dave to start on the 14th or the 21st of this month! Dave and I are trying to take one day at a time. We are both discouraged by the moving process but Dave is still very excited about the opportunities in Tomball. Please pray for us and the move. Pray that we would find a place to live and that we would not have to sign a contract that could get us into trouble later. Friday morning Emily woke up with bright rosy cheeks and a fever. She has been acting really sick the last two days and I am not sure what is wrong with her. She isn't coughing or having a runny nose, but she says her head and her tummy hurts and she has a fever.
Well, the new year has not started off so well for us, but we are excited about the upcoming opportunities. We will keep you informed on our progress and the move. Sorry I don't have any pictures. Our computer died before we left town last week and I am not sure if we are going to be able to save all our pictures. I am so glad that I uploaded most of them to the photo album website!

Happy New Year!

It is 2008, a new year, a clean slate! I love the start of a new year. What lies ahead is unknown, what happened last year is in the past.
We did not end up going out last night for New Years Eve. Dave was feeling sick so we decided to lay low and rent a movie. We didn't even stay up until midnight! Dave had the day off today so I have been using that to clean the house a little. What a way to spend the first day of the new year! I guess it is good to have a little peace and calm before we get really busy with moving and such. Tomorrow we are headed to Tomball where I will hopefully find us a place to live. Fortunately we are not in a different state than the place we are moving and if we don't find a place to live this week, we can always drive back on the weekend. I hope everyone had a safe and fun New Years Eve!