I came upon this scene in the family room one day before Christmas. It was completely unrehearsed and unplanned, though I believe they hammed it up for the camera when they realized I was filming! Love that they were really feeling the music!
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Wonderful, wonderful news!
After 15 months and 5 attempts, pages and pages of documents faxed multiple times, and too many hours to count on the phone........
Our mortgage modification is COMPLETE!!!!!
Back payments from the months that we were behind in our mortgage (during the 9 month unemployment a year and a half ago) are no longer hanging over our head, and therefore foreclosure is no longer looming. We are so very grateful.
We came even closer to foreclosure recently than we did during the unemployment itself. The first week in December we received a notice on our door that our home was going to be sold at public auction during the first week in January. Of course, this was published in the paper, as all foreclosure notifications are, so we had realtors contacting us NON STOP trying to get us to short sale our home, unfamiliar cars driving slowly past our house (looking to see if it was worth bidding on), letters from bankruptcy attorneys. It was endless. And disconcerting.
We were in constant contact with our lender and knew that the public auction probably was not really going to happen, so we didn't panic too much, but it would have happened if our modification had not been moving forward. Just before Christmas we learned that the modification was "complete" and our home was taken off public auction. The best Christmas present ever!! But this week we received our copy of the paperwork in the mail making it 100%, certifiably official.
It is very humbling to come close to losing your home. I have such sympathy for those who do. I learned that it really can happen to anyone, despite their best efforts and planning. Financial gurus tell us to have 6 months worth of living expenses saved, but what if 6 months is not enough? What if unexpected medical bills consume all your savings? What if there is simply no work to be found, even though you are a hard worker? I learned that God's grace truly covers all the "what ifs". Every. Single. One. It doesn't exempt us from the hardship, but God gives us hope through the trial.
After doing the happy dance when I saw the paperwork, I had a moment of worry. Now that we are temporarily unemployed again, what if we get behind again? Would God allow us to work through a successful modification only to have us lose the house after all? I don't know what the future holds, but I DO know that God's grace will cover this "what if" too. And I decided not to let worry come to the party! I happy danced away!
Our mortgage modification is COMPLETE!!!!!
Back payments from the months that we were behind in our mortgage (during the 9 month unemployment a year and a half ago) are no longer hanging over our head, and therefore foreclosure is no longer looming. We are so very grateful.
We came even closer to foreclosure recently than we did during the unemployment itself. The first week in December we received a notice on our door that our home was going to be sold at public auction during the first week in January. Of course, this was published in the paper, as all foreclosure notifications are, so we had realtors contacting us NON STOP trying to get us to short sale our home, unfamiliar cars driving slowly past our house (looking to see if it was worth bidding on), letters from bankruptcy attorneys. It was endless. And disconcerting.
We were in constant contact with our lender and knew that the public auction probably was not really going to happen, so we didn't panic too much, but it would have happened if our modification had not been moving forward. Just before Christmas we learned that the modification was "complete" and our home was taken off public auction. The best Christmas present ever!! But this week we received our copy of the paperwork in the mail making it 100%, certifiably official.
It is very humbling to come close to losing your home. I have such sympathy for those who do. I learned that it really can happen to anyone, despite their best efforts and planning. Financial gurus tell us to have 6 months worth of living expenses saved, but what if 6 months is not enough? What if unexpected medical bills consume all your savings? What if there is simply no work to be found, even though you are a hard worker? I learned that God's grace truly covers all the "what ifs". Every. Single. One. It doesn't exempt us from the hardship, but God gives us hope through the trial.
After doing the happy dance when I saw the paperwork, I had a moment of worry. Now that we are temporarily unemployed again, what if we get behind again? Would God allow us to work through a successful modification only to have us lose the house after all? I don't know what the future holds, but I DO know that God's grace will cover this "what if" too. And I decided not to let worry come to the party! I happy danced away!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Change
This morning Little Man lost his first tooth.
When it became loose a few days ago, he was very excited. The rest of us shared his excitement, and his siblings told him what to expect, admonished him not to swallow it, told him it would bleed a little but would be okay, etc.
When it actually came out he wasn't happy with the way his mouth felt. Eating breakfast was weird. He dripped some milk through the tooth hole. The rest of us were very excited for him, and tried to spark some enthusiasm for this major milestone, but he would have none of it. He was deeply bothered by the new feeling.
In the spirit of my commitment this year to be all here, I pulled Little Man onto my lap and really listened to him. He was troubled. He wasn't expecting it to feel so different. Couldn't he just put the tooth back in?
I acknowledged his feelings. It was different. But now that the tooth was out, we couldn't put it back in. The new tooth would be growing in its place and would need that space. I told him that change is always hard because it's different. But different doesn't always mean bad. It just means ... different. I assured him he would slowly get used to his new mouth. He would adjust to his new normal. I kissed him and put him down. He ran off happily.
And then it hit me.
I was preaching to myself. Change is hard (loss of a job, church turmoil, foot pain ~ fill in the blanks with your own changes) because it's different. I would slowly get used to the changes. I would adjust to the new normal, learn how to make compensations. And then I realized I had forgotten to tell him the most important thing of all...
God never changes.
We can count on Him being the same as He has always been. Patient, forgiving, gracious, full of love, merciful, just, good, immoveable. His unchanging nature anchors us as we go through all the changes that life throws at us. No change is too big for Him to handle, and no change is too small for Him to notice.
Even lost teeth.
"Lord God, thank you for being who you are and never changing. Help me to cling to You through all the changes we are facing, and will face. Thank you that nothing, NO THING can separate me from Your love. I love you. Amen."
When it became loose a few days ago, he was very excited. The rest of us shared his excitement, and his siblings told him what to expect, admonished him not to swallow it, told him it would bleed a little but would be okay, etc.
When it actually came out he wasn't happy with the way his mouth felt. Eating breakfast was weird. He dripped some milk through the tooth hole. The rest of us were very excited for him, and tried to spark some enthusiasm for this major milestone, but he would have none of it. He was deeply bothered by the new feeling.
In the spirit of my commitment this year to be all here, I pulled Little Man onto my lap and really listened to him. He was troubled. He wasn't expecting it to feel so different. Couldn't he just put the tooth back in?
I acknowledged his feelings. It was different. But now that the tooth was out, we couldn't put it back in. The new tooth would be growing in its place and would need that space. I told him that change is always hard because it's different. But different doesn't always mean bad. It just means ... different. I assured him he would slowly get used to his new mouth. He would adjust to his new normal. I kissed him and put him down. He ran off happily.
And then it hit me.
I was preaching to myself. Change is hard (loss of a job, church turmoil, foot pain ~ fill in the blanks with your own changes) because it's different. I would slowly get used to the changes. I would adjust to the new normal, learn how to make compensations. And then I realized I had forgotten to tell him the most important thing of all...
God never changes.
We can count on Him being the same as He has always been. Patient, forgiving, gracious, full of love, merciful, just, good, immoveable. His unchanging nature anchors us as we go through all the changes that life throws at us. No change is too big for Him to handle, and no change is too small for Him to notice.
Even lost teeth.
"Lord God, thank you for being who you are and never changing. Help me to cling to You through all the changes we are facing, and will face. Thank you that nothing, NO THING can separate me from Your love. I love you. Amen."
Monday, January 3, 2011
Looking Ahead
Today was transition day ~ a half day of school, and getting the house ready for more school (read that: cleaning and tidying). It's been a little bumpy, but that's what transition days are for, right?
Tomorrow we will jump in with "everything."
I did not ONCE think about or do any prep work for school during our two week break, and if I had been tempted to do so I would have resisted. It was WONDERFUL for me to have a true mental break from all things school.
I enjoyed my family immensely, spent hours playing board games, reading, watching movies and football (!!!) on our new TV, and sleeping in. And in it all, trying to be truly in the moment. I have lived long enough to know that the days and the stages fly by, and the only thing I can do to combat the passage of time is to fully embrace each moment and be all there. I read this recently on A Holy Experience and it resonated with me so much:
be all here.
When a young child says, "look mommy" I want to really see.
When an older child is talking to me, I want to really hear.
When my husband wants me to sit with him and watch an episode of Smallville, I want to stop multi tasking and really enjoy my husband's presence.
When a friend calls, I want to fully engage.
I want to be all here, and live each moment to its fullest. Even the small, mundane moments. Especially the small, mundane moments. Because life has a lot more of those than the other kind!
"Lord, help me to appreciate each moment because You inhabit it. Help me this year to be fully present in the moments that string together and make up life. I love you. Amen."
Tomorrow we will jump in with "everything."
I did not ONCE think about or do any prep work for school during our two week break, and if I had been tempted to do so I would have resisted. It was WONDERFUL for me to have a true mental break from all things school.
I enjoyed my family immensely, spent hours playing board games, reading, watching movies and football (!!!) on our new TV, and sleeping in. And in it all, trying to be truly in the moment. I have lived long enough to know that the days and the stages fly by, and the only thing I can do to combat the passage of time is to fully embrace each moment and be all there. I read this recently on A Holy Experience and it resonated with me so much:
“Time is a relentless river and it rages on, respecter of no one.
And the only way to slow time is this: Enter fully into the current moment and the stream of time slows — slows — with the weight of a soul’s full attention.
We slow the torrent by being all here.
Life at its fullest is this sensitive, detonating sphere, and it can be carried only in the hands of the unhurried and reverential—a bubble held in awe.”
(fyi, this is a quote from Ann Voskamp's new book which is due out this month, called One Thousand Gifts: a dare to live fully right where you are. It's sure to be good! Look for it!)
be all here.
When a young child says, "look mommy" I want to really see.
When an older child is talking to me, I want to really hear.
When my husband wants me to sit with him and watch an episode of Smallville, I want to stop multi tasking and really enjoy my husband's presence.
When a friend calls, I want to fully engage.
I want to be all here, and live each moment to its fullest. Even the small, mundane moments. Especially the small, mundane moments. Because life has a lot more of those than the other kind!
"Lord, help me to appreciate each moment because You inhabit it. Help me this year to be fully present in the moments that string together and make up life. I love you. Amen."
Sunday, January 2, 2011
A Christmas Play (with cousins!)
Except for two days last week, one or more people in our family were sick at all times (a couple still are). But during the two days that everyone was feeling pretty good, we soaked up time with our TX cousins, who came to stay with grandma and grandpa a couple days after Christmas. All the cousins put on a Christmas play together. The play was written, directed, and produced (and acted in) by daughter G. She typed out scripts, highlighted speaking parts, and organized props. I was really proud of her! It was super cute.
Joseph, Mary, and baby Jesus.
The angel Gabriel.
The Magi, bearing gifts.
King Herod and his soldiers (all trying to look mean).
The shepherds (with a little black sheep!).
I'm glad G got to do this while she felt good. She is one of the ones who is sick right now, though she avoided the stomach bug and has a bad head cold instead.
My husband with his siblings (his brother had to work and is represented by a picture!).
After that we played pictionary.
Here is the winning team, the Red Hots! (sadly, the team I was on, Blue Sky, came in last. But we gave it a valiant effort!!)
It was a fun, fun day. We're thankful for our cousins!
Joseph, Mary, and baby Jesus.
The angel Gabriel.
The Magi, bearing gifts.
King Herod and his soldiers (all trying to look mean).
The shepherds (with a little black sheep!).
I'm glad G got to do this while she felt good. She is one of the ones who is sick right now, though she avoided the stomach bug and has a bad head cold instead.
My husband with his siblings (his brother had to work and is represented by a picture!).
After that we played pictionary.
Here is the winning team, the Red Hots! (sadly, the team I was on, Blue Sky, came in last. But we gave it a valiant effort!!)
It was a fun, fun day. We're thankful for our cousins!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Happy New Year 2011!
Watching the ball drop and getting ready to toast each other at the stroke of midnight! This was the first time we let Little Man stay up. I can say that within 15 minutes of this picture being taken, all four boys were fast asleep, and our daughter was well on her way. :-)
Christmas Morning 2010
I have been trying for 3 days to upload a video of the children opening their stockings on our bed on Christmas morning. It was so fun and the video is really cute. But for some reason it won't upload and I've run down my camera battery to zero each time I've tried. So poo on that!
When the children wake up on Christmas morning, their stockings have been moved from the fireplace mantle to hanging beside their beds. They come pile on our bed and we open stockings all together. This is a tradition my husband's family had as he was growing up, and I love it! Many of our Christmas Eve traditions come from my growing up years. I love how we have merged traditions from both our families and made them our own.
This is what our bed looked like afterward. You'll have to imagine the stocking opening fun!
I am tickled pink because in my stocking I found my first mp3 player! It's super tiny and can clip onto my shirt or the edge of a pocket. It can't make a playlist so I just have to listen to songs randomly, but since I love listening to songs randomly that won't be a problem! My husband even pre-loaded several of my favorites. Gotta love Aco Hardware! (and my husband!)
When the children wake up on Christmas morning, their stockings have been moved from the fireplace mantle to hanging beside their beds. They come pile on our bed and we open stockings all together. This is a tradition my husband's family had as he was growing up, and I love it! Many of our Christmas Eve traditions come from my growing up years. I love how we have merged traditions from both our families and made them our own.
This is what our bed looked like afterward. You'll have to imagine the stocking opening fun!
I am tickled pink because in my stocking I found my first mp3 player! It's super tiny and can clip onto my shirt or the edge of a pocket. It can't make a playlist so I just have to listen to songs randomly, but since I love listening to songs randomly that won't be a problem! My husband even pre-loaded several of my favorites. Gotta love Aco Hardware! (and my husband!)
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