and we successfully moved across the country again

i haven't posted anything here since the end of april! i just haven't been into blogging over these past few months - it must be a combination of moving across the country, pregnancy, being the primary caregiver for two small children, and i think i got tired of blogging, too. anyway, today i feel like posting, so i might as well do it.

let's see...well, we successfully moved across the country - our new home is in northern illinois. in mid-june, after a substantial interview process and many fraying nerves on our (mostly my) side of things, jeremy was offered a job at a "continuing care retirement community" here. there was a LOT of excitement and even some tears when that job offer came. we had nothing holding us back so we packed up and left our rental house in south carolina in TEN days.

the whole process was not for the faint of heart. whew! we packed, planned, and packed some more. our kids conveniently attended a VBS at love's preschool each morning that last week, so that gave us some kid-free time to really get things done. unfortunately, on the second to last day, another child bit jobot's arm (hard - he had a bite-shaped bruise for over a week!), so that soured his experience a bit. he still talks about how "that kid bit me mom". poor guy.

anyway, eventually somehow everything got packed and loaded (not thanks to the moving helpers we hired to load the truck - they did a terrible job). we even got to make a call to 911 just before loading the moving truck when jeremy disconnected our dryer and it caused a very significant gas leak, which we were unable to stop. two firetrucks came with sirens blaring and at least six firefighters jumped out in full gear. it was slightly embarrassing (as the neighbors came out of their houses to see what was going on!), but more humorous, and definitely a memory maker.

and finally, after a lot of stress and chaos, we were driving out of columbia for the last time - jeremy in the budget moving truck, and i in our minivan with the two kids.

we left south carolina on friday afternoon and arrived at our new, temporary home on monday afternoon. the drive was LONG. the unfortunate part was that both kids were throwing up throughout the entire drive, sometimes in the car. (fortunately, we had somehow kept our cleaning supplies accessible). at one point we were stopped in a parking lot while love stood in the parking lot and vomited into a bucket while i tried my best to clean her car seat, which was also covered in vomit.

it was also a challenge being pregnant, as i had to go to the bathroom more often than usual, and stopping for a potty break was not easy. i either had to take both kids into the bathroom with me or wait for jeremy to catch up with the moving truck so he could stay in the car with the kids while i ran into the restroom. i usually chose to wait for jeremy (he was often only 10 - 15 minutes behind me), but that was often very uncomfortable. ha! and then there was the day where we were unable to call each other on our cell phones because we were out in the middle of nowhere, so that didn't help.

i had a supply of activities for the kids to do, as well as several thrifted toys, but it was just a long, long trip with two little kids in the back seat. there were a lot of whining, tears, screaming, and demands from the back seat.

i was VERY relieved when we arrived here. the place where jeremy works has retirement homes and they have generously allowed us to live in one while we search for a place of our own. it made the move so much easier to have a place to live provided for us rather than having to search for a place to live from afar.

we have been living in this nice little house since the end of june. and when i say nice little house, i mean, a house that is really much too nice for our little family to live in. there is white carpet in the dining room (and through the whole house, except the kitchen), so that has been a bit nerve-wracking. also, the house is furnished which has been really nice (our stuff is all in storage), except the furniture is in pristine condition. also, this house only has two bedrooms, which has worked much better than expected, but has still been a challenge. we have been so grateful to live here, though.

in mid-july, we found a house to buy and if all goes as planned (which it seems like it will), we will be closing on friday and moving in on saturday. the whole story of how this all came to be is quite amazing and clearly God-led, even down to the little details.

it's been a strange summer of transition and we are so eager to settle into this place long-term. jeremy's job is going very well and he is really enjoying it and getting a lot of positive feedback. jeremy and i both really enjoy the demographic of the people who live here. the kids and i have gone visiting in the assisted living a couple of times here and it is so much fun to bring joy to the lives of the people who live there. when i was younger, i always dreamed of having little kids to bring around to visit the elderly, so in a funny way it feels like a dream come true for me too. it will be a lot of fun to have a teeny tiny baby to take visiting.

otherwise, we went to a church this last weekend that seemed like it just might be the right fit for us. we are starting to know our way around here pretty well as this is an easy city to navigate. we still feel like we spend a lot of time on the phone for various moving-related issues, but that should be calming down soon. moving is SO much work! we have found a few great parks and places to spend time together, and we also still have a lot to explore. and the best part of moving here is that my family is only a little over an hour away! we have spent several weekends at grandma's house this summer. when this job was a possibility, we didn't allow ourselves to get too excited about living so close, but now that it is for real, it is so nice. in many ways, it still feels like a dream to be this close to family. we do not take it for granted after all these years (especially this last one) of living farther away!

(fun at grandma's!)

i still don't really have any friends here, but i will be attending MOPS next month, and if we end up going to this church that we visited on Sunday, there will be a lot of opportunities to meet people. i haven't felt desperate to make friends as this has just all felt like a time of transition, but i am feeling very ready to start to find my place here. i have been keeping busy with getting ready to home school love for preschool this year. we are both excited about it, and obviously jobot will be a part of our little school as well. i have planned out the whole year (putting together curriculum, printing necessary documents, prepping art projects, and gathering supplies). i know that once baby gets here, everything will be more challenging, so at least i am prepared for the whole year of preschool.

anyway...hopefully there will be more updates on this blog in the future.

(30 weeks along. oh yeah, and it's a girl!)