the house we bought today!
click on the blue letters to see the inside
Monday, September 13, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
always to be continued...
OK, so i can't sleep a wink..i think it is 1:30a now...not sure though because the clock says 1:34 and the computer says 12:47am..so i will just trust that it is late.
this house stuff is definitely all consuming...i am constantly, like every second, having to repent of idolatry and forgetting what/who is the Goal of my existence. even laying in bed i try to pray and i keep finding myself sidetracked..if you were in my head, it would sound something like this:
Lord, you are my rock..you are sturdy..you are the reason for my existence...what will i do with that bonus room, where can i put that big piece of furniture that i use in the kitchen to keep the spices and pots and pans, now that i won't need it to store things in the new kitchen since the new cabinets give plenty of room for such things..IF we get the house, what if we don't get the house, what if it doesn't go through, oh Lord I so hope it doesn't go through if you have somewhere else for us..Lord, i want what you want..please block this if it isn't where you want us to live, minister, play, pray and nest...
see how noisy it is? so much flying around..and thank you God that taking every thought captive is Your job, not mine...and you keep bringing it all back to You.
here is a "quick" timeline of events:
put house on the market in feb. plan to sell then buy new
in june hear clark howard talk about trading houses in this recession
call ceci with crazy idea in july
ceci puts out feeler to Realtors about idea
in august builder wants to consider trading with us
we go look at the trade house and fall in love
he makes offer that we need to counter offer
ceci goes on a well deserved vacay
we wait a week to counter, all the while getting excited about moving to a new house
while waiting we go look at another house to compare prices and get a number in mind to counter offer
builder calls to say he is renting out, nothing we can do to convince him otherwise
we are ubber (sp?)upset, but had prayed that the Lord would block anything that is not of Him, so we know that He did so and we are thankful for that
in my sadness and disappointment i contact a friend who had mentioned renting our house as a last ditch effort to feel better and maybe get to still buy something and finally move
renter friend is still wanting to rent
jack and i start looking at houses..this time we have many houses to choose from..
i look through 50 mls listings and narrow it down to 20 houses, we drive around and look at all of them and get the list down to 15 houses
we have now (presently) looked at half of those and i love two, jack still not in love
we go to church and talk to a dear fried who mentions above highlighted house as being a great steal of a deal
jack and i get home and both start going on and on about how great that house really was compared to the 8 houses we have seen and 50+ houses we have looked at online..
look online and see the price has been reduced to under our price max AND under any of the houses that we liked so far in all of our searching.
i text ceci to tell her the VERY FIRST house we saw, that we are going to look at it again today (sunday sept 12) and we both really like it..so she can commiserate about the irony
she has someone about to make an offer on it..maybe monday, tells us to hurry if we really want it
we go look at it again, and fall in love on second look..now that we had a much more informed mindset.
jack and i love it..settle on an offer..make an offer (sept 12)...will know something soon, hopefully. (anyone who knows how this house thing has been going knows that this in itself is a miracle of God!)
the journey continues..folks. and even if this isn't the house that we will end with, do you see how the Lord is working. He is using these two "completely dumb to His plan" children..and He is working despite our wanderings..He is even using our wanderings for His glory, all the while we second by second repent of our trappings and fall into His perfectly mastered plan.
Pray that for us..that we will continue to live, root and be strengthened to the point of overflow.
oh, and now it is 233a or 145a..still not sure.
this house stuff is definitely all consuming...i am constantly, like every second, having to repent of idolatry and forgetting what/who is the Goal of my existence. even laying in bed i try to pray and i keep finding myself sidetracked..if you were in my head, it would sound something like this:
Lord, you are my rock..you are sturdy..you are the reason for my existence...what will i do with that bonus room, where can i put that big piece of furniture that i use in the kitchen to keep the spices and pots and pans, now that i won't need it to store things in the new kitchen since the new cabinets give plenty of room for such things..IF we get the house, what if we don't get the house, what if it doesn't go through, oh Lord I so hope it doesn't go through if you have somewhere else for us..Lord, i want what you want..please block this if it isn't where you want us to live, minister, play, pray and nest...
see how noisy it is? so much flying around..and thank you God that taking every thought captive is Your job, not mine...and you keep bringing it all back to You.
2 Corinthians 10:4-6 (New American Standard Bible)
4for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 5We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, 6and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.
4for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 5We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, 6and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.
here is a "quick" timeline of events:
put house on the market in feb. plan to sell then buy new
in june hear clark howard talk about trading houses in this recession
call ceci with crazy idea in july
ceci puts out feeler to Realtors about idea
in august builder wants to consider trading with us
we go look at the trade house and fall in love
he makes offer that we need to counter offer
ceci goes on a well deserved vacay
we wait a week to counter, all the while getting excited about moving to a new house
while waiting we go look at another house to compare prices and get a number in mind to counter offer
builder calls to say he is renting out, nothing we can do to convince him otherwise
we are ubber (sp?)upset, but had prayed that the Lord would block anything that is not of Him, so we know that He did so and we are thankful for that
in my sadness and disappointment i contact a friend who had mentioned renting our house as a last ditch effort to feel better and maybe get to still buy something and finally move
renter friend is still wanting to rent
jack and i start looking at houses..this time we have many houses to choose from..
i look through 50 mls listings and narrow it down to 20 houses, we drive around and look at all of them and get the list down to 15 houses
we have now (presently) looked at half of those and i love two, jack still not in love
we go to church and talk to a dear fried who mentions above highlighted house as being a great steal of a deal
jack and i get home and both start going on and on about how great that house really was compared to the 8 houses we have seen and 50+ houses we have looked at online..
look online and see the price has been reduced to under our price max AND under any of the houses that we liked so far in all of our searching.
i text ceci to tell her the VERY FIRST house we saw, that we are going to look at it again today (sunday sept 12) and we both really like it..so she can commiserate about the irony
she has someone about to make an offer on it..maybe monday, tells us to hurry if we really want it
we go look at it again, and fall in love on second look..now that we had a much more informed mindset.
jack and i love it..settle on an offer..make an offer (sept 12)...will know something soon, hopefully. (anyone who knows how this house thing has been going knows that this in itself is a miracle of God!)
the journey continues..folks. and even if this isn't the house that we will end with, do you see how the Lord is working. He is using these two "completely dumb to His plan" children..and He is working despite our wanderings..He is even using our wanderings for His glory, all the while we second by second repent of our trappings and fall into His perfectly mastered plan.
Col 2: 6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Pray that for us..that we will continue to live, root and be strengthened to the point of overflow.
oh, and now it is 233a or 145a..still not sure.
first offer
we made our first offer today..on this house.
you can pray that the Lord would block anything that is not in His will...and keep us focused on Him, His beauty, His gifts, His provisions, and His plan.
will give more details (where it is, the inside, the nitty gritty) if everything pans out and it becomes ours.
you can pray that the Lord would block anything that is not in His will...and keep us focused on Him, His beauty, His gifts, His provisions, and His plan.
will give more details (where it is, the inside, the nitty gritty) if everything pans out and it becomes ours.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
penetrate me
Was reading the sunday school lesson today (hey, don't judge..i know it is wednesday and sunday school was sunday...but i missed and the teacher puts the lessons online!!!) and LOVED this quote by Ed Welch:
Lord, will you search me?
Will you draw me into Your word that my heart may be penetrated?
"People are complex. Beneath the surface of life is a heart that is always on the move, looking for objects in which to trust (Luke 24:25, Romans 10:10). The heart has purposes (Prov. 20:5, Dan. 1:18), inclinations (Eccl. 10:2), intents (Heb. 4:12), imaginations and schemes (Prov. 6:18), desires (Ps. 10:3, James 4:1), and cravings and lusts (1 John 2:16, Ephe. 4:19), It is not surprising that, with such complexity, our hearts are not always immediately understandable to others, or even to ourselves (matt. 15:8, 1Cor 4:5, Prov. 16:2, Jer. 17:9). Like the bottom of a well or the roots of trees, our hearts tend to be hidden, and we can never fully know their depths. But you don't have to be a master analyst. All you need is a willingness to say, "Search me, O God" (ps. 139:23), and you will begin to see. Don't be too concerned if you feel like you are just scratching the surface. More important than knowing your motives is knowing God , and God is very generous in revealing Himself. He should be your primary focus. We should spend more time looking at Christ than in inspecting our own hearts. For if you are growing in the knowledge of God, you will be changed even to the depths of your heart."
Ed Welch, Motives : Why Do I Do the Things I Do?
The Journal of Bilbical Counseling, Fall 2003
First question after reading it was..how do we grow in the knowledge of God?
The Lord answered in His Word.
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give an account. Hebrews 4:12-13
Will you draw me into Your word that my heart may be penetrated?
migas
remember this?
well it was soooo yummy on day one! and super duper yummier on day 4! Especially with eggs and tortilla chips...
What? (i know you are thinking..that is CRAZY TALK!)
I was reading a fun blog that i recently found and now love to read called Eat, Live, Run. And there was a fun recipe for something called migas. It is scrambled eggs with crunched up chips in them.
Decided to try them for lunch today. Went to the fridge to get the eggs and saw the tomato, feta, basil salad..decided to get wild and use that as my base.
Recipe went something like this.
put fun tomato salad in small pan to heat
crack two eggs into the pan on top of it after it has heated (i don't waist a bowl by scrambling eggs ahead of time..i just do it in the pan..i know i am a genius..ha!)
break yolks with spatula and turn eggs with salad until eggs are lightly scrambled
take a handful of tortilla chips and break into egg mixture
continue to turn until eggs are totally done
enjoy the yumminess!
forgot to take a picture in all of the excitement...but it looked something like this.
well it was soooo yummy on day one! and super duper yummier on day 4! Especially with eggs and tortilla chips...
What? (i know you are thinking..that is CRAZY TALK!)
I was reading a fun blog that i recently found and now love to read called Eat, Live, Run. And there was a fun recipe for something called migas. It is scrambled eggs with crunched up chips in them.
Decided to try them for lunch today. Went to the fridge to get the eggs and saw the tomato, feta, basil salad..decided to get wild and use that as my base.
Recipe went something like this.
put fun tomato salad in small pan to heat
crack two eggs into the pan on top of it after it has heated (i don't waist a bowl by scrambling eggs ahead of time..i just do it in the pan..i know i am a genius..ha!)
break yolks with spatula and turn eggs with salad until eggs are lightly scrambled
take a handful of tortilla chips and break into egg mixture
continue to turn until eggs are totally done
enjoy the yumminess!
forgot to take a picture in all of the excitement...but it looked something like this.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
sunday of cooking
making this for two cookouts monday
making this for a brunch tuesday
making this for lunches this week
making this for thursday dinners this month
for recipes see these links:
tomato feta salad (i added garlic because everything is better with garlic)
glazed apples and sausage (didn't add the onions)
whole wheat bread in the bread machine
hawaiian chicken (i modified it by putting all ingredients in the crockpot on low for 8 hours)
did i mention that i LOVE being in the kitchen?!
happy cooking!
making this for a brunch tuesday
making this for lunches this week
making this for thursday dinners this month
for recipes see these links:
tomato feta salad (i added garlic because everything is better with garlic)
glazed apples and sausage (didn't add the onions)
whole wheat bread in the bread machine
hawaiian chicken (i modified it by putting all ingredients in the crockpot on low for 8 hours)
did i mention that i LOVE being in the kitchen?!
happy cooking!
Friday, September 3, 2010
misc
we are proceeding with renting our house out to our friends. so we are starting our house hunt. our friends would like to be in our house by november 1..so we have a little time. we have picked 12 houses out of 50 houses. (realtor sent us the mls listings for 50 that fit the criteria of what we are looking for...) basically our criteria is 4 or more bedrooms in oconee in our certain price range..so i narrowed it down to 12 by looking through pictures of the houses (that was a lonely day for jackson..while mommy stared at a computer screen all day..) and jack and i did a 3 hour drive by of some of the houses (jackson did incredibly well with being in his car seat that long, praise GOD!!)..
and some other things i found important were..
basement
community pool
sidewalks
and jack likes...
close access to the loop
space in the yard
a great financial deal..( ie. lots of house for a little money..)
so the fun begins...the adventure of trying to make his stuff and my stuff fit together like a puzzle to find the house that is right for our family. (can be very agonizing..was much easier when i found and bought this house without anyone's opinions to hold me back..but i am sure that the Lord is molding jack and i..helping us to relate to one another in a more Christ-like way..)
you see, with the trade house..we had no choices. which was nice in some ways.
for my praying readers..please pray that I won't make this house searching thing an idol. that when my heart beats it will be to the rhythm of matthew 6. this has been a real challenge for me..we come home from house hunting and i lay in bed all night thinking about the various houses and the various scenarios..it is daunting. i would love to enjoy the freedom of knowing the Lord is in control and will do His Holy and Perfect Will.
and some other things i found important were..
basement
community pool
sidewalks
and jack likes...
close access to the loop
space in the yard
a great financial deal..( ie. lots of house for a little money..)
so the fun begins...the adventure of trying to make his stuff and my stuff fit together like a puzzle to find the house that is right for our family. (can be very agonizing..was much easier when i found and bought this house without anyone's opinions to hold me back..but i am sure that the Lord is molding jack and i..helping us to relate to one another in a more Christ-like way..)
you see, with the trade house..we had no choices. which was nice in some ways.
for my praying readers..please pray that I won't make this house searching thing an idol. that when my heart beats it will be to the rhythm of matthew 6. this has been a real challenge for me..we come home from house hunting and i lay in bed all night thinking about the various houses and the various scenarios..it is daunting. i would love to enjoy the freedom of knowing the Lord is in control and will do His Holy and Perfect Will.
Matthew 6:19-21 (New International Version)
Treasures in Heaven
19"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
So Tues and Thurs of next week we will tour houses with our Realtor (whom i LOVE if you ever need a good one!)
to be continued...
also, loved reading my friend's Sunday blog today (hey, don't judge..i know it is already Friday :) it was about living in the Real World. <---click here..hope He uses it to speak to your heart like He spoke to mine.
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