Currently In Utah And Loving It

Yes we are all here safe and sound, and yes like always it was an interesting journey.

The packers came last Monday. Most of the time when movers come it is very stressful, and that is mostly because you are trying to keep your children entertained and out of every ones way. My husband however, was nice enough to take the kids out on that day. They went to the park, then to play mini golf, and lastly to watch the Cinderella movie. The best part was he thought I was doing him a favor by dealing with the movers (because he doesn't like to do that at all), but in reality he was doing me a favor. It's awesome when things work out like that.

The loaders came the next day, which was last Tuesday, on that day we just spent most of the day in the backyard kicking a Hello Kitty ball around. Both the packers and loaders moved pretty fast, and were done around 3pm on both days. Tuesday was sunny for most of the day, until about 2pm, when it started to hail like crazy. Yes it was hailing while the movers were there. Those poor guys.

Wednesday was our final inspection on our military house, and right after that was taken care of, we hit the road. Our goal for that day was to make it as far as Twin Falls, ID. We thought it was only going to be a nine hour drive The drive turned out to be more like eleven. That may have been because of the snow we hit in the mountains. We got to the hotel around 9pm, and yes we still went to the pool. We kind of had to, we promised the kids, and considering that they had put up with that drive with patience and grace, keeping our promise was no big deal. Yes before you ask the cats came too. Both of them were in my mini van, with the younger kids while the older boys were in my husband's car. Link our oldest cat was a big cry baby for almost the whole trip (he hates cat carriers), and Zazzles was just chilling.

Thursday we made it to Utah. I wanted to shout with joy when we crossed the state border, but my kids were asleep in the car at the time. I resorted to telling them with an enthused voice when they woke up. About 30 mins before we reached our final destination, which was the house we were going to rent, I get a call from the company that owns the house, saying the rent and deposit checks never came in. Great... Yes and we had sent them over a week before... Great... and they were casher's checks... Great. So we had to go and get money orders before we could move it. Yes something always has to go wrong, that's just life. You fix it, you learn from it, and you move on.

Once we finally payed for and made it to the house, it was wonderful. It was what we wanted and more. It's the perfect size and has everything we need. Every window has a view of snow caped mountains, and every room has a walk-in closet. The best part is that we have enough room for a school room.

While waiting for our stuff to arrive, we explored the area a bit. We when to the aquarium and Ikea. We checked out the mall and drove around just to see what they had here. There's a lot to do here, and as far as stores go, they have almost everything. Yes big improvement from Bremerton, WA.

Our stuff arrived on Monday (two days ago). They unloaded the truck and had everything put in the correct room in only three and a half hours. That's super fast, that fastest I've ever seen it done.

The good news is, we are almost done unpacking. We have a few boxes just setting round. The great news is that this house looks even better with our stuff in it.

I want to thank everyone who has prayed for our family during all of this. I'm so grateful for every ones kind words and prayers.

So where are we going?

I really wish I knew, but I do have some news, and 3 possible places (maybe).

If you read my last post then you already know that my husband went to a hiring conference in San Diego last week. He did 8 interviews during the conference and all of them went really well, so most of those companies wanted him back for a second interview. Jeremy decided to narrow those down to the three he was most excited about and start with those interviews. The three are IM Flash, SpaceX, and Oculus. IM Flash in located in Utah (just south of Salt Lake City), SpaceX is just south of LA, and Oculus is in San Fran. He is currently out in Utah right now doing his interview for IM Flash, and his interview for SpaceX is later on this week. He's really excited about these jobs, and I am too.

Right now I'm just praying that one of these jobs will be "the one", and that we will be moving soon. Jeremy is officially out of the Navy, so the clock is ticking. I am so ready though. I'm ready to move and start our life somewhere else. I'm ready to settle down in a permanent location (I wonder what that feels like).

I'm sorry that this is all of the news I have so far, but I will keep updating, so make sure you check back later. Thanks for reading.

So, no more Texas...

My husband didn't get the job in Texas. Now before you freak out like I almost did when I got the news, we are going to be fine. My husband is currently on his way to San Diego to go to a hiring conference, so he can interview for a few jobs, and my thoughts are "Well one of them has to stick."

Most of the jobs that he is interviewing for down there are in California, so there's a good chance we will be moving there again. I've reviewed and re-reviewed the California homeschool laws, and I think I understand them now, and know what to do, so I'm happy to say that the state of California is now on the green list of good homeschooling states.

Am I disappointed? Well I was at first, but now I think it was probably for the best. We were having a hard time trying to figure out where to live. The closes houses for rent were an hours drive away, and we couldn't get approved for a mortgage until after he started his new job. I guess now I don't have to worry about that, or at least not there. The thought of being able to live in California again is exciting right now, and if I'm close to my best friend Jessica, than that would just be icing on the cake.

To put everyones mind at ease, we're going to be fine. Even if the interviews this weekend don't go according to plain, we will still be okay, and we will still keep trying, and trusting that God will send us to the right place.

My sister came to visit! And we finally have some news!

Okay so first things first. My sister came to visit! Now when I say sister I really mean best friend who I refer to as a sister because we are so close. I have known her for 7 years now, and consider myself very blessed to know such a friend.

Her visit was planned somewhat last minute, but worked out really well. I just woke up last Monday thinking "wow I really miss Jessica. I wonder if I could arrange for her to fly up this weekend and get some best friend therapy?" and it worked out. You got to love when things just happen to go that way. I had an awesome time. We played games, went hiking, baked brownies, and talked a lot. It felt like home to have her here, and I think she enjoyed herself as well.

So now for the news. We have finally, after waiting for 6 months, heard back from the Navy, and my husband (Jeremy) is getting out of the Navy the first week in March. Jeremy also has a job interview in Texas next week, so if all goes well we will be moving to Texas in the next few weeks. I know it's crazy, and yes, here we go again.

So if you would like to send any prayers our way we could sure use them. I'm just praying that everything works out great, and we'll be able to schedule everything on time, and we'll have no problems getting down there. I just want to let everyone know that I am excited and I am happy.

Thank you all for your prayers, and thanks for reading.

We've moved... but don't get to excited

We are now back in Military housing and we are also still in Washington, for those of you wondering if we have moved out of the area yet. We still haven't heard any news from the Navy about moving out of state. We moved backing into housing because our house sold pretty quick, and we can now just waiting out the news here, on where we are going next.

This week has been a crazy, busy week. It all started on Sunday (the 21st) when Jeremy and I picked up the U-haul. We we loaded up a 17ft truck with as much as we could fix, so Jeremy could drive it to the lease singing the next day (Monday the 22nd), so we could start unloading it right away. Then it was back to the old house for the second load. Yup two loads and hours of back breaking work, but we did it. I'm still not sure how. After the first load was out of the truck, I was done. I didn't want to move another muscle. The Lord must have blessed me with strength at that point, because we did keep going, and like I said, we did finish. Tuesday (the 23rd), was spent cleaning the old house, and getting any little things we had left behind.

We've been back a few times to our old house this week, to check the mail, and Olivia gets upset every time we drive down that street saying "No, we live in the new house now, not here." Yes she really likes the new place. She was so thrilled when we started unpacking her stuff, and kept saying to every stuffed animal that she unpacked "You made it! You made it to the new house." I'm relieved that she feels this way. I was worried that leaving our old house would upset her. Yes we are military and yes we do move all of the time, but last time we moved was two years ago, and Olivia was only two, and was probably to young to be attached to a house. I guess what I should really worry about is if she will want to move again in the next few months. :P

We lost some square footage moving here (only 700 ish), but I'm really impressed on how we are making it work, and I guess we are just going to have to become closer. :)

Christmas Eve and Christmas were wonderful. We got to stay home (in our new home), and chill. We made cookies on Christmas eve, and on Christmas day Jeremy made us sausage gravy. We played a lot of Minecraft and watched Home Alone. It's was the kids first time watching it, and they loved it.

I hope everyone had an awesome Holiday. Happy New Year!

Deep Breaths :)

Hi everyone! I have a little to update you guys on, and since a little is better than nothing at all, I decided to write a blog post.

I need to first start by thanking all of you prayer worriers out there. God has really come through for us this week. We have to get some repairs to our (soon to be their) chimney, and after the inspector came and we finally got an estimate a week later, and it was over $5,000. Yes, wow! This was just something we could not afford. You can imagine the stress and worry that took place in the days that followed. We really didn't know what to do. Our real estate agent suggested that he could try and work something out with the buyers. See what they thought about it, and wanted to do, and see if they were willing to cover some of the cost. Well it really payed off because they were, and they also wanted to change some things about the fireplace anyways. This decision cut our cost in half, and that was something we could afford and are more than willing to pay for. So once again a big thank you to all who have been praying for us. Words can't describe how relieved and thankful I am.

We are moving back into military housing a week from now, so I'm going to be really busy this week finishing all of the packing. Fun! Lets just say that's there is more to do than I care to think about. I've gotten the house about a third of the way packed, so yes still two thirds to go. I Think Olivia thought I canceled Christmas when I packed up the Christmas tree last week. I'm sorry to say that it was the first thing I packed, and we decided that even after we move we aren't getting it back out again this year. I know, it does seem somewhat sad, but all you need to have a good Christmas is just each other, and I can say that we are more than blessed in that department.

We still have no news about our final destination, so if you could keep the prayers coming, and pray for news, than that would be great. We really can't move forward until we have news. Jeremy needs news before he can apply for jobs.

I made this map after looking up all of the different Homeschool laws from all of the 50 states. Yes every state has different laws and some states are easier to homeschool in than others. Since homeschooling is my number one priority right now, I would like to move to a state that is very homeschool friendly. If anyone were to ask me right now what state I wanted to move to the most. I would say Texas, because they have awesome homeschool laws. That may shock a few people because I have said for years now, that given the choice I would move back to San Diego. I still love that city and it is still my most favorite place, but it's just to expensive. I still count myself as a San Diegan (even though I was born and raised 3,000 miles away from it) and yes if money weren't an issue I would move there in a heartbeat and have someone explain the homeschool laws to me (because I found California's laws a bit confusing). I do feel though, that I could also grow to love another city just as much, if given the chance.

Well that's all I have for now please keep praying for news and, I'll tell you once we have some.

Small update on our house, but no still no news on where we may be moving.

Hey everyone!

I want to first start off by thanking everyone for their prayers. Life has been a little crazy, but our ability to keep calm and keep the stress level down has truly been the work of God's hand.

Our house went up on the market on the 14th of November, and after only 6 days we had an offer in on it. That was great news and a big sigh of relief. It has been mostly smooth sailing since, but we have hit a small wrinkle with the fire place and some repairs needed for that. I ask now that you pray that the repairs will be affordable and done quickly. That has been the main source of stress these past few days.

We still have no news from the Navy as to if they are going to assign Jeremy a new rate, or discharge him. I must say that waiting for that news alone has been really hard for us. He really can't start applying for jobs unless he has a discharge date. I'm still really hopping that the news will come this week, even though this week is almost over.

I do have some good news though. Our house (as long as everything goes well), will be closing on the 31st of this month. I guess that may seem like bad news since we don't know where we are going yet, but I applied for military housing in the area just yesterday, and they have already reserved a house for us. Yes very good news, so if the Navy continues to take it's sweet little time, at least we will have a place to live. Our plan is to get a storage unit and put a lot of our stuff in it, and only move the bear necessities when we move into military housing, because we will most likely be moving again within the next few months. Eeeekkkkk!

Yes like I said, it's a bit stressful, and I feel like it's also the wrong season for it. I haven't thought of Christmas as much as I usually do this time of year, because my mind is elsewhere. Thank goodness I have already bought presents.

I really wish I could tell you guys more, but there is nothing else. I can't thank you enough for your prayers, and I ask that they continue, because it's not over yet.

The Legates Family is Moving... AGAIN!

I'm sure you are hopping that the title holds some news as to where we are going, but I am sad to say, that not even this blog post holds any shred of evidence as to where we may end up. We received the news two weeks ago. Although I was hopping that by this time I would have received more news such as where, or what exactly is happening, so that way I could share it here, or at least with my family and friends, but I have nothing else to report on that matter.

I'm just going to explain why we are in this situation in the first place. Back in February my husband passed out on the way to work. Thank goodness he walks to work instead of drives (you can read all about that on this post). Face planting on the sidewalk and the headaches that followed after that disqualified him from his rate (job) in the Navy. That was okay though because they were going to let him apply for three other rates, and most likely one of them would pick him up. It was all supposed to happen like this... He would get pick up by his new rate in January, go off to a school for it, come back a few months later, and maybe we would move at the end of all of that if they were going to send us elsewhere. Which meant if we were going to be moving, than we would move sometime next summer... maybe. I really should known by now that nothing ever happens the way you expect it to, or at least not when you husband is in the military.

What really happened was two of the three rates that Jeremy (my husband) applied for, he was already medically disqualified for (because of the same reasons). This is of course was something the detailer (the person helping him with all of this) forgot to mention, so of course those two rates said no, and the third was over manned, so no again.

Now what? Yes that was my exact thought as you can imagine. I should also note that we had been waiting for news on this since August, because that's when the paper work was sent. Waiting to hear some news since August, and we finally hear some, and it's... "You can't have those rates, and we still don't know what we are going to do with you."

So what now? Well one of two things is going to happen. My husband is now on the needs of the Navy status, meaning they will find a rate for him that he is qualified for and send him there as long as it's not over manned, or if they can't find one then they will discharge him. We were also told that if he doesn't like the rate that they pick out for him, then we has the option of getting out as well. We should have news soon, but in reality we should have had news by now.

I'm not worried if we get out, Jeremy had a friend who got out a few weeks ago, did the same job in the Navy as him, and had a ton of job offers. I'm also now worried if we say in. I'm use to the crazy lifestyle that comes with having a husband in the service, and I've enjoyed the adventures we've been able to partake in. I do not however want to say here, and it's not because of the rain. No that's only part of it. It's because of the homeschool laws (mostly, there maybe a few other reasons like area and there being nothing here, but mostly homeschool laws). I would like to move to a state where they trust you enough to homeschool your kids without having to check your work every week or making you take a three month long course in order to homeschool. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind them checking our work, but every week is a lot, and not being able to follow my own curriculum is the worst.

I love my children and I want them to be themselves (just the way God made them), and learn the best way possible for them, and I feel like right now, it's just not happening.

I'm sorry I don't have anymore news, but I will update this once I know something. Please continue to pray for our family, and thank you for your prayers so far.

We are just trusting God with get us though this, and off to a new place that we will love.

We have moved (AGAIN!)

Yes it has finally happened we finally bought that house. We signed the papers last Monday (the 10th), and have been busy moving ever since. Okay yes most of our stuff has been here, at the new house for a while, and it's been a slow going process for the non essentials. We've been so busy lately. This whole process has made me realize that I never want to move again, but I know I will have to eventually. The Navy will most likely move us again in a few years, and I also want to retire in San Diego, so... Yeah I'm going to have to move again, and most likely again after that. For the record, I hate moving, and I'm really worn out from this one, and I hope I never see another box again.

I love this house it's awesome. It really fits our needs. Okay now I know what your saying. "Randi didn't you say that about the last house? You know that one you only lived in for 3 months?" Okay you got me, yes I did. I have a very over positive personality (I'm not kidding). I did like the other house, and it did fit our needs mostly. What made us change our minds were the awesome housing prices around here, and the people living around us in navy housing. We were living in Jackson Park, and we discovered that it is the ghetto of Navy housing. Don't get me wrong the navy tries to keep it nice, but the people who move into these units just aren't good quality. They enjoy partying very loudly on Friday nights, and they let their kids wonder the neighborhood all day, and I'm not talking about 10 - teens, I'm talking about little kids, some as young as 5 (believe me, I wish I was joking). I just can't stand lazy parents, you sit around on your lazy butt all day, while your kid is raised by other things and other people, and you wonder why your kid doesn't respect you. Hummmm.....

We are almost all the why done with unpacking, and when we are I'll post pictures. I still have a lot of work to do today, so I have to go. Thanks for reading :)

Our move to Washington

Wow! So, where do I start? It has been a crazy week. We had the greatest packers we've ever had, in any of our moves. I was surprised when they only sent me 2 people to pack up my whole house. I was also equally surprised at how fast those 2 people were at packing. They arrived at 8:30am and were done everything by 2pm. Yes wow. To go with the great packers we also had great loaders, who were done by 1pm. The moving company was United, just in case anyone wants to know. Our driver was a female (first time that has ever happened), and she traveled with her little puddle named Ginger (very cute).

Not everything went smoothly... Our plans to ship Jeremy's car didn't happen, when the auto shipping place couldn't get us a driver (even with a months notice, and we didn't find this out until the day we were leaving). So it seemed we were off to a bad start. I just needed to remind myself, that God has watched over us this far, He's not going to stop now, and I need to trust Him. We ended up both driving, and instead of this being a fun site seeing trip, with fun stops, it turned into, a hurry up and get this over with kind of trip. I can look back and say "Oh well," now that's it's over with, we are here safely, and the driving really wasn't that bad. I must say that I feel very blessed, and thankful that we are all here safe and sound. All of that with very few bumps along the way (I can deal with bumps). Now that it's all said and done, I'm glad I drove, it was fun (kind of). I'm glad I got to see all of the beautiful things along the way and think "My God made all of this, WOW!" This drive had the most beautiful sights I have ever seen.

Our stops were... Lisbin, OH,   South Bend, IN,   Alexandra, MN,   Billings, MT,   Spokane, WA,   and now we are home in Kitsap county Washington. We traveled through Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, and finally Washington. So if you were on the road in one of those states and you saw a white mini van following a blue mustang, that was us.

So now that I have done "The drive across country" I do have some advice to give to anyone who is about to do a long drive. Pack plenty of snacks and chewing gum, they come in handy when you are sleepy and if you feel like you are zoning out. Do not drink a lot of tea or coffee (I'm sure you know why). If traveling with a cat (or any fuzzy animal), make sure your cat carrier doesn't have a hole in it (one that can be picked at and made bigger, so he can escape... Yes this did happen). Bring great music. Most importantly, pray before you go, and thank God every step of the way.

Now all I have left to do is wait for all of my stuff to get here (which should happen tomorrow). I really like our new house, and I look forward to all of the happy memories here. :)

About to hit the road :)

So this is my last post before the internet is shut down, and we hit the road. This is what we've been up to...

We put together snacks for the drive

The boys loved doing this

This is our snack box. Do you think we have enough?

Getting things together...

This is when we started to put together our van pack stuff...

On Monday the boys and I made up snacks, and put all of the snacks in one place (yes some of them were store bought). We also put all of the drinks in a box. This whole box system made it easy to put things together, and see what we had. Over the past few weeks I have been putting together our van pack list, so with the list in hand, I pulled all of the stuff together (with help from the husband, and kids). Olivia was even helping at one point, she added Daddy's power bars to the snack box, they didn't belong there, but it was cute.

On Tuesday I took down all of the pictures and the curtains. This is when reality really sets in, because after this point it doesn't look like your house anymore, and you know you really are leaving. It should only take about 15 mins, but it took a lot longer, because it's sad. Afterward our house also felt empty, even though everything else is still there.

On Wednesday we did a dry run van pack. This was just to see if everything would fit. To see if we had extra room. To see if we needed to cut out some things. To find a spot of everything (a spot that works). We found out really quick that the snacks needed to go in a different box. My plan was to put the snacks near the front so I could hand them out... well... even after putting them in a different box, they still couldn't fix anywhere up front, so now they are right beside Darien's set, and he's going to hand them out. So long story short everything fits. YAY! This was all thanks to Jeremy who shifted things around for a better fit. Even after all of this we were still able to keep the things we would need every time we stop on top.

On Thursday I finished up the laundry and packed the clothes...

Yes only 2 bags! So are you asking the question... "Randi how did you fit clothes for 6 people, for a 2 week period (about), into just 2 bags? Well it's an easy answer. I really didn't pack a lot of clothes. Since we don't have a lot of room in the van, I decided to only pack 4 outfits per person + one pair of PJs. My plan is to use hotel laundry rooms, and once we get there, find a local laundromat. I had the kids help me with packing, this helps them to feel involved, and it's fun because they get to pack what they like. When doing this I just make it simple for them... "Okay guys I need you to find 4 short sleeve shirts and 4 pairs of comfortable pants. Make sure they are comfortable, because you will be sitting in them all day. Oh and get out a pair PJs too."... They love packing.

On Friday we cleaned. Well really no surprise there. Sure we had to keep the house clean when they were showing it all of the time, but now that we have a renter (yes we have a renter). We haven't really seen the need to keep it really clean. We've done an okay job, but you know how things go some times.

So today (sunday), we just need to finish up cleaning up, move the couch down stairs (we are not keeping it), and pack up the van. Movers come tomorrow, and I'm not looking forward to it. I really just need to get it all over with. Keep praying for us. Pray for a safe drive, and an easy next few days.

Bye for now!

Blog Changes, Yard sale finished, and our last weeks in Maryland.

Hey everyone! Well I'm not sure if you noticed (I hope you did), but the blog name has changed and so has the banner. We are 16 days away from moving so I thought it was time. So 16 days from now we will start on a new journey and we will be pilgrims again, going to a new place that we know nothing about. Will we like it? Who knows, but you can just keep checking back to find out.

The yard sale is done... Thank goodness! My husband took a before picture...

I woke up at 5:30am, and at 6am I started to put the stuff out. The good news is we sold a lot of the big things, but the bad news is we still ended up taking a lot of things to GoodWill. I'm not to upset about it though, because the stuff is now out of my house. Yard sale day was a long day... Most of the time I sat outside waiting for people to come (at least it was nice out). On the bright side my brother came to help me later on that day, and his fiance Jessica came over after the yard sale was over, and we ate pizza (I love pizza). We also had them over yesterday for tacos, and I found out, that I'm not good at playing phase 10 (oh well), but it's still fun to play when you are losing. Yup that's what we do, those 2 come over and we play... Monopoly, Magic, phase 10, uno, clue, and small world (thank you Wil Wheaton). We have so much fun!

So we have 2 weekends left here, and they are both going to be busy, but we've been busy every weekend for the past 2 months. This Sunday we are going over to my Parent's house, and next weekend we are having Jeremy's parents over. Yes there is still so much to do. On the bright side we got the mini van checked out, and I've started a van pack list (it's almost finished). We have our hotel reservations made, and our trip planed...

Looks like fun right? Back when this all stated (in October), it seemed so far away, that it would never happen, and now it feels real.

So I was researching the area (looking for how close everything is), and the nearest Walmart is going to be a whole 12 miles away... this was my reaction...

Okay yes I know, I've been spoiled. The good news is that the nearest target is only 6 miles away, so I guess I'll be okay.

Now as for our house (that we are renting out)... We've had a lot of showings, and now apparently someone is interested (I just now found out ), so keep praying for us. I really hope this works out.

The next time you hear from me might be when we are on our way across, but I can't make any promises. We are going to bring our MacBook, and I think all of the hotels have wifi, but I'm not sure. If I don't get to post on our way across, I will post about it once it's all over.

Okay I need to go now, thanks for reading :).

Almost ready...

Hey guys, so this is going to be more about the move. I know that has been pretty much all that I've been talking about lately, but there isn't much else going on. The move is so big, that if there was anything else going on, then I would be going crazy. So first the good news :) We have a place! Housing has reserved a place for us, and I feel so relieved. With that out of the way, we can worry about everything else. There is so much to do, and I just hope we get it all done in time.

I've been cleaning a lot lately (and you guys all know how much I love cleaning) :P. I had to get the house "show ready", for potential renters. The cleaning really isn't that hard, it's just we have to keep it clean, and that isn't always easy, because of the 4 wonderful kids we have. We are also going to be moving into a smaller place, so we are planning a really big yard sale. There are just some things we won't have room for anymore, so they have to go. I'm kind of glad though, de-cluttering is nice, and I like the thought of getting rid of things we don't need. I also think that since our new place is smaller, it will discourage us from buying anything we don't need (I'm really just trying to look on the bright side of things, so don't rain on my parade).

So here we go again planning a cross country move (our 3rd). Three years ago (almost exactly), we were doing the same thing (from CA to MD), and just two years before that (almost exactly) the same thing (from VA to CA). You think I'd be a pro at this by now. I'm just trying to take it one step at a time, and trying to look at the bright side, and take deep breaths. Needless to say, I'll be feeling so much better once we get there, and it's all over. Do you ever feel that way? Do you ever say to yourself "I'll be so happy when this is all over with." I'm sure you do, so I'm sure you can understand, and I am so there with you.

So I haven't really shared much of this yet, but I'm a little disappointed that we aren't going back to San Diego. I know I haven't really said anything yet, but it's true. I still have friends there (and a best friend there), and you really can't beat the weather, but it just didn't happen that way. Washington was the only thing available. That tells me, that God wants us to go there. He sometimes does things like this to me, because given my own choice, I most likely wouldn't ask Him what I should do, I would just pick, and only pick what I wanted. So since this was the only choice I feel like God was saying "You need to go here this time, not back to San Diego." So maybe God has something to teach me in Washington, or maybe He has some people He really wants me to meet, or something wonderful He really wants me to see, but since it is His choice I'm sure He has something wonderful planned. Maybe someday He'll let us go back to San Diego. I have to trust Him on this though, because given the choice I wouldn't have moved to San Diego in the first place (it was just to far away from home), but see that's just one of the ways God has changed me, and He could do it all over again if He wanted to.

Lost your faith? You need to read this!

If you haven't read the "Frustration grrrrr..." post, then you may want to read that before reading this :)

So I want to first thank any and everyone who has been praying for our housing situation. I didn't ask anyone to pray for us, but because of what happened 2 days ago, I'm convinced someone(s) has(have), so thank you so much. So what happened? Where does this all come from? Can we start at the beginning? Yes we can.

So 2 days ago (on Tuesday), I was online bored and just looking at google maps, right over Kitsap county. I was really worried about our housing situation. We had been looking into renting and possibly buying, but the things in our price range just weren't very nice or livable, or in a good neighborhood. I felt like living in Washington was going to be like what we had to go through in Virginia (I'll explain). In Virginia we rented this really old brick house that didn't seen so bad... until... the raccoon moved in, and the mice. Not to mention we were right next to the ghetto and heard a lot of gun shots, and this poor house was also on the verge on being swallowed by the vegetation (the left side of the house was covered in vines). Yeah I felt like we were about to go through all of that again.

So yeah I was really worried, and looking at google maps, and of course I was looking at the military houses. I wanted to live there, and not in crazy ghetto house. It was about at this time, that I felt like God was trying to tell me something. He reminded me that I had prayed for a military house, that way back when this all started (in October), I prayed that military housing would be able to provide us with a place, one that would fill our needs. I was very faithful with this prayer... until 3 weeks ago... then I gave up because of our number, and because of what I was told, and I started to look else where right after getting off of the phone. Loss of faith on my part, and I really shouldn't have done that. So I felt like God was telling me that I need to call them. That had me thinking... "what am I going to say? I'm number 96 (as of last week we moved up 2 spots), they can't change that just because I ask them to, their are other people that need a house too." I still felt like God was pushing me to call them. That's when I remember something... I was on the Kitsap Naval Base website the other day, and on that web site they actually tell you how long the waiting list is, and the list for the 3 bedroom was shorter. Okay now I do have something to say to her. All of the rentals and houses that were in our price range were 3 bedrooms, so why not put us on the 3 bedroom list with housing as well? There wouldn't really be a difference, well except the neighborhood would be better. So yeah lets do that.

Okay I called and it went something like this... "Hello Military housing Kitsap."  "Hi I have some questions for you if you have some time to answer them?"  "Of course, what can I do for you?"  "We are on the waiting list for a 4 bedroom, and we are number 96, and we are moving in may, and I'm just really worried. I was wondering if it's possible and if the waiting list is shorter, if we could also be put on the list for a 3 bedroom." "Yeah, of course. Let me check to see where you would be if we did that."  "Thank you." (she took my information)... "Well it's not much better, you would be number 94. Oh the bright side we do get the 3 bedroom ones back sooner, so you would move through the list faster."  "But most likely not fast enough I'm guessing?"  "Yeah I don't think so, but have you considered our housing community located off of base?"  "What, you have one of those? I didn't even know about it. Is it close to the base?"  "Yeah it's only a few miles away. They are older units, but very well kept."  "Well I'm not picky! How long is that list?"  "Give me a second and I'll check... ... ... Well it looks like we have a few 4 bedroom units available now."  "Really?"  "Now we can only hold a unit for 30 days, so call back in April and as long as we have something available then we can put your name by it and hold it for you."  "Wow thank you, you have made my day."

So I was on cloud nine after this phone call, and I had to immediately call Jeremy right after, and tell him the good news.

God is faithful even when were not. I prayed for a Military house, and He wanted to give it to me, but the second things seemed impossible I lost faith and believed we would never be able to live in one. I have some verse for you, and maybe if I had went to my Bible in my time of need, and read these verse, I wouldn't have lost faith.


Matthew 6:26
     Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly         Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

Matthew 7:11
     If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him.

God is awesome, and He will provide for your needs.

Frustration grrrrr...

Today I'm going to do something a little different. I'm going to share my frustration with you guys! Aren't you so excited?... ? ... Right...

So I guess what I should do first is let you guys know, what has me so frustrated. The answer... Military Housing. Okay not really a big surprise to all of you Military wives out there. We all know how it is... In most military areas you run into one of these two problems. Either they will have to many units, and start renting them out to civilians and the neighbor hoods will go bad (I don't have anything agents civilians, but they just don't pick good people), or they will have not enough units, and not enough by a long shot. It's just frustrating. Now on the bright side it's not like this at all Military bases, just most of them.

Okay now I'll tell my story. I applied for housing in Silverdale, WA back in October (the second that my husband brought his orders home). It only took a few days to get them all of the paper work they needed and they were good. The lady told me that I could call back in February to check my spot on the list (okay cool). She did tell me that she might not be able to get us a 5br (because they only had a few), but she could defiantly get us a 4br.  I thought "Okay everything is good now, I have nothing to worry about, and we'll have a place to live come May." I was excited about it! I enjoyed going to the web site, and looking at the pictures, wondering which unit would be ours. So come February (just a few weeks ago) I called to see where we were on the list. 98...98? ... "98?" That didn't sound promising to me, but I'm not an expert so I asked. "Is that good? Do you think we'll get a place by May?" and she answered "Yeah we move through a lot of people, I don't think you'll have any problems." So I trusted her...  Two weeks later I call to check again. I wanted to see if we moved any, and how much. If we moved 8 to 10 spots then that would really make me feel better. 98... 98... "still 98" (not good). I was going to ask some more questions, but this lady must have been in a hurry, because she hung up once the number was out of her mouth. I was a little shocked after that. I walked around all day wondering "Did I hear her right?" "Did she look at the number wrong?" After sleeping on it, I decided to call again, at a different time in the day. I was hoping to get someone different. This time a man pick up the phone (okay good, this is defiantly someone different). So I ask him our spot, and it really didn't surprise me when he said 98. So I ask him "Do you think will get a unit by May?" and he says "At this point no, and I'll explain. We base it by your husband's transfer date, and our waiting list is 4 to 8 mouths long after (AFTER), your transfer date." (So the one lady lied to me) and (well there's some fine print for you). So I thanked him for being honest with me, but really... If I had known this from the beginning, than it really wouldn't be a big deal. I would have prepared myself for it, and I would have already set up alternatives, but at this point with only 9 weeks left, I'm not happy. Sure I can do it, I can find us a place in that amount of time, it's just going to be stressful and crazy (yup that's all).

So that's it, just some frustration, and a lesson learned. Always ask how long the waiting list is that moment you send in the paper work.

Hi, I'm still here :)... Normal stuff, and playing Skyward Sword

Hey everyone! So yes once AGAIN, it has been some time since I've posted a normal post (a more personal one). Sorry about that, once again we have run into a busy yet boring time. Yes that does happen to even me :). So I'll catch you up... hummm... lets see. I've been cleaning and teaching (all normal). My kids took a break from school for Christmas and then another last week (I love breaks). Jeremy went to Connecticut for a week, and that was odd feeling. The last time he was gone for more then a couple of days was June of 09. I had no idea what to do with myself that week especially after the kids went to bed. I ended up watching a lot of Big Bang Theory. We also had a Property Management Company come look at our house, so we can rent it out in a few months. Can you believe we only have a few months left here? Wow kind of hits you square in the face once you realize it. "BAM" "You've got a lot of work to do!" On the bright side, We've done all we can do at this point. Now it's just a waiting game.

So guess who turns 2 next week... Did you guess Olivia? If so then you are right. I'm still in shock! Sure she's big, but my baby can't be 2 already. That can't be right :( . ... ... Well anyways I'm going to do a special post on that day, and for all of my other kids on their birthday (for this year), so make sure to come back here on Feb 1, April 13, May 21, and June 4. Oh and here's an interesting little fact, none of my kids were born the same month they were due. Darien, my first was due in June, but he was born in May. Zachary, my second was due in May, but he was born in June (Zachary was born on Darien's due date). Nathaniel, my third was also due in May, but he was born in April. Olivia was due in January, and you get the picture.

Okay so the next part of this post is a video game review, so for all of you non gamers out there who really don't want to hear, you can stop now if you want.


The review is for Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Oh my where to begin...

The graphics are pretty awesome. They take the Wii and use it to the best of it abilities (I didn't even know a Wii game could look this good). The story line is great, like most Zelda games the story is very interesting, and they did a get job with it.

As for the game play... well... The motion controls are a pain. I would say it's about half and half. Half of the time it will do what you want, and what you are trying to do, and half the time it won't. Yes in the game they have a training session were they teach you all of the moves that you can do, and that was fun and not to hard. Once that's over however and you are in front of a crazy scary boss that can only be defeated by an upwards motion swing of the sword... It's a different story. It's also frustrating to watch, when you can clearly see that they are swinging the Wii mote in the right way, and on the screen Link is doing something totally different. The dungeons and bosses in this game can be really hard, long, and challenging. The things they will ask you to do, will have you thinking... "Really, you want me to do that, like that? You've got to be kidding me."

On the bright side not only is the main story great, by the side stories are too. Not only do you get to save the princess and become a hero, you also get to help other people and see them change as well. They have great side quest in this game, so if your not quite ready to progress the story yet, you can do the side quest, and have lots of fun.

I would probably give that game a 6 out of 10, but to be honest if it wasn't for the motion controls I would give it a 9 out of 10. Sure motion can be fun, and I understand why they wanted to try it out in a Link game, I just wish there was an option to play it with just a controller if you wanted. That would honestly solve all of my in game problems.

Okay I'm all done now, thanks for reading :)

Ready... Set... Wait 6 months

Hey bloggy buddies... Yup once again we experience a gap in posts. Sorry, and yes you all know that this is a busy yet boring time of year (what a surprise). Yes with all of the dinner planning / dinner going, Christmas shopping, and holidays it's a wonder anyone gets anything else done. It happens, but it's very rare (and very boring apparently).

So because of that I have decided to make my post about our impending move. Yup the BIG ONE, all the way across country AGAIN! This move (in May), will be our 3rd across country move (yes 3rd). It's a lot to take in, but since I've gone through it before, that makes it easier.

So I've started to plan already (yeah I know). Why so soon? I like to know how I'm going to go about doing things, and since this thing is so big... well... you know... All I've done so far is planning the drive (as much as I can). How many days are we going to take going across? Where are we going to sleep?... Well we would like to make the trip in 7 days (no more, and no less). So why is that? Well in the past we did it in much less time (4 days), and while that was quick, it was also stressful and crazy. This time, we are just going to take it easy (as easy as possible, if there is such a thing). We are also staying at KOAs. Perfect solution, because we have pets, and kids, and I really don't like hotels.

Okay so like I said before I'm really looking forward to moving, for many reasons.... (I'm just not sure the rest of you will understand or like them)... Okay this may sound mean, but I'm not trying to be at all. I would really like to spend the holidays alone (just Jeremy, the kids, and me). I just like doing what I want for Thanksgiving, and Christmas, and not have to go everywhere and play the "fair" game. It's not easy especially since we have lived far away before, and that's what we're use to doing. I love my family (very much so), but I'm just so use to doing it on my own. I blame it on my middle childness (if there is such a thing). I spent my whole childhood trying to get every ones attention, and now that I'm grown up, I don't want it anymore, because I'm use to not having it. But when you move back home after being away for so long, your going to get it, so I had it coming to me (I suppose). It's funny how you change and adapt over the years, and just get use to how things are. I'm also looking forward to meeting new people. Our stay in Washington should be 5 years, and that's longer than any other place we've lived so far. This will give us more time with those new people we meet (a shame we didn't have that before, I've meet some really great people over the years, and just didn't have enough time with them) :( ... (thank goodness for facebook right?) :) ...


Speaking of time... With the passing of this month, marks the longest we've lived anywhere since my husbands Navy career started. We have lived here for 2 years and 7 months (Yes that isn't very long). Isn't that sad? One of these days we will live somewhere long enough to get use to the house, the area, and the other people, but not yet (I feel like we are vagabonds). I guess staying in a place longer that 2 years fells weird to me... What people actually do that?... They settle down, and stay in one town / city for the rest of their life?... Is that normal?...

Okay yes I'm just messing, I know it's normal. :) Not military normal though

So I've been planning the move so I can kind of figure things out early. List will need to be made, and things will need to be packed, and I just want to make sure I don't forget anything (I'm sure I still will). We need to set aside things to go in the car, and things to be packed by the movers. We need to get the car tuned up before we go, and we need to make reservations. Most Importantly we need a place to live. Right now we have an application in with the military housing up there. I have really high hopes for this. They do have 5 bedroom units, but I was told by the lady, that they only have a few. She did say that we shouldn't have any problems getting a 4 bedroom one though. I told her I just really needed a house, and that I wasn't picky (I hope that puts me on her good side) :)


Okay so that's all for now... See you guys later :)

The news is in!

Hey guys! Remember when I left you hanging on where we were going to move next? Well now I can finally tell you. Are you ready?...


Okay here you go...

...
so...

Does this tell you anything?

When May comes around, this will be my new blog banner, and the new name of the blog will be Modern Day Pilgrims.

So do you like it? Do you still not know where we are going?

For the few (very few I hope), people who still aren't sure, we are going to Washington.


Well that's all of the news I have for now. Thanks for reading.

Hello! :)

Hey everyone, sorry it's been a little while. I really haven't written any personal post in some time, and I feel that a more personal one is due. Things are going mostly well, and we are now into our second week of Homeschooling for this school year. The first week was mostly good... we had some disappointing grades at the end of the week, mostly due to a lack of studying. My kids would still like to believe that it is summer, and we can all still goof of and get by (sometimes I like to believe that too). Yes this does happen. We are learning our lesson this week, by taking more time, to study. I reminded my kids that taking notes is important :). Ahhh yes the art of taking notes (very important).


Jeremy and I started reading another book together (for those of you that have been following me for some time now, you know that I have mentioned that we do that from time to time, and we really enjoy it). This time it's "The Omen Machine" by Terry Goodkind. I really like Terry Goodkind, he is the author of my favorite book series "The Sword Of Truth," This book is a continuation of that series (it has the same characters), but isn't considered part of the series (not sure what Terry is doing, but I like it). This book has been keeping me on the edge of my set. Pretty much every chapter is a cliff hanger, that makes you want to read the next. We (Jeremy and I) will sit down to read just a few chapters (2 or 3), and end up reading 6 (because we have to). In reality I'm the pusher (because he's the one reading), and we'll get done a chapter, and he'll look at me, like "Well do we go on, or wait until tomorrow?" and that's when I give him the look that says "Please keep going I don't want to wait until tomorrow." (yes we can say that with only looks... we've been married for 9 years, all it takes is looks now)...  :) ... Last night at the end of one of the chapters, Richard (the main character), had discovered something, and it ended like that (and we didn't know what it was), then the next chapter wasn't even about him (so we would have to wait even longer to find out). It had me yelling "Goodkind" in a Khan / Captain Kirk, kind of way. (Star Trek reference... "Khan"). Yeah it was funny. With the way things are going, it shouldn't take us long to finish this book, but then I guess it will be kind of sad once it's over :(.


So.... The hurricane... How did it go? Well we were able to keep power the whole time. Yes I do feel really blessed. Our party was great... The balloons only lasted a day, so they were gone even before the hurricane started, but we still got a good use out of them. The magic of a balloon is wonderful. I got the kids some spongebob party hats, and we played Mario Kart. We watched the wind and the rain, and we were thankful to be inside. My parents (and Jeremy's parents), live across that bay, and they got it much worse than we did, but I am happy to report that they were also fine. My heart does go out to everyone who was affected by the flooding, and you are in my prayers.


I do have a bit of news as to where we are moving next, but since it isn't set in stone as of yet, I really don't want to say anything (sorry). So you will all have to want until October (I'm sorry that it's so far away), but I will tell you that at this point it looks like we will be doing another across country move... (on the fun!) One of these days, we will settle down and stay in one place, but until then "Bring it on!"

At this point I'm sad to say that I am ready to go. I've enjoyed this time living close to my family, but I need to move on. I have really been in a relationship yuck ever since moving here, I really haven't been able to find very many Mommy friends, and the friends that I did have... well...  lets just say it's been very lonely friend wise. Just to be clear I'm not talking about all of them, but yes most of them (out of the few I did have). "I miss my San Diego Mommy friends." :( ... I just feel like bridges have been buried, and I need to forget about it and move on, so I am. I guess sometimes I just wonder... "Is it me, am I weird or something? Did I say something wrong?"

Okay well sorry to end on a bad note, and with a cliff hanger, but I will tell you guys where we are going when we find out. I'm really excited!

Thanks for reading.

So what's up Legates'?

So it has been some time since my last real post of what we have been up to lately, so some of you may be wondering what is going on with us. Well for the most part it's just the normal things...


Re-enlistment

My husband is due to re-enlist soon, as long as everything works out well. We really want to go the way God is pointing us, and that still isn't clear yet, so even though I tell you guys these things, I still don't know for sure. This also makes me think where are we going to go next?

The selfish part of me would like to pick somewhere warmer. Yeah I'm sure you all are guessing San Diego. I would love to go back there, but I'm still not sure about that, and I have gone back and forth on this. I guess it's better if I'm not the one to make the choice, because I really don't know what I want.

I am also afraid about the people I may have offended, by talking about the move so casually and without much feeling. What I mean is there are people here (in this area) who care about us, and don't want us to leave, and I hope they don't think that I'm looking forward to leaving, because I'm not. I just knew that we are going to have to leave so I have detached my feelings, and it makes me sound as if I don't take, and I do. I'm very sorry. Shore duty is only a three year rotation, and even if he didn't re-enlist, the chances of us staying here are slim, because of job availability. So I always knew that we would only be here for 3 years (most likely). Since I knew this for a fact, and I've known this for quite some time, I guess I just assumed that everyone else knew as well (basically I forgot who I told, and who I apparently didn't tell) (yeah okay oops). I've been talking so much with my friends of where I would like to go, and looking back it makes it look like I want to go. Trust me when I say, that if we could stay then we would, as much as I hate the weather here, my family is here and I do wish I could stay for them. I also really dislike moving, but I have no choice. No choice, so yeah once again, I'm very sorry.

This may bring up the question of "Why did you guys buy a house here then?", well our plans for the house extend our time here, and we do want to keep the house and rent it out, for those of you wondering. I thought I should put that out there, because even though no one has asked me that question yet, I know people are thinking it.

So this is what's been on my mind lately, you know that whole here we go again, but not quite. The funny thing is that when it does come time to move next year, and that three year point comes around, it will be the longest that we have lived in any one area since we got married. We lived in Charleston, SC for a year and a half, in Hampton, VA for two and a half years, in San Diego for two years (almost to the date), and for here it will be three. No wonder it's so hard for us to get use to a place.


Vacation Planning!

So I'm not sure if you remember of not, but back in this post I told you guys about our family vacation that we were planning this year, the one we let the kids pick. Well we are leaving in May! We are going to the Outer Banks, and renting a house there for a week. I am very excited! So right at this point (since the house is already booked), I am working on a list of things we will need during our stay. I do find planning fun. I'm looking forward to our vacation, and I can't wait. Boy do I feel like a little kid! I just love uninterrupted time with my husband. Yeah, yeah I know who doesn't?

Well thanks for reading, and I'm sorry I didn't more to tell you. Like I said, nothing but normal over here.