Well, we've got most of the boxes unpacked and have got things set up pretty well, if I do say so myself. Jessica has done a great job telling me where to hang things and I spent some time yesterday getting the basement and garage organized. One thing we can't do anything about is the heat...it's been hot here this week and we no central air in the house is going to take some getting used to.
Jessica and the kids got invited to a pool party earlier this week which was really nice. We were able to get some 'insider' information about schools, churches, and activities for the kids which was nice.
In my last post, I talked about the neighborhood being great, and it is, but we were also introduced to the realities of living in the city when Zachary's bike was stolen out of our driveway on Tuesday afternoon. We has just gotten it the day before with birthday money from Grandpa and Grandma. The place where we bought it didn't have locks, so we said we'd get locks later -- big mistake. Less than 24 hours later, it was gone. Both his and Bethany's were in the driveway but only his got taken. After talking with some moms at the pool party, Jessica learned it's been a common occurrence in the area lately and we'll just need to be vigilant. So now, we keep the bikes locked in the garage unless we are outside or riding them.
On a more positive neighborhood note, I also talked about finding a boy for Zachary. Two days ago, a little boy named, Cope (he's 10), who lives across the street invited Zach to come over and play. I think he and Zach will be fast friends. So we are thanking the Lord for that.
Today was Zachary's 11th birthday, so we took in the GR Museum (he's a big fan of museums) and discovered Yesterdog. Yesterdog has 6 things on the menu and they are all hotdogs with different toppings. It's a dive and the hotdogs aren't that great, but it's an iconic place so we can say we did that too. Not to mention, the price is right...the most expensive thing on the menu is $2.10!
One thing to to be in prayer about right now is Jessica's back. She bent over funny today when picking up Alex and pulled something pretty good. We're hoping it's nothing serious and will heal up quickly.
Tomorrow I'll try and get some pictures of the house posted.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
We Made It!
I'm happy to report that the Lord blessed our journey and we arrived in Grand Rapids safe and sound last week Friday afternoon at around 4:00. The trip was long but uneventful. The kids traveled great, both the van and truck ran well, we had great travel condidtions, and I didn't hit anything. Oh, and as an added bonus all of our stuff made it with nary (sp?) at scratch.
When we arrived my brother, Mark, his father-in-law, Kevin, Jessica's parents, and a seminary student came to help us unload and clean. Kelli, Mark's wife, also has a bunch of groceries for us when we arrived which was so wonderful. On Saturday, Mark and Kelli came to help us again and she brought even more food. It's going to be fun living closer to them.
We are finding Grand Rapids a wonderful place to live so far. It's quite convenient to have Target, Wal-Mart, Meijer, and just about everything else all available in town. The neighbors have been very friendly. We've received some muffins, a garden zuchinni, and even a post for my broken yard fence since we've arrived here. I've even had my first visit with a Jehovah's Witness already!! =)
The kids are making fast friends with the neighbor kids as well. In fact, as I type this, they are playing at the park down the street with a few of them. Lots of girls again (just like our Sioux Center neighborhood) but we're hoping Zachary finds some friends soon too. I've got some pictures already, which I'll have to post later.
We visited Plymouth Heights CRC on Sunday and found that very welcoming as well. They are very community/neighborhood focused which is cool. It's less than a mile from our house and it seems to be a very friendly. Their current pastor is on a sabbatical right now and won't be back until the fall. So we'll see where we end up, but that was a good start. There are lots of choices here!
The house is working out well. We've got the kids' rooms set up as well as the kitchen and the living room. The office is still a mess and we are just starting to put a few things up on the walls. The basement and the garage are next on the list too. When we are arrived the house was not very clean, so we had to spend a fair amount of time wiping down cupboards and bathrooms which we were disappionted about. But now we know that is passes the Jessica inspection too, which is (in my opinion) the gold standard.
It's been hot here this week, so we had to invest in several fans since the house doesn't have air, but they are doing a good job of keeping us cool.
All in all, we are off to a very good start here. Thanks for the well-wishes, prayers, help and support along this journey. Continue to keep them coming and I'll do my best to keep you all posted.
When we arrived my brother, Mark, his father-in-law, Kevin, Jessica's parents, and a seminary student came to help us unload and clean. Kelli, Mark's wife, also has a bunch of groceries for us when we arrived which was so wonderful. On Saturday, Mark and Kelli came to help us again and she brought even more food. It's going to be fun living closer to them.
We are finding Grand Rapids a wonderful place to live so far. It's quite convenient to have Target, Wal-Mart, Meijer, and just about everything else all available in town. The neighbors have been very friendly. We've received some muffins, a garden zuchinni, and even a post for my broken yard fence since we've arrived here. I've even had my first visit with a Jehovah's Witness already!! =)
The kids are making fast friends with the neighbor kids as well. In fact, as I type this, they are playing at the park down the street with a few of them. Lots of girls again (just like our Sioux Center neighborhood) but we're hoping Zachary finds some friends soon too. I've got some pictures already, which I'll have to post later.
We visited Plymouth Heights CRC on Sunday and found that very welcoming as well. They are very community/neighborhood focused which is cool. It's less than a mile from our house and it seems to be a very friendly. Their current pastor is on a sabbatical right now and won't be back until the fall. So we'll see where we end up, but that was a good start. There are lots of choices here!
The house is working out well. We've got the kids' rooms set up as well as the kitchen and the living room. The office is still a mess and we are just starting to put a few things up on the walls. The basement and the garage are next on the list too. When we are arrived the house was not very clean, so we had to spend a fair amount of time wiping down cupboards and bathrooms which we were disappionted about. But now we know that is passes the Jessica inspection too, which is (in my opinion) the gold standard.
It's been hot here this week, so we had to invest in several fans since the house doesn't have air, but they are doing a good job of keeping us cool.
All in all, we are off to a very good start here. Thanks for the well-wishes, prayers, help and support along this journey. Continue to keep them coming and I'll do my best to keep you all posted.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Last Night
It's late here (almost midnight) and Jessica just asked me if I really needed to do this now. I said, "Yes". If I don't write about all this now, there'll be a hole in the story. So I'm blogging when I should be sleeping.
We've had a busy but good last few days. We had a great time with the extended family in Missouri. The weather was gorgeous and it was a lot of fun to catch up with some of those family members who I hadn't seen in ten years. We all enjoyed each others company and the kids got along great which was such a blessing.
I could (and maybe will) say alot more about that trip, but today was a big day for us. Today was our last full day in Sioux Center. It was a day filled with errands, last second arrangements, LOTS of laundry (says Jessica) and packing. I also had my first experience driving a 26 foot truck. All I can say is, stay off I-80 tomorrow and Friday!
Actually, they make it pretty easy these days. The truck has air, automatic transmission, a CD player and cruise control, but it is a beast of a vehicle to drive. And man, did we pack that thing to the gills! People asked me if I thought I would have room for everything in there and I replied, "I don't know, I've never seen all of my earthly belongings stacked in one place before."
As it turns out, we didn't have quite enough roon. Thanks to some fantastic help from my Dad, brother Paul, and good friends Dave Heynen and Chad Van Ginkel, we came close though. We had to leave a few things behind that my parents will take with them when they come out to see us in August.
So tomorrow morning, after breakfast with my parents and my grandmother (who still won't get her garage back) we'll say our goodbyes and hit the road. Pleae pray for safety and good weather. It's quite disconcerting to know that all of your earthly possessions are traveling down the road at 70 mph and any number of things could go wrong. So we are, as always, trusting in the Lord and doing our best to be careful.
We also had to say a few tough goodbyes tonight. Several of our friends stopped by to say see ya and wish us well. We hugged, we cried, we laughed, and then we waved saying that we'd see each other again and promising to keep in touch. I sure hope we do.
I said goodbye to my brother, Paul as well. It's been such a blessing to have been able to live near him and his family all these years. We are sad to be moving further away from them and from my parents and we wish it didn't have to be that way.
At the same time, we're looking forward to being closer to Mark and Kelli and to Jessica's family as well. It's hard to know how to feel about all of these changes. i guess, I'm still clinging to the fact that I'm very convicted that this is what I need to be doing right now. This is what God is asking of us, and even though it means some challenges, we are heeding his call. Let's hope it still feel that way when school starts in about six weeks!
Sorry this one got so long, but a lot has happened that I wanted to share with you. This will be my last entry from Northwest Iowa. So I'll post again once we arrive in Grand Rapids and get internet connectivity established.
Until then, thanks to everyone who has prayed for us or helped in any number of ways with this transition (meals, packing, watching kids, rides to Sioux City)-- the list is endless. You've all been an important and meaningful part of our lives. The day has come and we couldn't have done it without you.
See you in Grand Rapids!
P.S. I'm not proofing this, because it's long and it's almost 12:30 in the morning. So forgive the errors...I'm sure there are many! Thanks for suffering through them. =)
We've had a busy but good last few days. We had a great time with the extended family in Missouri. The weather was gorgeous and it was a lot of fun to catch up with some of those family members who I hadn't seen in ten years. We all enjoyed each others company and the kids got along great which was such a blessing.
I could (and maybe will) say alot more about that trip, but today was a big day for us. Today was our last full day in Sioux Center. It was a day filled with errands, last second arrangements, LOTS of laundry (says Jessica) and packing. I also had my first experience driving a 26 foot truck. All I can say is, stay off I-80 tomorrow and Friday!
Actually, they make it pretty easy these days. The truck has air, automatic transmission, a CD player and cruise control, but it is a beast of a vehicle to drive. And man, did we pack that thing to the gills! People asked me if I thought I would have room for everything in there and I replied, "I don't know, I've never seen all of my earthly belongings stacked in one place before."
As it turns out, we didn't have quite enough roon. Thanks to some fantastic help from my Dad, brother Paul, and good friends Dave Heynen and Chad Van Ginkel, we came close though. We had to leave a few things behind that my parents will take with them when they come out to see us in August.
So tomorrow morning, after breakfast with my parents and my grandmother (who still won't get her garage back) we'll say our goodbyes and hit the road. Pleae pray for safety and good weather. It's quite disconcerting to know that all of your earthly possessions are traveling down the road at 70 mph and any number of things could go wrong. So we are, as always, trusting in the Lord and doing our best to be careful.
We also had to say a few tough goodbyes tonight. Several of our friends stopped by to say see ya and wish us well. We hugged, we cried, we laughed, and then we waved saying that we'd see each other again and promising to keep in touch. I sure hope we do.
I said goodbye to my brother, Paul as well. It's been such a blessing to have been able to live near him and his family all these years. We are sad to be moving further away from them and from my parents and we wish it didn't have to be that way.
At the same time, we're looking forward to being closer to Mark and Kelli and to Jessica's family as well. It's hard to know how to feel about all of these changes. i guess, I'm still clinging to the fact that I'm very convicted that this is what I need to be doing right now. This is what God is asking of us, and even though it means some challenges, we are heeding his call. Let's hope it still feel that way when school starts in about six weeks!
Sorry this one got so long, but a lot has happened that I wanted to share with you. This will be my last entry from Northwest Iowa. So I'll post again once we arrive in Grand Rapids and get internet connectivity established.
Until then, thanks to everyone who has prayed for us or helped in any number of ways with this transition (meals, packing, watching kids, rides to Sioux City)-- the list is endless. You've all been an important and meaningful part of our lives. The day has come and we couldn't have done it without you.
See you in Grand Rapids!
P.S. I'm not proofing this, because it's long and it's almost 12:30 in the morning. So forgive the errors...I'm sure there are many! Thanks for suffering through them. =)
Friday, July 2, 2010
Unemployed
As of today, I am officially (voluntarily) unemployed. I said goodbye to my co-workers, cleaned out my desk, and turned off the lights on this phase of my life. When people asked me if it felt strange to leave, I have to say that, although saying goodbye is always hard, the strangest part is that I won't be going back to a regular job for at least three years. After going to work nearly every weekday for the last twelve years, not having a new one to go to on Monday will feel strange. I know that soon enough, school will be my work, but it still isn't the same.
To 'celebrate' my new-found freedom, we are making a long weekend trip to Branson, MO. My dad's family is having a sort of family reunion at a campground on Table Rock Lake near Kimberling City (http://www.watersedgetr.com/) which is about 30 miles or so from Branson, I think. My parents were supposed to join us, but my mom is having some issues with her gall bladder right now and isn't able to make the trip. But we had it planned to go and the kids are excited so we are still going. I'm excited too...I'm going to be seeing a bunch of cousins that I haven't seen in many, many years and it will be good to catch up with them. Plus, the weather looks promising and we'll get to break in our new tent that we bought for Christmas last year. No to mention the fact that it's a great way to spend the 4th of July weekend.
We're leaving early tomorrow morning and we'll be back Tuesday night. Then Wednesday afternoon I'm going to Sioux City to get the 26-foot Penske. We'll load that up Wednesday night and hit the road for Grand Rapids on Thursday. It's getting close.
Talk to you after the camping trip...have a great 4th of July holiday.
Oh, and for all you World Cup soccer fans...way to go Holland!!!
To 'celebrate' my new-found freedom, we are making a long weekend trip to Branson, MO. My dad's family is having a sort of family reunion at a campground on Table Rock Lake near Kimberling City (http://www.watersedgetr.com/) which is about 30 miles or so from Branson, I think. My parents were supposed to join us, but my mom is having some issues with her gall bladder right now and isn't able to make the trip. But we had it planned to go and the kids are excited so we are still going. I'm excited too...I'm going to be seeing a bunch of cousins that I haven't seen in many, many years and it will be good to catch up with them. Plus, the weather looks promising and we'll get to break in our new tent that we bought for Christmas last year. No to mention the fact that it's a great way to spend the 4th of July weekend.
We're leaving early tomorrow morning and we'll be back Tuesday night. Then Wednesday afternoon I'm going to Sioux City to get the 26-foot Penske. We'll load that up Wednesday night and hit the road for Grand Rapids on Thursday. It's getting close.
Talk to you after the camping trip...have a great 4th of July holiday.
Oh, and for all you World Cup soccer fans...way to go Holland!!!
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Last Sunday
I know I've been writing a lot about lasts lately, but that is where we are at in the journey right now, so it's been something that we've been a lot of them. On the one hand, it's sad to say all these goodbyes, but on the ohter hand it means that we've established many strong relationships and therefore have several people and places to say goodbye to and that is a good thing.
Bethany turned 9 last Friday, so we had a birthday party for her at the pool. We combined that wit a farewell party for both the older two kids and invited their classmates to come and swim, have some goodies and ice cream, and share one last afternoon together. It was a windy but otherwise gorgeous day to be at the pool.
Today was also our last Sunday at our home church here in Sioux Center. It's been a great church home for us and we've enjoyed our years there immensely. Jessica and I have been quite involved there in a variety of ways over the years and we hope we've been a blessing to it at least as much as it has blessed us. We will miss you all!
Here are a few pictures from the party with the kids on Friday:
Bethany turned 9 last Friday, so we had a birthday party for her at the pool. We combined that wit a farewell party for both the older two kids and invited their classmates to come and swim, have some goodies and ice cream, and share one last afternoon together. It was a windy but otherwise gorgeous day to be at the pool.
Today was also our last Sunday at our home church here in Sioux Center. It's been a great church home for us and we've enjoyed our years there immensely. Jessica and I have been quite involved there in a variety of ways over the years and we hope we've been a blessing to it at least as much as it has blessed us. We will miss you all!
Here are a few pictures from the party with the kids on Friday:
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
As I type, I am in the midst of a good ol' fashioned midwest thunderstorm. The midnight sky is lit up like a Christmas tree, the contrast low rumble of thunder broken up by the occassional window-shaking boom, and rain falling in sheets. It's great! Unless, of course, you are my eight year old daugther, who is currently trying to sleep on the couch.
She's shook up, not just about the weather, but about leaving too. She came downstairs crying tonight and when I asked her if she was alright, she said, in between sobs, "I just want to go home." I guess reality is setting in for all of us -- this really isn't home -- for her or us. I asked her if home could be anywhere where Mom and Dad were and she wasn't sure. Sometimes, there's just no place like your own bed.
So, we'll all miss things. I'll miss the phenomonal power and awe-inspiring beauty that only a thunderstorm rolling across the prairie can provide. Bethany will miss the comfort of her bed. At least for awhile we'll miss these things and then we'll learn to appreciate new things.
Our new house will become our new home with her old bed and a new beauty will captivate my attention. Right now, though, I need to take a peek outside and watch this spectacular God-given light show. It could be the last one I see for a while on these windswept plains of Iowa.
She's shook up, not just about the weather, but about leaving too. She came downstairs crying tonight and when I asked her if she was alright, she said, in between sobs, "I just want to go home." I guess reality is setting in for all of us -- this really isn't home -- for her or us. I asked her if home could be anywhere where Mom and Dad were and she wasn't sure. Sometimes, there's just no place like your own bed.
So, we'll all miss things. I'll miss the phenomonal power and awe-inspiring beauty that only a thunderstorm rolling across the prairie can provide. Bethany will miss the comfort of her bed. At least for awhile we'll miss these things and then we'll learn to appreciate new things.
Our new house will become our new home with her old bed and a new beauty will captivate my attention. Right now, though, I need to take a peek outside and watch this spectacular God-given light show. It could be the last one I see for a while on these windswept plains of Iowa.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Hello's and Goodbye's
We've had a few goodbyes this week -- on Sunday, our bible study group at church threw a party for us and another couple in our group that is also leaving this summer. When we first started that group it was 1997 and all of the couples that we started with were there on Sunday except for one. When we first started we have six couples and no kids. On Sunday there were more than a dozen families represented with nearly 30 children. The Lord has blessed us all!
Tonight we had a 'goodbye grill-out' with some of our neighbors. It was great to get together with them as well. We are going to miss them. We've been blessed to have a great community to live in these last several years.
I've also had the opportunity to say some hellos this week. I received my first syallbus via e-mail from one my professors. I had a question about it, so I e-mailed him, introduced myself and asked my question. In the process my question got passed on to a few folks within the seminary so I got to send an e-mail hello to a few of them as well. I'm looking forward to introcuing myself to them and others in person.
So we have our feet firmly planted in both places right now and it all a little unsettling. We are looking forward to getting planted more permanently in a few weeks.
Tonight we had a 'goodbye grill-out' with some of our neighbors. It was great to get together with them as well. We are going to miss them. We've been blessed to have a great community to live in these last several years.
I've also had the opportunity to say some hellos this week. I received my first syallbus via e-mail from one my professors. I had a question about it, so I e-mailed him, introduced myself and asked my question. In the process my question got passed on to a few folks within the seminary so I got to send an e-mail hello to a few of them as well. I'm looking forward to introcuing myself to them and others in person.
So we have our feet firmly planted in both places right now and it all a little unsettling. We are looking forward to getting planted more permanently in a few weeks.
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