its been so long

It’s been so long since my last blog entry that I wouldn’t blame people if they never visited my site again. I’m sorry people, I’ve been mondo busy with the move-in and work, so that I have not found the time to write much lately. I’m hoping that changes soon and we can get internet at our house, providing more opportunities for me to share with you what’s going on in my life.

As you may know, we have moved into the house. The trailer is now empty, Bob having worked day after day to move EVERYTHING across the lawn and up the hill to our new modular.

As of this post, we have accomplished a lot. We still have to get our rain gutters up, unpack a million boxes, get a platform bed installed ready to accept our new mattress, and paint almost all the interior walls, but we are making progress. One rather disturbing bit of news is about all the bugs we have in the house. I mean tons of flies and ladybugs, plus the occassional bee and wasp. I can say I know how the Egyptians must have felt when God sent the plague of frogs and flies in the land. They seem to come from every corner, and right through the front doors, around the casings. Gotta talk to someone about that and see if it can be fixed. Yesterday, after church, Matt used the vacum cleaner to suck up about 300 of the things, crawling on every surface we own. Gross!

One really amazing thing about having this house, though, is the opportunity we will have to host our extended family over the holidays this year. Yay! We can’t wait for BJ and Megan to try the new room and for baby J to try his new legs on our new hallway carpet. He’s walking now, and oh, so, heartwarmingly cute is he in the process. I’ve decided to attach a picture of him in his halloween outfit for this year–a little pilgrim turkey, come early to the party.

Gobble, gobble.

I’m running out of time for this post, so I’m going to say “good-bye” for now. Thanks for all your prayers during our recent relocation. If you’re in our neck of the woods and you have the time, stop by. We’ll keep the coffee pot on for you.  You might even run into an adorable turkey to cuddle with-ya never know.  Until then, have a blessed holiday season everyone!

Half way there

On Tuesday, September 15, 2009 the crane arrived to set our modular home on its foundation.  What a thrill for us to see this work done.  Below, are some shots of the work in progress.  I hope you’ll enjoy seeing these as much as we enjoyed capturing them on film. 

The crew arrived at 8:00am and immediately set to work…

Bob and I had purchased some goodies to share with the guys when they came, but they brought their own sandwiches and drink and ate as they worked.

Bob thought I was going to be nervous watching the halves of our home come together, but I wasn’t.  Not the least bit.  I was too fascinated with how it was all going together to be nervous.  Too thankful to God for all He’s done to prepare us for this moment.  Have you ever trusted Him for something beyond your reach?  I recommend the exercise of your faith in this way–it’s absolutely thrilling, terrifying and all encompassing.

A quick rotation of the crane, and the first half of our home was set.

Unfortunately, I ran out of battery power at the point when I could have gotten a picture of the roof trusses going up.   That’s always the way these sorts of things go.

 Bob said the work crew moved like a dozen monkeys to get the shingles on. 

We are hoping to be living in the new home by October 1st–the house that God built!  Check back with us in a few days and see how far we’ve gotten on this project, and if you’re in the neighborhood, stop by.

Painting

A couple of weekends back, Matt and I went to Rochester to help Megan and BJ paint their dining room and archway. BJ, Megan and Matt painted, while I watched the babe. What fun it was. The paint is a creamy orange concoction that Megan and her dad mixed themselves. She calls it pumpkin mousse, which I think is a good name for it. It’s rich and creamy-a warm, comforting color. She said her dad splurged on the good stuff for their new home.  Sounds like Jeff; he’s a great guy and a pretty accomplished painter.  Jeff and Megan had painted the kitchen prior to move in on the new house December 2007.  Wow, where does the time go?  

Below, are some pictures of the little family with their newly painted dining room.

Jessup and Mommy

Thatsa one cute bologna!

breaking ground

UPDATE: FRIDAY AUG 28, 2009

Dennis, from Butters Homes, called this morning to tell me that half of our house is being delivered TODAY!  Can you believe it?  The other half to arrive Monday, August 31st.  Very psyched today.  PTL!

As you’ve probably heard, ground has been broken on the other side of the yard at the Hoose homestead. Below, are some pictures I wanted to share with my blog readers and others who might care about the progress we’re making.

a view from the dirt pile

We’re excited!

Reshaping the yard

Stop by when you have the chance and check on this project.

We’ll keep the coffee pot on for you!

Big Yella stretches his neck

This is certainly a hungry beast. Eric, i hope you’re seeing this picture. I posted it with YOU in mind. 

Inspiration from the light side

After finishing one of the best articles I’ve read in a long, long time, I’m going to make a recommendation.

Take ten minutes out of your busy schedule today and read this article.  Then let me know what you think.

http://lifestyle.msn.com/your-life/reinvent-your-life/articlegh.aspx?cp-documentid=20985140

Philippians 2:14 & 15 has been my constant reminder from God over the past three years, of his desire for my life.  Its words have impressed upon me a need to change the way I operate in this world.  Some days I’m able to live out this verse better than others, but always I try.

Enjoy this article, and let the truth of its words sink down deep.  Let it challenge you.  Try to see yourself in the images described here. 

May God bless you all!

Graduation and Move

Not too many weeks hence, my nephew, Derek Trout, graduated from college.  He’s since moved to Kentucky, to attend Asbury Theological Seminary.  I’m just so darn proud of him. 

Here are a few pictures of the graduate to enjoy. 

Derek, with his beautiful bride, Jessica, poses for the camera.  I’m betting cousin, Matt, is behind the scenes taking this one.

Derek is the tall one in the middle

Here’s one of the proud parents together.  After all that sacrifice, the reward.  Congratulations, Will & Pat.  Two years:  Asbury graduation!

Mom of left...dad on right on happy day

And here is one of Matt and Derek.  Guess which one is being the goofball?  Matt and Derek are close buddies, so it’s not strange that Matt wanted to be there for the big day.  Congratulations, Derek.  We love you. Do well!

Did you say Clown College?

They grow up wayyyyy too fast.  Mommas, hug your kiddos tonight. Before you know it, they’re on the lawn with robe around them and mortar board in place.

Again, congratulations, Derek!

Home Update

Good morning, Troops!

Your sister in combat is posting this message from the front.  The front of the lawn, that is.  Months ago we began the battle for a new home, most recently taking our encampment from one side of the lawn to the other.  Since the relocation, Bob and I have gone on vacation in Maine and returned, only to see him ship out to Canton to take care of the rabbit farm there, as he does each summer for his friend.

I thought it was about time for an update on the house, so here goes:  Things feel like they are moving slowly on our end.  In reality, I guess construction people are hard at work on our foundation walls and mod at this point, so that’s something to be happy about, but on our end, it feels like we’re moving in slo-mo. 

We had a bit of drama over windows for the house during the last two weeks. Before vacation, our seller called, saying they could  not supply the windows we had contracted for and wanted to trade them out for another brand. I was pretty uncomfortable with that suggestion and started to do some research on my own about the replacement he suggested.  Windows are pretty important in the scheme of things, I think, and the brand he was suggesting had a lot of bad reviews on the internet.   I thought, “What do I know of windows?”  My education was about to begin. 

Through a series of phone calls and persistent wranglings back and forth, our seller at last notified me that he could get us the window brand we had originally contracted for with the mod, after all.  Phew!  Lesson learned:  Persistence may not make you popular, but it does pay off.  In the end, we actually upgraded to an Energy Star window, in the hope that we would qualify for the government tax credit when we file our taxes at the end of the year.  I think we’ll obtain the best energy savings we can afford with these windows, and hope it will all pay off in the end, when our fuel bills come in much lower than when we were living in the trailer. 

The first ”set date” suggested for the home was Sept. 2 or 3rd.  Sol (our excavator) says that is probably too ambitious, and that it will take a while longer to get the crawl space up and ready to receive the mod.  He promised to work with seller on scheduling, so that everyone knows what everyone else is doing–here’s hoping. 

No ground has been broken yet. I suspect with the wet summer we’ve had, Sol doesn’t want to dig a hole, only to have it fill up with water and then have to empty it out and repair water damage. Can’t blame him, but Bob is mighty anxious to see some progress made. 

As of right now, we are living in the trailer across the lawn from the construction site, suffering without TV, internet, landline or good cell reception.  The ONLY place I can make or receive cell calls is in the back corner of the hallway, in front of my bedroom door, facing the closed door-so if you call, leave a message and I’ll return it as soon as I stand in that exact position to check it.  :/  Hey, tough times build character, right??? 

At present, we spend our nights working on two dressers we decided to strip and repaint before moving them in to the new digs.  Can you say MULTIPLE LAYERS OF SHELLAC three times fast. Oh, my goodness, those people of old were ambitious! 

We are excited to see the yard change over the next month, and will take lots of pics that we can share with you.  Again, hopefully.  We are invested in enormous quantities of hope these days, and know our good God will not let us down. 

Weekends continue to be busy times, even as we sort through numerous packed boxes to either retrieve things we need between now and the next move, or to consolidate and throw away more unnecessary items.  You accumulate a lot over 30 years of living together.

We want to say a big THANK YOU to those who came the night before the trailer was moved and gave of their time to help us get the behemoth ready.   We are truly blessed to call you family and friends.  You’re the BEST!

We would ask that you keep us in your prayers, going forward from today.  This is a big undertaking for us and something we would not have hoped to dare to do without God’s intervention.  We’ve seen His hand in many of the developments over the last few months, including the change to a new bank a long way into the process.  He’s good all the time, so we do not fear.  Rather, we look forward, expectantly, to the good times we will have and the financial savings we will obtain once our new home is in place and we are occupying those new rooms. 

Have a great weekend, everyone!

“Do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.”  Hebrews 13:16

yep, it’s friday

11:38am today, I’m on lunch, but my mind is still at the office.  I pull into BK’s parking lot and multi-tasking, per usual, I grab the current crazy book I’m reading in snip and snaps between life, and I exit the car, thinking the whole time that I have tons of paperwork in the back seat that has SSN’s and other private stuff on it, left over from being at the law office during closing last night.  I want to protect our identity, from miscreants and especially car theives, so I want to make sure I lock the car doors, right?  I do.  I reach over, hit the manual lock button on the driver door, exit the car and head for the lobby of the restaurant.  It isn’t until I’m half way there I think, “Oh, no, did I lock the keys in the car?”

<insert sinking feeling>

Putting down my book inside BK, I search through my bag, and my pants pockets.  No luck.  Drats. I search again, thinking I’ve probably locked my car keys in my car.  Nuts!  Frustration sets in, as I cross back over the parking lot to check on the situation.  Once having arrived, I peek in the window and find my keys dangling from the ignition, nice as you please.  Blurg!  Gingerly I put my hand on the door knob for the passenger side door–because we all know that if you tiptoe through the tulips of life, you won’t get stung by a nasty bee.  Hey, it may be that this gingerly technique works for me one day. Maybe.  Sometime.  In the future. 

In fact, it worked today!  The car door opened under the pressure of my fingertips upon the lever.  I was shocked, and pleasantly so.  It isn’t until I leaned in to get the keys that I found I had not only left them in the ignition, but the car was RUNNING. 

Yes, you heard me right.  I had left the keys in a running car and walked away to get lunch, while rumminating on a hundred different things that were flying through this multi-taskers brain.

Suffice it to say, I am glad that the engineers who crafted the Buick LaSabre had gals like me in mind when they designed anti-lock mechanisms in the doors on my car.  I got back to work on time and Bob did not have to come to town to get me.  It’s been a good day.

Closing on the House

As I’m waiting for 3:15pm to come today, anticipating the time when I’ll leave the office and make my way to meet Bob, before heading for the attorney’s office, I’ve got a hunger to hear the encouraging words I’ve read many times before in Joshua’s first chapter of the book by his name. 

1 Now it came about after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, that the LORD spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ servant, F1 saying, 2 “Moses My R1 servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross R2 this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel. 3 “Every R3 place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses. 4 “From R4 the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory. 5 “No R5 man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I R6 will not fail you or forsake you. 6 “Be R7 strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 “Only be strong and very courageous; be R8 F2 careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have F3 success wherever you go. 8 “This R9 book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be F4 careful to do according to all that is written in it; for R10 then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have F5 success. 9 “Have I not commanded you? Be R11 strong and courageous! Do R12 not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Every morning I am reminded that I need to commit my day to Papa, and every evening, when I lay my head down, I’m reminded that it was Papa who got me through this day.  Today, I’m practicing the art of being STRONG and COURAGEOUS.  I’m practicing living without trembling in fear or being dismayed.  I’m trusting that all the moments that led up to this moment were guided by a hand not my own, and that when this day is done, I will have partnered with Him to bring about a blessing in our lives.

We’re closing on the house at 3:30pm today.  Hallelujah!  It’s been a long and arduous journey thus far, but I think we’ve crested the hill.  The rest should be as easy as rolling back down.  Should be.  In the meantime, we’re practicing patience the most.  And we are thankful!

Have you ever?

Have you ever thought about the tradition we humans have for kissing one another on the lips?  Think about it.

Here in America, we often brush lips when we want to express emotions of a romantic nature.  We also brush lips when we say hello or good-bye, although it’s usually family or close friends that are involved in this type of kissing exchange.  Some people are exposed to more lip kissing than others.  For instance, wedding photographers see more than the average amount of lip kissing, I would guess.  Airport gate attendants probably see more lip kissing than most.  I’m guessing jewelry store salesmen and saleswomen see their fair share of lip kissing, and I’m betting pastors do too. 

I’m a hugger, myself, although I’ve been known to lip kiss.  For me, a good hug goes a long way, while kissing is brief, dispassionate (unless it’s of the romantic variety), and definitely not something I want to do with everyone I might like to hug, for whatever reason. 

Lip kissing is such an odd thing to do when you think about what is really involved.  And lips are such odd members of the body.  I’m not sure how this tradition of lip kissing was formed, but I wonder…have you ever wondered…how it is that a lip kiss means more than a handshake, but less than a wink?  Who negotiated the deal?  The whole business of lip kissing is strange, I think, when you consider what’s happening and why. 

I know non-verbal languages are pretty common place in our world.  Grunts signify disgust, annoyance, even pain.  Sighs, well, sighs can mean anything from I’m bored to I’m very unhappy with how long this is taking.  Whistles are for attention getting, both by juvenile men and damsels in distress that more than anything need to get a cab to 34th street before the rains coming crashing down.  Ticks signify anything from anxiety to anger, with a hundred subtle nuances existing between the two. 

I’ve been looking at a lot of wedding pictures lately-it’s the season, you know-and the more I observe this ritual of lip kissing, the more I’m thinking, yeah, that’s weird.  

Maybe some day we will evolve past the point of touching lips with others to express ourselves; I don’t know.  But in the meantime, I think I’ll try some finger nail flicking to communicate with those I care about.  That’s right, Bob, these long fingernails are headed your way.  Should that fail to impress, however, I’m always in the mood for a life affirming hug.  ;^)