This Week At Our House # 44

We moved our stuff into storage and I signed my kids up for school at my parents' house and I am so sad that we don't have our own house. My parents are being really kind. There are way too many people in their house as one sister, plus one sister and her two kids already lived here for years, and my other sister moved in a week after us.  So there are 19 people in a home that is just a little bit smaller than the one we moved from.

We have enough money to easily pay rent and living expenses for 6 months, but no one will rent to us because John does not have a job. I feel heart broken, and depressed and abandoned. I feel like this trial has been never ending. I know we are not the only people who experience things in life like this. I know it is a part of how life is supposed to be, I just wonder how much lower we can actually go.

My parents have been very kind to us. They say they want us here and that we can stay. But it doesn't mean it's not hard on them and on us and on my sisters and on the other 2 kids.

On a happier note, Adam got a fishing pole for his birthing, and John took Adam and Johnny fishing for the first time. They didn't catch anything, but they really enjoyed it.

One more happier note: The ward is exceedingly nice. The youth program is huge and our kids have been very welcomed.

And as a point of interest, the older girls and I always talked about how if we moved, we wanted to move to a place that rains more. Well, we have been here for 17 days and it has rained 13 of them. And it was all day rain storms not just rain for an hour. Everything smells musty. Today, the sun is shining, for the 4th day, and we are going to the park.

Happy Birthday, Adam!!!

I can hardly believe my dear boy is 11! Adam has always been such a fun kid! He laughs and rough houses, teases, and plays all the time. He's strong and athletic and keeps our family on the move. He loves building things, shooting guns and everything boy! He is Johnny's best friend and a good example to his younger brothers. Adam enjoys choosing the right and trying to be the best boy he can be.

This Week at Our House # 43

First Week in North Carolina

On Tuesday John and I went to Raleigh to look for a home. It may be hard to get into one because John does not have a job yet. We will know by the end of this week whether or not we can rent a home. But John has a job interview in Raleigh tomorrow morning. He also had an interview with the LDS church. If he gets that job, it will be straight back to Ut because he has wanted the safety and stability of working for the Church and has been trying to get a job there for 5 years.

Life at my parents is a little rough even though the kids are enjoying visiting their grandparents and aunts. The kids miss our schedule, their friends, school, their own space. I miss sleeping without Susan in the room and I miss my big, organized kitchen. Hopefully we won't be here too long, but my parents said they are happy to have us stay as long as we need to. They are being very generous with us.

M parent's ward has been very nice. They called up the kids and invited them to seminary and to all the youth activities. A couple of people have offered to help John find a job. We've been welcomed here even though we do not officially live here.

Halloween in North Carolina is a much bigger party. I think the weather is a big part of it. Teenagers trick or treated. Adults dressed up. Many people set up candy stations at the end of their driveway. The decorations were much more intense and somewhat more gruesome. For the first time ever, we didn't stop trick or treating because we got cold, we stopped trick or treating because we got tired.

I am feeling impatient with my life right now. I need to work on having more faith and trust in the Lord and His timing. I know everything will be ok, even if it takes longer than I want it to.

This Week at Our House # 42

The Packing Up: We did not ask for help to pack up, but a very sweet young couple in our ward came and helped and I am so glad. They helped John and his brother Jeremy put the heavy items in the van and they helped sweep and clean out cupboards. We had the usual having to make last minute choices about what to keep and what to throw. John ended up taking 2 loads to the dump the next morning, and I cleaned the house for 8 hours straight. We had an intense couple of days for sure.

The Driving: We spent the first night at Jeremy's house and then left Utah at 11am the next morning. Jer and Rosanne helped us a ton. They were our best friends. I think they are what we will miss most about Utah. We drove until we were half way through Nebraska with a quick stop in Laramie, WY to visit John's sister and her family. The kids were good in the car. But by the end of the night, Susan was crying and really unhappy. She then cried for the first three hours in the hotel.

The next day we drove to Chicago to eat dinner at Giordonos, John's favorite pizza place. The Chicago style pizza was really, really good. Then we started to head south through Indiana. We drove through a bit of a scary part of Chicago and Ruth and Kate were so funny making fun of all of the liquor stores and the liquor stores that advertised lottery, WIC, and food stamps. City people make fun of suburban and country people, and we found plenty of irony viewing their lifestyle just through their local businesses. We stopped just north of Indianapolis for the night. The time zone changed on us and we had a bit of trouble finding a hotel so we didn't stop until 2am. This time, Suzy seemed unhappy, but resigned to her fate of life in a car and nights in a hotel. She just laid quietly went to sleep. That was a relief.

The last day, the drive was beautiful through the Appalachian mountains. The fall colors were vibrant and the hills and trees were breath taking. By the time we got to North Carolina, we were pretty worn out, but still had a few hours left. We made it to my parent's home in Charlotte at 10:30pm.

This Week at Our House # 41

The week is almost over and I have not even updated about last week. Last week, I had my 40th birthday. I also had a wonderful girl's night out with some of my very best friends. The rest of the week I worked with John to make a decision on what to do. Finally on Saturday, John came to the conclusion that we needed to just go ahead and mover to Raleigh, N.C. I have felt that since General Conference and was happy that we came to the same decision. So that is what we are doing. The new owners are in our house now, we have an ABF truck packed and they will be moving our stuff out. We are at John's brother's house in Orem, Ut and are about to head out on this next adventure of our lives.

We are moving on faith, and moving where we feel like John will have the best opportunity to get a full time job in a place that will be good for our family. John has not had long term work since 2013. In the past, we have had little trials and some tough times that lasted a few months. Never have we had to endure so many difficulties over such a long period of time. I used to think that if you kept the commandments, used wisdom in your finances and education, worked hard, served others, and did your Church callings and home and visiting teaching that you would avoid many of the troubles in life. I feel quite differently now. I still know all of those are important ingredients, but life is just life. We cannot make it perfect through our actions anymore than we can make it to heaven through our works.

So, the next adventure of our life begins now, and I will update for this week in a few more days.

This Week at Our House # 40

1. John turned 44 on Wednesday. He had an interview in Salt Lake on Friday that he thought went really well, though we have not heard back from them as of Monday. Mostly, I am tired of waiting for another job rejection to decide where we are going and what we are doing.
2. I am having a hard time keeping my chin up. There is so much to be done and hardly any time left. 
3. Ruth is the only high school kid that has talked to her teachers about getting all of her tests and projects in a week before the end of term. I think in the end, we will find that she will be the most prepared.
4. Kate is anxious about moving. She wants to be dating and doing all of the fun things her friends are doing. 
5. Johnny hopes we move and homeschool him because he still doesn't like high school.
6. Adam is feeling the same as Johnny. But I actually think I need to homeschool him because he really needs some extra time reading.
7. Rachel finished her book report early at my request but was too embarrassed to be the first to turn it in. I was worried that she would lose it, so I emailed her teacher and asked her to tell Rachel to turn it in. She got back to me and told me to tell Rachel that if she turned it in early, she would get extra credit.That was exactly what Rachel needed yo hear.
8. Anya was sick most of the week and missed 3 days of school, but she still managed to read an entire book and get her book report finished and ready to turn in on time.
9. Joseph was sick on Thursday and Friday and missed school, but was excited to stay home.
10. Joshua had a fever for a couple of days and by the time that was gone, he had a bad cough. He is still pretty unwell. 
11. We went to our cousin Ada's baptism on Saturday and during her birthday party, Arwen puked, She currently has a bad cough and is now informing that she is just coughing, not puking.
12. Susan stayed healthy. She has not had a fever or a cough. I am glad about that. Sick babies can be a lot of extra work.

This Week's Pictures

Things I'm Nervous About Today

1. We have to move in 10 days.
2. My drivers licence expires on Wednesday and I do not have a forwarding address. I can't use this address because it takes the state 6 weeks to mail your licence to you.
3. I think I am going to have to take our cats to a shelter. It will devastate our children. I feel devastated at the idea.
4. John still does not have another job, but he keeps having prospects which is actually postponing us from making any final decisions about moving anywhere including to anyplace here. 
5. Our car needs some repairs but we only have one car and car repair places like to keep it for a week to do a one day repair job. I am not sure how we are going to work this out.
6. Hotels are really expensive. Homeless shelters are terrifying.
7. I am having a really hard time seeing into a future where things come together in time for us.