precious, unforgettable Virginia friends

i think of you often.

i'm missing you, each and every one of you.

i never realized it'd be so hard to say "good-bye"

it was almost like having to leave home.

during our 6 month stay,

you made us feel so welcome.

opened your arms and loved us.

made us feel like family.

special surprises of chocolate-covered cherries.

mexican cuisine with J&B.

out-of-the-blue, long talks about life with Frances.

dum-dum suckers from Papa J.
sweet visits from little girls.

Martinsville Church of Truth. Dry Fork PFBH Church.

spending time with long-time friends, Preskitts.

singing Christmas songs in the park.

late night talks at Beth & Justin's.
10 inches of snow - and tons of fun.
being humored by Dewayne and Kyle.

Wednesday night visits with Janice & Keith.

recipes shared - homemade french fries.

students who taught me so much.

a jean skirt hunted down in a Williamsburg Target.
evenings playing games. (Rook)
wowed!! by the miracle gift of adoption.

dinners shared. - Medo's :)
sipping on delicious hot cocoa.
bowling. bowling.

all such sweet memories that we will never forget.
you made it not-so-difficult to be away from home.
and should we ever move, we will choose VA. :)
from the bottom of our hearts,
"THANK YOU."
we love you all.
and miss you too.
hope to see you soon.

update on our life

last week, we were home in SC,
because inventory was taking place at JBM.

Chris had an interview on Wednesday for a job.
Thursday he received a call - he got the job!
this week, he completed his physical and drug test

(which he passed with flying colors!! - ha! ha!)
and hopefully will start working first of next week.

he will begin working 3rd shift.
for now, he actually wanted this shift,
so he can continue to do some construction part-time.

he has several prospective jobs. so we'll see??

i'm not sure how i will deal with staying alone at night,
but i will learn to adjust.

i don't need to be a scaredy cat and worry wart.

i continue to look for a job.
and have submitted my resume/application for several.

we're delighted to be staying at home in SC!

please keep praying for us.
we continue to have many things to sort through
and a lot of decisions to be made.

God has worked out soo0o much for us.

i'm confident He'll work out the rest.

we are thankful for all of your prayers on our behalf.
your love and support means so much.
we love you all.

here i sit

sitting on the couch with my computer.
catching up on home life.
typing this very post.
happy to be here.
home.

enjoying time with my Mom, other family, and friends.
cleaning house (yea, i don't mind) - it's been too long

attending our home church's services.

dinner with Chris' sister & family.

driving around my hometown.
visiting my grandparents.
just being home.

it is wonderful.
(sorry VA friends -- i miss y'all!)

a bittersweet snowy weekend

we had planned to go home this weekend.

friday afternoon as we packed snow began to fall.

we hopped in the car homeward bound.

and then we made a u-turn.

the snow was falling so fast.

we weren't sure if we'd make it home.

concerned about being able to return on Sunday.

so with mixed emotions of sadness and excitement,

we stayed the weekend in Virginia.

we missed a family dinner, GHHC play, and Christmas service.

we enjoyed lots and lots of snow.

probably more than we'd ever seen.

it was a lot of fun.

and here are many pictures to prove it:

snow angels

little Sam's first snow.
and his first laugh - at me. :)

Miss F's man ... made special order!

Chris' truck slipping and sliding up the hill.
i do not call this "fun" - it must be a boy thing!

Thumpy does not like snow. Cold on the paws.

Beth sledding

Me and Chris sledding

our snow turtle named Timmy

hope

hope:

to cherish a desire with anticipation.

to desire with expectation of obtainment.

to expect with confidence" angel of hope"

given to me by a dear, dear friend

at a past (now-healed) difficult time in my life.

a few months ago, i took this angel from home.

brought her to VA. placed her in a spot of frequent view.

to daily reminded me of hope.

when i don't feel hopeful.

when i don't understand why,

when i'm confused and my faith is low.

at a mere glimpse of this angel

i recall a time of little hope.

and remember that God worked it all out.
and i know He will do it again.

and i discover hope.

lately in several devotionals, bible reading, and a few blogs,

i've been encouraged to hold on to hope.

even though, He doesn't answer in my time.

and He doesn't do it my way.

i must choose to go to Him.

resolved to continue trusting Him.

expecting with confidence all will be well.

anticipating. desiring.

with hope.

Attention: family and friends from home

(hint! hint!)

our out-of-the-ordinary holiday

We've had a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend.
Out of our ordinary - yet, fantastic.
Unlike the past 9 Thanksgivings since marriage.
We celebrated away from home.
Missing the many gatherings with our extended family
and 3 scrumptious southern meals.

However, our Thanksgiving was full and good; none the less.
And we were blessed to have family present.

My sweet mom headed here early on Wednesday morning
to surprise me and attend
the school's Thanksgiving program and lunch.
What a delightful surprise indeed.
(for the record, I tried my first taste of corn pudding)
Wednesday night we enjoyed

the Thanksgiving themed church service.
Visited with friends K&J afterwards and sipped hot cocoa.

While Chris worked a little Thursday morning,
mom and I slept in, cooked, and took a nice walk,
before Chris joined us and friends for dinner
where we indulged in a spread too big for the table ...
turkey, ham, fried pork tenderloin, dressing & gravy,
green beans (or snaps, as the natives would say),
sweet potato souffle, cabbage casserole, creamed potatoes,
peas, pintos, cranberry sauce, macaroni & cheese,
and more ('cause I'm sure I left out something)
Desserts of chocolate meringue pie, candy bar cake,
sweet potato cobbler, and coconut cream pie.
Dinner was followed by lots of laughs

and several games of Rook.
Mom endured much teasing from her pesky son-in-law
and was hilariously mistakenly called Belinda.

Friday, mom and I hit the town a little after 6 AM with friend, J.
Shopping at just a few stores,

but not getting caught up in the madness.
Friday evening ended with friends again,
eating pizza, playing more Rook and a little of Pit.
Mom spent some time visiting with "old friends"* here;
most of which she has known since childhood.

Saturday morning we said "goodbye" to mom
as she headed to her mom's (my Granny's) dinner
and in the afternoon we said "hello!" to my dear in laws.
We had a great time showing them around the area;
dining at one of our favorite little Italian restaurants,
[where Chris was splattered with marinara by the waitress],
strolling through the military cemetery,
laughing our heads off at silly, random stuff,
of course, missing a turn or two with Chris driving,
visiting with K&J (their "old friends"* too),
ending the evening with Thanksgiving dinner leftovers,
a game of Skip-Bo [that I won]
and a few competitive intense games of Bananagrams.

Today, we went to church this morning
and visited more of my in-laws' friends.
Took them to see the school where I work.
Came back to the apartment to pack them up.
Exchanged hugs and away they went.
Sad "goodbye" to the last of our company from home.

We had a wonderful weekend,
despite it's out-of-ordinaryness. (if that is a word)
And my heart gives thanks for the greatness of it all.
Thanks to mom and inlaws for visiting.
You were like a taste of home!
We love y'all so much!!!!!!

*the term "old friends" doesn't necessarily refer to age.
can also refer to long-time friends of many years.

friday's week wrap up

For those who care,

probably only our mamas,

this is what we've been up to this week:

The drive to VA was rough late Sunday night;
it was hard pulling away from home,

much lingering and lingering,
but at last, we arrived in VA a little past 1 AM.
As usual, Chris snoozed and I took over driving.

Monday morning,
we rolled our tired and weary bodies out of bed,
knowing there was no other option but to "get up and go."

A student absent on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
called for teaching with many revisions to lesson plans;
as I do not want to get to far ahead with 3 students
and have one student falling behind.
So, I improvised and adjusted
to review lessons and learn about Thanksgiving
with a few corresponding books and crafts.

Likewise, Chris' week wasn't smooth sailing either.
Left early on Monday due to equipment issues
2 hr lunch on Tuesday, while a compressor was replaced.
His helper laid out Thursday due to an allergic reaction
claimed to have "swollen tongue 3-4 times it's normal size."
Then Thursday, Chris was told there'd be no work on Friday.
not productive - which seems to be our "stroke of luck" lately.

We attended revival services at a local church.
Monday and Tuesday night's message were similar
in that the preacher was encouraging us
to push past hinderances in our Christian walk.
We must give Jesus everything.
We will have no regrets from surrendering all to Him.
Wednesday night's text was from the prodigal son's story.
No matter where we are or how far we've wandered,
the trip back to the house is a short one,
cause the Father is running out to meet us.

And on a funny note, I tried a new recipe in the crock pot,
only to come home and find it charred and overcooked.
So, Thursday, we met friends J&B at little local diner,
it reminded us of Lucky Strike at home.
Fried chicken tenders and fries, smoothered in gravy.
And something we'd never heard of ... a hot hamburger,
which is a complete hamburger covered in hot gravy.

Also, I came home Tuesday to find that Thumpy,
our typically layed-back, lazy, bum of a dog,
who has never chewed on toys or chased a ball,
had chewed on a "coffee table" book and a box of Kleenexes.
And Thursday she obviously had gotten thirsty,
she found a bottle of Gatorade from a huge pack under our bed,
chewed the lid off, and obviously drank it all.
The vet says it's her way of expressing her dislike for VA.
She's away from her home and her routine.
Just another sign; we belong home. :) That about wraps it up. It's been a busy one.
And we've been smiling
knowing we were coming home this weekend
and staying through Monday.

And now we're SUPER happy - we ARE home!
I took off Friday since Chris wasn't working.
Hey, it's only a 1/2 day
and the student will probably still be out sick,
so not too much will be going on.

every mile a memory

Life has been happening fast for me and mine. I feel like I'm on an endless trip. I want to safely come to a complete stop, climb out, and run home! But, I am trying hard to hang on, trusting God who knows all ... and cherish the moments together.

With the real estate markets suffering most in our nation's current economic situation, builders have fallen in line behind realtors as fewer houses are being sold, and fewer are being built. With little work in our area, Chris has taken advantage of an opportunity with friends in North Carolina, constructing storage buildings for Graceland Portable Buildings (http://gracelandportablebuildings.com/).

I have returned to work. I am teaching kindergarten at a small Christian school in Virginia, while Chris and I live on-campus in a furnished apartment there. I only have four students and I am enjoying it. I also work with a wonderful group of teachers. This keeps me busy and occupies my time so that I don't think about missing home so much.

I've enjoyed making our little apartment cozy and feel like home. We've definitely learned that we can live with a lot less "stuff" since we chose not to move everything. (in hopes that this move is only temporary) We found that all we need is a few sentimental items, our blankets and pillows, clothes, food, and many pictures of all our friends and family ... of course most importantly, we have each other.

While being so far away from home is not ideal, nor our primary choice, but we are thankful for the many friends and church family that have reached out to us with open arms here in Virginia. It's been wonderful to make new friends, renew old acquaintances, and spend more time with friends whom distance hindered previously.

Please keep us in your prayers as we make the best of this journey and every mile a memory.