We arrived in Wautoma for the closing about thirty minutes early, so Roger and I took advantage of the opportunity to go on a walk together. It's one of the many things we've missed over the past year, and I want to take advantage of these moments.
The closing went so smoothly with no surprises or delays. We were in and out in under twenty minutes. We had the advantage of having a great realtor and friend walk us or through the entire process of getting our home ready for lisiting, taking pictures of the house, listing the property, the open houses, the showings, and every other step in the process. Jennifer Fredenhagen of Homestead Realty did an amazing job! She never left us in the dark about how a showing went, she emailed documents promptly, walked us through anything we had questions about and did a fabulous job. I am blessed to call her my friend as well as my realtor.
After the closing we went back to my parents house to repack the trailer, finish up laundry, eat lunch, take the piano to the landfill, pack up the school books, and a hundred other little things that needed to be done. My sister, Jenn, offered to watch the boys so that Roger and I could take the piano to the dump. However, it's a three seater truck, and Wyatt wanted to come. I didn't want to say "no" because Wyatt has been clamoring for Rogers attention as well. But then Travis wanted to go with Roger also. So my date with Roger was eliminated so that two little boys could go with daddy to the dump. It's a little challenging to want to want to spend time with the person that everyone else wants to spend time with also! :)
This evening we went to a get together at church. The kids weren't very excited about going, but Nana and Papa rescued them. They offered to take all the kids for the evening so that Roger and I could say good by to our friends at church. Needless to say, it was a rather emotional evening for me! I am blessed to have so many good friends, and saying good by was hard on me. Roger left me to visit at the church while he went to spend time with his brothers since they invited him. When Roger came back it was time to say our good byes. I didn't imagine it would be as difficult as it was, but these ladies have truly become my closest friends, and those don't exist in Arizona. I'm delighted and thrilled that Roger has a job, but I wish that God would've allowed us to stay where we ar close to family and friends, a church that we can serve and grow in the Lord, and where I'm comfortable and secure. Instead we are traveling 1600 miles away from all that is familiar to a place in the desert. However, it will provide the perfect opportunity to spend time together as a family and to grow together again. That part I am looking forward to! (Although I'd like for God to allow us to move back to this area some day, this is what needs to happen for now.)
After leaving the church, we stopped for a brief visit to some friends of ours. Bob and Juanita have encouraged us both multiple times over the last year, and Mr. Warriner was one of the few people that took the time to personally call Roger and see how he was doing. I know that they pray for us, and we are thankful for their love and support of our family.
It was after 9:30 when we arrived back at my parents house, and it took a little bit for everyone to wind down on the last night in Wisconsin. My parents love their grandchildren very much so this move is hard on them as well. I'm thankful that God's grace is always, always sufficient for all of us. We had planned on leaving around six in the morning, but after Bible time, teeth brushing and settling down, Roger and I decided that we would just leave whenever everything was ready in the morning.
June 21, 2015
It was an early morning for everyone even after the late night. Roger and I were up about 5:00 to pack the cooler, shower, make lunches, get the last minute stuff packed and have coffee with my parents. The older boys got up on their own around 6:30, but we did have to wake up the three youngest children. Oh well, there will be plenty of time to sleep in the car! We took some pictures of the family, and my dad prayed for safe travels...or rather he tried to pray. His voice wavered with tears, but God still hears our prayers. I'm thankful that the Lord allowed us to spend nine wonderful years living near my parents. My dad has taken the boys camping, on fishing trips, in the truck with him to work, to pass out tracks, and various other places. The boys will miss Papa as much as he will miss them.
Our first stretch in the car was a long one...we made it 31 miles before Wyatt needed to go potty! Oh dear! However after that we made it 200 miles before stopping at a rest area in Minnesota. Did I mention that I love the rest stops that have plays grounds?! What a great idea! They played for about thirty minutes and then we dug out more food for everyone. They had eaten their fruit cups, cheese, granola bars, a beef sticks by nine o'clock in the morning, so when we stopped at eleven everyone was starving! :)
The day was a long one but relatively uneventful. Travis and Emma will not be having any more markers until we arrive in Arizona, but they did entertain themselves! We arrived in Lincoln, Nebraska about 8:00 pm. and we traveled about six hundred miles today. Tomorrow will be another long day, but hopefully a little easier for all of us.
I had tears in my eyes several times during the day as we traveled. Travis asked about going to the Schilders to play tomorrow, and I couldn't even explain to him why we could not. I was choked up thinking about my parents, our wonderful friends, and the home we just sold. However, one thing I am very, very confident about it that God's grace is always, always sufficient. Even when I don't know what I'm trying to say or what I want to pray, God sees my heart...and He knows that it hurts. Thank you for your prayers!
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