April 14, 2008

I hate boxes...

Goodness - we're not moving for three months, yet there are already boxes everywhere! Empty, full, ready to ship, stuff to sell... They are everywhere...

And of course, there are those boxes of stuff we don't want that the kids keep pulling toys out of...

I feel like I'm living in the middle of a disaster area. Our house is Ground Zero, and probably will be for the rest of our time in Bermuda.

I've made contact with the school choice advice centre in Wakefield, so hopefully they can give us some direction with choosing schools for the boys. We've found three, but have really discovered that the best schools for each of the boys are different. So we'll just have to wait and see about that.

I've also made contact with the Yorkshire Post. They don't have any openings at the moment, but have told me where they advertise, so I'll have to keep watch. I've also contacted a Christian magazine and a couple of crafting magazines. So, we'll see...

This is such a struggle making this move. I'm doing as my husband wants - sorting through everything we own and packing it all up - but I have no peace at all about moving. I'm even extremely hesitant to put in the letter to Tommy's school saying he won't be there next September.

I really feel like I'm moving to this massive spiritual wasteland. I know that there are strong active believers in England, but it just seems hard to find them. There seem to be tons of activities for kids, but the emphasis on the Word of God seems lacking.

Pray that I may find a good Bible-believing, ministry outreaching church that has an active youth ministry with a focus on Bible teaching and scripture memorization.

April 05, 2008

It suddenly hit me...

It suddenly hit me yesterday about how soon our move to England really is.

Our current landlord is hoping to renovate and expand our apartment, which makes perfect sense, but is waiting until we leave. Well, to make it "official" he gave us notice for the end of June, mistakenly thinking that we were leaving in June. Well, we're actually not leaving until the end of July - we want to stay in Bermuda for the summer ministries at church and give the boys a good chance to say goodbye to friends and family, instead of jumping on the plan as soon as Tommy finishes school.

So, it's only four months away. Gosh. I can't believe it. And I'm already surrounded by boxes. We've started clearing books off of shelves to pack and ship snail mail at book rate, because they're so heavy and that rate is so much cheaper.

Then there are the boxes of things we're going to get rid of in the house sales that are cluttering up my living room too.

To try and "help" myself through all this, I've been scouring the internet, looking at how I'm going to decorate our house in Fitzy, complete with photos and price information on each item for each room. I'm doing pretty well so far, except for the kitchen, which I really can't figure out what I want to do with...

I'm also reading a book I found aboard the Logos II book ship, called, "But Mom, I Don't Want to Move," or something like that. It was published by Focus on the Family. It's helpful, but a bit depressing as well...

January 26, 2008

Here comes 2008!

Okay, the start of 2008 has come and gone and now it is practically February.

I have been busy - and it's more than just that I suck at this blogging thing. The last few months did get very hectic, especially with my work for the paper. In November and December, I was doing as many articles per month as some of the full-time writers, and then the boys and I went away for Christmas, leaving DH behind all alone.

It's not that we wanted to leave him, but with not being able to get much time off from the hospital, well... there is a world-wide nursing shortage, right?

Christmas was great - it was the first time in 16 years that I got to spend it with my mom. The last time we did was the Christmas before she moved to Australia! Anyway, she was able to fly to New Jersey for Christmas, and the boys and I joined her at my grandmothers. My brother and SIL live very close by, too, so it was great to be together again for Christmas.

The boys were thoroughly spoiled rotten, of course - they have never had a Christmas with my mom! Also, she hadn't seen the oldest since he was three and, well, had never met the baby before! So it was a great family reunion and we were so sad to all part ways at the end of the two weeks.

By now, you're probably wondering what was my big announcement way back in September. I was asked to join the Digital Creative Team at A Cherry On Top. It's been really awesome working with some amazingly talented ladies over there! They certainly have some of the best of the best digital designers offering their wares!

Things are starting to get back to normal around our house, finally, since Christmas is over. Tommy's doing brilliantly at school, and Jonathan's speech is improving daily. DH still works like crazy for all of us, and I'm doing my best trying to keep some extra income coming in with stories for the paper.

We've got some exciting things going on at our church right now, too. On February 16, we'll be hosting the Love of a Lifetime Scrap-A-Thon! The all day event is the first of its kind for Bermuda, and those attending will not only get to scrapbook and craft all day, the cost includes lunch, a tote-bag filled with goodies, two classes, contests, games and prizes, and a special message from one of the other ladies from the church. It is sure to be a wonderful day of fun and fellowship.

As the coordinator for the Women's Scrapbooking Ministry, I'm also planning this event, which is taking some time and energy, of course. It's so hard to believe it's only a few weeks away! But already, the number of people registered is looking so good!