Alpha and Omega

"God is the Alpha and Omega and in every Omega, there is always another Alpha. Anytime he brings us to the end of anything, there is always a beginning." Beth Moore (from session 10 video of "The Patriarchs").

I wrote this quote down last year as I watched this video. We had gotten orders to move that we didn't expect and things were crazy. But this struck a chord with me then. Now, here we are 10 months later and moving at Christmas again. Gabby's in school this year and has to move in the middle and Christmas is going to be spent homeless and in transition. Robert's going back to a tactical unit that already has deployment orders. There is a lot going on. I got a letter from a dear friend with a similar crazy time of transition - moving overseas, sending her oldest to college, trying to coordinate a mission trip with her youngest, etc. Life is scary, changes are scary. Isn't it great that God always has a new beginning for us? We don't have to worry about coming to the end of anything, because the beginning is just around the corner.

The Move has Officially Begun!

We had pre-packing today, an entirely new thing to me (believe it or not) that turned out very good. We had three packers for three hours who almost got our basement entirely packed. That means next week we'll be a little ahead. The other nice thing about it was that I only had to worry about preparing my basement for today. But now that part is done. Everything we wanted to keep to carry with us and everything down there we had intended to get rid of has been done. I now have a week until the real packing and loading starts up and my basement is already done! Now to focus on the rest of the house...

Being Behind

I am in a constant state of being behind, I think, and this blog is no exception. So I am way behind and I know it. Things have been moving at break-neck speed around here lately and, once again, my hard-drive is full and I can't upload any more pics. Does that keep me from taking them?? NO! So I am trying to clean off some space while I am still doing all that I do. I have lots to post so I promise to work on it bit by bit. But, for now, off to work on Gabby's Tinkerbell Birthday Party tomorrow (yes, it's early - we're moving right before her birthday again.) Someday I'll get pics posted...

Red Barn Farm, part two

Gabby's class went on a field trip to the Red Barn Farm and it was a much nicer day than for the Daisy Troop. They had a tour of all the animals and a hayride at the Farm. We then went to Weston Bend State Park and had a picnic lunch. We took a little hike there and played on the playground. Sam enjoyed chasing big sissy and her friends around. He has no idea he is not five.

Halloween

Hope everyone had a great Halloween. Ours was good in a very crazy sort of way. We left Thurs night and drove to St Louis, making the rest of the drive to Nashville on Halloween. After checking into a hotel, we went to my grandparents' house where the kids put on their costumes. Gabby was Pocahontas and Sam was a frog. Then we went to my cousin's house to trick or treat. Their neighbor made a hayride out of their trailer and the kids all rode for a while and walked for a while. Sam really enjoyed the houses with lights and decorations. He went at it hard and was a tired little frog at the end of the night.

Camping with the Girl Scouts

Ahhh, camping with the Daisy Girl Scouts! For those not yet schooled on Girl Scouts, these are Kindergarteners and First Graders. So five and six years old. We took 13 of them camping a few weeks ago. My thanks goes out to the troop leader, who was gung-ho and really made it a great weekend. We did get to sleep inside a lodge, thank goodness, since this was our first really cold weekend. But we cooked outside and spent the day Saturday outside playing parachute games, fishing, doing crafts, and finishing it off with s'mores around the campfire with the whole group of Girl Scouts from the Fort Leavenworth area. Gabby enjoyed herself and was not ready to leave. I discovered the adults have a secret stash of chocolate and Excedrine handy. Was it like that when you took us, Mom? I left with no speaking voice but also really enjoyed myself. I hope we can find such a good troop at Fort Lewis.

Election Day

Hope everyone has already voted or is on their way. Please vote! We have the honor of voting that many around the world still do not have. Enjoy your freedom today!