Settling in...

We had to wait 10 days in order for our stuff to be delivered 1 hour down the road. We used the time by moving about 40% of our own stuff.  We have also been checking out our new town.  Here we are at Toys IRIS.  That's what Meg calls it.

Our stuff finally arrived....not all in one piece.  Good bye Crock pot, lamp shades and Christmas trees.

Here is Meg's room finished.  She loves having her own room.  It took several tries to get it just right but we came up with this in the end.

She LOVES all things ARTSY so we had to have the "Art Center."

A dear friend we met last year in Heidelberg moved backed to the states.  She is one year older than Meg and wanted our address so she could send Meg her hand -me- downs.  Meg was BEYOND excited.  The shirt she was wearing the day we picked up the package was from Mara.  We LOVE having things passed down.  Between Mara and her cousin Abigail, Meg is one cute fashionista!

Moving is an overwhelming process.  Just finding a run again that feels right it not always easy.  I feel kinda like Goldilocks at time.

Too remote

Too many cars

Too stinky (Pastures)

Too many potholes

But sometime you have to just keep trying, and so I will set off again and run down a different path, waiting to find the trail that is "just right!" 

Change

The Truck arrived

The BEFORE picture

DURING

AFTER

A finale good-bye to Meg's room

Driving Away

It has been an emotional week.  I cried leaving our old apartment.  We celebrated Owen's 7th birthday, Meg's 4th birthday, Christmas of 2010 and 2011, my parents coming to visit and so many other great memories.  This apartment was such a gift and I loved everything about it.  I didn't know it would be so hard saying good-bye to this place that we called home here in Germany.  I know God has new adventures for us ahead.  I am so thankful for our time spent there. 

Dino Digging with Dad

Pascal took the kids to a Dinosaur Museum over the weekend. 

Their favorite part was to actually get to look for fossils.  What kids doesn't love a hammer and a huge pile of rocks. 

Even Meg was very much into finding a fossil treasure.

The article we read about this museum suggested wearing pants so that when the kids worked in the rocks they wouldn't get cut.  Meg has a cherry skirt that matches this shirt from  sweet Abigail and when I told her she needed to wear jeans the tears came.  "Mom, cherries just don't mach with jeans." 

The kids really enjoyed this outing.  They came home with a big bag of "treasures"... just what ever mom wants!

Big moving trucks are arriving as we speak.... more exciting info to come. 

Geocaching Adventure

I saw an advertisement for an activity called Geocaching.  It sounded so cool, you check a website and get coordinates to put into your GPS.  You follow your GPS to the location and then search for a treasure box.  Once you find the box you:

1. Take something

2.  Leave something

3.  Write an entry in the log book

4. Replace the box as you found it

I love a good treasure hunt and so we met up with Marvin and his family and set off.

We searched for 3 1/2 hours and COULD not find that box.  We looked in trees, in the bushes, moved rocks and looked in every place we could think of.  We finally gave up with some disappointed treasure seekers.  After we came home we had some snacks, checked the website and noticed someone left a clue.  The clue said, Look inside the building.  We went back, picked up Marvin once again and found it within 5 min.  The kids really enjoyed finding the box and each one picked out a little treasure.  We left behind:  a marble

A miniature American Flag

 and a mini skateboard

Here we are looking through the box

The website left 2 more pairs of coordinates.  I think if Pascal is up to it we might try again tomorrow. 

Summer days

Today, we went to our weekly library program where the kids got to make a chef's hat and decorate a cupcake.  This could not have been more perfect for Meg!  She thought it was the best.

Yesterday, we had a play date with Marvin.  After his mom picked up Bella from school we walked to the bakery down the street for a little lunch.  The girls sat in these chairs and thought it was such fun! 

The boys were NOT into the whole decorate a cupcake and make a hat.  They wouldn't even wear the hats for a picture.  They couldn't wait to get outside so they could sword fight.  Meg and Bella however, were sad when we told them they had to finish up making their cupcakes and hats. 

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Marching Orders

I think this week will be the Calm before the Storm.  We received our paper work to move and so the process begins!

• On July 26th and 27th the movers are coming to pack us up
• On July 28th and 29th we have to clean our current apartment and get it ready to hand back over to our landlord
• On July 30 inspection of new apartment, signing for keys; the movers will also be delivering our furniture to our new place
• July 31 Inspection of old apartment returning keys to our current landlord

"Change is a comin!"  I've had a few weeks to process all of this and I've sulked a bit, cried in my key lime pie and pouted.  But it is time to move on.  I will CHOOSE to be excited and embrace the newness that is before us. I made an appointment to cut my hair this week. I thought it would be good way to start the process.  No more digging in my heels and resisting, it's time to put on my runnin shoes.  I realized over the last few weeks I had made God very little and my problems very big.  Time to lean into my BIG GOD and realize my problems are very little.

Off to measure rooms and windows of our new place.  More pics to come:)