Overdue Picture Post

Funny how "tomorrow" can turn into "2 weeks from now" in a heartbeat! One thing you must know about me is that I am always late...with everything...seriously. Ask anyone who knows me. If I tell you 6:00, you automatically think 6:30. If I tell you I will definitely get your birthday card out on time this year, count on it at least a week later...if at all! And, when my due date is May 20th, that baby's gonna stick around until at least the 22nd.

An unappealing trait, I know...

So, when I posted that I would have an update "tomorrow", what I really meant was I would have an update when my crazy life slows down a bit, which is never, so the fact that you are reading this right now is a miracle of the greatest proportions.

Here is the long-awaited (by whom, I don't know) update...if anyone still pops by here from time to time:

The J.O.B.

I won't bore you with details, but hubby was blessed with a steady, reliable job...and not only that, but he was able to start the very same week that his temporary position ended. What a blessing!

When I wrote this post over a year ago about the changes that were coming in our life, I didn't realize how the Lord was working everything together.

The New House

The only bad part about the new job was that hubby had to drive 90 minutes both ways. And we weren't getting any bites on our house. After a few months of driving, which lasted over the very looooong, horrendous winter, he was DONE! Mentally, I mean. We decided that he couldn't do another winter like that on the road, so we started looking at homes in the town where his job is.

Let me tell you, it's a small college town and there is not much of a housing market. Over the next couple months, we looked at close to 30 homes, even branching out to towns within 45 minutes. Some of the homes would have worked, but we didn't feel like they were "the one". We even put an offer in on one home, but during our inspection, we discovered it was full of mildew and mold...we were sick for a week after the walkthrough. Not the house for us!

Finally, after 6 long months of searching, we found out that one of hubby's co-workers was being transferred. His property sounded like what we were looking for, so we scheduled a showing before it ever hit the market. We knew it was right as soon as we drove down the lane and we had an accepted offer before we had even arrived back home that evening.

We moved in on July 1st.  We still don't have a contract on our other house.

The Kids

The kids love it here at the new house. They have a tire swing that they play on every day...

...and a hill that they take turns riding Jack's big wheel down and "crashing" into the garden below.

They have toys galore, but never cease to amaze me with what they decide to spend their time doing. The newest craze is chess...

Benjamin taught Addy and this morning, Addy was teaching Jack. I can't tell you how cute it is to hear a 4-year old say to a 2-year old: "Yeh, that's right! You got my pawn! Good job!"

School started last week and we have been busy with all that entails. Last week the kids made a water lens. It was a big hit...

Carter is almost 9 months old...unbelievable. He's a joy and the older kids dote on him like crazy.

I'll post some new pictures of him next time.

We recently found out that we are expecting #5 in April 2011. I will admit, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed, but overjoyed at the thought of having another little one to love.

Critters

Our new place came with a few new critters. 

We inherited 4 cats, but we didn't realize one of them was pregnant.  2 weeks after moving in, she had 6 kittens.  2 weeks later, she stopped feeding them, but since they're outside cats, we didn't find out until it was too late.  So, we still have just 4 cats.

We also inherited 19 chickens, one of which was laying on a nest which hatched out 4 chicks.  Then, we decided that watching chicks was really fun, so we put another broody hen on a nest and she hatched out 2.  Then, one of the hens we brought with us decided to lay on a nest and she had 7!  So, we now have more than 30 chickens.

And then, of course, there's the dog.  She is a sweetie, but she can't hold her bladder, so she has also been relegated to the outside.

Blessings!

Brandi