Settling In

The kids and I took Kristi out to lunch to celebrate her birthday. Afterward she enjoyed going to Target and using gift cards from her Mom and Sister to buy this rug for the apartment. It really warms up the industrial tile floors.

That evening we went to Jim and Millie's (the couple who together serve as the deans of married students) house for dinner. They knew it was Kristi's birthday and were so nice to bake her a cake. They have a rock collection that gave the kids hope that unlike what Mom and Dad say, it is okay to keep rocks all through the years!

The next day we "finished" the kids room.  What you can't see is the big stack of boxes in the back corner. The brown wardrobes that you see on the left are what divide the room. Our family is experiencing a new level of togetherness and community.

The shower curtain divides our room and the kids room.  Photos of our room will be coming soon, but it still needs a lot of work. We taught the kids to knock on the side of the bookshelf when they want to come in. Everyone knows it's rude to just barge right through a shower curtain without knocking.

We singed up Nicole for 2nd grade today and she starts tomorrow. She is so excited! It will be an adjustment for Kristi, who loved teaching the kids at home.

We are really enjoying our new home, and adjusting to the new environment.  There are lots of little things to get used to. The water has to always be purified before you use it, which is simple enough until I almost rinsed the pasta with the tap water...that's a no no. The men's bathroom is about 120 feet down the hall, and the long journey is making me aware of how many trips I make in a day. Kristi did some laundry today and enjoyed going down 3 levels, across a freezing parking lot, down a flight of stairs, then back up to wait for the load to finish, then back down, across, and down the stairs to put the load in the dryer, then back upstairs, then back down to fold the load and put in another. While there is much to adjust too, there is much to be thankful for, and we feel so blessed to be here together as a family. I believe God has much to teach us.

Grace and Peace,

Mike

St. Louis MO to Waukesha WI

We left St. Louis Missouri at 7:30am on Saturday, January 2.  It was 7°F outside. When Jesse got into the car after our freezing photo shoot he said, "I think I like Springtime better." Classic!

We arrived in Waukesha Wisconsin at about 2:30pm. Everything in the PODS survived the journey. Not a single thing was broken. All of the canned good we had packed were frozen solid.

About a dozen people helped us unload the PODS and bring our things up to our apartment on the 2nd floor. It only took about an hour.

Nicole and Jesse are very excited about their room.  Nicole loves the bunk-bed. A new friend named Mark custom-made the guardrail at the top. The kids shared a room before we left so that they could get used to it. They have already made several friends and love the idea that they can walk down the hall to play with friends.

Two brown wooden wardrobes and a shower curtain for a door make the wall between the 2 bedrooms. We think it's going to work out just fine. We told the kids to knock on the wardrobe when they need us.

Here's a view from both ends of the great-room. During our family devotion time this morning we were  all overwhelmed at how God has given us peace, joy, and contentment about our new living situation. Humanly we would probably be complaining, but God has really helped us have His perspective with this one.

Thanks for all your prayers, love, help, support, and encouragement so far!

Grace and Peace,

Mike