Talk about an Upgrade

I knew I'd be in trouble for waiting this late to fill you in, but I waited anyway. It's been one crazy day.

So here you go. This was me for the last few years...

Don't I look sad? I was especially sad all those times when I sat in this car on the side of the road, waiting for someone to come and rescue me.

But today, I have something to be happy about. I've gotten a major upgrade! Check me out!



Don't I look so much happier?

Okay, maybe it wasn't worth the suspense, but I wanted to have pictures to share, and I couldn't resist teasing you. What? Were you thinking I was pregnant or something?

Saturday we went van shopping. I, like Valerie, never wanted to be a van-momma. I've always tried to figure out how we could have 4 kids and a comfy car. (Maybe I'm thinking hard now about the four kids.) I used to be seriously stressed thinking about having to resort to a van one day. And now, here I am, with my ONE child and driving a van. I'm liking it though. It's a 2005 Toyota Sienna. By far the nicest thing I've ever driven. And this, for the record, is only the second car I've ever owned. The ol' escort has fared me well, but I was definitely ready to move on.

Just a Tease...

Oooh. You may hate me for this, but I just wanted to tell you that I've got a good, exciting post coming to you on Monday. I'm dying to tell you now, but it will be SO much more exciting for me to post if I can provide you with some visual aides. So you'll have to wait until then to find out. (And remember on Monday that if you don't think it was worth the suspense, think of me and just know that for me, it was SO worth it.)

The Interview

The interview's done and I'm glad, although if they liked me I'll have to come in for a second one. That's the first time I've had to do that, so I'm not used to it working that way.

During the interview and the car ride home I felt good about it. I'd been reminded to be myself, "smile like you do," and I'd be fine. So I was feeling good about it...until I got home and had time to process everything. I'm totally over-analyzing the whole thing and making myself a nervous wreck. I think it may be the beginning of next week or so before I hear anything, but now I'm not feeling good about it anymore. I've analyzed it to the point that if I don't get it, I'll have figured out exactly what killed it for me. Am I nuts? Thanks for the prayers and encouragement. I'll keep you updated.

Tagged

I've been tagged!

Here's how this one works...
1. The rules are posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and ask them to read your blog.

What I was doing 10 years ago:
Getting ready to graduate from high school, getting ready to move to Middle Tennessee, dating the WRONG guy.

Five things on my to do list for today:
1. Go to church
2. Nap
3. Spend time with my boys
4. Think about my interview tomorrow
5. Clean up the kitchen (didn't happen)

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
Travel, buy nice things for people who can't buy nice things for themselves, donate, save, have lots of babies

Three of my bad habits:
1. Caring too much about what others think
2. Eating when I'm bored
3. Not keeping in touch like I should

Five places I have lived:
1. Bridgeport, Alabama
2. Murfreesboro, Tennessee
3. Bowling Green, Kentucky
4. Lafayette, Indiana
5. ?? I've been working my way up the country. I guess Michigan's next. (Don't
worry though, Mom.) ??

Five jobs I have had:
1. Accountant's assistant at an electric cooperative
2. Afterschool care worker
3. Sprint salesperson
4. Bank teller
5. Middle school teacher

Five People I Want to Know More About:
1. Teresa K.
2. Sister Jess
3. Jeanne
4. The Burtons
5. Gilbert

It's Done!

The house in Bowling Green is officially sold. I've been in denial for a while about it actually being sold, because I didn't want to get my hopes up in case something fell through. But the ink is on the dotted line and we have a nice check that will wait in the bank for the purchase of our new home, hopefully before too long. Thanks for thinking of us and sending your well-wishes on a successful few days in Bowling Green.

Next on the list of things to do: Gilbert has informed me that a new vehicle is in my future. I've actually seen him shopping online a time or two, which means he must be serious. As much as I've said all my life that I won't be a van-mom, regardless of how large my family is, I'm starting to like the idea of not having to stoop into a car or strain to reach up into an SUV to put a baby in a car seat. On top of that, when we get with family, we won't have to drive separate vehicles because we can't fit everyone, and there will be plenty of room for long trips. All of these things have helped me get over the "I will never drive a van" state of mind. So we're van shopping. I think I might be a little embarrassed, but I'm getting over it.

Also, I'd like to put in for another prayer request, since you've all been so willing to help pray for other things. I have a job interview on Monday morning. It's at a high school here in town, and they have both an opening for a counselor (which I would love) and an English teacher (which I would not mind having either). I'm praying that God will put me in the perfect place.

Thanks for loving us and for keeping up with what's going on in our lives. We love you all.

The Good News and the Bad News

Normally I like to start with the bad news first, so I can end on a good note, but today I'm going to start with the good news.

Good news: We are coming very close to selling our house in Bowling Green. Some of you, Todd Gibbs, may think of this as the bad news, because it means that we're severing our last material tie to Kentucky. But considering the financial strain that awaits us if we don't sell it, Gilbert and I consider this good news. This has been about a month in the making, but I haven't taken the opportunity to write about it yet, which is a good thing, because it allows me to write to you about a much more edge-of-your-seat story today, after you take into consideration the bad news.

Bad news (which, thanks to our realtor, Mark Miller, might not be so terrible in the long run): #1-We went to Italy knowing that our inspection would take place while we were gone, but certain that all would go well and we would pass inspection. Little did we know that our patio was slowing sliding down a hill. Really, it sounds worse than it is, which I enjoy, because I like to imagine that you're gasping right now. We knew that the patio was cracked and that it had pulled away from the house a little (it had separated from the siding just below the back door), but we thought that was just because it was brand new when we bought it and things had settled some. No. The hill that the left of our house teeters on is causing the patio to scoot away from the house. Nice. So we're spending more than we hoped on getting the patio ripped up and re-done. At least I think that's what's happening. At this point, I don't care now it's done, as long as it's done.
#2-Mark called today while we were having lunch. I could tell by the way Gilbert was talking that it might not be good. When I gave him the third-degree after he got off the phone, the news was this: We have termites. Good grief. The good-news aspect of this bad news is that we have been diligent enough to remember each year to get the exterminators out to check for these little critters. How, you ask, in this case, is it possible that we have these new tenants in our home? Good question. I wish I had an answer, but I don't. But I'm certain that we've had annual inspections every year since we first moved in, so we're sure that the cost of evicting these creatures will be covered by the pest-control company. Until I get home and I can find every receipt for inspection from 2003-2006. Anyone picked up on the problem yet? Yep. Last year was 2007. I can't find the receipt. But I remember vaguely not wanting the inspector to ring the door bell because Cole was napping. So surely he came. After a little searching and a little panicking, I find the check register that shows that they had been paid. Whew! In the meantime, Mark is making phone calls and checking on all this for us, but I'm too anxious to wait and hear it from him. I must research myself. When he does call back, however, everything seems to be fine. The company will make a trip to the house and work on getting things cleaned up.

Thank goodness for Mark Miller. He has been awesome in all this, especially since our need to work long-distance has made it hard for us to do many of these things ourselves. When I got off the phone with him this afternoon, he said, "See you next week" (which is when we're set to come to Bowling Green for closing). Again, whew. I'll be glad when it's all done. But don't be sad, Bowling Green friends. It just means that when we come down, we'll follow the example of those cute little termites and find homes not ours to invade.