5.on.the.fly

I have not written anything in a while.  We have been so very busy and this just hasn't been a priority, but I wanted to write something new. We are three months in now.  We have been living in the house we rented for about 2 months and have pretty much filled it with the things we need with a few small exceptions.  I have an indoor patio upstairs in the back of the house that we turned into a dedicated school room, and the kids will be starting their 8th week of school on Monday.  We are getting into a routine somewhat, but we are so busy.  Between multiple appointments for visa applications, cedulas, etc. we have been on the run a lot.  Our visas were approved and we got those the last week in September, so we used the return part of our original airline tickets here to go back to Virginia for a 2 week visit.  We had left some things behind that we couldn't bring initially, and I was terribly homesick and missing my parents so Tom blessed us with th...

We are making progress, but there sure is a lot to get used to.  I keep talking to the kids about grace and being able to adapt - pretty much every few hours. Some of the differences are striking and frustrating.  Things seem super inefficient to us, but I suppose maybe that's the famous "First world problems" comment rearing its head.  None of the bills can be paid via web or phone like I have been doing for years; we have to physically go to the bank where the landlord has an account, deposit the rent into her account, and then take a picture of the receipt and forward that to the property manager.  The water and electric bills have to be paid at different banks, again in person, using a code for each (I suppose like an account number).  Nothing is actually in our names with any utility.  The cell phone bill we still haven't figured out how to pay.  I guess when the service cuts off we will figure that out!  I won't even get into what it's lik...

So I won't sugar-coat it.  This is hard.  I miss my parents.  I miss our old house.  I miss everything being convenient and comfortable and familiar.  I miss my church and my friends.  I miss having food handy that my children will eat.  I miss being able to express myself adequately and fully or even to understand basic comments or questions from people. It's frustrating.  There is so much that's different here, which I knew, but it's all much harder to deal with when kids are in the mix.  When Tom and I were here before we only had to worry about ourselves.  We now have three small humans who have been without schedules, routines, school, friends, family, and in a strange place for 3 weeks.  The meltdowns are out of control. It's frustrating to see my kids out of sorts and not be able to make it better; we have been living in a hotel room with 20 suitcases for 15 days now.  We keep wearing the same 4 outfits and then walkin...

As much as I try to ignore it, my home is slowly disappearing.  We are two weeks out now from leaving Virginia.  The pictures are off the walls, we are sleeping on the floor, and someone just drove away with our second to last sofa.  Suitcases are packed and crowded into the corner waiting to be loaded into a rental van.  I am trying to find homes for half-used laundry soap and Panko bread crumbs because I can't stand waste and throwing it away bothers me.  Half of me is so sad to leave and half of me is excited to arrive in Ecuador. My shoulders ache from lifting suitcases to test the weight (and maybe a little from anxiety).  I fear I will forget a million things, but I'm trying my best to remember them all. Time with family has been ramped up a bit; we just celebrated my parent's 50th wedding anniversary a few days ago with both of my brothers and their families.  I think I have seen family more in the last month than in the last year combined....

So this is what the house looks like now.  I have been so incredibly busy I have not had time to write.  We have a contract on the house and closing is set for July 6. Right after that we will be leaving, so the mad scramble to get packed, make a million reservations, clear the house, and everything else has started.  So much is going on in my head all day every day; I just can't fit another thing in there and I know I will end up forgetting a couple things. But the excitement is real.  Tom is ecstatic.  The girls are ecstatic, the boy not so much.  He's worried about the plane ride and having to adjust to a new place and a new language.  And he doesn't want to leave our home.  We went with the only airline that has a direct flight from Fort Lauderdale to Guayaquil (for the boy's benefit) and because they have a generous baggage policy.  The bad news is that they are notorious for canceling flights at the last minute and leaving folks s...

So this has been our experience so far with having the house on the market....note the lack of a SOLD sticker, or even UNDER CONTRACT. We were thinking it would go quickly based on what the listing agent (a fantastic, God-loving, Sister-in-Christ we knew from when Tom was pastoring at Community Church) told us and the market right now. We had a call for a showing the morning after it went on the market, which was encouraging, and the couple loved it but not the neighborhood so much. That is tough to hear because we know how blessed we have been to live in this neighborhood for 15 years. Yes, it is a mix of VERY old and new, some not in such good shape, but the people are fantastic.  It is what I will miss the most.  Standing in the street talking to my neighbors in the spring and summer while a motley crew of kids rides/runs/scooters/crawls around us all. Community appreciation day at the church with free food, bonfires, sweets, bounce houses, car shows, music, etc.  ...

Quick update tonight.  This came in the mail a few weeks ago.  My heart skipped a beat. It definitely is wonderful to know that we are close to a time when Tom can be free from 12 hour shifts, daytime sleeping, ever changing schedules, etc. and spend more time in ministry and with our family, but it also really hit home how close we are to leaving everything that is comfortable and familiar to us. Today he called the city and scheduled his meeting with them tomorrow morning, with plans to tell them May 1, 2018 is his last day.  I just can't.