I've been so busy enjoying life that I have neglected to keep you updated about all the blessings. Here is a brief review:
First, we sold our home! Now, we had talked about selling it as early as February, when we went public with our decision to move, but had been hoping to sell it to someone we knew. Through the generosity of friends, we were able to move into another home and leave ours staged for showing, which is much better than trying to get two children and a dog out of the house, clean said house, and make it look like nobody lives there in 20 minutes when someone calls and wants to look at it.
But about these homebuyers...they wrote us a very kind letter about how much they love our home and they have been looking for awhile but knew as soon as they saw ours that it was no coincidence we were selling what they were looking for. Their financing appears secure, they want to close next week, and they want to purchase some of our furniture. Thank you, God!
Another huge advantage to living in this temporary home is that we have seen some of the potential hurdles we will face when moving the kids to Africa. Moving is stressful on any family, and add in Ru-baby's ASD issues (one of which is that transitions are especially difficult for her) and you have a lot of fun for everyone.
One (now) funny example is that we are all sleeping in one room, despite having four beds to choose from...remember my post a few months ago about how done I was with co-sleeping? Well, not anymore. We have been sleeping in the same room since September, often in the same bed. And we have really grown to like this arrangement. Nothing sweeter than coming to bed and seeing your babies' peaceful faces as they dream. Last night they slept on the floor together by our bed. They really do have a calming effect on each other. Except when they don't.
Another good thing about this interim move is the ability to see opportunities for better organization (translate: how to cram your stuff into a smaller space than you had before). Better to work through this issue now while we have access to organizational tools, right? And we have pared down our belongings further, realizing that you really DON'T need four pairs of jeans. But we are learning to live in a smaller space, and in a different space than we are used to, and I am hopeful that this will help reduce the stress of the many changes awaiting us in Africa, which I'm sure I cannot even imagine.
When we put our house on the market (it was only listed for about a month!), I knew that it was in God's care. People told us that houses don't sell this time of the year, they don't sell in this market, blah, blah, blah. They were well-meaning people, but they didn't understand that God had this covered. And He would still have had it covered if the house didn't sell for a year. So much of this process is beyond my ability to control - it's better to leave it to someone who can move mountains. Or houses in a bad economy during the holidays.
