Furstenbergs, Bradleys, and Critters...

 Last week was a "wait and see"game, and then towards the end of it we got the word that not only had our offer on the house been accepted, the other buyers who were dragging their feet about quitting the battle (due to issues with their loan approval) had finally signed the release form making it official! How exciting! We launched into the loan process immediately, printing and scanning into our computer multiple "required" documents certifying that we were sane, wealthy, and employed....or somewhere in that general vicinity. Today the septic inspection and home inspection were completed, we mailed the last remaining documents to our loan officer, and were set up with a title company for closing. I'm still laughing about the section of the home inspection report that stated,"Vent pipes appear with nothing to keep out little critters." 

This was taken during our weekend to Kentucky, before we knew that it was to be ours! (I added the text later, lol

Lou's orders for Knox are still backdated for September 6th, so when I went by the housing office here I got the "you have two heads and one of them is purple" look from the woman in charge. I explained the situation with the mech leader's course and got a stern admonition to "bring them revised orders in as soon as he gets them" or else........we'll have to pay 6 months' rent, our BAH (basic allowance for housing) will be eternally revoked, we will be used as guinea pigs in the NIH's next round of medical experiments? Your guess is as good as mine! :) Now, if you've never had to "get orders" in the military, it sounds like a simple process. Go to some office, say,"Can I have a large order of orders and a small drink?" Nope. Its a painful process, similar to the DMV, only a tad slower. It could take weeks, nay months, to get this handy piece of unintelligible acronyms/dates/and most importantly-something in the mix that states,"Assigned to: 0001 IN 03 BDE FWD (WACVFD) FT KNOX KY 40121
Reporting date: October ___2010." I relayed this to Lou when he got home tonight and now he's on a mission to get these orders! 

Lou started Mech Leaders' Course Tuesday and has spent most of his time so far playing around in the Bradley Fighting Vehicle (BFV). He has a whole book of PowerPoint slides for this 3 week course and last night on our way to north Columbus I learned some interesting facts about the BFV. Namely, that it weighs 63,000 lbs. and has a speed of 38 MPH. (that's 12 miles faster than the WW2 German Panzer) Recent improvements made to it include: bench seat, storage lockers for gear on the outside of the vehicle, 3 "hotboxes" for 50 rounds of 25mm shells each, and other interesting and random facts. :) Its a "Tank Killer" and "Armored Personnel Carrier" (APC) all rolled into one. And THAT is probably more than you needed or wanted to know! 
I am keeping busy with listing clothing on Ebay to sell, in fact our unplanned trip to Columbus last night resulted from this mini-business of mine. I was in the middle of listing a dress and decided to search "Diane Von Furstenberg", as I had seen a hideous dress at the Goodwill 2 days ago and the name rang a bell. I couldn't in good conscience buy it at the time (since when did Goodwill start charging $6 a dress!) but when I found them on Ebay, the prices ranged from $40-$300 for used dresses. Ahhhhh, the anticipation built until I ran back into Goodwill and saw it hanging on the rack still. And why wouldn't it, after all, it is a terribly ugly teal with black spatter print wrap dress-resembles a poorly designed bathrobe. 

This is the same design, in another horrifying pattern.

Still, if it fetches $70 on Ebay, it will more than cover its costs! Plus, Lou stopped on the way home and bought some delicious pizza for dinner! So, it was a win-win situation!
In addition to Ebaying, I started doing some babysitting using the Sittercity website to advertise. Apparently, sitters from large-enormous families are in high demand, no worrying about them having difficulty making suppers of mac-n-cheese and putting kids to bed on a schedule. :) I have been contacted by over a dozen moms, but since we're leaving at the end of the month, I've only taken a few jobs temporarily. One is this Friday and I'm really excited about it, its going to be great to spend time with 4 little ones! The oldest is 7 and then there are 4 yr old twins and a 3 year old. Plenty of kid time, since Mommy and Daddy are going to a military ball and those last ad infinitum, like our Colonial Balls in Virginia. I've missed babies since our time at the beach with all the little nieces and nephews!

With all the "going to and fro, and walking up and down"as Rachel Lynde calls traveling, for the past few weekends, this Labor Day 4 day break was just that, a break. It was a good time for thinking about and discussing our goals for the future, our plans (Lord willing) and reflecting on our blessings-sort of a Thanksgiving/New Years minus the turkey and champagne. There are so many things we are thankful for, but sometimes I think that I just don't take time to slow down and see them. The weekend in Kentucky God dropped them into my lap, where I couldn't miss them! Below are two of them.

• The house. We were driving down a little country road, with nothing in mind other than sightseeing. We were going to rent. Our house was on that road! It was under contract, so even if we had been LOOKING for a house to buy, we wouldn't have found the listing online. The realtor was at a wedding and unavailable, but another realtor (who normally leaves town on the weekends) just "happened" to be in town that day to show it to us. The financing wasn't approved for the buyers, so we were able to purchase it. Its 10-15 minutes from post so Lou can have an easy drive and yet its still 20 minutes from Elizabethtown, where I'll most likely work while he's deployed. Its in the country yet unsecluded, with neighbors an acre away. 
• Sunday on post at Fort Knox we sat two rows behind the general and his wife. That also was worked in such a providential way. We had originally planned to go to a Baptist church in Shepherdsville with our friends, but they had decided Saturday night to go to the chapel instead for the first time. When worship was ended, we all headed out the door....but of course I had to use the restroom...again. (For those who know me well, and especially my husband, this is perfectly normal :)) When I walked back into the foyer, who should be talking to our friends and Lou but General F___ and his wife! It was an honor, but more importantly the general gave us the date for Lou's deployment, which is something else I had been worrying about. Rumors in the Army are like rabbits, they multiply and hop in all different directions. We had heard he was leaving: October, November,December,January,February......well, you can see how precise rumors can be. Just knowing now-per the general-the month he'll leave has helped me tremendously. I'm certain that the Lord knew (in spite of my trying so hard to not worry) that I would be giving myself a stomach ulcer long before the day came for him to leave, with all these options available. 

This afternoon I read an interview Time magazine did with Joni Erickson Tada and was saddened to read that she was diagnosed with cancer this summer. The interviewer was very pointed in her questions, yet Joni took them on boldly. What a testimony she is to us, and an encouragement to me. Sometimes my problems in life look so big, because I'm the center of my own universe. That should never be and she hit on my problem,"If we can come up with a simple explanation, 'You did something wrong,' then it's something we think we can control." That's it for me, I feel so often the need to "know" everything in my life: When will Lou deploy? Will we ever be able to have a baby? When will I stop committing the same sins over and over again? What if something happens to Lou overseas? What does the future hold? What if I lose all my hair? (yes, this is a real fear :)) etc. etc. etc. So, I'm praying that God will help me to let go of my (perceived) need to know it all, in future. And finding contentment in blessings he has given me this far in my trip through life! Here's the link to the article. http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,2016484,00.html 

Many things about tomorrow,

I don't seem to understand;
But I know Who holds tomorrow,
And I know Who holds my hand.

 Yes, I do.