Tag Archives: Moving to Colville

Moving Into Spring Hodgepodge

Joyce is rolling out some fresh Hodgepodge Questions for us. 

1. Spring has officially sprung (in the northern hemisphere anyway)…did she roll in more like a lion or more like a lamb in your neck of the woods? What needs more of your attention in terms of a good spring clean this year-your house or your garden/yard? 

It rolled in more like a lamb.

I’m going with garden/yard. There will be a scheduling of window washing inside and out, soon.

The great thing about Spring is the fact that both Addy and JJ were born in Spring and we get to have family celebrations for them and then the ultimate celebration in Spring is Easter when we celebrate the new life available to us because of what Jesus accomplished on the Cross and his Resurrection.

2. What’s put a spring in your step lately? 

Family love always puts a spring in my step. Along with that, Spring blooms lighten my heart.

3. When you were a kid, what was the best snack to find in your lunchbox? If you didn’t do the lunchbox thing, tell us what was your favorite after school snack. 

We took sack lunches to school growing up. I’m trying to remember if there was ever an added snack and I don’t think so. I think milk was provided by the school for a small amount of money.

4. In what area of your life are you planting seeds ? 

In my Spiritual life through God’s Truth, the Bible, and hopefully the fruit it produces in my life is evident to everyone in my life, especially my grandkids!

Hosea 10:12 ~ Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the LORD, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you.

Galatians 6:8 ~ For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.

5. Why do you live where you do? Would you consider living somewhere else? Why or why not? 

We were on the verge of Greg’s retirement and our first grandchild was born so it was a no brainer to move to a more affordable area of our state within a few miles from where our grandchildren would grow up. At this stage moving again is not on our radar.

The only reason I’d want to move elsewhere is the crazy legislation our state is trying to pass to tax us more and more and make life harder for the common person.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

We had so much fun celebrating Addy this past weekend. She requested a Hardy Boys Mystery Theme for her party and it was a hoot! My full birthday post is here.

Keep as much spring as possible in your steps dear people!

Moving Up Hodgepodge

1. Last time you moved house?

Our last move took from April through September of 2018 from staging and listing and loading containers and selling off stuff and taking several weekend trips over the Cascade Mountain Range in a noisy truck pulling a trailer, accepting an offer, moving in with our kids until we found a house to buy, then finishing loading up the shop with more trips across the mountains with a trailer and finally having the containers arrive at our new home, unloading all the containers and organizing a new home and still having our son’s shop filled with a lot of our things that will finally be moved into Dear’s new shop at our new property once the new shop is done. 

Something you’ve learned in moving house?

It’s not easy and we have too much stuff. Thankful to God for giving us the strength to do all that and survive. 

Love this professional photo of our kitchen in Kenmore for the real estate listing.

2. Move mountains, move along, make a wrong move, moved to tears, get a move on, move up, move over, move out of the way, move the deck chairs on the Titanic, move it!…pick one and tell us how it fits your recent circumstances.

I guess I’ll choose move up because more and more I’m ready for our move up to heaven. Many of these days I catch myself saying, Come Lord Jesus and take your church home. 

3. What have you been doing to make yourself move (aka stay fit-active) during these strange times?

Nothing regular which is a problem. I do have to weed and mow and run after my grands but those things are more random and not everyday activities. 

4. This week’s calendar includes celebrations for the following foods-

National Coffee Milkshake Day (Sunday), National Creme Brûlée Day (Monday), National Milk Chocolate Day (Tuesday), National Chicken Wing Day (Wednesday), National Lasagne Day (Wednesday), National Cheesecake Day (Thursday), and National Avocado Day (Friday)

Which one on the list would you be most inclined to celebrate?

National Avocado Day. I love avocado toast, guacamole, avocado on eggs, avocado in a burrito, avocado in pica de gallo, etc. etc. 

Which would you be most inclined to skip?

Milkshake day. Unfortunately milkshakes don’t agree with my digestive system these days.

5. Next week’s Hodgepodge lands in August! I know!! Raise your hand if you feel like July flew by in the blink of an eye? Now bid farewell to your July acrostic style. If you don’t know what that means click here.

Just when we got
Used to you, you are
Leaving us behind and it still feels like
Yesterday when we celebrated the red, white and blue, adieu.

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

I’ve been thinking about the Rapture in regards to all our stuff. I’m formulating plans in my head for scaling down what I have and am not using. Giving away stuff that others might need or enjoy. Do you ever wonder what the aftermath of the Rapture will be like? I’m thinking I should write an explanation of what happened to us with a clear Gospel message and leave it in the entry of our home. I’m also wondering about telling a friend or two who are still rejecting Christ that if we are all missing they can salvage whatever they want from our home especially our Bibles! No one knows the time or the hour when Christ will come and pluck His followers out of the world but it would be cool to experience it in our lifetime. If not, we know when we die we’ll be with our Savior, Jesus Christ. God is gracious and patient in His timing so that all who are His will come to faith before He returns but be forewarned…after that comes judgement of those who will not believe. 

Thank you Joyce for coming up with the questions each week for Wednesday Hodgepodge!

Early September Close-ups…

I had a few chances to capture some close ups of our little grand last Saturday.

We are busy signing papers, setting up services and arranging deliveries for our new home. I will make a solo trip on Sunday to Colville to deliver signed papers and a check on Monday, picking up keys on Tuesday and returning to this side of the mountains on Wednesday. Dear and I will follow each other with our very last load east on the 15th or 16th of September. The end is in sight. But…first we will celebrate a milestone birthday for Dear with our west side kids on Friday evening. Dear’s birthday is on Sunday. Life is rich…

The End is in Sight Hodgepodge

What has been the highlight of your summer so far? (It’s still summer people!)

Wow! Summer 2018 is one for the books for sure. Besides being in the process of selling/buying/moving across the state which took part of Spring and the whole summer and continues, our dear Pop died at the beginning of summer. He was 95 and ready to see his Savior, Jesus. It was good to be all together in Southern California with family and friends to bury him and remember him and comfort each other in July. Our dear Pop was known for saying, I love you, I love you, I love you, 3 times when it was time to depart after a visit. Our family has embraced that and you’ll hear us repeating his saying to each other now.

Several quick visits with this little one who is showing you her “I’m so strong” pose. We’ve traveled many successive weekends to Colville with a packed trailer and truck on Saturday morning and back across the mountains on Sunday morning with an empty trailer and truck. We managed to get all our household items in 3 shipping containers for our move from Western Washington to Eastern Washington by July 31st which was when possession transferred to the new owners. We had the month of August to empty out Dear’s shop and we purchased a utility trailer to haul behind our truck to get all those awkward shop items to our son’s property. We didn’t find a house to purchase until August 18th! We made an offer on August 19th and our offer was accepted on August 20th. Hallelujah!

2. What do you wish you’d done more of this summer? Less of?

Because it took longer then we expected to sell our home and longer then expected to find a new home there was very little relaxing in our own space this summer. Well…no relaxing in our own space. We have been homeless since July 31st but don’t feel too sorry for us because we have a beautiful space to live in during the interim at our oldest son’s house.

3. Something you’re looking forward to on your September calendar?

We close on our new home on September 11th! Our stuff gets delivered sometime between September 17th and 21st. We should have the containers emptied by September 24th. Hopefully we will have some kind of internet before the 24th. The house we chose does not have cable options only satellite options and we are still checking on line of sight options for the internet, too. Oye. Looking forward to being unpacked and mostly settled by the end of September!

In September we’ll be living only 8 miles from our little grandgirlie and her parents.

4. Best/favorite book you’ve read this summer?

The book of Ephesians in the New Testament. Thinking a lot about the Armor of God.

Favorites we listened to on CD while traveling back and forth across the Cascade Mountain range moving stuff was The Seagull by Anne Cleaves and a repeat of Louise Penny’s Still Life.

5. Share something positive, encouraging, or uplifting here.

Dear and I have been a bit awestruck that we’ve been able to push through our crazy travel schedule, our loading the trailer and truck week in and week out, our 6 hour drives each Saturday and Sunday, sleep and repeat. Only by so many answered prayers with God’s presence and help in our lives could we do it and still choose joy. Thank you to all of you who have prayed for us. “…forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead…”

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Hoping it’s all a gentle slide into the next phase from here…

Linking up with Joyce from This Side of the Pond for Wednesday Hodgepodge . Not only is the end in sight for our move but this is the end of Hodgepodge Wednesday. Joyce has faithfully managed this weekly event for 9 years and times are changing and she’s moving on.