We're back!

Lots of changes since I last blogged...here's the latest.

new additions...for those of you not in the loop, about two months ago we became the legal guardians of our niece, Caitlyn, and nephew, Braden. She is 8, and he will be 7 this coming Saturday. There's a long story about why they are living with us, but the important thing is they are now safe and happy with their new family. That's not to say the transition has been an easy one, but we are doing the best with what we have to work with. There have been many blessings along the way to help with the smoothness of the process, and we are all very grateful for all those blessings.

new home...we moved in almost two weeks ago and are not even close to being settled. Our new place is absolutely wonderful...God has exceeded our expectations yet again. It's huge...two stories, 2700 square feet and a second living area, which we have designated as a play area. (Which means we adults get to have a living room free of toy clutter...yippee!) Cati and Braden each have their own rooms (for the first time ever) and the boys are sharing a room, so that we can all be upstairs together. There is a guest room downstairs, which is currently being used for storage...but I'll get to that very soon. The neighborhood is quiet and all the neighbors seem nice, some even nosey. The elementary school is just beyond our backyard fence, which will be very convenient come late August. All in all, this is the perfect home for us. We are very happy and feel very blessed...thank you Lord for this home! We love it!

new vehicle...well not yet, but soon. We are starting to look for a vehicle that will accommodate our new family of six...still getting used to that number. I don't want to settle for a minivan, but I think that just might be the only real option for us.

Otherwise we are well. We miss our Lifegroup buddies like crazy and are very anxious to find a church in our town. There are a couple of prospects and the hunt will officially begin this weekend.
The boys are getting so big. Reese turned two while we were living in Mount Vernon and he is now in a big boy bed since he figured out how to crawl out of the crib. Rylie is still not potty trained, which is really wearing on me. But he is learning to play basketball and he is getting smarter with each passing day. It's amazing, really.
Brandon is well. He is working mandatory overtime...60 hours per week, night shift. That's been rough on all of us, but it will be coming to an end very soon. Praise God.
I'm doing my best to get our new home put together, but not getting in much of a hurry about it. I have a feeling we are going to be here for a while so I don't mind so much taking my time decorating and organizing. These past few months are pretty much a blur, but we have a new start and we are all very excited about it. Can't wait to share it with you all...I've missed all you bloggin' buddies, as well.