Sitting here at the apartment with the dishwasher running makes me very grateful for our noise reduction dishwasher at home! This thing is swishing and swashing in one volume... LOUD! Things have calmed down quite a lot in our life. The steady stream of realtor's and their clients coming through the house in the past four weeks has significantly slowed down to nothing. It's been great having the house back to ourselves!
The last week has been delightfully blissful because I've had the
opportunity to read, read and read! It feels great to be able to read
instead of driving all over town and then some while running errands and
doing other important things :o) Here's a run down of some of the books I've read....
1. Where Lilacs Still Bloom by Jane Kirkpatrick is about a strong and determined little known female historical figure which Jane brings to life through her gift of story-telling (I'm a huge fan of her books and even though I may not always be interested in the particular subject matter her protagonist is into, I still get sucked into her stories every time!!!). Hulda's vision and patience to develop her specialty plants are astounding!
2. Five Miles South of Peculiar by Angela Hunt tells the story of three sisters and the complications of their relationship (you'll love this one, too!) because of misconceptions, distance and hurt. I love how it ends!
3. Cottage by the Sea by Robin Jones Gunn is a story about relationships and their complexities---a husband and wife, a daughter and her father, a father and his son and a daughter and her stepmother. This story is so touching and meaningful.
4. Stardust by Carla Stewart is about one woman's grit and determination to provide for her girls even when circumstances get in the way!
5. Reunion by Lauraine Snelling is one of those stories that will have you tearing up at the end! A surprise discovery, a broken vow and an upcoming reunion adds more stress than one woman can take!
6. Harvest of Rubies by Tess Afshar is a fascinating story set in the Persian Empire that had me mesmerized from the very beginning. It's about one woman's rise from poverty to being a valuable assistant to the Queen!
7. A Wedding Transpires on Mackinac Island by Cara C. Putman is a destination romance that makes me want to take a trip to this charming place so I can see everything firsthand instead of just in my mind's eye!
I'll have my reviews posted in my Five Star Books & More by the Reading Mom newsletter here in early June. I can't wait to get started on Ann Tatlock's Travelers Rest!
Today, the weather was hot---101 degrees!!! I'm so thankful for air-conditioning in the car and at the apartment! We discovered H Mart, a Korean market and Krista and I felt so sorry for the guys who were BBQing outside! Ugh! Just walking by them was enough to make you feel like you were cocooned inside a heat wave---we couldn't get to the car fast enough!
We came back to the apartment and the AC was a blessing! After an hour, the apartment was quite chilly. But, Michael, our hot tamale, was trying to convince me why he needed to change back into his street clothes (he had taken a good 2.5 hour nap and was in his pj's). I told him that it was chilly but he insisted he was HOT! I told him I should check his body temps and he matter-of-factually informed me, "Mommy, you can't know how my body feels because you're not me. It's my body and I know how I feel and I'm hot. You're not me, you're you and I'm me!" I loved his logical explanation so he got to change back into his street clothes :o)
This house hunting trip has been so relaxing. I saw some more houses that were close to being what we need and want (and some that were not even close!) but the "right" house is still elusive. Here's what we need: an updated kitchen with granite counter tops and lots of kitchen cabinets, a bedroom for each one of us, 3.5 bathrooms, a room for a study and a finished basement with a full bathroom for all our guests who will be visiting us. Here's what I want: a laundry room on the second floor, California Closets in all the rooms, recessed lighting throughout the house, and a Bain Ultra-Bubble tub in the master suite! I'm done for now and I have to make a daily choice to trust that God will open up the right home at the right price in His perfect timing! Even though I had hoped to have found something by now...!
To be honest, sometimes, waiting on God's perfect timing can be terrifying---especially when I think of the verse in 1 Peter 3:8 that says this: "But you must not forget
this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the
Lord, and a thousand years is like a day." Eeks! Could it take that long to find a house?!?
But before I psyche myself out with my far-fetched imagination, I need to get my brain back in control and recall all the things God is doing and has been doing in the life of our family! God continues to remind me through Ecclesiastes 3 (using the NLT), "For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven."
And when He's ready for us to move out of our temporary residence (we're thankful we found a great chiropractor nearby because these beds are killin' our backs!), He will bring the right house to our attention.
He'll do His part while I do mine...Trust. In. Him.
