Friends- a cord of 3 cannot be easily broken

Ecclesiastes 4:12 (New International Version, ©2011)

¹² Though one may be overpowered,
   two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.


Among many things the move to NC has been an adjustment.  the 2 greatest struggles for me have been finding a church (we will never find a church, church family, or pastor like the one we had in clearwater) and fostering friendships like the ones we had in Clearwater.

While I have met many great people I have not formed that bond with any of the women here.  That's not to say that there aren't great ladies but I just haven't made that connection.  I left such a great piece of my heart in Clearwater and my daily prayer is for God to send those friends into my life again.  I didn't realize the blessing I had.  Of course I still have those friends but we can't go to our Monday night movies, I can't call them up and say hey lets take the kids to the beach today, or come over we are grilling and swimming.  Most importantly, while we may talk quite often its not the same.
I am starting to believe that the Lord is trying to teach me something (isn't he always).  I haven't quite figured it out but I believe He wants my full attention ( no friends to distract) and I think its because he wants me to have the longing, that need and the void for friends (like the ones I used to have in Fl) filled by HIM and only HIM.
I have struggled with the fact that we haven't been able to find a church that we can call home but again I think God wants me to be filled by Him and his Word.  We continue to visit churches and be fed that way but I think he wants me to go deeper on my own.  Once again I think He wants that void to be filled by Him.

I struggle to see WHY he brought us to NC.  I still don't know why and don't understand why and I may never on this side of heaven but I know HE has a plan for our family.  While some of the circumstances have been trying, disheartening and flat out frustrating I have to keep faith and know that He he is weaving this tapestry (our life) and from the underside of the tapestry (view from earth) it may look like junk (all those threads and loose pieces hanging around) when we finally get to see the top of the finished tapestry (heaven's view from above) it will be a beautiful piece that  Glorifies God and He uses to bring others to know Him.


My Prayer for today is to stay patient and wait on the Lord (not on the situation ) while He works out his will for our lives.  I am thankful for a Husband that is humble enough to wait patiently as God reveals His plan even if it means he has to put his desires aside (despite how Kingdom centered His desires maybe he is waiting for God's timing).

More anxiety Followed by Peace (sort of)

Last week was full of anxiety.  I had doubts about this house we are buying.  As I posted last time I have reservations and I am not sure if there are unfounded apprehensions or something to truly be concerned about.  Either way I was flipped out for several days.  I finally called my realtor (let me add that she is a Christian and I am soooo glad we chose her to help us with this purchase) .  I told her what i was feeling and that i was willing to lose the deposit.  I asked her to look into houses in our current neighborhood.  She did but what she said to me really made the difference.  The Lord used her to put me at ease and remind me that He is in control.  She told me that she had been and continues to pray that God would show us the house that He has for us.  She told me something i KNOW but tend to forget in the midst of my fretting "God knows your future, He knows where you are going to live and which house is going to be yours".  She is absolutely right, HE KNOWS.  So we have decided to move forward with this house that we have a contract and deposit on and our prayer continues to be that the Lord CLOSES the doors for this house if it is not the one HE has for us. 
So now I am just having anxiety about packing.  (I hate packing, moving and everything associated with it).
OF course once we pack, move and unpack the fun begins.  WE get to decorate!!!!
I have so many ideas for all the spaces (I just need to pace myself and the spending).  I need to remember 1 step at a time.  

I have no ideas where i got these pics.  If you know let me know so I can give them credit.  I saved these months ago in an "inspiration" folder on my computer and now I can't find where I got them.

I like this modern/glamorous living room.  I like the blue/grey armless loveseat/chairs  and the white couch (not sure I am the brave).  I love the mirrored sided tables.

Love the mirror front.  I may try to use something like this in the foyer or the living room.

I don't want to overdo the mirror furniture but if i don't use something in the foyer or living room then i think i may go with a mirrored buffet piece in the dining room.

I like this table but can decide what "style" i want in the dining room.

 Of all the spaces we have to decorate the "fashion  divas" room is the one that I have the most concrete ideas for.  The room will be designed around a Romero Britto Art Piece that coach gave in and bought her on one of our trips to Miami.  We were at the Lincoln Road Mall in South Beach and went into the Britto Art Gallery.  It has been hanging in her room for 2 years but now we are using the piece as inspiration.  this isn't the piece that she has but its a representation of his fun, colorful art.  I know it looks like your children can recreate this.  For us it more of  a Miami thing (that's where we are from).   HE is big in Miami (well all over but really well known in Miami).

I will show you more on her room when we move and I can get all the pictures together.

We sold the rental and are moving foward

As I mentioned in a post several weeks ago, we had no intention of buying a home and we had a headache rental that we desperately wanted to sell.  WELL , PRAISE GOD!!!!!  We officially sold our P'cola Rental (that our previous tenant destroyed) on Feb 28, 2011.  We have seen God truly move great obstacles and open doors for us and we have moved forward to purchase a new home.
Its so crazy because this is the 7th property that I buy but I am soooo nervous/anxious (the 1st time I have ever felt like this when buying a house).  I just keep asking God to CLOSE the doors if its not His will.  I don't know if its age.  I think when you are younger you don't really realize the responsibility and all the things that could go wrong with a house.  There are so many things to consider now.  I used to buy a property and not even think about the future.  I didn't think about what the resale value might be at a later time. I just knew I liked the house and the market was so good that it would only be worth more later. We have always bought the smallest house in great neighborhoods.    Primarily because i would fall in love with the neighborhood and then attempt to find the best house I could find in our budget  (which was always the smallest).   
so now i have all of these thoughts running through my mind:
...this is a great time to buy houses  but is the market going to keep going down? 
....  are we buying a house only to end up having another house that is worth less than we paid for it in a few years (like my beloved home in FL-  p.s  I love that house and neighborhood  even though its worth 150K less than we paid- I still have no regrets and I lOVE IT-wish i could sell it but i do love it)
.....for the 1st time we settled on an average neighborhood so we could have a bigger home.  was this a good idea or should we have followed our M.O.
.... what happens if for some reason our Florida Home is void of a renter at some point , which we all know will one day happen, it inevitable (we have no mortgage there but the ren t income will pay for our new home)
....What if God moves us again and we can't sell?


OHHHHHHH, so many insecurities. 
 WE (the coach and I) have prayed dligently and have earnestly asked the Lord to not allow this to happen if its not mean to be and up until now He just keeps opening doors.  While I love that house there is such peace that comes with not having that mortgage.  For now we will continue purchase this home unless God leads us in another direction.  We are set to close on April 20th.  
for the 1st time i won't be able to go in and buy all new furniture and change/add anything i want.  We have made a commitment to stay debt free (minus the mortgage and 1 car)  so all purchases will be made in cash.  We will have to prioritize and save for everything that my heart desires.  We have committed to saving 3 months worth of  mortgage payments and we will be trying to pay the car off so I suspect that it will be several months before any purchases or changes can take place.

So on to the house.  While I love the space in the house and the double oven and the gas range, upstairs laundry room, desk in the kitchen (i have alsways wanted that) and the big bonus room I don't like how vanilla the house it.  it has no molding and more carpet than I would like. 

gas range

kitchen work space

see the double ovens

bonus room

This is my list (and it will all take time- lots of it)
1.  paint (we need to get rid of the builder white)
2.  blinds, window treatments (every window in the house is bare- we will start off with home depot paper "blinds"

3.  crown molding on the 1st floor, wainscotting in the dining room

view into the dining room

4.  living room furniture

this is the sofa that I want

5.  new dining room furniture (dont' know what i want or what style i want)
6.  new kitchen table
7.  furnish and decorate the bonus room (will probably go with an modern ikea look)
8.  stain the deck and front porch (need to do this asap)
9.  continue the hardwood floors into the family room and living room (right now its only in the entryway, dining room, family room walkway and kitchen)
10.  change carpet on the stairs to wood

The house is brand new so this is all icing on the cake.. Its just what i want to do to make it more to my taste but all in its proper timing.  

I will keep you posted on the journey and the progress.