house!

We just found out that the closing on the house should be in 2-2 1/2 weeks! There are still so many details that need to be done, so this is just a rough estimate. I went to Elkhart yesterday to sit down with our Lacasa consultant and now I feel much better about it. It been a busy couple of weeks for sure! I'm sure this next week will be just as busy! Volleyball isn't quite as busy as what is has been which will be nice!

oh the memories!

We came home from Walmart tonight and were getting ready to give the boys a bath. Chad took off Kian's diaper and literally like 4 sec. later, Kian poops all over the carpet. As I got the paper towels and carpet cleaner (and camera!), we cleaned Kian and put him in the bath. A minute later, Aiden yells out that there is poopy in the bath. Yup...Kian strikes again! Aiden stwas arted freaking out about it and then, yup...Kian struck a third time. We finally got Aiden settled down and drained the water. Kian was quite happy the whole time. He even tried to catch the "floaties"! It was quite funny (at least I thought so, Chad has another thought). Anyways, that was the drama of the night.

We had the inspection on the house yesterday. Everything is good except for a window that needs to be replaced because of rotting wood and smoke detectors need to be placed in the bedrooms. So, hopefully we should close in 2-3 weeks! YEAH! One huge prayer request though: I have been trying to understand what is needed on our end from Lacasa for the HUD 1 statement in order to get the $8,000 dollars. It has been very confusing and I feel as though our consultant has given different answers. I am going to call tomorrow to make an appt with him in Goshen to try to figure it all out. It is coming down to crunch time and we really don't want to lose the money based on a technicality. Please pray that I can get some answers and that I can get an appt quickly and that it will be okay to miss volleyball practice if needed. We haven't heard about the appraisal officially, but unofficially we have been told that everything is fine. I'll still feel better once I learn about the exact number.

Volleyball wise, my team beat Canterbury last night and that was pretty exciting. It's been a little difficult to stay focused right now with everything. My mind is a little focused on the house. I'll feel a lot better when this is all over!

volleyball tourney

My volleyball team had a tournament yesterday in Elwood, IN. We WON! woo hoo! They wre so excited because they have never won a trophy before so it was a big deal to them. I was so proud of them! We played 4 matches and really the best 4 teams of the tourney (there were 8 teams total) and we beat them all! It was so great to see them win close games against teams that were probably better skilled all around than us! I think teams think it will be easy to beat us because we only have 6 girls on the team. I also think my girls like being the underdogs! All that to say I was very proud of them!

Headwater Park

This morning I took the boys to Fort Wayne to a new park that I looked up on the internet. Supposedly, there were fountains/sprinklers for them to play in. I had a basic idea of where I was going, but that was it. Well, I had to turn around in the downtown but found it rather quickly despite never finding the road I was supposed to turn on! It is a huge park! There are concerts there every week in the summer. It is right in the heart of Fort Wayne. We found the large fountains/sprinklers quickly and so we stayed there the entire time. Aiden and Kian LOVED it! The sprinklers came up and down from the ground. Aiden had a great time running through them. It was so nice to let them run and yell! We were the only ones there and they just had a blast! I forgot my camera in the car, so no pictures to post today! I can't wait to walk around the place and see if there is playground equipment and other stuff for the boys to do. After that I changed them and we went to the mall to grab a quick lunch. It was such a fun day! Aid and Kian are now napping and then I have volleyball practice.

We heard from our realtor today. The appraisal was done and we are waiting to hear the results from it. She is very hopeful based on the fact that the appraiser used the comps that the other realtor used to price the house. If that works out then on to the inspection! Please keep praying!

Tomorrow I have an all day volleyball tournament that is 2 hours away. Last night the girls played and fought very hard, but lost. I was very proud of them. The other team was much better than us, but we put ourselves in a position to win....baby steps right?? Hopefully by the end of the season, we will beat teams like that!

update

Sooo, it's been a while huh?! Sorry. Life has been a little hectic for us recently! Volleyball has officially begun. This week alone my team had games Mon, Tues, practice tonight, game tomorrow, practice Fri, and tourney Sat. It's crazy! We won our first game on Monday and lost our game yesterday. It's been going very well so far!

Chad started teaching today! He was so nervous. We were up until past midnight last night doing lesson plans and getting rules and procedures down etc. I know he will do a great job! The elementary principle up and took another job a week ago which SHOCKED everyone. She is staying for a month to help get the school year started. Because of this, the administrator has asked Chad to consider being in charge of all of the discipline for the elementary this year. Chad has decided to take it. He went back and forth about it, but thought he could be very good at it. Not to mention it looks good on a resume (not that we are looking). He will still be teaching all elementary PE, but during his free time will deal with any discipline issues.

The house is still in holding pattern. Please pray that we close before September 30! I will be just sick if we don't! I talked to our landlord today and he told me (quite nicely) that the people downstairs from us had complained about the pounding/jumping noises that the boys make. I felt so badly about it! It has been very difficult to keep the boys not active in the house! They are used to tackling each other (and daddy) and playing and running around. It's hard to keep them quiet! I have decided that I am going to spend a lot more time at parks! I want to be a good testimony to our neighbors and it seems as though everyone is a bit rude (basically we are just ignored). I don't know if they have told their friends that we are loud or whatever, but I feel guilty most of the time. Kian is struggling right now too. He is screaming quite a bit and is pretty clingy most of the time. How do I parent the way that we feel is best (letting him cry/scream) and still be a good neighbor? I feel as though Kian is getting his way more than I want him to, which helps no one in the end. I just keep praying that God helps me to be patient! We had the boys pictures taken at Picture People. Kian lasted about 3 pictures before the temper tantrums started. Then...it was just over! Aiden was an angel (like normal) However, we did get a couple of good pics of the boys. Here are a couple of them:

Yesterday we were all in the car going to my volleyball game and Kian was screaming because he did not like the sun in his face. Aiden said the following to him:

"It's okay Kian. Pretty soon we are going to be in the gym and there won't be any sun in the gym. God keeps the sun outside. So it's okay."

It was one of those moments that Chad and I just looked at each other and smiled. So precious! A couple of days ago Kian was crying in the car again and Aiden said, "It's okay Kian. Here, let me give you a hand." I looked in the backseat and Aid and Kian were holding hands. Kian was looking at Aiden and smiling. It was the cutest thing! I got my camera out and tried to take a picture of it.

We really are doing pretty well. We are going to visit a different church this Sunday. We have been going to Lakewood's church, but have decided to visit a couple of other ones. We miss all of our friends and family at Elkhart. We love you!

laundry time!

Yesterday we went out to do our laundry. Oh how I miss my washer and dryer! However, it was so neat to see the boys play together! They truly love each other and enjoy being together! Yesterday my mom and grandma came up for a few hours. It was just delightful. I have such a great family! I told Aiden that Nana was coming and he said, "oh, I'm going to bring her a big, big hug!" It was quite cute!

Where we now do our laundry!
Kian sitting all by himself on the chair. Man he is growing up sooo fast!

I love that they love being together!

Chad doing push-ups with Aiden.
We are waiting for our clothes! Good times!

Today, Chad left the room real quick and came back to find Kian standing on top of our glass end table. Oh boy! Kian also can climb up on the couch, usually he pulls something over and steps on it to climb up, smart boy!

Kian stepped on Aiden's toy golf clubs to pull himself up on the couch. He is very proud of himself!

Kian and Aid playing on the couch together. They love each other!
Aiden is sitting on Kian's lap. Kian enjoyed it too!

Volleyball has started and it has gone quite well. I already really care for these girls and we are having a good time together. I only have 6 girls on varsity, but I actually prefer that I think! No one will complain about playing time! All 6 are good girls and I have high hopes for the season. Thanks for praying!

We are still waiting on the house. Hopefully the appraisal will be done somewhat soon! God has been very good to us here in Auburn and we have met some wonderful people already!

our first visitors

This morning we all went on a walk. Aiden for the first time rode his bike while we walked. After about a mile, he was finished. None the less, he enjoyed it and it was a perfect day to be outside. We are trying to walk in different places each day to get to know Auburn. It's been a lot of fun.

My Aunt Pat and Uncle Don came and visited us this afternoon in Auburn. They officially were our first guests. It was fun to show them around and spend time with them. The boys had a great time playing with them and miss them! Here are a couple of the pictures they took of the boys:

Notice Aiden's hair is super short. Last night I gave him a haircut with the electric razor. Holy shortness! I did not mean for it to be that short, but oh well! Aiden basically had a complete breakdown from the razor. He was terrified of it, even though this was not the first time using them. Aid's really been struggling with fear recently. Things that he used to do no problem, he is scared to do. Such as flies, Aiden is so scared of flies. He calls them bees. He also has a fear of gnats. He also calls them bees. Yesterday we were at the playground and he wouldn't do several things at first because he was scared. It's a very sticky situation trying to teach him to be discerning, but also to be tough. Chad and I are starting to pray with him every night for it and hope that he will realize that God is more powerful than his fear.

Kian loves to tackle Aiden and loves doing anything that Aiden does. He has become quite a little boy! He is becoming SO much fun! He also is our little screamer. It doesn't matter if he's upset or not, he will probably scream (although if he's upset, it's basically a guarantee that he will). In fact at the church we visited last Sunday, we told the nursery workers that. I'm hoping he outgrows it quickly. Kian is now saying please (it's more of a grunt and he claps his hands; however, to Kian it's please). Anyway, it was neat to see Kian warm up quickly to Aunt Pat (I think she sorta liked it too). It was a great day!