Change of address

The time has come, again.

It's weird. When we had been here for about a year, I distinctly remember getting the itch to move. We've never been in any house for longer then 12-18 months, and the stability, well, it was just that, weird. Now here we are, packing up every last little bit of this house, combing through craigslist postings looking for moving boxes, renting a Uhaul, setting up a move-OUT inspection, searching for rental homes...across the country. Here we are, and here we go, again.

This house has become OUR home. It's the only one Lukas knows, as we arrived when he was only a few months old; an experience he'll now share with his brother, Eli, as we arrive to our new house in Alaska only a few short months after HIS arrival. We made a baby here, labored and planned to birth that baby here, and essentially brought him HOME; here. We've celebrated first steps, first words, first birthdays, and prepared for first-days-of-school here. So many memories these walls hold.

This life, the life of a military family; it's one big journey, so it's only natural that we're once again moving on and exploring new horizons.

Each move holds new excitement. New and interesting things we're about to discover that we may not have known before. That's the joy in it. I know I'm excited for the challenge. The challenge of a new climate, the snow, the cold, the darkness and light for long periods of time. The challenge of a new environment, to once again be among an active Army community. The challenge of friendship, the act of once again leaving those relationships Ive known and venturing out to make new ones, to meet new people, to make new neighbors, to make new friends.

The challenge of distance. Now that is a challenge I'm quite familiar with. This wont be the first time I move thousands of miles away from all our family and friends. That being said; it never gets easy, or easier for that matter. I dread the day I have to hug my mom goodbye and not know for sure when we'll be able to see her again. We had a smashing 2 1/2 years being so close, we were blessed; I hope we spent them well. I pray we soaked up every opportunity to visit, to have others visit, to fully take advantage of the rare opportunity of being stationed so close to family.

With my walls bare and my rooms slowly emptying out only to fill with large brown cardboard boxes, I am fighting what I know to be inevitable; we are leaving this house and never coming back.

We're leaving California...but we'll be back, that's inevitable too ;)

I let myself become attached. Perhaps because we were due to leave the Army in March and I felt secure in knowing we'd stay here, in this house. If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans; yes? If you had told me when we moved here that Jimmy would re-enlist and we'd be moving (with a NEW baby) to Alaska, Id have reacted with nothing less then an eye roll and a giggle. It's going to be hard to leave this time, it's going to be very hard.

Still, I will say goodbye knowing that God has huge plans in store for our entire family. He has taken us on an incredible journey while we've been back here in California. Now it's time to see what He has in store for us in Alaska.

Isaiah 6:8 "Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" and I said "Here I am. Send me!""

So, Alaska, here we come...ready or not!

UPDATE:

The moving truck is scheduled to be picked up on January 17th!!! Originally we had planned to do a partial DITY move, letting the Army move our household goods and just drive ourselves & the dogs up to AK. (As always) Change of plans, full DITY move is in effect. Since we cannot get the kids passports in time, we cannot drive with Jimmy. So, Jimmy and one of his soldiers are driving the Uhaul and the Armada up to Alaska with Maxx & Abby in tow. The kids and I will stay with my parents in Folsom until Jimmy gets to temp housing, then the kids and I will fly out and meet him. I will probably be at my mom's house the weekend before we pick up the truck, so around the 13th.

So, yes. The kids and I will be around for a bit longer if you want to get some last minute goodbyes in!

Please keep Jimmy in your prayers as he travels up through Canada to Alaska in this crazy winter we're having. Please pray that the transition is easy on the kids, and that we all acclimate quickly. Pray that we have a safe and uneventful flight from California to Anchorage, and a just as easy time finding a new house to call HOME.