It's been a long time since I've written here. So sorry, but life gets busy sometimes.

I'm glad to report that I am finally starting to feel like my old self again. It feels so good to come out of that dark cloud that I was in. It was so bad that I didn't even know I was in it.

I'd like to apologize to everyone I've been around the last eight months. Life was kind of crappy for me and I'm pretty sure I was a distant, stand-offish shell of a human being. I wasn't ever happy. I didn't ever want to get out of the house and I was attached to Robert at the hip. (sorry honey). I can probably count on one hand how many times I laughed out loud at anything. So sad.

I didn't realize that moving to another state out of the blue like we did would take such a toll on me. I guess I don't handle that kind of stress well. I like to plan things and the last 8 or 9 months had no plan whatsoever. None. It was a roller coster ride for me,  and one that I hated.

We decided to move early November, found a job that month, put up our house for sell and moved by the end of December. We didn't even get to say goodbye to everyone. People didn't even know we'd moved until we were gone. It was that fast. The next five months was living in a tiny and cramped apartment, unsure of where we wanted to live and unsure if we'd even find a house worth living in.

Let me tell you that having a home to call your own makes a huge difference on ones mood.  I'm not talking about owning either, just having a place you know you're going to be living in for a long time makes all the difference.  We had no idea how long we we're going to be in that apartment so we never unpacked. We were surrounded by boxes, reminders of how unstable our life was.

I'm so happy to be happy again. Thank you for being patient with me.

Limbo

So here I sit, in my apartment we've named Limbo. It is called Limbo for a reason, this cave they call a luxury apartment has forced us into a waiting period of limbo.

We cannot go outside to play because it's all parking lots and busy roads, no parks within walking distance.

We are not allowed to cook anything fun because Limbo's kitchen is a tiny and dark pit of despair who's layout makes no functional sense and makes you dizzy from all the turning and bending you have to do to get what you need.

Robert and I are not allowed to go out on dates because this Limbo has no furniture for a babysitter to, well, sit on.

(This last one isn't the apartments fault, but lets just say it is because I love to hate this place called Limbo. And, well, I need something to blame all of my negative energy on.)

Lastly, we cannot spend any money because we are waiting for our loan to be finalized.

Once we are out of Limbo I will shout for joy! I will host a 'shouting from the roof of our new house party' and anyone who wants to come is welcome! Along with shouting there will be awesome food that is cooked in a normal sized kitchen, there will be room to run and play hide and seek without the threat of the apartment police being called on us and there will be a couch! I will make a dentist appointment that has been much anticipated since November and I'll be in touch with all of the young women in the ward to see who can babysit first.

Look out Limbo, I get to leave you behind in less than three weeks!!

Calm

So, things are starting to calm down a bit over here. Or is it the calm before an even bigger storm? Who knows, but I'm grateful for the peace while it lasts.
We've gotten pretty settled here in Houston, Robert and I both have our Driver's Licenses, one of our cars is registered and we've gotten all of the Utah stuff (almost) wrapped up.
Last month was a stressful one for us as we were trying to get all of the above mentioned done. Our van still isn't registered because it failed the safety test due to a broken tail light. This tail light is a mystery because no one around here sells it. That is what you get when you drive a van that is ten years old. So, until we have enough money to order one online I'll keep my Utah plates and cross my fingers that I don't get pulled over. I'm just glad that the cars are mostly done. We've spent around $3000 fixing a rack and pinion, a/c belts, two front tires, two front brakes, an alignment, a dead battery, and an alternator. We also had to dish out a lot of cash to get the red one registered. blegh. February and March weren't fun as far as cars go.
The house hunt is stalled for now. We need to build up our savings again after the car fiasco in order to break our lease early. We are still casually looking online, but nothing has caught our fancy. The second house that we loved, the one that wouldn't budge on their price, is still available. Now that it's been 72 days on the market I'm hoping that they'll be more willing to negotiate. The jury is still out on our last offer.
I've been missing family and friends a lot this month. I can't wait until summer so we can see everyone again. I am starting to break out of my hermit shell and make friends. I've gone shopping and had a ladies lunch with a few women in the ward. I'm very glad for the Visiting Teaching program, it's forces me to open up a bit.
Anyone that knows me well, knows that I am so bad at opening up to new people, but once I do get to know someone it means they're pretty awesome. So anyone that wonders why I'm so distant, now knows it's because they're not awesome. NO! I'm teasing. I love everyone. It takes me several meetings/conversations to open up to someone new. And when I first moved out here I wasn't ready to meet new people. (If anyone wants to know more about me just google INFJ personality type. I think someone followed me when researching this article.) Anyway, I digress.
Well, that's it for now. We are now entering that "waiting" game that is house hunting. Living in limbo with half our lives un-packed and the other half in storage.

Eight Weeks

It's been eight weeks now and we are still adjusting. Kingwood is so beautiful with all of its trees and water, rightfully giving it the name of 'the livable forrest'.

The weather has been cold, but much better than what we're used to. A cold day here is in the thirties or forties and we are loving it. Going for walks with the kids in January is crazy to me, but we are able to do just that. We live near Houston lake and we let the kids run along the paths with all the other active people out here.

Robert is still loving his job, if this is the only reason we moved out here I am happy. He gets to come home for lunch every day and he never has to talk to clients. The boss is so pleased with his work that they've taken him out to lunch a few times. The benefits are awesome as well. It's nice to be at a good company for once.

I'm getting used to the area and the streets are pretty easy to navigate. There are four main roads and if you can find one of those, your golden. It's still hard finding stores even if you know the address because the trees hide everything. If you don't know exactly where your turn is you'll miss is every time. I will admit that I get lonely, I still don't know very many people. The ward is nice, but I dearly miss my Payson ward, but I know things will get better.

Matthew is the first of our kids to pick up on the Texan accent. His teacher has a beautiful drawl that she is unknowingly passing on to Matthew. It is the cutest thing, when he counts his numbers he'll let in a twang on the fives. It's not five, it's faave.

Lillian and Johnny are becoming better friends as Matthew is gone most of the day. I have to constantly tell Lilly to be a lady and stop wrestling with her little Brother. Don't worry though, Johnny can dish it out.

Valentines day was fun for us this year. We received a package from my in-laws that had chocolates, suckers and toys for us all. It was nice to have something from home. We also were treated to more sweets when Robert came home with chocolates for everyone the same day. Later that night we ate steaks, mashed potatoes and asparagus. I think I've gained another two pounds this weekend.

We are looking at more houses today as the market has seen several come up this week. We did find one we loved a few weeks ago and he accepted our offer, but then continued to negotiate after the fact. We also received an email that he had several other offers, so we quickly said "thanks, but no thanks." So we continue the search. The one we liked this week was snatched up in two days, so I guess we'll need to jump on one quickly if one we love comes up.

Moving to Texas

So, moving to Texas was crazy and so rushed. It was a whirl wind of emotions while trying to pack, find an apartment and sell the house all in less than two months.

We decided to follow the Lords council for our family and move to Texas, where we knew only one family, had no job and knew nothing about and never even seen. We know that God had a hand in this not only because of the initial inspired prompting, but because of all of the tender mercies he showed us along the way. We sold the house in less than two weeks, found Robert a job in less than 30 days without an official interview.  We found an apartment the week before we all moved out to Texas together and survived on a shoe string budget of $100 for two weeks while Robert was in Texas and I was with the children in Utah.

Things could not have worked out more perfectly.

I'm not saying it was this heavenly experience and all grins and giggles. I had to send off my husband and become a single mother for 17 days. (not a long time, but it was horrible. Single parents rock.) We survived on peanut butter and jelly and frozen pizza for that entire time and everything seemed to break, get sick or go wrong in those two weeks.  I cried every night and almost every day. I think our food budget was possible because the children and I were extremely sick for three days and the neighbors fed us for three days. I had to pack and clean the house by myself and taking the kids to church was a huge struggle.  I was so sick and depressed I lost 15 pounds while Robert was away.  I look back and realize that I was being taught important life lessons.

I learned that technology is amazing. Whomever invented Skype deserves an award and millions of dollars. I'm sure they have received these things, but I wish it for them anyway. Skype kept us going at the end of every day. If it weren't for this I would have crumbled under the weight of it all.

I learned that I really do need my husband. No way was I meant to be alone in my journey. I had no idea how much I relied on Robert even just for moral support. Raising kids alone is hard and I give a shout out to whomever has to do it on their own. It was the hardest thing I've ever done. There wasn't anyone there to take over for me at 5pm anymore.

I got to know my family better. I ate dinner with my parents every Sunday to keep the loneliness away. I learned that I can count on family when I have no one else to turn to. Having a brother live next door really helped when my car battery died. My sisters were there when I needed a babysitter or a sleepover while I packed or needed to run errands.

I also figured out how strong I was. I learned how to fix a washer and a garage door. I packed the house and I got the kids to church. I cleaned the barf and did the dishes by myself.  I know that my strength didn't come from me, but from prayers of many.

So, as crappy as it all was it was wonderful as well. I would do it again if He asked, but I hope it won't have to come to that ever again. Believe it or not I am grateful for those crazy months of my life. So here we are. We did it. We knew we had to come here the last week of October and we were here two months later. I am still adjusting and figuring it all out, but I know we're here with purpose. I'm excited to learn what that means for me and my family.