Our Home

"You have been good, You have been faithful" This is the song on our hearts from the day we left Maui to now. God answered our prayers and brought us a home that inspires, resonates, and gets the creative juices flowing! We made certain requests that were answered: all one floor, in Carmel by the Sea (walk to everything), we have space, and we all agreed!

The kids were so excited when we found out we could have it! This is the living room. FIreplace and great big picture window.

This is the dining room...something that is fun is there are two screen doors that lead to the back yard.

Cute little bathroom. Parts of this house reminds me of some of the homes I grew up in.

Deveraux and Anderson's room (and guests when they come)

Our room

Kitchen..some fun tile colors like green...

The three times we have visited our future home, the kids just run around non stop, I think they find freedom after being in a hotel for awhile...they are claiming their space. I have great visions for an outdoor space...so make a plan to come for dinner!

I write the title to the blog, Our new home, and I think, really? Yes, we have a home. Tomorrow, hopefully, I will sign the lease and we will begin anew. God is good and He is faithful and He provided again, why do I doubt. Maybe because I never know the "package" it will come in, there are no guarantees of how it will look, only that God is good, which is enough.

I heard a sermon on Psalm 23, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want." We say, "if only..." this could happen or "if only" this relationship were different. I believe God is my shepherd but I still want or believe I "need" certain things. I hope I will grow in this area.

Thank you all for such love, prayer, and support in the endeavor of finding a home. We are grateful.

Oh, also, this house is only about a block from where we originally looked at a home when we were here in June which was my first impression and what I had in my mind of life in Carmel.

In the inbetween

So do I think we are ready for a home??? This was our 3 night stay in a one room hotel. Thank you God for your provision at the Hyatt. If you are going to be homeless, a good place is the Highlands Inn Hyatt in Carmel!

Saw this light in the window on and made me long for a home. Told the kids we would have a light on in our front window.

The following were just a few of the things we were going through over the past week:

The days still feel somewhat sureal in this "inbetween" time. I feel not "there"(where I was) but not where we will be. Finding a home feels so important and I had many fears that we would not find "it". It has been so hard to drive by all the beautiful homes and realize they are out of my grasp.

I have realized not only the importance of a home but a home that is beautiful to the one who resides in it. To find something that resonates and inspires. Every house I see I wonder. Will God provide that home that I desire or will He say, wait on that, I have something else in mind for you that season. It is so hard to trust when trust is required! It just seems like we won't find "it" and then I just have to trust and keep on.

Regret is so hard to live with and I have not felt it this strongly in a long time. We lost a house on the beach that we had looked at because I did not say yes and we lost the chance to say no or yes. There were reasons I did not give a yes right away but in the face of not having another option I am so upset I did not agree to take it. Give me grace Lord, give me trust.

There have been some hard moments with the kids. I feel more "on them" and they seem to be testing more. We are somewhat in a bubble with each other. Taken out of the envrionment we knew and plopped in this inbetween spot. I believe looking back I will see this time as so precious (and I already do as I write this) and that we really had this time just "us". I wish I felt more carefree and more "fun mom".

In spite of it all, Deveraux and Anderson have been so amazing. We had to go to a new hotel and leave the Hyatt for 3 days because the Hyatt was full due to a car show that came to town. They never question, Deveraux just starts exploring the new space and Bobo goes down for his nap, so trusting, so unlike me a lot of the time.

Day by day we go

Well the story continues and it gets good....

Pool Time

Let's Hit the pool!!

At the Hyatt, it is really beautiful! Most days are cloudy and lately it has been foggy. When that blue sky appears, it is breathtaking!

And why not Smores after swimming...I still sometimes wonder where I am...in the mountains but by the ocean???

But it doesn't really matter when you are eating chocolate! It is good to just have fun and play in the midst of transition.

It came to me on out on one of my morning jaunts, that my job is to create a day for Deveraux and Anderson. They cannot do this without me.

This is my work, it was very meaningful to me in the moment.

At times, it is easy for me in the day to day as a mom to at times lose sight...

Then I heard a woodpecker pounding on a tree...knock, knock, knock...in the middle of the woods, where there are not crowds of people, that bird was doing his work for the day. It just made sense to me, a confirmation, to my and my work.

This is where I am called.

And I am so glad.

Our Walk

So this is our walk in the Carmel highlands. It is behind the Hyatt where we are staying and we are blessed indeed! Many evenings we have walked here as a family, I like to jog in the mornings and take a walk with the kiddos during the day.

It has been so fun to discover new flowers after our familiar Maui flowers. I am struck that even the weeds are complex and layered and God saw to it that even the weeds would have beauty on the side of the road.

God's Beauty is everywhere! I am so thankful for this season walking in the "woods" among the wildflowers!!

looking for our cottage ....

One of my favorite areas to look around is in a Carmel by the Sea neighborhood by the ocean. Cottage after cottage, tree lined quiet streets, each house different and many of them have a name. It is a picture. I decided I was Snow White with my dwarfs looking for our little cottage.

Some not so little...

Here are my lovely dwarfs!