The First Box

Today I packed the first box. 

Apparently one of the first rules of selling your home is to declutter. And boy do we have clutter. Baby toys, big boy toys, bottles, books... it seems like there isn't a nook or cranny in this house that doesn't have something in it for a 3 year old or under. 

So I started in Lydie's room and decluttered the book shelves. It's really not a big deal. I like to declutter. I've done it several times since we've been in this house but it got me thinking about our future home. At the moment we don't know where we will be moving TO in B/CS. There's no one neighborhood that has our number, no perfect house on the market yet, no idea if the bank will even give us a loan since technically, at this point, neither of us will have a paycheck when we get down there. 

Last Friday we popped into a house in a nice area of Bryan and took a look around. *shrug* My dad and I took a long walk Sunday morning but nothing stood out. *sigh* Patrick and I even drove through a small neighborhood on the way out of town... *but...* So now we wait. We wait for the right house, we wait for the bank, but mostly we wait on the Lord. 

Just this morning I was reading to Jack and Lydie (early risers) from this little children's Bible my Mimi gave to Lydie. We just flipped it open. The story - Caleb and Joshua (from Numbers 13). Two soldiers who went to explore the land the Lord brought the Israelites to with the promise that it would be theirs. Canaan - the land flowing with milk and honey. The story said, (and yes I did just sneak into L's room to get the baby Bible so I got it just right) "Joshua and Caleb told the people that God had chosen a good place for them to live. God made sure you have a nice place to live too." 

I caught my breath. God did not forget about this part of the plan. He knows where we will live already and will help us move towards it in due time. So for now I pack. One box at a time. 

Full Circle

At this point, we have done our best to tell our family and friends the news. In a few shorts months we will be packing up our home for the last five years and moving three short hours south, back home, to Bryan/College Station. Are we excited? Yes! Are we sad? Yes. Do we trust that God is in control? YEAH!

About a year ago Patrick and I start praying that God would place us where he wanted us. We knew this darling house would quickly grow too small as our little ones grew up, and we had that feeling - you know the one - that feeling that change was coming. We didn't know what is was and we certainly didn't expect it to move us home when we felt Dallas was home. But little by little, through sleepless nights with a newborn, conversations with friends and family, prayer, lots of prayer, it became obvious that where God wanted to place us was right back where we started - home. 

Home wasn't what we prayed about - home became the answer to our true arms-wide-open prayer "Here we are, what would you have of us?"

Then one crisp January night we started putting the pieces together. Patrick felt a burden for his family's business. His dear uncle unsure of where to go with it, what to do next. I felt a longing for a support system, especially on those days when our daughter cried endlessly and our son needed direction but got Mickey Mouse instead. He had ideas, passion, hunger, drive in his voice. And I believed, I knew this was what God was asking of us,  "Pick up and leave the life I gave you and go home where you are needed."

Since that night we have continued our prayers for guidance and have slow and steadily gotten one green light after another. Our parents and family were ecstatic, Patrick's uncle and cousin open to his leadership with a mix of relief and excitement. Our co-workers and friends happy and supportive, affirming what God has asked of us and breathing into us words of encouragement.

A few weeks ago we determined our timeframe which had been foggy until that point. The question continued to be "when are you getting down here?" Again we pieced together the puzzle and fall became our picture. We hope to use this blog to keep everyone up to date on our journey.

We've laughed so many times about how when you ask God to use you, truly, honestly, deeply, sometimes he sends you to Africa, to Guatemala... and sometimes he spins you right around and sends you back home. He's funny like that. But good, all the time good.

Thanks for joining our journey! We'll keep the updates coming!

Andress & Patrick