Being grateful!

....and we moved again. Yes, we could have stayed in our first miracle home till January, but decided to move right after Christmas (to another miracle missionary house) so the kids could get adjusted before they had to go back to school. At first  though we were thinking of moving right before Christmas, but some very wise friends (also missionaries who had a period when they had to move a lot) spoke truth into our life's reminding us that Christmas is just not the same for the children in a brand new home. Very grateful for sound advice!
So we enjoyed Christmas in the environment we had gotten used to and moved afterwards with the help of our family. Now that is something new and wonderful...to have family help. Very Grateful to be surrounded by aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents! 
 
In the past month all our energy went into job searches and relocating our family. It is not easy and we need your prayer and support.

Ana: always seems to be going back into the habit of taking her diaper off with poop in it when she is in a unfamiliar new home. That means piles and piles of very dirty laundry almost daily for the first two weeks. We try to be on top of it and use this as a opportunity to continue to potty train her, but with two other kids, cooking, and doing other (move-in) routines, she will have a few unsupervised moments every day. We are waiting for a appointment with a Developmental Pediatrician to get help through a Behavioral Specialist. 
Lydia: is now full time at Ben Lippen. Our new home is much further away from both schools. Since we cannot get transportation for Ana, it is easier to pick up both girls around the same time so we do not have to pay a lot for gas. Lydia is trying so hard to be strong and happy and encouraging to all of us (beyond her years, really!) but her anxiety shows itself in nightmares and tears at school.
Caleb: is active! Very active. Just a fun little 2 year old, interested in everything, eating everything but the food on his plate, much more courageous then his mother and just happy and carefree. If we both find jobs we will have to find care for him.
 
Our time frame for Germany is now to be there some time in summer 2014. We are thankful for many new friends and people who are interested in the path God is leading us.
With this new time frame, we are now getting to the place where we urgently need jobs, since we do not want to live off our savings.
Richard: has two very exciting possibilities - we will know more by the end of January. 
Simone: Is looking to expand her teaching. There are several part-time jobs that have to be considered and decided on.
When times are different then what you expected them to be, when your dreams are put on hold, when God's answer is WAIT and you don't quite understand why, it is easy to start complaining. But over the past years of God revealing himself faithfully to me as a women and mother I know that focusing on the things he IS providing right now will immediately lift my spirits and I start living with a grateful spirit. I know that Emmanuel - GOD IS WITH US - is with us.
 
In the meantime we create a family routine that will become normal where ever in the world we are, serving our faithful God and trusting in his lead.

Grateful that the kids are content, love each other and are healthy.

(This is Lydia, hiding in Ana's sensory sock...)

Grateful for a successful surgery. (Permanent ear tubes and a hearing test which she passed with flying colors. No hearing loss!) 

 

Grateful that this did not happen to the trailer while we were traveling 3000 miles from CA to SC....

Grateful for going ice-skating in flip-flops, finding a snowman on the beach,

 

and taking pictures of our name on Street Road signs....

Grateful to spend time with family!

Grateful for going from no-shave November to this....

(no comment!)

Grateful for part-time work!

Grateful for a brand-new, fenced-in back yard to explore and a helmet that fits Caleb's head (found at the new house....)

 Grateful for free tickets to a very "exciting" basketball game!

Grateful for Chick-fil-a!!!!

And grateful for a personal interior designer.

Little ones to Him belong. They are weak but HE is strong!"

We have to stop some times and just ponder that little truth. It is often a bit of a side thought....Oh, Yeah great, and by the way Jesus loves me...yay, yay, yay.
It actually needs to be my EVERYTHING! That the son of God, creator of the universe, who sacrificially gave up his companionship with God and died on the cross so we can live a life that has forgiveness, joy and peace beyond our own comprehension is just that....beyond our comprehension.

We have a lot going on right now.

Richard is getting ready for the last House Boat Camp with the Generation 24/7 Ministry and I am basically keeping the kids entertained as well as selling one big furniture item after another. We got a few moving bids from big companies like Allied, United, and Mayflower, and have decided that it is too expensive to move anything more then just the basics. So we are only taken books we cannot replace and clothing. We have not decided yet if we should ship everything directly to Germany (where there is very little storage opportunity without having to pay a lot) or take it all to South Carolina and then ship it from there. - Please pray for peace of mind and clear understanding on what we need to do.
 
And so I come back to "Yes, Jesus loves me".

Richard and I where sitting down to watch the movie "Lincoln" last night. (It was a bit slow and I personally fell asleep after 5 minutes, but that is what I do with every movie, so don't let that be the indicator of how good the movie was...). Ana sleeps next door to the TV room and suddenly we heard her singing.
We turned the TV off and just listened. All was dark and silent and we heard her voice forming a melody and creating words. It was clearly the song verses and chorus of "Yes Jesus loves mEEEE". Not just is she saying words she also hit the melody pretty accurately. It does not seem like anything big, but we as her parents who have been praying for her to know God, and to know that she is deeply loved and wanted by the creator of the universe this was a special moment beyond description. So long we have waited to hear words and a voice from her and now the very first sentences she is forming are geared towards her God and King. If we are rejoicing over this worship we are experiencing how much is God and the Angels rejoicing! In German we call it "Jauchzet"!

 And as so many things with our kids, we are reminded about the real truth and the actual importance of life in the moments when everything is easy and reduced to simple truths.


 "...little ones to Him belong. They are weak but HE is strong!"

Virtual Garage Sale at the Moore's:
 SOLD Floor lamp with 5 arms: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/fuo/3916278729.html
Water purifier for camping: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/for/3877632825.html
Stair carpet treat protector: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/for/3877632825.html
SOLD Living room table - to be refinished: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/fuo/3872935372.html
  SOLD PAX Wardrobe: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/fuo/3873096538.html
SOLD Corner sofa, sleeper couch storage IKEA Ektorp: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/fuo/3873087211.html

 

 

What's going on right now...Prayer request!

So whats going on right now at the Moore House? 

We just came back from a Joni and friends Camp at Mission Springs.

 It was one more week of gloriously awesome and beautiful fellowship. An example of heaven on earth. A picture of inclusion, caring and servant hood. We were spoiled beyond measure by the STM's (short term missionaries) who watched our children. They loved them and made this week unforgettable for us. Lydia is now old enough to understand how special this time is and was in tears when we drove away missing her friend Jenny. Ana did not understand anymore why she started hearing words like: "stay here..." or "no you can't just role on the floor anywhere you go", when mommy and daddy took over.. Lindsey was the person who cared for Ana. Ana was free to go from  ball pit to swing to water game to jump house.... And Lindsey followed her around and let her have the time of her life.
And our little Caleb was in love with his STM Liana and ended up showering her with kisses and hugs and even fell asleep in her arms or while she was pushing the stroller.
I don't have words! "THANK YOU" is coming from the deepest part of our heart.

For those of you with special needs kids or parents..you should truly consider going to one of these family camps! There is nothing like it out there!
http://www.joniandfriends.org/family-retreats/

Today we are back home. 

Richard is working the afternoon at a wedding and I have the kids by myself. It is pretty calm but Ana did have a poop accident, fortunately contained to her room but never the less, very smelly. I don't know how to get that carpet clean again. She has gotten into the habit of taking her diaper off after a bowel movement and then.....I don't need to say more.... I just can't be around her every second...and most of the time she does very well....until something like this happens.
It makes me sad, because I know she does it because she can't stand the feeling of a full diaper (don't blame her...) but can't communicate or call me to help her. As easy as she is often these moments are very difficult!

Also, I am trying to sell our furniture on Craigslist. Right now it is our large wardrobe (PAX from IKEA), a large red corner sleeper sofa (EKTORP from IKEA), and a living room table from the 70's. We had our first garage sale and I made the mistake of keeping some stuff here to sell at the next garage sale. And now it is driving me crazy because it is cluttering up the already very cluttery (I know....cluttered is the word I should use by I like "cluttery") living room...

So that is where we are right now....

Lydia is about to help me make dinner...mashed potatoes and hotdogs....All the ways hotdogs are used in our house are quite remarkable and Caleb has figured out how to turn the microwave on and off and on and off....always with a scream of delight ("YEAHY"), thank you very much! And Ana is mad because I locked her out of her room since the carpet is full of .... you know what.
I really don't know how to clean it. I sprayed it with Oxi-clean spray and am washing the linens and the cover and the pillow...yup all had a distinct coloring....And then she got into the jar of peanut butter...but that is a story for another day....





If you would pray for us at this time of transition: 

- Pray for a week without stress
- Pray that our furniture can be sold for a descent prize.
- We are going to Chicago on Sunday the 23rd of June till the 29th of June, for a Missionary training week. Pray for a safe trip and kids that are sleeping ok in a (again) new environment. Oh, and I so hope the beds are not too hard....but that is minor since I realized that if you are exhausted you start to sleep anywhere....
- Please pray for me since I am leading worship during this week.
- I am grateful that Caleb is eating a bigger verity of food. Makes life a bit easier.