Is there really such a thing as feeling "settled"?

I'm just wonderin, because I'm not too sure that I've ever lived in that particular state-of-being!

Contentment I get - that one is pretty much cake. Happiness is my gig and peacefulness isn't too tough to grasp either. But being settled? I can't seem to find it anywhere, and I'd like to.

I want to let it take up residence on my insides. Maybe I'd be a better person...

Life is so odd sometimes - okay, make that pretty much ALL the time. I'm an "experience it!" kinda gal, so most of my adult years have been a fun mix of making life-changing decisions every year and "Yeay! Let's see what God'll do!" I've been so blessed!

But we're coming up on our 2 year anniversary of living in the States(!!!), and I'm no nearer to having roots than I was for the decade+ that I spent on the mission field.

I live in my hometown, surrounded (quite literally) by friends and family, and yet here I sit: staring at a million-and-a-half loose ends that show absolutely NO signs of tying themselves up anytime soon. Ugh!

I'm tired.

Now, I'm *still* content and happy and peaceful, but I. am. tired.

I'd like to know if a house and land will ever really happen for us.
I'd like to know what my husband should do for a living.
I'd like to know what we should be preparing for in regards to school next year.
I'd like to drive a vehicle that has an "I'll be there for ya" kind of attitude.

I'd like to be settled.


Heaven really will be grand!

Too fun!

How crazy is this?!? From Discovery Toys Spring/Summer 2008 catalogue:Isn't he just scrumptious to behold?

We spent the day at the Oregon Ag Fest. It was an absolutely lovely golden day - perfect for getting all down and dirty with plants and animals! :0}

Have I mentioned lately that we'd really love to have some land? Evy prays everyday for "Mama to get land so that I can have my barn." Anyhoo...

After being throughly entertained by the cloggers (Evy now has a new calling) we were meandering along aimlessly and stopped at the Discovery Toys booth to play with all those bright and fancy toys. I was chatting with the lady that ran the booth, and Vicente had to do a double-take when he saw the catalogs spread out on the table because our sweet Israel is ON THE COVER!!!

How fun is that? :~)

Begging your pardon :-)

I had to edit a boatload of this post, because apparently I was giving out classified info...so sorry if you didn't get to read the un-edited version! :~D

This was the fun GOD update I wanted to give:

My Jeshua boy is now in 1st grade at an inCREDibly fantabulous Christian school. We homeschooled together up until February of this year.

Jeshua and Israel attended 1/2 days at a bi-lingual school when we lived in Honduras, for their Spanish tutoring, so to speak. Unbeknownst to us - obviously, because I'da hurt someone - Jeshy's teacher would chase the kids with sticks and she physically hit my boy a few times.
I hate her.
(Tempted to add spiritual stuff here, to make myself sound better than I am. Sorry. Pray for me if you want to.) ;~)
Now, Jesh is one of those kids that was metaphorically born with his heart on the outside. His tenderness is amazing to behold, and slightly annoying to guide through this life. But we try! He is truly one of the sweetest people I know.

And someone hit him.

Because of all this he has, understandably, had some struggles with classroom settings. No prob! I'd planned to homeschool him for years and years.
But I was noticing that, as his mother, I couldn't help but cotton-ball his life! I'm not *at all* a fan of "toughing kids up" just for the looks of it, or the parent's pride, but this was different - he was getting more and more sensitive, and I couldn't figure out how to stop catering to that. Its completely natural of me to make life fit *his* issues! But I struggled with how to help him to grow and trust and enjoy life, when he was so very dependent on me.

I dunno. It was hard...even explaining it is hard!

So we started praying about putting him in the Christian school for his 2nd grade year. I know a boat-load of people from the school - both from my growing-up years, and from church in recent years. We wanted a safe yet bigger environment for him.
I went into the office to start the preliminary process of raking them through the coals, to see if they were good enough for my baby. :~D I asked to meet with the first grade teacher, to talk curriculum, so that I could be sure he was close to the other students by September IF we decided to go that route.

I walked into her classroom, and at that moment I absolutely KNEW that he was supposed to be there. In that very classroom. FIRST grade. With THAT teacher, and THOSE particular kids. There truly wasn't a doubt in my mind, from the second I stepped foot in that room.
That was a Monday, and by Wednesday morning our scholarship jazz was approved, he was enrolled, and by God's amazing grace, absolutely *everything* fell into place.
It was SO God!!
He started at the end of January, and I have been daily blessed to see my heavenly Father's care for my boy. It's been incredible!

I love life with Him!

Welp, I might not never get to the schooling thing...

I've been tagged by Trish at Sowers4Pastors.

Here are the rules for this game of tag:

1. Link your tagger and list these rules on your blog.

2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.

3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.

4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.


Seven facts about me...uhm...

1. I vacillate between hick and hippie, and I'm laid back enough to be okay with that!

2. I'm a powerful preacher on the importance of drinking plenty of water, yet I rarely drink enough myself.

3. I love pretty much anyone I get to know...or know about. Give me an hour with a person and I can almost guarantee you that I'll love that person and wish we were neighbors.

4. I have a really messed up back, and need to lay down for an hour or more everyday. Thankfully, its much improved - was a time I was down for about 4 hrs a day! Got some good reading in...

5. I'm really late to get packing

6. My skin is insanely dry, and I will most likely look like my grandma (who strongly resembles Yoda) when I'm old. I preach moisturizing too...

7. I'm passionate about seeing and doing and knowing this world and the people in it. I try to be very Present every moment of every day, and I'm so grateful to Jesus for making life worth it.

Ugh! I gotta run. Was there anymore rules??
SEVEN people - you kiddin me?!?! The chain is broken - my apologies! :~)

I'm baaaaack!

I figured out why I've been avoiding my blog!
(Other than the fact that I lead an insanely busy life, and now that the sun occasionally peeks out amongst the clouds, its getting even busier! I've already told Vicente that when the sun is out, he is NOT to expect a clean house or meals cooked!
His response?
"Good, the kids won't remember all that anyways!" Love him! I love him!)

I've had it in the back of my brain that I'd like to update my blog about our schooling situation, and that seems like a huge task to me.
So, in keeping with tradition, I have successfully ignore this huge task for months. ~giggle~
But now I'm ready to come and play, so I suppose its time! (Plus, I really should be packing for a weekend beach retreat with some friends, which is an even HUGER task in my book! Choosing the lesser of two evils, so to speak...I'm a panic packer through and through.)

Oh my! E Jo needs help getting scrubbed up...let's HOPE I make it back here to finish this off! If not, we'll just call it business as usual in Heidi's life! ;~)