November 29, 2006

long, long post

Has it really been 16 whole days since I posted? I keep meaning to but things keep coming up. And then with the holiday - well, it's been crazy around here. There is so much I want to tell you about...

CONFERENCE
Journey with me back a few weeks to my daughter's parent/teacher conference. I am always glad that my husband wants to go with me because I always forget everything they say. I also feel like it's some big test that I am taking and I'm sure I'll fail. Weird, I know. Anyway, we've been hearing about her lack of self-control for years now and we just keep working with her. At the conference this year, all we heard were positive things. They literally raved about her enthusiasm, her caring heart, and her effort. I was really happy to see everything finally clicking for her.

HEADACHE/HEARTACHE
On the subject of my daughter, I posted a few weeks ago about switching weekends and all the headaches that brings. I just wanted to add that after that weekend of her wanting to be here, we had her the next weekend. The following weekend (the one before Thanksgiving), she was supposed to go with her dad. He called and said he'd been invited to go hunting with his cousin and did he think she could just stay with us. Let me tell you that I was beyond livid. I could barely see straight. I couldn't even talk about it because the words just wouldn't come. And when the words won't come, I know the tears aren't far behind. And I refused to let him get me that worked up. So I thanked my lucky stars for the time with my daughter and moved on. I'll also add that I had her the following weekend for Thanksgiving which means I had her every weekend in November. Good for me but it really ticked me off that hunting came first. What else is new?

DINNER WITH A NEW FAMILY
Let me move right along before I get all fired up about it again...on to much happier subjects...Saturday before last, we went to dinner at my future sister-in-law's aunt's house. It was a "meet the families" event. All five of her aunts were there and her grandmother was there. It was a full house but they were really wonderful and made us feel welcome. We all had a great time. I can't wait until my brother-in-law gets married. What a great addition she is going to make to the family! :)

SURVEY SAYS
I registered with this consulting firm to test things. They pay me a bit of cash and I get to try new things. Cool stuff. The latest one is a home study. They gave me this air freshener thing and I put it in the house. For four weeks, I do a survey once a week. At the end, they'll pay me $30. Not a bad deal to me. And thank goodness, the air freshener actually smells really good. It's neat. It is a small plastic jar with little beads in it. They look like small bath beads. As the time has gone by, the beads are beginning to dissolve. I highly recommend this product if it comes on the market. I think they are going to call the scent "clean breeze". Good stuff!

DO YOU SMELL THAT?
On the Thursday before Thanksgiving, at 5 in the morning, my husband woke up and wandered downstairs. I couldn't figure out what he was doing. He said he smelled gas (no, not mine!). I didn't smell it. Then, the heat kicked on and I definitely smelled it. We called the gas & electric company and thankfully, they showed up in 45 minutes. It was not gas. It was carbon monoxide. Thank the Lord that my husband smelled it. Carbon monoxide is odorless. The heat exchanger in our furnace was cracked in three places. The way I understand it (and I could really be wrong), there was enough natural gas escaping from the cracks that when the heat kicked on, it took the natural gas and the carbon monoxide and sent it through the vents. That's why we smelled it upstairs. Please, if you don't have a carbon monoxide detector in your home, GET ONE! They are a little expensive but you may be able to get a free one from your local fire department. We ended up getting a new furnace (thankfully, we have a home warranty that covered the majority of it) but we spent one very cold weekend. The temperatures were mild but we definitely missed the heat. I was very thankful for making it to Thanksgiving and for the heat that we had on that day. And I was very aware of how God was watching over us in a lot of ways.

THANKSGIVING
I was glad we got our new furnace in time to have everyone here for Thanksgiving. We had 9 people, including our kids. We had turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole, Bob Evans rolls, cranberry sauce, this cranberry jello thing that's awesome, and other things I'm sure I'm forgetting. Then there was pie. And then six hours later, we did it again! Good, good food. Spending time with everyone was wonderful too. The next day, we left to go to my husband's grandmother's house about 6 hours from here. We spent the weekend. It was good to see her and the rest of the family. And turkey dinner again! Yummy! Unfortunately, I came down with a cold on Saturday (that I'm still fighting) and felt pretty crummy. At least the worst of it is over now. I just hope no one else gets it. My fingers are crossed!

AND THEN THERE WAS MY SICK CAR
On the way home from my mother-in-law's house on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, my car overheated. Now, I know there are things that need to be done to my car. I've kind of put them off because of the two houses (oh yes, we still have two houses...). Well, with it overheating, I had no choice but to take it in. After looking it over, they wanted to do lots of stuff for, well, lots of money. I did what I needed to get it on the road again, but let me tell you, it wasn't cheap. When it rains, it pours! I am very thankful though that I don't have a monthly car payment for my car. And I am thankful that it is reliable. Just please, no more big repairs like that again soon! (Who am I kidding? I still need to get 2 or 3 things done from this go round...) Oh, well, that's life...

SAVED THE BEST FOR LAST
You know that two house problem I mentioned earlier...Well, yesterday, I got a call from my daughter's friend's mom. Her co-worker had a fire at their house on Saturday. They need a place to stay for the next 3-5 months while their house is repaired. Would we be interested in renting our old house to them? Uh, YES! Of course it isn't a permanent fix and it may not even happen, but it would be such a blessing to us. Especially with Christmas right around the corner. My husband met with the co-worker's husband tonight. He was so gracious and kind. They have 4 kids and just want a place to be in time for Christmas. He's supposed to be talking to his wife tonight and they'll call tomorrow. Pray, people, pray! Oh, and if they do move in...the insurance company is furnishing it with all matching, nice furniture. We would be able to still have showings on the house and it would look all pretty. What luck! I'm trying not to get my hopes up because well, that's just where I am with the house right now. But it would be so nice... I'll let you know what happens.

So, as you can see, I've been so busy. Some days I don't know if I am coming or going. But I enjoy being busy and life actually goes smoother for me then. I've missed my bloggity friends though. I am almost caught up on my readings. I've been lurking at lots of blogs for a while now. Maybe I'll even delurk *gasp* and comment for the first time in ages...

Thanks for reading my marathon length post. :)

6 rays through the fog:

Anonymous said...

Its about dang time! I've actually had to do *GASP* Work, instead of surfing your blog for a while!
I'm glad you approve of your future family-in-law because there's no turning back now!

Barb said...

Wow, Andrea. I don't even know where to start.

Congratulations on your daughters great conference results. I agree that those conferences were always a little scary.

The whole thing with the carbon monoxide scare is horrible. Thank God you had enough natural gas mixed in that your husband could smell it. And good for you for putting it out there that people should have detectors in their homes.

I'm sorry about your car but my goodness, what wonderful news that you may have some income from the other house. It's awful that they're needing a home because of a fire but it's certainly good timing for you.

I hope you feel better soon. I'm just now recovering from a rotten cold and it was no fun at all.

Sounds like your Thanksgiving was wonderful. I admire you for being able to handle TWO feasts. :-)

Your post wasn't too long at all. I enjoyed reading it. Welcome back.

MommaMonkey said...

Oh my Andrea! A lot has gone on!
I'm SOOOOOOO glad your hubby smelled that gas smell, and all was taken care of! That's a bit scarey! We have a CM detector, which makes me a little more at ease in the winter months.

And Big-girl's conference...WOW. You're a good mommy. That's what that is all about.

And the house...OH, that is a bit of a relief for you, I know! I hope it all works out. I keep prahying for that thing to sell. I was thinking about that earlier today as I was driving by three houses that have been for sale for a long time in my parent's neighbrhood. Hang in there. And i think it is so great that you have the home to offer that poor family during such an important part of the year for families. God has his plan. I know he does with your house. Hang in there!

Anonymous said...

Seriously... it's about time!! I'm also glad you approve of the new addition to the family and that you had a good time at the dinner! I'm happy to hear your daughter is doing well in school, i'm excited for her! I'm also excited about the house!!! I really hope that it works out!

Brenda said...

I have to say it all sounds like good news to me, except for the car expense and the cold. Hope you're feeling better soon!

Congratulations on all the rest - the new furnace (thank God for the cracks in the old one!), the potential tenants, the teacher conference, the future addition to the family, the extra cash, more time with your daughter, and TWO Thanksgivings! God is good.

I'll be praying for your housing situation.

Judith said...

Andrea, Didn't know about the near disaster until I was at Barb's and she told me. Thank God, thank God, all of you are safe. None of this is happenstance, don't you know. God has plans for you all, too.

Glad you're getting some relief about the houses, but again, God also has plans for you about that.
I'm not sure what He can do about the potty training, except give you the patience to get through it.
I think I've figured out something else, He has plans for me, too. Please pray that my move over the mountains goes alright. If all goes well, will soon be getting in touch with you from Denver.

 
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