Are we ever going to close?????

I don't remember much about buying our first house. I think I was in wedding lala land, but this one is going to be very memorable, but not in a good way! :) We signed the offer around the middle of March and were told we would close on our before April 30th. Well, as of right now, we still don't know if we are going to be able to close tomorrow! The moving truck will be here tonight with our stuff. We are trying to avoid having to put it into to storage as long as we close tomorrow. Hal and I are very ready to sleep in our bed as well as have two cars!!! Please pray that all the details will fall into place and we will be able to close tomorrow.

Many of you have asked how I am feeling. I am 9 weeks today and feeling pretty good. The nausea has been MUCH better the last week or so. I had an oh so fun sinus attack, but I am getting over it. Other than being tired, I am feeling pretty good!

Big News

Hal and I are so excited to share that we are expecting! I am about 7 weeks along which means we can expect Baby Ramsey in early December. I have been feeling pretty good this week after a rough week of nausea last week. We decided that we like to just do things all at once....we get married and move and now we are moving and having a baby! :) At least we have a little more time to prepare for baby, unlike our 6 week engagement.

We sold our house in Texas!! I am headed there tomorrow to help with a shower for my friend, Kim, who is having twin boys. Then the movers come on Monday and Tuesday of next week. I then fly back here on Wednesday. We hope to close on our new house sometime next week. We are anxious to get in the house and get out of this apartment.

HAFBC

I think that I have delayed in putting these pictures up because it meant we were really moving. :) These pictures are from our last Wednesday night at church...they show several of our friends as well as many of the students. Leaving this group of people was by far the hardest thing about leaving Texas!

Our house in Florida

I had a fight with Blogger trying to get this up, but here it is. :) Click on view all images if the slideshow never loads. Hal and I went to an early service this morning and then had lunch/breakfast and then headed to the house. Enjoy the pictures.....we are excited. Happy Easter!

Blessed

Blessed. This sums up how Hal and I are feeling right now. We made an offer on a house yesterday and we found out today that is was accepted! We have gone through some stressful moments lately as we researched houses and as we were on the ground here looking over the weekend, but we are absolutely amazed and humbled as we look back and see the hand of God on this entire process. We were able to find exactly what we wanted and we got an amazing deal.

We will probably be taking the buyout on our house in Houston. We don't know any specifics yet....but hopefully the details will all be worked out soon. I will put up pictures soon. :)

If my life were a movie or a TV show.....

If my life where a movie or TV show, today it would have had one of the following titles.

Golden Girls: We had an early flight into Tampa this morning and I dropped Hal off at the plant around noon. I then headed to the hotel to check in, but the room wasn't ready yet. I decided to grab some lunch and headed across the street to a seafood restaurant. As I walk in, I notice that I am the only young, and by that I mean under age 50, person in the restaurant. As I continue waiting on my table, I can't help but start chuckling to myself. I am not sure if it is the shorts and knee high socks or the couple that walked in with matching canes w/ a flowery motif on them. I just kept thinking...this is just like the Golden Girls! I just kept laughing out loud to myself in the car! :)

Legally Blonde: I am sure most of you have seen this movie. At one point she is stressed out and is driving around a her new town and slams on her breaks when she sees a nail salon. After lunch and checking in, I decided I needed a pedicure. I called 7, yes, 7 Aveda Salons and none could get me in this afternoon, so I decided it was time to get out of the hotel and I headed to look for a good ol' nail place. After driving about 4 miles, I SAW ONE! I made a quick left and practically ran into the place. The pedicure and manicure did me good. :)

That is the recap of my first day in Sarasota.....I am househunting tomorrow with the realtor. We had a great night last night....I will post pictures later!

What to Pack???

We are getting ready for our temporary move to Sarasota this week. Our flight leaves early Thursday morning. I have been working on getting our stuff packed, but it is hard to know what to take! We aren't sure how long we will be there before we come back to Humble to be at the house when the movers come. I have made numerous lists to try to think of as many things as I can! I will spend Friday previewing stuff with the realtor and Hal will join us on Saturday and Sunday. I am anxious to see Sarasota....it is weird to be moving to a place you have never been! :) Please pray for us as we look at new homes as well as make a decision about what to do with our home in Texas.

Breakdown in the car

No...my car didn't break down. I had a break down in my car. I had just walked out of a doctor's office and felt silly, stupid, and frustrated. For a few days preceding my trip to the doctor, I had been having tingling and numbness in the back of my head. Sometimes I think I am a border line hypochondriac (ask my mother about my numerous trips to the elementary school nurse) so of course it freaked me out. Hal was out of town, so I went ahead and made an appointment to see the doctor. I explained my symptoms, he asked if there was any other stress in my life......after that question, I knew what was coming. I explained to him that we were in the process of getting our house on the market and relocating. He then said that he felt that the numbness was due to anxiety. I was relieved on one hand and on the other I was somewhat angry at myself and embarrassed. I quickly made my way back out to my car, called Hal and told him, and then I sat in my car and cried. I began asking God to forgive me for my lack of faith and trust in His provision. I don't have to know necessarily how and when all the details of our move, the sale of the house, and finding a new house will take place. It probably won't work out the way I want it to or the way I would do it, BUT it will work out exactly the way God planned it and it will be for mine and Hal's ultimate good. That good may not be us making a big profit on our house, that good may be sitting in my car that day and recognizing that the God of the universe is in control and not me.
The two weeks since the breakdown in the car have been better, but not without challenges. Our house has been on the market over two weeks and it hasn't shown yet, the temptation to freak out is there, but God is so gracious. He has calmed my anxious fears and reminds me to make the choice to trust in Him. He also reminds me of His provision for us. It's a daily battle...and sometimes it is minute by minute battle, but I want to chose to trust Him.

Update

Life has been moving quickly for us lately. I don't think I realized how quickly until we were in our student service this morning. During worship, I looked up and saw students that we have grown to love worshipping and it really hit home that Hal and I just have one more Sunday left. Sure, we will be back to pack up the house once it sells or we take the company buy out, but next Sunday is our last normal Sunday. We have known moving was a possibility for a while and we have been talking about it for so long, but the time to move is coming fast!

Hal left tonight for Atlanta. It is his last week of travel in his old job. It was somewhat surreal for both of us when we were getting his luggage out of the trunk at the airport. We have done that countless times over the last two years, but we gave each other a high five, smiled, and said this is the last trip! He has been gone 6 straight weeks....and I know he is ready to be in one place for a while.

We have one way tickets to Sarasota booked for Thursday March 13th. We will spend the first weekend house hunting and Hal starts on Monday. Our first few weeks will be spent in a hotel and then we will move into a corporately furnished apartment around the end of March. We can stay in corporate housing free for 60 days so we will leave the house on the market for a while this spring. If it hasn't sold by late April or May, we will need to start thinking about taking the buy out option.

Please pray for us in this transition time. We have a lot of decisions that will need to be made about our current house and as we look for a new home. We are both learning a lot right now....more to come on that in future posts.

Hal's New Job

Several people have asked us what Hal will be doing in his new job in Sarasota. He will still be working for Cooper Industries, just working as a plant manager in one of their divisions. Click here to see the website for the business he will be working in. He is excited about the opportunity, but even more excited that what he will be working on will help save lives.

We originally thought he would be "officially" starting on March 17th, but that date keeps moving up. He will be spending most of the next two weeks in Sarasota. Please pray that we can get the relocation process going and get our house on the market quickly. Although we are sad to leave Humble, we aren't looking forward to him having to commute back and forth between Humble and Sarasota.

Things I Love

I love....

• My husband....he is amazing.


• Getting to travel with my husband when he is away working.


• Peanut M&M's


• My new glasses. :)


• HAFBC Student Ministry


• UNO


• text messaging


• the opportunity to study and write cirriculum for our student ministry


• honest friends- who aren't afraid to share their heart with you(You know who you are)


• Pappasito's Beef Fajitas. Yum!


• Hot tea every morning


• Guitar Hero


• Worship- Kenny and Susanna, the Ramsey's are going to miss you!


• You...for reading my crazy thoughts on this blog.

Christmas Pictures....A month late

Here are a few pictures from Christmas in Fayetteville....sorry they are a month late. Mom, Dad, Hal, and I went to Tim's before Christmas. We then took a walk around the Fayetteville Square. For those of you not from Fayetteville, each year they decorate the old Town square with thousands of white lights. It is beautiful and one of my favorite Holiday memories. Except for this year, I wasn't quite used to the cold! After a quick walk and a quick picture, I was read to head for the car. We also got to spend a lot of time with my family including my nieces. They really warmed up to their Uncle Hal.

Today we found out that Hal will be starting in Sarasota, FL on March 16th. We are glad to have a few more guaranteed weeks here in Houston. He will be doing quite a bit of travel during this transition time as well, but fortunately I will be with him quite a few of those times. Please join us in praying that we can get our house on the market quickly and that it will sell! More updates to come!

Confessions of a Control Freak

It's Official....We are moving to Sarasota, FL! Hal received a phone call last night offering him the job. We still don't know exactly when all this will take place, but we know it will be sometime this spring.

Hal and I have both learned a lot through this experience over the last month. This control freak, especially learned a lot. I guess the best thing to sum up this for me, is that I finally let it go. I was so TIRED. My mind was constantly working trying to figure out what was going on, what would be the next step, what did that comment mean, what does it mean that we haven't got a phone call yet.....and it went on and on and on. I got to the point where I was literally mentally exhausted. This was just where God wanted me to. He wanted me to admit I couldn't figure it out or control the situation, but that He was in complete control of it. There was an extreme amount of peace that came with that realization. I really stopped stressing about it....I stopped trying to figure it out. The next test of this lesson approached just as I hung up the phone from learning we were moving. I must now trust God for ALL the details to come in the next few weeks and months.

Bad Blogger

I have been a bad blogger lately! The time since Christmas has been a whirlwind!

I am back at the bank for a few months and still writing. My days fly by.

Hal and I are praying about what is ahead of us. We thought we were 100% headed to Sarasota, FL, but now we aren't so sure. For this control freak, it is a hard lesson to learn, but we know God is in control and we are just waiting to see how things work out.

More to come soon! I promise!

Going Home!!!!!!!!!!!

Hal and I head for Fayetteville tomorrow afternoon! We are looking forward to spending time with friends and family.

Merry Christmas!

It Finally Feels Like Christmas!

It was a big day yesterday....I got to wear a coat and a sweater to church! It finally felt like Christmas! I have mentioned several times that one of the hardest things about moving for me has been adjusting to the weather. It is funny how we associate times of the year with how the weather feels. Even though our Christmas tree is up and we have been going to Christmas parties, it just doesn't feel like Christmas to me when it is 80 degrees outside!

Even though the weather hasn't been what I am used to in order for it to feel like Christmas, I have been thinking a lot about Christ this Christmas season. I have been working on our next study for our students at Church. Beginning in January, we will start studying the Trinity with them. As I have been swimming in the deep theology of the Trinity, I have been faced again with the reality of who Jesus Christ is. It has been a good reminder for me as Christmas is rapidly approaching. When I think about Jesus this season, I want to think about more than just a helpless baby in a manger. I want to think about the fact that the baby Mary and Joseph cared for was God Incarnate. He is worthy of praise and adoration and should be lifted high not only during the next few weeks, but every day of my life.

Merry Christmas!!!!

Luke 2:11

"Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord."

Grateful

Okay...so I am a little behind on my Thanksgiving post, but I guess better late than never. We were in Mississippi for Thanksgiving and had a great time with Hal's parent's and his brother's family.

Here a few of the many things I am grateful for this year:

• My relationship with God. The Lord has been so gracious to be this year. it has been a great year of learning more about who He is and what He wants to do with my life.


• My Husband. He is simply amazing. Last Friday I went downtown to meet him for lunch, as we were sitting on the balcony outside talking I thought about how blessed I am to have a Godly husband. I could name a 100 things here, but the thing that comes to mind first is how he is supportive and excited about our choice for me to be a stay at home wife.


• My parent's health: After a few scares this year, I am so grateful that they are both in pretty good health.


• My friends: God continually blesses me with wonderful people in my life who encourage me in some many ways.

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!!!

The Big Event and More

Here are a few things I have intended to blog about for awhile, but haven't taken the time to sit down and do it!

1. I flew home from my Fayetteville trip on November 7th, a few days earlier than I might have in order to attend an event with our students at church. It was cleverly titled "The Big Event." Our students had been inviting their friends and family for months and the student staff and adult leadership had been praying for months. There were over 700 people at the event, but more importantly over 80 students and adults experienced a life change that night when they confessed their need for a Savior and asked Jesus Christ to be King of their life. Around 25 of those were then baptized this past Wednesday night. Perhaps the greatest thing about November 7th, was that the generator that was running the sound equipment went out about 5 minutes before the event was to start. Although it ended up being a little different than first planned, a backup system was brought in and the Gospel was presented. We were then able to have a time of worship at the end. I heard someone say after the event was over that maybe God was trying to remind us that he doesn't need smoke and lights....he doesn't even need a powerful sound system. All He needs is His Word to be proclaimed. Plain and Simple. It was a good lesson for me. As I continue to work on writing curriculum for the students, I need to remember that it is just about God's Word, nothing more.
2. Continuing on the writing theme....I had turned in a query letter to a publication in September. They accepted the query letter and asked me to write the article on speculation: meaning that they don't guarantee they will publish it. The article was about a very personal struggle and although it was difficult to write, I was thrilled they might be interested. I submitted the story. After a few weeks, I got an email saying they weren't interested in publishing it. Honestly, I was crushed. I don't handle "failure" any better at 26, than I did at 16. But, I learned a few lessons from this denial. Hal asked me after I read the email, if I learned anything from writing the article. I told him that I had...and he reminded me that is what was important. It was also a good pride check. I wanted and still want to get published, but I need to remember that getting published isn't any more important than the writing work I am doing for our students at church.
3. Costochondritis. This is a new word in our lives. No, I didn't make it up although I thought the doctor was making it up when he told me that was what was causing my pain. In September I began to experience pain in my chest. It could be quite sharp at times and other times it was just a dull pain. After a few weeks, we went to see a doctor. He felt that since I was young and my family didn't have any history of heart disease that it was costochondritis. He told me to take Advil and it should get better. It did get somewhat better, but never seemed to go away. Over the past few days, it had become quite painful again, so I saw a different doctor yesterday. He gave the same diagnosis, and told me he experiences the same pain as well. He gave me a shot and a prescription to help with the pain. Simply put, costo is inflammation of the joint where the ribs join the breastbone. They aren't quite sure how I ended up with it since it usually occurs in those who have chest trauma nor are we sure how long I will experience the pain. We are praying it goes away soon. See this link of you are curious. :)
4. Hal's home!!! We think he has finally made it through all of his trips for this year! He should be able to get some much needed rest. Of course we will be traveling for the holidays, but those are fun trips!

Quick Trip Home

Hal and I both headed for the airport last Saturday. He is in England this week and I made a quick trip to Fayetteville. We had originally planned on me making the trip to England with Hal again. We had tossed around visiting a few different places on the beginning or end of the trip, but we decided it was just too much travel for Hal in such a short period of time, so I decided to make a trip to Fayetteville. My days were filled! When we were in England in October, my grandparents had a car accident, and I did not want to wait until Christmas to see them. I was able to spend some precious time with them. I also got to see my nieces for the first time since last Spring. I enjoyed playing with the younger girls and talking with Courtney. I also had a great dinner with friends from college. We hadn't all been together(apart from weddings and showers) since college. It is crazy to think about how all of our lives have changed in the past 4 years. This was the first trip since we moved to Houston that I was able to come home and not have to work at the bank....it seemed kind of odd to be in town but not be at the bank on Monday morning. I did stop by the bank on Tuesday to visit. The trip flew by, but it was great to spend some time with family!

Humbled, Amazed, Thankful......

The list could go on and on for me this morning. I picked up Hal at 5:45 last night. He was tired after almost 24 hours of travel with no sleep, but he was home!

I have struggled with anxiety and worry with his travel over the last few years. I will admit that there were times that I worked myself into an all out panic where I would be in a cold sweat and feel sick to my stomach. But by the grace of God this trip was different. I know that many of you prayed the requests I put on my blog as well as others whom I asked to pray for me here. We both felt your prayers.

Studying the temptation of Christ in Matthew 4 last week also had a big impact. I don't think that I had ever really thought about my worry and anxiety as Satan tempting me to doubt God's protection and provision for Hal and I. In Matthew 4, when Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted, He uses God's word to answer Satan's temptations and he trusts in God's provision and plan for Him. When Satan offers Him food after he has been fasting for 40 days, He trusts that God will sustain him. When Satan takes him to the top of the temple and says throw yourself down for God will command angels concerning you, Jesus says not to put the Lord God to the test. In saying that, he refuses to bow to Satan's attempt to damage his pride and he trusts that God will sustain and defend him. He asserts that God isn't here to serve us, but we are here to serve God. When Satan offers Him a way to have the kingdoms of the world without having to sacrifice and die on a cross, he trusts God's sovereign plan. In all these temptations he didn't use his divine power to overcome them. He used just what I had available to defeat my temptation to worry and doubt: God's Word, Holy Spirit, and faith in God's character.

This past week, I found myself humbled and at the same time joyful at the way my Heavenly Father protects and cares for His children. Whether it was a encouraging prayer or word from a friend, a call from my mother-in-law, worship at church, or time spent with my mom and aunt, God was unbelievably gracious and faithful to me this week. In all honesty, there was only one time that I felt panicked.

As for Hal, he is still sleeping this morning. :) It may take him a few days to get over the 13 hour time difference. He was able to find decent food this trip. He navigated through all the different stops he had to make without difficulty. All of his flights were on time. God was gracious.

So...again, thanks for your prayers!