I No Longer Live in Oregon

 Another tale for my younger readers who love to see that I am just a real-life human and make plenty of mistakes.

It is said that 

"Those who do not learn from history

are destined to repeat it."

And so ... I guess I did not learn from history.

In June of 2019, we moved across the country.

Right away, we needed a bed and a lawnmower.

Quick as a wink - I ordered a bed and a mower from Amazon.

How exciting that they would be delivered in just a few days!

At least it was exciting - until I realized that they were being delivered to NC!

It all worked out - 

I caught one delivery and turned it around.

And some friends rescued the other delivery and got it returned.

I partially learned my lesson.

When we moved, I changed my Amazon address right away.

... and then I proceeded to order from Ebay ...

... without changing an address.

And so I go through the process again.

I ordered a work bag for hubby

and the next day it was out for delivery ... in Oregon!

A dear neighbor rescued my package and helped to return it.

And a new order is placed.

Maybe I will completely learn from history this time.

On an odd note:

Just last week, we noticed 2 vehicles with Oregon plates in our parking lot.

When we arrived home from church on Sunday,

we saw the family leaving their Oregon car and introduced ourselves.

Not only were they from Oregon,

but they were also from ALBANY, Oregon.

Small World!

Proper Customer Service

 The best customer service makes a promise and then beats it.

Our builder seems to be practicing that vein of customer service.

Our home was slated for completion on July 31.

We just heard this morning that our new home will be completed on June 16

and we will be able to close on June 23!

God has been good to give us a fairly real home while we wait.

We will also only have to pay one unnecessary month at the apartment 

(though we may use it while we are setting things up).

Thank you to those who have been praying for the prompt completion of our home.

Let Me Reintroduce You

 Yesterday, I actually had the car for the day, 

but I have enjoyed my walks each day

and decided to carry on with my walk to Kroger

including my 2 overloaded totes on the way home.

I stepped out at about 11 am.

I was reintroduced to warm, southern weather.

The walk was not really that far,

but I was glad that I hadn't waited until mid afternoon.

I made a mental note to start to get out a little earlier each day.

Hubby also got reintroduced yesterday as we enjoyed walking to 

Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot, and Dicks Sporting Goods in the evening

in search of a more suitable work backpack for him.

We also enjoyed walking for over 2 hours this morning.

One of the perks of living in or near a city is a greenway!

In many places, they have torn up old rail tracks and paved a path for walking, running, and biking.

B.G. is still in the process of fully developing their trail, 

but we did get a good 3 miles (at least) out and back.

We also discovered some nice jigging loops.

After we finished, in the warm late morning sun,

we stopped for an iced coffee.

We are enjoying the "unlimited sip club."

We belonged to Panera's sip club in OR for a 3 month trial,

but it was enough out of our way, that we probably only used it 2-3 times.

It was not worth the subscription fee to continue.

Another free trial came across my emails last week.

Panera is now in my backyard practically,

they offered another 3 months free,

so we are enjoying free date nights

and cold drinks for some hot walks.

The Right Tools for the Job

 Every job requires tools.

Hubby has needed hand tools ... And lots of them.

Sometimes a car is needed.

Sometimes a computer is all that is needed.

In Oregon, my job required reusable bags.

Laws required us to bring our own bag or be charged per bag.

At first, I bought some fairly unstructured ripstop bags.

They were light, easy to throw in my purse.

They worked well around town ...

... Most of the time.

One day, I walked to town.

In my purchase, I bought some eggs, some clearance items, some fruit.

As a walked home, my back began to feel damp.

"I must be sweating!"

But I wasn't sweating.

As I walked, a few of my eggs had broken and were oozing through my bag and down the back of my skirt.

Later, I purchased the right tool ...

A tote box!

I just love them.

I have five tote boxes and 2 less structured cooler bags.

They were easy to pack at self checkout.

They traveled well.

My fruit got home unbruised.

And as I do all my shopping on foot these days, 

They are definitely the right tool for the job.

The Number of Perfection

 If seven is the number of perfection,

Then maybe I only have only one more move.

Today, I received my new license ...

my sixth state.

NY

FL

NY

WA

NC

OR

KY

The residency process is never fun,

But it went relatively quickly today.

It took about 2 hours for license, inspection, and registration.

I was very glad not to have to test at all ... Not even the written part.

A Kentucky standard license plate can say

"In God We Trust"

Which we chose.

What a change from the liberal west coast!

Hubby took the day off,

So we also enjoyed lunch at the best southern fast food restaurant,

Changed oil in an abandoned lot,

And found a beautiful park with walking trails nearby.

I must walk to the store tomorrow since I haven't been in 4 days and I have only been buying what I can physically carry when I have shopped.

I think it will be Aldi tomorrow ... The furthest walk at 1 mile each way.

Little by Little

 The man who did the framing walk through with us last week said that insulation should happen this week.

Hubby and I popped over to the new house on Thursday,

And I am happy to report that they had indeed insulated throughout the house.

Next step ... Drywall.

Once the drywall is up, we were told that they might be able to give us a more definitive closing date.

Little by little.

A great exercise in patience.

When the Routine is Lost

 Within the last two years, I read the book Atomic Habits.

This week, I have been thinking about how habits and routines can be linked to locations.

Every time I move, it takes awhile to get back into daily habits and routines.

Being out of routine is tiring.

New space,

New schedules,

Just new everything.

It has only been 2 weeks,

But I certainly look forward to when the day to day becomes more normal again.

There are some things that always get done ...

... Bible reading,

Exercise,

Baking snacks for hubby's lunches,

Tidy/clean as necessary in a small space,

Laundry,

But the days should be more productive and will be soon.

We are looking forward to a full weekend.

We are having Easter dinner with a church family tomorrow.

Sunrise service, breakfast, Sunday School, and morning services on Sunday.

And ... Then a restful Sunday afternoon.

Praise the Lord for the Resurrection!

As I have written to people struggling with sickness,

People who have lost loved ones recently,

People with family trials,

I have hoped to encourage them with God's might and victory over death.

And it encourages me too.

God has power over the unfamiliar.

God has power over new schedules.

God has power over uncertainties.

Daily Shopping Trips

 While we live inside the city limits, 

it would be possible to shop daily for our groceries.

I can combine some exercise and shopping by walking and carrying my groceries home.

It can become cardio and strength and endurance training.

There is a gate from our complex that leads to the back loading dock of Wal-Mart.

A gate out another side lead to the mall.

Across the street from Wal-Mart is Meijer.

Across from the mall is the local Kroger.

One of the adventures of a move is discovering the local shopping.

It should all be familiar now, but Meijer is actually new to me.

In Oregon, Grocery Outlet and Fred Meyer (Kroger plus housewares and clothes) were new and Safeway was familiar from our time in Washington.

Today I visited Meijer.

I don't think it will become my go to store,

but it did have some nicer items in the hardware and housewares than I could find at Wal-Mart and may be helpful when settling in our new home.

Grocery prices were higher than Wal-Mart and had less coupons than Kroger.

It was similar to Fred Meyer in the west ... An upscale Wal-Mart!

Hubby and I commented that there were always sacrifices in a move.

We missed the seeing the Pacific coast from our apartmentnwhen we left Washington.

We missed our front and back porch and our church and college friends when we left NC.

We miss the walkability of OR because of the sidewalks.

I really have to plan my routes to shop because not all of the roads have sidewalks here.

Adjustments, adjustments.

Change is never easy

But with change comes growth and strength.

Ahh! Friday!

 It feels like Friday ...

the Friday after a long week,

which followed another long week,

which followed another long week.

We are both tired, but a good tired and a contented tired.

We are back to somewhat normal meals.

We are back to regular workouts.

All of the boxes are unpacked and out of sight.

Though we still have another small "hop,"

we are getting closer.

Today we had a framing walk-through of our new home.

The electric, HVAC, and plumbing have passed inspection

and they expect insulation early next week.

It was fun to see sizes and shapes of what I have studied on paper for weeks.

Of course, while the guys talked of wires and pipes,

I was placing furniture!

We will enjoy the weekend.

Weather permitting, we will check out a local walking/running trail on Saturday

and then be back in church on Sunday.

Refreshed

 Though moving is hard,

there are definite times of refreshing.

There are times when God gives those breaks,

 the encouragement you need to press on.

I am thankful for those breaks.

There are only 2 partial boxes left to unpack

and just one chair and the table to finish assembling.

There are still some tweaks and organizing to do,

but things are mostly usable.

I survived my first shopping in a new town.

I wandered quite a bit not knowing where everything was in different stores

and I reacclimated to Aldi after 3 years away.

I was glad for sister stores Fred Meyer and Kroger so that I at least knew some brands and products to expect.

Of course, some brands changed back to what we used in NC.

I hit 3 stores and probably drove no more than 3 miles ...

that's refreshing too.

I am thankful for the refreshing of God's people last night.

Our drive to church has multiplied by 2 taking 40-50 minutes now,

but we were challenged by the message

and welcomed warmly.

There were no cringey or "did we make a mistake?" moments.

The drive was worth it!

It is odd to be in the pew for the whole service for awhile,

but even that is part of the rest that God gives.

On this thankful Thursday,

I am also glad that the sun is back out today.

I am thankful for God's provisions

not everyone has to wonder where to put their things

or contemplate what to throw out.

I am thankful to finally be feeling more like myself

now that we are settling back into some type of routine.

I am thankful for the temporary b housing God provided

and the progress being made on our home.

Progress

It is starting to look better around here.

There are about 6 boxes left and a table to put together.

The boxes contain kitchen and bathroom supplies ...

 there is a little creativity involved to figure new spots for everything.

Hubby was off early This morning to visit a neighboring store,

and I enjoyed a thunderstorm.

Thunderstorms are not regular in Oregon.

I have the car today, so in addition to the last boxes, 

I need to get some food for daily living.

Back to normal eating ... Hooray!

The stores I need are all within 2 miles of the apartment.

We (or possibly solo wife if hubby's trip goes long) will visit our new church tonight.

We are excited to meet the people, to be regularly fed,  and to begin to assess how God might choose to use us here.

 

Back to Work

We enjoyed a good weekend and church services with family on Sunday.

It had been just shy of 3 years since we had seen each other.

What a reunion!

It is hard to be the refrigerator, or digital frame, family members,

but we hope to fix that.

We are now only 3 hours from family! 

Praise the Lord for His safety.

We arrived at our temporary apartment yesterday.

It took about 2 hours to move into our apartment 

and about 1 hour to move into the storage unit.

The day was grey with sprinkles,

but the ramp to the van never got treacherous

and nothing got soggy or ruined.

After the long drive, we were exceedingly thankful for a first floor apartment.

We were able to return the truck last night

and get internet established.

Bowling Green is beautiful

And I am living in a small city!

(Yes, for me, that is great)

Today, we both get back to work.

Hubby starts his new job

and I am trying to make a temporary house into a home.

Right now, it is chaos,

but I hope to have a good handle on it before hubby gets home.

Thank you again for your prayers.

I am almost certain that each hour that we were on the roads 

that there were prayer warriors holding us up.

The Oregon Trail in Reverse

 We are nearing the end of our journey.

As we travel, I can't imagine the long trip across the country in a covered wagon.

We have had long days and sore bodies,

But at least we can see the end.

Tonight we are in Iowa.

Only 2 more smaller legs ...

One to IN for a family reunion after 3 years,

And then on to our new home.

The trip has gone well.

We have had strong winds through Wyoming and the plains, 

But no winter storms, or even spring storms.

We have seen accidents and broken down vehicles,

But have seen God's safety and only one "close call."

Gas prices have been stable and we have enjoyed lower prices since leaving the west.

Thanks for prayers on our behalf.

We have seen God's daily provision and care.