FINALLY a weekend at HOME!!!

I can't remember the last time we spent an entire weekend in Waterloo (not working or packing of course!).  So, what did we do with our weekend?  A LOT!!!  Friday Sophia, Carlos and I hung around the house.  We ran errands while a showing was taking place.  Came home and relaxed.  I actually took a short nap while Sophia slept.  YEAH!  Friday night we went to the My Waterloo Days parade and enjoyed a nice parade and weather!  Sophia enjoyed hearing the bands and her legs were just a movin when she heard the music.  Then we went to eat Wishbone and had some outstanding chicken.  Our time in Waterloo is short so we are trying to get our bucket list done before we leave and Wishbone was on that list.  Early night to bed.  Saturday Paul mowed his three properties and was home by 12:30.  Sophia and I gradually got ready.  Sophia was quite tired from her week and slept until 10:30 AM  Here's proof:

Sophia has not been sleeping through the night the last week, so we are extra tired!  Paul and I worked in the yard for the afternoon.  Pulled weeds, trimmed bushes and vines, and enjoyed some time together in the beautiful weather.  Carlos stayed home for the day which didn't settle well with him, but we haven't seen him much so we made him stay home one day this weekend. 

We went to a graduation open house for one of the high school youth from Zion.  Then home to relax and watch a little TV.  Finally, back to work.  We washed my van and Paul's car and cleaned the inside.  That was a nice project to have done.  Then we had a bonfire and nice relaxing night with friends and enjoyed more of the wonderful weather.

Sunday was church as normal.  Came home and picked up the house for our 4th open house.  Then went to eat lunch at Culver's and ran some errands during the open house.  We waxed the van and did laundry.  I'm glad the van got waxed...we've had it for a year and didn't get a chance to wax it last year.  So, it was a GREAT weekend to be in Waterloo but filled with projects.  We enjoyed them as a family and got a lot done. 

Hope things are going well with everyone.  We would love to hear from you!!!

Nothing new...

Well there is nothing new to report this week.  Still missing our dogs, but we are adjusting.  Sophia is getting stronger each day...won't be long and she'll be crawling!  WATCH OUT mom and dad!!!  Slowly planning Carlos' graduation party.  Little by little things seem to get done.  THANK YOU!  My oldest nephew Jacob graduated from Limestone High School on Saturday.  It was nice to go home and see family.  My siblings, their families, and my dad haven't seen Sophia since New Year's weekend.....long time!  Celebrated Mother's day and got to see my grandparents which is always nice.  They are getting older and struggle each day!

Carlos had Senior night for soccer last Thursday so he's almost done with his final soccer season of high school.  Here's a picture of the FUN night:

Time is ticking to move, get a job, Paul to start school, finalize vacation plans etc.  Lots on our plate right now, but we keep plugging away the best we can.

Tonight Paul is going to tune up our bikes and get the bike trailer for Sophia working so we can take family bike rides.  YEAH!!! 

The weather is nice and Paul is busy mowing lawns.  We would love to hear from you.  Please contact us if you are in Waterloo, give us a call, or e-mail.  Love to keep connected with people even though we are busy.

Emotional few days....more to come!

The time has come for us to start make big decisions....if going to seminary and moving wasn't big enough!! Due to pet policy at Wartburg, we could not take both dogs with us. So after much prayer and talking, we decided to keep Dallas and give Chester to Paul's aunt and uncle who live in Edgewood. That was a tough decision, but we know how good this new family will be for Chester. Sunday was the day set up to give Chester to his new family. We knew it would be hard, but didn't realize it would be that hard. He's going to be happy and have many opportunities to be on the farm and enjoy life much better. With all the transitions of seminary over the next 4 years and moving to a new place, Chester needed something more stable. Thank you Cathy and Lary!!! We said goodbye to Chester on Sunday. Monday (yesterday) we woke up and had to say goodbye to Dallas. For 48 hours, Dallas went down hill, He couldn't walk on his back legs, slowly lost his appetite and energy, Paul carried him up and down the stairs to eat and go potty, he laid around and wouldn't move much, and most of all he cried all night long Sunday night. We knew it was time to let him go and put him to sleep! UGH!!! After 2 conversations with the vet, it came down to quality of life. Dallas was not Dallas anymore and it hurt us. We couldn't see him suffer much longer.

Dallas was my faithful, loyal companion for 8 years. For his age, he was still quite hyper but I miss that. For all the times he barked, hit me with his wild tail, and fought with Chester...I miss that. Every step I took, Dallas was always right there. He laid at my feet many times just so I knew he was there. I did laundry last night and it hit me hard that Dallas was not going up and down the stairs with me. He never left my side. For the last 6 months, Dallas has not really wanted to be social with our family or Chester. Dallas was my first dog ever and its been hard to let him go. I know he's not suffering anymore but wow was it a hard decision.

I'm thankful for the love and support of Paul. I couldn't have done something like this without him right by my side. Both dogs had their good and bad qualities and we are greiving. Last night was hard for me and I didn't sleep much as it was the first night without both dogs. It was hard to get ready for work because I had no responsibilities to take care of the dogs before work.

Well, this is the first of many tears, hurt, pain, and sadness as we make transitions in our life and get ready to move to Dubuque. It's all a part of God's plans we know, but that doesn't change are pain and hurt. Time will help heal our wounds and knowing how much better of a life Chester will have also helps. We look forward to seeing Chester some day and hearing stories about how he's doing. Chester doesn't know that Dallas is gone and we know they miss each other.

Here's to you Dallas for 8 wonderful years and Chester we are so happy for you!!! Enjoy the farm and your new family! We were blessed to have them both together as a part of our family for 2 years. Thanks be to God!

Just the week I needed!!!

After 7 weeks of constant stuff going on in our lives and Holy Week, I needed a few days off!!!  Monday of this week was a comp day for Good Friday and Easter Monday.  So much going on, I haven't had a true day off for a while.  Tuesday and Wednesday are continuing education days.  I took some time to work on my call papers and FINALLY have them done.  I need someone to proof read them and then on Friday I will make the changes and submit them via e-mail.  Its an amazing feeling to have them done.  We've had a few showings on the house, one open house, good feedback, found a home for Chester (hopefully May 6th moving him to his new home), preparing for a garage sale May 5th, selling some of our stuff on a new website I'm a part of and its a virtual garage sale and I LOVE IT!!!, working full time, mowing 4 lawns, soccer, soccer, soccer, prom is this weekend, graduation preperations, and trying to spend time with Sophia and Carlos.  Our family is going in several different directions at this time.

I will be back to work on Thursday and have a full day.  Then Friday, Sophia gets her 6 month pictures and next Tuesday her 6 month shots.  Can't believe our little girl is 6 months.  YIKES!!!  The greatest job I have is being her mother.  She brings pure joy to my life and she is loved!!!

This blog post is short because its time to go take a nap and spend some time by myself before Carlos gets home from school and our busyness continues!!

A lot has changed

Thanks for reading our blogs and keeping up with the Waterman's!!!  We have had about 4 private house showings and one open house.  No takers so far, but its early and we keep praying.  The moving sale was a BIG success.  We got rid of a lot, but still have more so we are going to do another sale with our neighbors.  YEAH!!  Tonight we are opening up the pop up camper for someone to look at who is very interested so I'm hoping that works out.  Additonally, we have a found a GREAT home for Chester (our dog!).  I couldn't be more happy where things are at in our lives right now.  It all works out according to God's plans and little by little things are shaping up.  Finally we have a little time to relax at night and on the weekends.  We are staying busy that's for sure, but we can at least talk to one another instead of having crazy schedules.  Sophia survived her first slumber party and sounds like she had a great time.  She slept a lot yesterday when she came home...must have partied too hard!  She has a cold and has slept a lot at day care today which is unusual for her.  So, I'm excited to see her tonight again and hang out.  She's a gem and is so loved!! 

We have a few bigger items that we are trying to sell and we put them on the Cedar Valley garage sale Facebook page.  Hope that it works!!!

This Saturday is Waterloo city wide dump day!!  So, we are loading up the truck and trailer and heading out to the dump to get rid of JUNK in our house.  The dogs couch is finally going.  It's ripped and stinks!  Don't know what they will lay on while we are gone during the day, but they will adjust.

Thanks again for all of your support, prayers, and friendship.  Each week we have changes taking place...keep checking back for the latest updates!

Our next journey....Dubuque, Iowa

Our next journey takes us to Dubuque, Iowa so Paul can go to seminary at Wartburg.  I graudated from Wartburg Seminary in 2004 so I'm going back as a spouse and I'm so excited!!!  Its been a long discernment process and I'm excited for our new adventures.  This week we are having our first moving sale!!  We have lots to get rid of so we might have to have another one in early May.  My mom comes on Wednesday night to help us for the week/weekend and Sophia is having a slumber party with Aunt Holly all weekend.  Its going to be different not having Sophia around the house but we are going to be so busy this weekend she'll have much more fun with Aunt Holly.  After this weekend, we hope that our lives slow down a little it.  It seems we can't keep our heads above water right now.  We have had some showings on the house, but no takers so far. 

We need to sell a house, 2007 Viking pop up camper, and have a moving sale.

In other news....because we are going to Wartburg Seminary and due to their strict pet policy, we have to get rid of a dog. Easy right??? NO!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dallas and Chester are part of our family and we adopted them both. So, we are in the process of trying to find one of our furry friends a nice home. Its not easy and everyone asks "which one are you getting rid of." We don't want to get rid of one, but in order to live on campus, we have to. So, decisions have to be made again. Its been a very sad day for me as I took both dogs to the vet and explained our situation to the staff. They totally understand and are willing to help if they can. Both of the dogs have their own special qualities that make them each unique. My heart breaks knowing our family is changing.

Here are a few pictures of our dogs:

Chester- 2 months old

Our lap (Lab) dogs!!!  This was taken in the spring of 2010.  Chester was born in January 2010

Dallas is a wonderful snuggler...even with Sophia!!

Watching Sophia....well at least Chester is.  Dallas is resting!!

The House is FOR SALE!!!

The house is officially for sale as for Tuesday, April 2nd.  Please pray that some wonderful family or person wants to live in our nice little house.  We are thankful for the years of memories, but its time to move on. 



We still have a lot of do yet, but maybe some time real soon we can have a whole weekend as a family.  Our moving sale is Friday, April 13th and Saturday, April 14th.  Then maybe we can breath a little bit. 

It's Holy Week so you know what I'm doing...procrastinating on the blog instead of working on ministry stuff.  Back to work I go.  Please pray for us as we sell the house and make a decision on seminary.