We're Blooming!

Because Aaron and I grew up in San Diego, we’ve kinda taken the weather for granted-it was just a non-issue.  When we chose to move to Montana, we were excited to experience the variety of 4 seasons.  We loved each season, and knowing that it would soon pass, to be replaced by another wonderful season, kept us content and full of anticipation.  Now that we have moved to Georgia…in July, no less- we are constantly talking about the weather!  Among the new experiences we are having every day, the weather is a huge change.   Our bodies respond differently in a humid environment, we time our activities to avoid the heat of the day, and we certainly don’t buy milk unless we are going directly home!  

Our purpose for moving stands.  We are in training.  The Lord has guided our steps and directed our path to this exact place, at this exact time.  I know that in the past I failed to praise God enough for His creation that I enjoyed looking at and interacting with on a daily basis.  I could get consumed with enjoying the feeling in the air, the view of the mountains, the sunset over the ocean- the coolness of the lake, the spots on the fawn, the perfection in the snowflake.  All amazing creations of God!  No matter where we are living though, I have realized that we are surrounded by God’s love, God’s creation, and God’s provision for our life!   No matter what.  Even in humidity!

                                                 

In an effort to present the brighter sides of Atlanta in July, I thought I would share some of the unexpected perks I've enjoyed so far: 

•   If you forget to set out the butter to soften prior to baking-you can set it outside for 7 minutes and Voilà, it’s perfectly softened for creaming into cookie batter! 

• If you’d like to take a walk, but you don’t have an ipod to listen to music on- Fear not!  Your neighbor who is demonstrating the capabilities of his new speakers (which are almost as tall as Megan!) will provide music for the entire subdivision…

• If you enjoy Italian food- you can savor the aroma all day long as you surround yourself with basil plants- They actually keep the mosquitoes at bay when we are outside!  This works well for all in our family except Jana; my aunt even rubs it on her skin and puts sprigs of it in her hair when she’s doing yard work…Try it, it may work for you too!

• If it is your turn to bring treats to a function, they will be “Hot and Fresh" from the oven, no matter when you baked them…And, no need for those little cardboard Christmas trees to freshen the air in your car- the smell of home baked cookies will linger for days!

• Southern Hospitality- It’s for real!

• Lightning bugs!  Last night I was sitting on the porch while Jesse rode bikes with the kids in the neighborhood.  I was enjoying my ‘Rocking Chair front porch’ from my new rocking chair- (a housewarming gift from Jennifer’s family) when the lightning bugs began to do their thing!

So much fun! 

What would you moo for a free meal?

I’m not sure who’s in charge here, but evidently every day is a holiday.

We have a friend who has been keeping us current by sharing each day’s celebration with us- usually centered around food of some sort.  We didn’t really pay attention or jump on the bandwagon until… free lunch was on the line.

Literally seconds after arriving in Georgia (remember, we had spent the previous day on the side of the road waiting on the truck to be repaired/towed) we donned our cow parts and demonstrated our humility and lack of self-respect in a bold way.

Cow Day at Chick-Fil-A.  Three generations of ridiculous fun-loving Wheatons…talk about Multi-Generational Vision!

This is a fast food restaurant that is owned by Christians from what I understand.  The restaurant chain is closed on Sundays and some locations give discounts to customers who bring in their church bulletin on Mondays.  Their PR campaign centers around silly cows who are constantly encouraging folks to “Eat Mor Chiken.”  In honor of Cow Day, customers who dress like a cow receive their lunch for free!  Aaron’s sister who is a Frugalista Extraordinaire, hooked us up with ears, noses and spots.  We all enjoyed a great lunch and even Aaron dressed up!  Although there is no photo evidence of his participation! 

In the ‘olden-days’ we would have preferred to pay for our lunch than to suffer such humiliation, but in the words of a dear friend, “there is no shame in our game!”  Clearly.

Wow!!!

Wow!

With the best of intentions, I began a blog.  Then.We.Moved!

To briefly recap, the move went well.  With some “educational” hiccups along the way!

 Walkin’ in Memphis- ya know like the 80’s country song??  Not nearly so fun in reality!

The moving truck’s water pump went out.  Thankfully, we were able to pull into an industrial complex where there was a large lawn and we weren’t in danger as we waited 4+ hours to get a plan into place!

After our delay, we got back on the road and were able to pull into Atlanta midday on Friday.  Since our beds and household items were in the moving truck (which was at the repair shop in Memphis) we stayed with family for our first several days here.  On Tuesday at 10pm our truck arrived with all of our stuff, and with help from Generations church, we were moved in by midday Wednesday!

The conspicuously ‘extra’ member of the move-in crew is LeRoy the Choirboy.  He welcomed us to our new home on Tuesday night late, and had us wondering what these city folks are up to by putting out Christmas lawn ornaments in July…thankfully we learned that he was the Welcome-wagon representative from the church.  He pops up at the most unlikely places and has been known to frequent Chick-Fil-A.  We look forward to paying back someone by placing LeRoy in an unexpected spot!

We have finally begun moving our books into bookshelves which makes our house a home!  We are comfortable and happy to be settling in.  The neighborhood is very nice and neighbor kids have come to the door most days to ask Jesse to come out to play.  Jesse has enjoyed having boys to play with, and since this is the first neighborhood we’ve lived in, it is meeting all of his expectations- he’s still waiting for the ice cream truck to drive by!

Southern Hospitality is just like they say- neighbors have welcomed us with pineapple, (a sign of hospitality) gift cards to grocery stores, and home baked bread.  They have made us feel very welcome.

The weather is…WOW!  On our move-in day the temperature was record setting, with a heat index of 105!  We consider it an accomplishment that we all lived through it!  It cooled off the next few days and the weekend was actually pleasant!  It is soooo different, but we are acclimating well- Praise God, he has given us healthy bodies to adjust with, and we are enjoying the accompanying ‘GLOW’ that we never before understood!

Since our arrival, we’ve been able to go to an Ethiopian restaurant, which we loved!  We’ve been to a men’s league hockey game, which was nice and chilly! Went to a pizza buffet called Stevie B’s which left us reminiscing over the 80’s singer of the same name…Aaron even found a clip of a music video for Spring Love- It wasn’t pretty, but we rocked steady!  The International Farmers market is a grocery store that we went to yesterday- food items are organized by continent.  It has a meat department that sells EVERY part of the animal.   Again, I say, WOW!  We bought some Korean Sweet Potatoes, which were a big hit, and fresh made corn tortillas were excellent.  I was able to attend a Ladies Night Out with church ladies, and I navigated the big city driving successfully- Yahoo!  And the biggest blessing so far has to be…Wildlife in our yard!!  A mama duck and 6 ducklings cruised by last Wednesday, and a deer was in the backyard on Thursday- We were delighted!

Thank you so much for praying for us.  In the craziness of the move, family devotions and personal quiet times are difficult to get in- which obviously leaves us feeling ‘off’ and like something is missing- So prayer support is sooo appreciated!  We are thankfully back in the swing now and are getting back to feeling like ourselves more.   I will begin brewing up some recipes for natural mosquito repellants next week, and I’m very open to any tips or suggestions you may have. 3 of the 5 of us are yummy to mosquitoes, so we will need to ward them off daily, and I’d like to avoid the chemicals if at all possible!

We are happy, healthy and thankful to have arrived safely.  Whenever people ask where we moved from, they follow up with asking what the weather is like there- All I can think to say is that it is “Perfect!”  We sure miss the people, the ‘feel’ of being at home, and all of the beauty there- but we are already seeing opportunities to share and serve, we can see God’s divine appointments daily!   

Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him and He will do it. Psalms 37:4-5