Surprises and birthdays!

Hello Friends,

What an eventful month we have had! Our family usually has an exciting December as we have three birthdays crammed in this one month, but this year has been the best yet. As my last blog stated, Lyle has been sent to New York on temporary assignment for his job to help with the hurricane insurance claims. He has been working a grueling schedule and has seen over 130 properties in just one month! He left November 11th and we were hoping that he could make it back in time for Shayna's 8th birthday on the 16th of December, but things were not looking good.

We went over to my sisters house for a family supper on Friday the 14th and before we prayed for the food my brother in law gave a speech about how they had a birthday present for all three of us December birthdays to share. So we proceeded out onto their deck where there was a big dishwasher box with a big bow on it. And on the count of three we all opened it and out popped LYLE!! There were screams, tears, and lots of questions!! But we all agreed it was the best birthday presents ever!!!

So now that we had our daddy we plunged head first into a princess birthday party for Miss Shayna who turned 8! It was a wonderful time with 9 other little girls.

We did makeovers first.

Made our own jeweled crowns!

Danced at the royal ball.

Ate some royal cake.

Opened presents.

And played the Princess and the Pea game.

It was a blast, I'm exhausted, but I'd do it all over again :)

As for Lyle, he is technically home for a visit until after the 25th, which at that time they will evaluate if and where they need him to go back and work out east. Until then he is working from home at the computer and enjoying family time. Thank you all for your prayers and support, I couldn't have done it without the help of our family and local friends, and a special thank you to all of those who have blessed me with their friendship, keeping me company, and lending a helping a hand.

Love and God bless you all,

Hope, Lyle, Liberty, Levi, Shayna, and Isabella

Thanksgivings!

Hello again friends and family,
It's been a long time, but life has been pretty interesting for us the past few months.

First of all, don't you just love this time of year! I thoroughly enjoyed fall at our new house in the country this year! God created some absolutely gorgeous trees and I think He gave my neighborhood more than our fair share! Everywhere I looked there was another magnificent tree! I also came to the conclusion that God didn't have to make autumn so easy on the eyes so He must have done it because He loves to see me smile :)

Another blessing that our family has enjoyed was the birthday of our Isabella Blessing. She turned three in September and it was so fun to enjoy her birthday with her. (with the added blessing of many of our family members also able to be there since we live by them now!) With each present or card she opened she would gasp in wonder and instantly say "awwwwwww"! It was such a wonderful reminder to me about putting my thankfulness on display for others to see. I need to let them know how important they are to me and it wouldn't hurt to gasp in wonder when they came into the room either (I remember Gary Smalley sharing a teaching about showing honor to others by doing that very thing).

I also had the opportunity to accompany my mom to Idaho this fall so she could attend her brothers 75th wedding anniversary. It was a wonderful time of visiting with family we don't get to see very often and I was so thankful my mom was able to visit with them again. I got to hear many old stories and look through volumes of pictures and just enjoy some sweet fellowship. I love seeing my mom interact with her siblings, it is a side of her I don't get to see very often. The below picture: my mom Reta is in the front, my Aunt Melba is in the middle, and my Aunt Naomi is in the back.

The last thing to update you on is what has taken place with Lyle's job. As I'm sure you have heard Hurricane Sandy pounded the East coast last month. Cunningham Lindsey (the company Lyle works for) was receiving 3,000 claims a day from the storm. As a result Lyle's supervisor called him and basically told him to get your ducks in a row, we are sending you. Then five days later we found out Lyle was going to the heart of the destruction in New York City. He packed up and headed out on the 11th of November. As it stands right now he won't be home until around December 7th. Most of the claims he was going to be handling for the first two weeks were going to be centered in Breezy Point, NY, a place that was pounded hard by the hurricane but also had over 100 homes destroyed by fire. Follow this link to a video on youtube if you'd like to see more about the sad story of Breezy Point http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbMX2A545Wo

I have been so moved by the attitude of the people that Lyle has worked with while there. So many of these people have lost so much, even to the point of their entire home. They have been so openly thankful for Lyle's help, making sure that he is taken care of, and inviting him to come back when they rebuild and even offering to let our whole family stay with them! So often they have said, "it's just stuff" even when they've lost so much! They are amazing! I wonder how much of that attitude has come out of the tragedy of 9-11 and so many in New York loosing a loved one.

Their attitude has stuck with me during this thanksgiving season. I love seeing all the thankful posts on Facebook and everyone taking opportunity this season to count their blessings! But then I saw a post on Facebook that made me think. I'm pretty sure I hadn't heard it before, but I definitely agree with it 100%.

Thanksgiving, it's not a holiday, it's a way of life!

I just love that! And that is my prayer for all of you during this thanksgiving season! May it be our way of life!

Happy thanksgiving to you all and may God abundantly bless you all!

Hope, Lyle, Liberty, Levi, Shayna, and Isabella

ps- a couple recent pictures of my blessings!

Shayna, Hope, and Liberty

Man time!! Lyle and Levi with some friends at a Detroit Tigers game.

Who told you that?

So I was once again reminded last week of why our family has chosen the home schooling route. Granted, it's not for everyone, but for us it fits! Well anyway, last week we went to Family Video for a family treat and while there they had signs up advertising a promotion they were holding. Since Levi has blossomed into quite the reader, he started reading the sign "Receive free rentals for A's on your report card". Now to most people, the meaning of this ad is clear, but to Levi it made no sense.  So the next question came, "Mom, what is a report card?" In that moment I was made aware of a difference in the culture of my household than in those of a traditional schooling family and I smiled :)

I am thankful that all of my children have grown up in an atmosphere that doesn't assign a grade value to the work that they do. I am not interested in what grade they get on an assignment, I want to know that they are learning the material and we will work on it until they do. That means so much more to me than assigning a grade. I even have difficulty saying that my children are in a certain grade. Whose to say that my 10 year old is in 4th grade? He may be at a 4th grade level in certain subjects, ahead in others, and behind in others, so what "grade" is that? So then I started wondering why does our society so desperately need to assign labels, comparing, contrasting, and magnifying differences?

How would a child turn out if they were raised without all of these society labels and expectations? What if the only feedback they received was from their parents who would reinforced who God said that they were? How would your life change if the only voice you listened to was from your Heavenly Daddy? You are more than what society has labeled you, you are more than a number on a scale, or a credit score, or a diagnosis from a doctor! Who told you that? If it wasn't your Heavenly Daddy, then don't listen to it! Jesus, help us to live without the labels of this world and to understand more who You say that we are! Now some pictures of the crew!

My Pretty little ballerina

Grandma and Levi at his 10th Birthday in May

Isabella enjoying summer ice cream time!

Liberty enjoying her newest birthday present.

More Goodness!!

Well, the goodness keeps coming!! But let me start where the last update left off. We are settled in to our new house and our regular routine. The kids have been catching up on home school and starting baseball/softball. Lyle's work with Eagle Adjusting has been pretty steady, and life has gone on. Then out of the blue about 2 weeks ago Lyle got a call from the "bigger and better" job that he originally interviewed for back in January. The human resources department made arrangements to do a background check and a drug test. He also had a meeting set up in Detroit, we were getting excited!! Well, during that meeting a formal offer was discussed and Lyle walked away a new employee of Cunningham Lindsey, the biggest insurance adjusting company in North America!!

He will have a salary (no more commission only), company vehicle, with all gas and upkeep paid for, brand new laptop, printer, better benefits, and the list goes on!! The reality has not set in yet, but we are praising God! I have a small glimpse of what Moses felt when He saw God's goodness, it is breath taking. Sure, it didn't happen in my timing, but knowing that God brought it about in His timing made it all the more special.

So Friday June 8th will be Lyle's last day and he will start his new job on Monday the 11th!! And let me just say it again...God is Good!!

Here are a few photos of the family, since no blog seems complete without them :)

Levi is his baseball uniform.

Liberty and cousin Micayla ready for the game.

Lyle and I with our awesome niece Stefanie who graduated high school in May.

The Kendrick kiddos with Grandma on Mother's day.

Many blessings to you all, may you have a blessed summer!!

The Goodness of the Lord in the land of the living- Pictures of our new house!

Hello All,
We have been unpacking and organizing like crazy. It is still sinking in that this is actually our home (if you don't know the testimony and would like to you can read about it in the previous blog). Daily I feel so blessed and thankful to my Heavenly Daddy. He loves me a lot :) So without further ado, here are the pictures of our wonderful blessing and if you are ever in the area, stop in for a visit.

Front of the house.

Back yard complete with a big deck and a great view of the sunset in the evening.

We have 5 acres and we are really enjoying the space! Here is the play set in the backyard and the trampoline get set up today.

Living room. This is the view from the front door.

Around the corner from the living room is the dining area and kitchen. I am loving all the counter and cupboard space!!

Across from the kitchen is the formal dining room which we turned into a school room, loving it already!

Moving day has arrived, not sure about this white stuff!

Umm, so the ground was not as hard as we thought. Big truck got stuck! A wrecker had to come and had it out in 30 seconds!!

About half way through packing the big truck we realized we needed to either leave a lot behind or get another truck and both drive. So we voted to get the other truck and just get everything out! This is the truck that I got to drive, and it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be.

And no blog is complete without a picture of the kiddos. This was taken just this past weekend before church. They are so good looking, how can you not smile at those yummy faces!

Thank you all for your prayers, love and support during this transition time. Please stay tuned as I hope to be sharing about Lyle getting his new job soon. God bless you all,
Hope, Lyle, Liberty, Levi, Shayna, and Isabella

The Cart Before the Horse

So I'm sure you've all heard the saying don't put the cart before the horse. It is very sound advice and can be a good principal to live by, but the experiences of the last few months have shown me that this quote doesn't reflect how God operates. It seems that in every step of our transition to Michigan has been God providing the cart before we have the horse!

The first time this happened was while we were waiting for God to provide insurance claims in Michigan so we would know when Lyle should head over to start working. It seemed like we waited for three weeks after Lyle got his license and still no work. Lyle finally planned a trip over as he had to return my wonderful mom to her home in Michigan as she had ridden over with him for a visit. A few days before they were to leave Lyle felt the Lord share with him that He called our whole family to Michigan, not just Lyle. So we packed up the whole family and headed East. While on our trip Lyle received two claims! The cart (heading to Michigan) before the horse (the security of work).

As we began to settle in and wait for Lyle to officially be offered the new and better job, the search for a place to live began. It was fun to explore and dream, but then I found "the house" and fell in love! My logical brain said "No, job first!" But then the price lowered and we meet the owners and had instant favor. So here we were again with a cart and no horse yet!

I am coming to realize that the walk of faith that God is leading me on is The Cart Before The Horse. If God is faithful to provide the cart, will He not also be faithful to provide the horse? Will you have faith for the horse while you are sitting in your cart waiting for a ride? I don't know if I will ever get comfortable with the cart before the horse mentality, but I do love seeing the plan of God unfold in it.

PS- We are still settling in our new home and I will get pictures posted as soon as the boxes get out of the way :) I can't wait to show you how good God is!!

First blog of the new year- It's long with BIG news!!

I am still trying to get my brain around the fact that it is 2012, and it is already February! It seems to be passing by so quickly,but when I spend my days keeping up with the kiddos I can easily say it is never boring.

Our "summer of change" seems to be extending into a "season of change" as the changes keep on coming! The first of which is we are currently in the process of relocating our whole family from Iowa to Michigan. It is a BIG change for all of us as we have been in Iowa for 13 years and all of our children have been there their whole lives. So now comes the process of packing, sorting, and moving all of our things (which seems to double with each child!) Thankfully my sister and her husband are letting us stay at their home in Michigan while we transition. And we are all enjoying being near family and old friends while making new ones :)

The biggest reason for this move has been Lyle's job situation. His employer, Eagle Adjusting Services, had no work for him in Iowa for all of December and part of November. They had an opening in the company in the Lansing, MI area. And although it is a slow season for the entire adjusting industry, there was a lot more work in Michigan than in Iowa as it is so much more populated. That led us to investigate the possibility of moving closer to family. We also earnestly prayed that God would open the doors that we should go through and close the doors that needed to be closed which became a repeated prayer during this transition season. Lyle talked with his company and they said the job was his if he wanted it, but it also required him to get an adjuster license for the state of Michigan. So he began studying and passed on his first attempt!! (which we later found out the majority of people do not do)

That was back in late December. He thankfully has had very steady work all of January and so far into February. The busy season will soon be upon us as Spring weather comes and we are feeling the blessing of the Lord. During this time Lyle has also had a job interview with another adjusting company called Cunningham Lindsey. They were very impressed with his experience and are very interested in hiring him when the slow season is over which would mean going from straight commission to a salary, having a company car, and gas card!! We are looking forward to the days of filling up the gas tank of the Jeep several times a week being behind us!!

During this time I have kept my eyes open for places to live, which can be very challenging for a family of 6. To really meet our needs we need a four bedroom home and with three daughters, more than one bathroom is also a need :) Well, I stumbled across our dream house one day on craigslist and fell in love. It had everything we needed and many things we wanted, but it was out of our price range so I kept looking. I wasn't finding anything in the location we wanted with four bedrooms. In a moment of indulgence I pulled up the craigslist add of the house again and I was amazed when I saw that the price had come down significantly to something that was much more manageable. After talking it over with Lyle we decided to contact them and take a look. "Oh, My!" is all I can say about it, it was PERFECT!! We also had a great connection with both of the owners. So now was the time for our prayer about God opening and closing doors again. After much prayer, conversation, and favor we now have a beautiful four bedroom, 3 1/2 bathroom, house on 5 acres in the country to rent!! Thank you Jesus. But now comes the newest lesson I am digesting.

When I think about the goodness of God I always envision it being "easy". Just sit back and watch the goodness of the Lord, right? ummm...no! In my case this wonderful house is the goodness of the Lord! But it is a faith-stretcher! Had I been the one doing the planning I would have had Lyle get the new job first, with the security of the salary, but no. So I am exercising my faith to believe for a wonderful house and the provision to go with it. Who would have thought that something as wonderful as the goodness of the Lord would be so contentious and cause so many faith-building opportunities?! So let the learning commence :)

Ways you can pray for us:
1. That God would bring a buyer for our Iowa home and that it would sell quickly!
2. That we would have great grace and HELP with our upcoming move and getting our belongings to our new home in Michigan.
3. Grace, comfort, and peace for all of us, especially our children, as we make this transition, leave friends behind, and make new friends.

I will try and keep you posted and add pictures of our new place soon. Contact me if you'd like our new address and phone numbers.
God bless you all,
Hope, Lyle, Liberty, Levi, Shayna and Isabella