First Phase...

So...blogging has taken a far back seat to living life! Facebook has become the way of communicating little tid-bits of info, but so much has happened in so little time and I want to fill you in on everything that's going on right now. 

Ian and I had been tossing around the idea of moving for quite some time. We eventually want to have one more kid and would like to have more room to expand before doing so. So we decided to put our house on the market end of February and we moved in with Mom & Dad Mader in January. We staged the house and got an offer in April!!! We packed up the entire house & put everything in storage. Ian and I have been searching for resale options in our surrounding neighborhoods. We went to a parade of homes April 26th to get ideas & "house shop". In searching for a new home, we're looking for more square footage, a 4th bedroom, and specific school zones. There were a few "ideal" areas that we would love to live. One of these is Castlegate II.  Our minds were "set" on buying a resale, so that we could move into something as soon as our old house sold, and we believed this to be the only option within our price range as well. Living with mom & dad has been amazing and they have been SO gracious in allowing us to invade their lives. We definitely want to be a blessing to them & not a curse. 

To be honest though, searching for preexisting has been a little discouraging because it is a BIG TIME sellers market here and homes are getting snatched up within 2 weeks of being on the market. Once we found a possible home that "met our criteria", there was something about it that we would've been "settling" for...

4 bedrooms, but only 250 square feet more than what we had before; 

buying it for less, but having to put a ton of money into it to make it work; 

we just kept facing obstacles that we would've had to "deal" with. 

Due to the market being what it is, in order to get the square footage we need, we would've been well over budget if we went with a current resale. 

So, when we were on the parade of homes, we thought "what the heck" why don't we "dream" a little & just ask a builder what it would look like to build what we want (thinking, no way will we be able to afford this!)...so, we sat down with Matt Browning (family to Chris Kyle...couldn't shut he & Ian up!) with David Weekly homes and told him a little about what we were looking for. He showed us a house plan (Kemble), told us he had 3 lots left in Castlegate II and briefly walked us through the process. We just asked questions, spoke to our realtor & lender, crunched numbers and to our surprise, discovered that it would be more affordable to build new. We spoke to mom & dad about it and they were very supportive with however we felt led to proceed. They graciously offered us the option of staying with them until our new home would be completed in Oct/Nov. (I know, right...they must enjoy a challenge! ;) Everything is happening fast, but smooth. We have been praying about it nonstop and have been at peace with our decision to proceed with building. It's INSANE and AMAZING! We owe mom & dad BIG TIME because we will be able to save so much by staying with them while preparing to move into our new home! We have a lot of decision making coming up within the next few weeks and we humbly ask for your prayerful support. 

Please pray that we will proceed in wisdom. Pray that we will be open to advice. Pray that through this, we will be a blessing to others(especially mom & dad). Pray that we will look for ways to glorify God in this process. Pray that He will build this home and make it His dwelling place! We have already seen the Lord's hand at work by randomly introducing me (through a Norwex party) to the twins' would-be kindergarten teacher at the new, within walking distance, Spring Creek Elementary! Matt also randomly mentioned that when they get the frame built, we should have friends and family over to the lot to bless the house by writing scripture on the 2/6's...Absolutely doing that!!! Anyhow, we signed the contract today and we will be building our new home on Kinnersley Lane. For now, this is where we are and we are excited to follow wherever the Lord leads!! 

"The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you..." Deut.31:8

"The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps." Prov.16:9

2014 Recap:

“Only fear the Lord and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you.” 1 Sam.12:24

Rilyn- Miss Sunshine, loves to: talk, be barefoot, run, climb, be outside, watch Disney’s Frozen, sing, give hugs & high fives!  
Kelsie- Miss Spice, loves to: bake, play board games, make people laugh, play with stuffed animals, ride bikes, watch Octonauts, be at preschool!  
Karis- Miss Sugar, loves to: give hugs, perform, dance, play dress up, paint her nails, color, read, watch Sophia the First!  
Brittany (written by husband)– She is a loving stay-at-home mama. Doing it all tirelessly, she enjoys watching and teaching our girls to be fantastic little ladies. Along with being constantly devoted and true to her family, she has enjoyed being an independent sales consultant with Norwex (chemical free cleaning). It gives her the ability to be home with the kids as much as she wants, as well as make a little income and a big impact on our lives and the lives of others!  
Ian (written by wife)– He is thriving at CSPD! He is the president of the Police Officer’s Association, a Field Training Officer(trains the new recruits), a CIT(crisis intervention team) officer and on occasion he is OIC(“officer in charge” when Sarge is out). We are SO proud of our hero who continues to protect and serve his family and this community in Excellence!

2015 Upcoming Highlights:

“He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” Col.1:17

The new year holds Rilyn’s 2^nd birthday in January, Ian’s 6^th year with CSPD in January, the twin’s 5^th birthday in April, our 10 year wedding anniversary in July, Kindergarten for the twins in September, and a move to another home in South CS (putting house on the market in February…Fingers crossed!!) We appreciate your prayers and are very grateful for you!

This and That

Hey y'all! Can't believe I haven't posted anything since Rilyn's first birthday! Things have changed a lot...for the better. I could try to backtrack, but I know I would end up leaving things out, so I'll just fill you in on what's going on currently!

Rilyn is 19 months old and still a dream child. She is such a jewel and we continue to be grateful that the Lord blessed us with her unique personality, because along with her spunk, she shares an abundance of love and preciousness that none can match. Daddy is most definitely smitten! She clings SO tight and snuggle time is a must! She speaks in single words but is easy to understand. She is very coordinated and climbs on everything. Rarely falls and when she does, she usually says "owie", shakes it off and goes on playing. She loves the outdoors and playing in water! 

The twins are 4 and a half and have just started preschool on MWF from 9-12:30! They were very ready...I was too! They are also in dance on Thursday mornings and love that as well. They are quite the li'l performers! They crave closeness and are always asking for hugs and snuggles. I love it! Can't believe how fast they're growing up.

Kelsie is still full of spice! She is quick-witted and always loves to spread laughter! She still enjoys "reading" books, listening to music, playing dress up. She always has a hop in her step! She usually follows the rules and admits when she breaks them. 

Karis is my sugar baby! She is dainty, gentle and sweet....and yes, she knows it! ;) She loves to dance, sing, read, and color. She is artistic and a born leader; one who pushes limits & bends the rules. She is very intuitive and won't leave your side if she thinks you're sad or hurting. 

Ian and I were trying to decide that if our children were a dance, what style would she be. Here's what we came up with...
Karis - Ballet(performed with classical music accompaniment; theatrical and uses elaborate costumes and staging)
Kelsie - Hip-Hop(consisting of a stylized rhythmic music; a broad conglomerate of artistic forms; flourishing myriad of diverse styles)
Rilyn - Krump(a dance characterized by free, expressive, exaggerated, and highly energetic movement)

Life is a dance! Ian and I have been dancing through 9 years of marriage. It has included ups, downs, and allovertheplace moments, but I welcome the change in steps. Sure we've stamped on eachother's toes; ended up arguing about which direction to go and who's going to lead, but without all that in-between, there's no motion and no harmony. I'm blessed to have my perfect compliment and often need to remind myself that it's ok to stand on Ian's feet, go wherever he leads and know that I am exactly where I'm supposed to be! Because when it comes to life, there's no guide on "where to step next"; there is only one on "Who to follow".