And We Have a Van

As of yesterday morning our long uttered prayers for a van were answered.



"My God shall supply all of our needs according to His riches in glory."

It has finally arrived and is quite the source of excitement in our household. I told Brad our family doesn't seem big enough to require a van yet. I remember looking at and watching other huge families that would file out of 15 passenger vans and just be in awe at the size of their families. And here we are and we own one. 7 just doesn't seem large to me when they're all mine. And given the room we still h ave left in the van with every kid I suppose our family size shouldn't be considered too large. There's only like 1 kid on each row. No........more like 2 kids p/ row. So far, we have Garrett and Gavin on the 1st row, Garrison and Grant on the 2nd, Aubrey on the 3rd and Grayson and Evye on the 4th. Aubrey, at this time in her life, seems to be needing an entire row to herself. Although, Grayson and Evye have I think tried every available carseatless seat there is. So, she's had more than her fair share of company. And I think by the end of it the 4th seat may come out for now for stroller space.

So, here we are with our new gray van. If you ever see this comical, unmistakable thing driving down the road you can be rest assured it is most definitely our family within.

I figured with the Suburban having been a 4x4 we were elevated and had quite the advantage of other vehicles on the road. And then I drove this thing. If I thought the Suburban was a little on the higher end this must be 18 wheeler height. Let's just say that by the time I get finished loading and buckling kids up and I am done with the in/out constant up/down of getting everybody in that I will be in the best shape of my life and every woman out there will be envious of my rear. It is fun to drive though.

Time seems to be a little limited these days. Hopefully here in the next little while things will slow down a bit. There is an unending list of to-do's as we decision make on how to pair down, clean out and simplify our lives. I'm getting everything ready and trying to organize for the JBF sale coming up in which I have a ton of stuff to consign. Life is getting more and more organized and simplified but the dedication it takes to get there is time consuming in every way. Sometimes I marvel at how much stuff one can accumulate.

But to back up, since I haven't been as faithful as keeping up on here we did go to Lubbock on Friday to deliver the Suburban. I don't think I've ever been as blessed and felt as good as I did that day in a very long while. It was such an amazing day. One that left you in the clouds for days and days after he fact. Clouds we still haven't floated down off of just yet. Brad and I have never really have been used in a work God is doing like we were in that ordeal and it felt so good. I could get addicted to doing things like that and I only wish we could've absolutely given it to hem with no money involved. We have begun to pray that the Lord will see us as trustworthy and faithful so that we can be used this powerfully in every area of our life. That we would show ourselves faithful so that He can use us daily to bless others and meet needs. It is an absolutely amazing thing to experience.

It did feel a bit odd to watch the Suburban being driven off by someone else. How is it that something so materialistic can become such a part of one? It kind of felt like a part of me was driving off. It was just weird. But at the same time it felt so good too. When does one become so accustomed to change that it no longer feels foreign anymore? When does change become a way of life? Though I welcome change when does it ever not feel strange?

After the Suburban was delivered Brad and I, with the two little boys we had in tow, went to see Chris and Abby. We stayed and just hung out and visited for awhile before turning back to head home. It was a good visit and made the trip to Lubbock even more enjoyable and worth the entire day that it took to do it all. It was an amazing day from start to finish. And I love doing any road trip with Brad because it gives a seemingly infinite amount of time to talk and just be together with no interruptions. And I never tire of talking to him about anything and everything.

Garrett's eye after he played with Brad and met up with the bottom of the office chair. It only got worse as the day went on. He now has a black eye and looks like he was on the losing end of a boxing match.

We returned way too late to do anything about the van that night so we got everybody tucked in with visions of going to pick up our new vehicle the next day. The trip to pick it up could've won a Dodge record for how many people one has successfully fit into one of their trucks. Given the fact that it was 25 degrees taking the bus was pretty much out. So, we piled everyone of us up and took off to do the deal. After the fact Brad and I realized it is the very 1st vehicle we have actually purchased debt free. We have paid off many vehicles but never purchased them with cash in hand completely without any debt. So, we celebrated. The feeling of handing it over in cash was absolutely freeing. I can't help but fall in love with it despite its many quirks because I know it is paid for in every way. With Brad in his truck and now all of the children and I loaded in the van we headed into town to celebrate. We went through the carwash and cleaned it all up and it finally started to feel like our's. It still sort of feels odd to seeing sitting in the carport. I guess because it's such a huge accomplishment and such an incredible answer to prayer. I'm not sure I really thought this day would ever come. I knew it would but now that it;s here it just seems like we've been anticipating and waiting for it forever yet only just a few weeks. It's still hard to believe we need a van. This is such an amazing journey to me.

Grayson and Evye folding clothes while the rest are enthralled with Baby Einstein....it remains too cold for any outdoor play

Since I was freezing my butt off yesterday and forgot the camera I didn't get any pics of picking it up or our first drive. So, as we drive it more and have the entire family finally in it I'll get pics of everybody within. The inside view of the children is vastly diffrent from the inside view of the Suburban. I'll see if I can post both for some comparison after I get inside van pics. it makes me laugh. The view went from heads absolutely everywhere and no empty space in the Suburban to now just seeing a head here and there in this thing.