new house!

On Friday, we finally closed on our new house!

The closing was definitely difficult--especially for the family who was leaving the house, as they were embroiled in conflict. I'm grateful we were able to extend grace to them, and in the end, Jason was able on Friday to help them finish moving out and cleaning out. We were glad to be able to build this bridge between our family and theirs in what was an otherwise painful time for them.

Yesterday we spent the day with friends at the new house on Henry Avenue. Many, many thanks to Glenn and Lisa for driving the hour just to help us out. Their engineering skills were put to good use as they helped us to conceive and construct the frame for a closet in our bedroom, which would otherwise have been closet-less. And others--thanks to Val, Sus, and Kim--came over to paint, and we were able to paint the ceilings and walls of both the living and dining rooms. I couldn't believe it. So much done in just one day. And now I don't have to look at sparkles on the ceilings--and walls. Yes, the walls. Thanks, guys.

I'm especially grateful for the time of prayer we were able to share with our friends last night before leaving Henry Ave. It's good--and needed--to take the time to thank God for all He's done. We've sold our house to good friends, and that has been a lovely gift of friendship in our lives. We've bought a new house next door to some amazing neighbors (we discovered in the last two days) who have many dreams for revitalizing the neighborhood. We're realizing our dream of community living this year. We're moving in well before the start of school, as we had hoped. So much good. And we are grateful to God for all He has done on our behalf.

Today we're taking a "sabbath." We had house church this morning as we continue our discussion of the book of Matthew and talk about the ways in which Jesus is the King we're not expecting Him to be. Soon we're off to Nahant's dog beach with Kobe, and then we'll spend a quiet day here at home (er, at our not-home, since it no longer belongs to us). Tomorrow Jason will be back at work in our new house (adding walls to our bedroom closet) while the boys begin a week of half-day basketball camp, and I'm back to class with just 3 days left of my summer courses remaining.

Thanks to all for your continued prayers for us. And your offers of help in the coming days. We are grateful for all the painting, cleaning, and construction help we are receiving! (And we've decided to hire professional movers on August 9th, to make the actual move less stressful). Thanks, all!