Christmas In Nebraska

It feels strange to be in Omaha - we've been holed up in The Tiny House for a month - and we've only been here 7 weeks! The day before Thanksgiving, it snowed and got cold. Since then, we've have more snow/ice every week - sometimes twice a week! So, although I love the house, it feels weird to be so unconnected with the neighborhood. I still have to read street signs and count down numbered streets to get places. I also feel myself comparing distances here to their equivelents in Lincoln. Driving is easy but I still don't know where anything is. I've been using the internet ALL THE TIME to find locations for places I could just drive to without thinking in Lincoln! :) I've promised to post pictures chronicling our last few weeks and our house setup for certain friends! (Here they are guys!) Enjoy!

Our Most Recent Snowfall - 5 inches!

Eric working on the snow (Isn't this a great action shot?)
The big white building in the background is home to one of our most considerate neighbors: Certified Transmission. They keep their property nice and clean and are very quiet in the evening - although that may be because they're closed after 5pm.

Our house in the snow - doesn't it look cozy?This was the high temperature for the day - getting up the nerve to go outside has been tough for me!

The view from the front door - notice our very little Christmas tree in the corner - it's soft and has only glass balls and lights this year - our ornaments are gracing the garland in the doorway! Our stairway doubles as a coat closet and vacuum storage area. This house has only one closet which is packed full of clothes and shoes. We've had to come up with creative ways to store all our stuff. If you see something that may work better, let me know!

Here are the rooms we live in most of the time:
Living Room (Note our Temporary Bedroom through the door in the 2nd picture and the front door next to the TV)

Dining Room
(The Kitchen door is next to the piano. And the piano is decorated with Christmas Decorations and Christmas Music!)The Temporary Bedroom - it will soon be an office/guest room.The view of the bathroom from the bedroom - yes, you have to walk through the bedroom to get to the bathroom - a little awkward, but it works for now!The Kitchen viewed from the Dining Room (the Living Room is at your right and the stairs upstairs right behind you to the left) Look at the SUPER TALL kitchen cabinets! I think I actually have storage room to spare in this kitchen!Check out the really old-fashioned sink! I love the look of the sink - although it would be more practical as a laundry room sink. One basin makes washing and rinsing a bit of a problem. It's teaching me to wash RIGHT AWAY - something I hate to do, but I'm learning. Note the empty sink! :)I just realized how much of a camera hog Sadie is! She's in quite a few pictures! (But in this pic, she's trying to get her ball by the stove.) (And right now, Sadie is keeping my lap very warm by laying her very large head on it!) She's a good dog!The Double-Black-Diamond stairs to our basement - try to navigate those without skis and holding a laundry basket! Laundry Room - my 2 favorite features: the super long counter top for folding and the hanging bar for all our clothing that doesn't fit in the only closet!
Eric's Future Workshop - the walls are being prepped for paint at the moment!Heading back upstairs
And now all the way upstairs...
The future master bedroom and bathroom! The bathroom will (hopefully) be at the far end of the room and the bedroom will be the rest of the entire upstairs. Eric and I are very excited to get started on the upstairs renovation. I hope you enjoyed the tour! Merry Christmas everyone!

What's New?

Many things have changed in the last 6 weeks.
1. We've moved from Lincoln to Omaha
2. We sold our Lincoln house.
3. We gave away and sold many of our possessions (I don't even miss them!)
4. I'm washing dishes by hand again - it's been a long time!
5. I've moved from having a temporary job to having no job at all.
6. Winter has come - and with it, SNOW! (I love snow, in case you've forgotten!)
7. Our church family is still out there somewhere, we're just not sure where.
8. Eric and I actually had time to decorate for Christmas this year...together!
9. I feel stir-crazy from having SO much free time on my hands!
10. The dogs have gone into hibernation mode - it's great!
11. I'm trying to get up the courage to apply for and negotiate the terms of a new job! (More to come on that item.)

Winter is Here!

1. Why would I do this to my poor dog?

2. Baking Christmas cookies is not nearly as fun as it sounds.
3. The tiny snow pellets ping against the sidewalk.
4. My 50 pound pet thinks she's a lap dog.
5. I wish I was young enough to play with paper dolls.
6. Sometimes just getting motivated to get dressed is a chore.
7. I miss playing violin - although I was never very good.
8. Christmas trees should only ever have white lights.
9. Snowmen are my favorite holiday decorations.

A Random List...

1. Life isn't fair.
2. Why is it so easy for everyone else?
3. Dishes are the bane of my existence.
4. I love my dogs!
5. Friends are hard to come by - and even harder to keep.
6. I hate the phone: hearing it ring, talking on it and remembering to charge it at night.
7. Coke has more calories then Pepsi per can (140 v. 120)
8. Christmas lights make me extremely happy - you could say they make me giddy!
9. I want snow flurries every day all winter long.
10. I've wondered if giving up would be easier?
11. A new pillow is the best way to sleep easier.
12. Paper clutter is my nemesis.
13. I love taking pictures but wonder why I don't take more.
14. There are too many options in life.
15. Autumn leaves are beautiful: their sound, their smell and the colors they become.
16. Trite cliches disgust me.
17. If it's not working, end it!

A Christmas Shooting

This has been a strange day.
I attended a funeral this morning and talked with an old friend.
Besides being encouraged, I was also grieving for the family and the loss of a very special man.
Driving home, I took a detour to apply for a job.
As I walked to the door, a man screeched to a halt in front of me with a red sports car.
He jumped out saying, "There's been a shooting, the malls are closed down!"
I turned and headed to my car - the news about the shooting was on the radio.
Thankfully, the shooting was at a different mall.
But, it has been a strange day.

Just in Time for Thanksgiving!

Settling In...

I've been working in our new little house - 5 rooms on the main floor and a basement that will take forever to organize. But I love being in our Tiny House and am having a great time moving all our items into their new locations. I'd had everything settled into our old house for so long I'd forgotten how much fun it is finding a new home for everything. As soon as I'm done, I'll get some pictures posted. Also, for those of those praying for us and the sell of our old house - IT HAPPENED! The day after we moved out, we got an offer! This means that we won't have a single month with 2 house payments! :) God really stepped in and took care of our situation for us - isn't that what He does best?

Sorensen Hoedown

Star in Your Own JibJab! It's Free!

Pray for This Weekend

As many of you know, Eric and I have a new house in Omaha (check out this post). I wish I could say we are incredibly excited - and we are to an extent - but the fact that our Lincoln house is still for sale takes the fun anticipation out of our new adventure. We feel that this house in Omaha is perfect for us - just the right size, much cheaper than the house in Lincoln and close to Eric's job and my new school (UNO). This weekend, we are having a 3rd open house. (Sunday) And although we've had great response to our open houses so far, there haven't been any offers from them. We will soon own 2 houses and even though we can handle it financially, I would rather not! :) I am asking for YOUR help! Please pray for our house this weekend! Specifically that the people looking for a house like ours will come to the open house and make us an offer that is close to our asking price. I have been praying daily, and although God answers the prayers of one person, I need the support from my friends and family! Thank you in advance and I'll post an update as soon as I can!

Ode to Facebook

A House Update

While I have few minutes, I'll let you all know that the housing situation isn't going well right now. While we have a contract for the house in Omaha, no one wants to buy our house in Lincoln. Our realtor tells us that the market has completely slowed down and we have only had 5 groups through our house in 2 1/2 weeks. This seems a little sparse to me, and I'm getting a little nervous. I suppose, if we can't sell our house, then we will back out of the other house (which will be sad, but we'll cope!) and then continue to sell ours and maybe move to Omaha later in the year. (Which could be strange - how do you move in the snow?) :) So, pray for our situation - we have some hard decisions to make and it's tough to know what to do. Look at this - 2 posts in one day - that is definitely a record for me!

Photos from Our Southern Adventure

Eric and I had a great Labor Day Weekend visiting Scott and Renee' in Slidell, LA. After getting off to a rough start (with a canceled flight the first day and standby on all flights the next day), we had three fun-filled days in the deep south seeing Scott and Renee's new home and experiencing some Southern culture. Here are some glimpses of our vacation...

We went to an awesome show at this casino - since they expect everyone to spend money gambling, we got to see Russian acrobats for about $10 a ticket!

Eric and machinery!

We took an unbelievable helicopter ride with Scott's boss, Jim. He is an amazing pilot and great tour guide - our trip along the gulf coast was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Doesn't Renee' look happy to be airborne?

This little guy hid as soon as we came close with the cameras -
but there really is a hermit crab in there!

We walked out on a rebuilt pier along the gulf coast. There used to be a pier every hundred yards or so, but since Hurricane Katrina, there aren't many left in the area were visiting.

The Mississippi River from the New Orleans bank

A restaurant with a French name in the French Quarter - we ate here our last night in Louisiana

During our helicopter ride, Scott practiced his piloting skills from the back seat.

As we bounced along Louisiana's highways, we spotted a turtle - after the photo op, Eric deposited him safely in the grass alongside the road.

As Renee' said "You've always got to have one of those pictures."

An extremely large alligator! (And we really were that close!)

A fantastic up-close-and-personal tour of the swamp!

"The Money Picture"

We are Proud Homeowners! (for the 2nd time)

This morning, at 9:00 am, Eric and I purchased our second home! The address is *now a secret due to Eric being out of town* and here are the photos of our new "Tiny House." :) (Note the SOLD sign!)















Everything seemed to work out perfectly with our search for homes in Omaha! I have relatives that live very close by to our new home and they had great suggestions for what parts of town to live in and good neighborhoods to look at. After looking casually for only 2 weekends (and checking the website every day for new listings), we changed our housing criteria and right away found this great house.















It needs work (not structural, just cosmetic!) and some help with its yard, but we love the style and quiet neighborhood! (Check out the great woodwork and I think it has 10 windows on the first floor alone!) We have a fantastic front porch (which we've always wanted)















and a basement where Eric plans to spend time tinkering with projects. (Note the half-door at the far end of the room - it leads to a short-ceilinged storm cellar. We've already decided to leave the door open and light on at all times - I think I've seen to many scary movies - the short door scares me!)















Our first goal will be to clean everything (it has an "old-house" smell) and then completely redo the 2nd floor which will be the master bedroom. Eric also wants to add a bathroom to the second floor by adding a dormer and cutting out the cupboards that flank one wall.















We're really excited to have our "Tiny House" and look forward to giving very short tours very soon!

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!

Pray for us - we may have found a house!!!!

Longings

My Longing
I long for the days of super-high electric bills and moderately cool air seeping from our vents...You don't miss the old, inefficient air conditioners until they're gone! (And you're in the middle of a three-day heat advisory.)

Tiger's Longing
Sadie has a friend. His name is Tiger. Tiger is one of Sadie's constant companions. You'll often see Tiger hanging from Sadie's mouth as she pads through the house. Today, I walked out to water our flower garden in the backyard and was met with a curious sight...


Now, Tiger leads a good life: friends to play with, a roof over his head and mending on a regular basis. Even still, Tiger - like all wild animals - wants a life without fences, owners or responsibilities. Even those with everything, still long for more!

The End of A Short-Lived Era

This is a sad post for me - but it shouldn't come as a surprise to those of you who have been checking for 2 months and haven't seen any new material! I have been introspecting lately and have come to a conclusion: I need to simplify my life! There are too many things vying for my attention and time! I just finished reading a book called "Crazybusy: Overstretched, Overbooked and About to Snap!" Well, I am one who snapped. On Thanksgiving Eve, we were just about ready to have our first service in our church's addition. This should have been a joyous time: thanking God for His provision, rejoicing with eachother and getting ready to spend a holiday weekend with our families. Things were so last minute problems (i.e. tech equipment getting delivered the day of the service - one of MANY issues) that when Eric came to meet me for the service, I had an emotional breakdown in the hallway of the church. I still get teary thinking about it - that's how stressed I was right then. Eric took me home and I slept for 12 hours straight. Looking back, there were a lot of things leading up to that moment that contributed to my break-down. I wasn't getting enough sleep, I was allowing certain family situations to affect me and there were so many work and home details going through my brain that my body said, "ENOUGH!" So, even though I crashed that fateful Wednesday night, I put myself back into the tense situation by plowing ahead and working the entire holiday weekend (Thanksgiving Day included). I should have said "No" quite a bit more than I did. And since I can't change the past, I am applying what I learned from that situaion to the here-and-now. I am weeding: cleaning the things out of my life that may not hurt anything, but add to the clutter in my mind at all times. I like blogging - but I don't LOVE blogging. I like being able to connect with friends and family, but there are other ways! (So please email or call me - I'm not disconnecting from people, just the cluttering activities!) I will also be examaning other parts of my life looking for ways to simplify, unclutter and weed out those things that invade my life and take up too much energy. One thing I'm doing (in case you were wondering) is giving myself a clean inbox. I marked as spam all but ONE company's emails. I was receiving updates from 20+ on a regular basis! I am also looking around for items in my home that add to the stress: too much maintainance required or something I don't really enjoy having enough to justify it's place here. (Unfortunately, I can't bring myself to argue against the dishes - although I will allow myself to let the sink get full before washing!) Blogging is going on my list of "weeds" for now. I may blog occasionally, but don't look for regular posts. Here are the four C's I'm focusing on in my quest for a simple life(taken from "Crazybusy"):
"1. Connect: by connecting with the people and projects that matter most to you, you create an emotional atmosphere at home, at work and wherever you go. Connecting with others is also the best way to reduce worry. It is fine to worry, just try never to worry alone.
2. Control: control your technology - cell phone, email, and the like - don't let it control you.
3. Cancel: People (and organizations) add activites, but they rarely subtract. It may seem difficult at first, but if you get in the habit of canceling what doesn't really matter, you'll be amazed at how much better you feel and how much more energy you have. Pare your life down to its best!
4. Create: Create structures and systems in your life that help you get organized.
5. Care: Decide what you care most about. You do not have time for everything you care about, so you must prioritize. If you don't do this consciously, you will do it unconsciously simply because what you care about exceeds the time you have to devote to each item on your list.
6. Cultivate: Cultivate your lilies[people or projects that when you engage with them, make you feel fulfilled and satisfied] and discard your leeches[people or projects that waste your time and attention, leaving you feeling depleted]. What do you want more of? What do you want less of? Figure that out, then do it!"

So readers, I am heading out to "do it"! I may someday find that blogging has room in my life again, but for today, I say good-bye!

News Update

I have done one exciting thing since last posting - (even though that was weeks ago) - I have joined the Christmas Choir at church! If you're really interested, check out the link: Christmas Celebraion 2006

Otherwise, I'm doing a fair amount of cleaining, laundry and dog-walking. Besides that, nothing much has changed. I'm waiting for a lot of answers right now - I hate waiting! But, we'll see what happens. Off to do one of the three previously mentioned activities!

You know you live in Nebraska...

(courtesy of my friend Heather, courtesy of Jeff Foxworthy)

If your local Dairy Queen is closed from September through May.

If someone in a Home Depot store offers you assistance and they don't work there.

If you've worn shorts and a parka at the same time.

If you've had a lengthy telephone conversation with someone who dialed a wrong number.

If "Vacation" means going anywhere south of GRAND ISLAND for the weekend.

If you measure distance in squares of farm land.

If you know several people who have hit a cow more than once. (my brother!)

If you have gone from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day and back again.

If you can drive 75 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching.

If you install security lights on your house and garage, but leave both unlocked.

If you carry jumpers in your car and your wife knows how to use them.

If you design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.

If the I-80 speed limit is 75 mph -- you're going 90 and everybody is passing you.

If driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.

If you know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter and road construction.

If you have more hours on your snow blower than miles on your car.

If you find 10 degrees "a little chilly."

If you listen/attend/watch a Husker football game even if you're not a football fan!

(I added that last one myself - it's so easy to get caught up in Husker-mania!)
Enjoy the list and pass it on! :)

The Matrix and Muppets Combine

This isn't really relevant, but is sure effective in getting a laugh! (It helps if you have seen Matrix and/or know about the Muppets.)

The Muppet Matrix

I love spoofs of any kind, and this one is GREAT!

The pills are coming...

(throat clear - throat clear - cough - cough - cough) Maybe if I had taken all these crazy looking pills I would feel better today! Eric passed along his wretched cold to me! (I had just finished saying on Sunday "I haven't gotten it yet") I did have activities to pursue today, but now feel like moving from this computer chair would require too much effort. But, I must sally forth and try to get on with it! Enjoy your healthy day and think of me in my misery! (hack - hack)

Cleaing Update

Well, suffice it to say, I did not accomplish all I set out to do. I did clean the closets, and started papering the kitchen cabinets (but ran out of paper!). No financial meeting set up yet with the "CEO" but there's still time in the week! This turned out to be a VERY busy week at work and I donated alot of extra time to the job instead of the house. Not what I had planned, but at least everything got done at work. What's the best way to stay motivated for house projects? I'll let you know when I find out!

The Joys of Fall Cleaning

I'm officially starting the "Clean Sweep" for this week. This is what I want to accomplish by Friday:

1. Clean out kitchen cabinets and re-contact paper them.

2. Clean out clothes (and coat) closet and donate items to Goodwill.

3. Make a list of our worldly possessions for insurance purposes

4. Catch up on ALL laundry and paperwork (the paperwork has been piling up for a couple weeks now!)

5. Reevaluate our budget and have a "financial meeting" with Eric to discuss. (It makes it feel official if we schedule a meeting.)

I know that list is not long, but each task if very labor intensive! So, I'll update towards the end of the week and let you know how everything turned out! This is a great time of the year to do those tasks that pile up - it's cool and today it's cloudy, so I'm ok with staying inside for the day. Have a great week everyone!

The Highs and Lows

Today has been composed of mountain-top or pit of the valley experiences. It seemed like every other moment / activity / piece of information brought me joy or tears. There was no middle ground today - just the ups and downs. I feel at odds with a couple people around me and don't know how to make the situations better. I feel God whispering "Keep your focus on Me. Don't be distracted by the things around you - I know the plans I have for you." But, it is only a whisper - and every other thing is screaming at me! If you read this today, please pray for me. (Or tomorrow, I'm sure I'll still need prayer then!)

"'For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you,' says the Lord, 'thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.'"
Jeremiah 29:11, Aplified Bible

Camping Days!

Friday started off our weekend very busily as we ran 5 errands in preparation for our departure from Lincoln! So, instead of leaving Lincoln around 1:00 or 2:00 as we had hoped, we ended up heading down the interstate at 3:30 instead! I am choosing to believe this tardiness on our part wouldn't have made a difference to the weather at Lake Calamus when we arrived 3 1/2 hours later. Even though we had seen the rain on the windshield for the last 75 miles of our trip, we didn't realize the the temperature had also been dropping 10 degrees every hour. When we arrived at the lake, we noticed the water was covered in "white caps." Thinking nothing of it and not noticing how hard it was REALLY raining, we traveled through 3 different campsites looking for "the ONE" - void of people, close to water, and some trees for protection. (Little did we know how MUCH we would need that "protection.")
On the furthest side of the 10 mile diameter lake, we found our site. Eric and I hopped gleefully from the truck to do a close-up inspection.......only to do to quick hop right back in! Driving rain, freezing temps, and frigid wind! (We had left Lincoln with 80 degree weather and I was wearing shorts and t-shirt!) Gasping for breath, we sat dumbfounded. What do we do? Wait for the rain to subside? Turn around and see if there was a motel in the area? Go home? Or set up camp any way? If you chose Option #4, you would be correct. Eric thought we should get our ginormous (gigantic+enormous) tarp set up as a rain shield first.
So, being the "helpful" wife I am, I set out to get the tarps from the camping tub and he scouted a spot for the "shield." Unfortunately, we had picked a camping site with only 3 trees - and tarps have 4 corners. After battling the wind, rain and the tarp (which was given superpowers by the wind and rain) for almost an hour and getting nowhere, we moved our attention to the tents. By this point, we are both soaked - my hair is dripping in my eyes and the ONE sweatshirt I brought with me is heavy with water and failing to keep me warm. At some point in the set-up process, we also discovered that the one thing I asked Eric to throw in his clothes bag (clean t-shirts) was missing! He was wearing his ONLY shirt and it was also soaked and wet.
The tents went up with minor setbacks - mostly because my fingers were too numb to be of much help to me - and we quickly tied all our belongings under a tarp for the night. We talked about chucking it all in and heading back to Lincoln (this was around 11:00 p.m.) and I said "We could be at IHOP by 2:00 and have pancakes!" But we ended up staying that night and ate cereal on our air mattress by the bowlful. I'm glad we stayed (now) because it turned into a great couple of days. The next day, the sky was clear and we had perfect weather for the next 2 days. We hiked with the dogs, took a LONG nap and went wading in Calamus River. Sitting around the campfire was WONDERFUL in the morning when my nose was still frozen from that night before and we made an emergency trip into Burwell for chocolate chip cookies. All-in-all, we had a fun, relaxing weekend that left us refreshed and ready to face our real lives again.