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Monday, February 28, 2011

Remembrance

The last time I saw you was during the summer of 2007. I came down for a day to visit you because I had a feeling that it would be the last time I would ever see you and talk to you. It turns out my feeling was right. When I saw you that summer day you opened your arms to me and said with a smile, "Katie, come greet me". You were still as sharp as a tack, and you still had your amazing sense of humor regardless of how sick you felt. I knew you were sad...you had been sad since the day Aunt Jeanne died. From the moment you parted from her, you wanted to be with her. You kept saying that you and Aunt Jeanne would celebrate the one year anniversary on February 2, 2008. You died two days before that one year.

To tell you the truth, I feel guilty for wishing you were still here. The world was a better place with you in it. I heard a story at your funeral about how you brought a nurse who was caring for you to Christ. She said to you, "There is just something about you. I don't know what it is, but you seem so content. Your outlook on the world is just amazing. I've never known anyone like you. What makes you so different?" And you simply replied, "My faith". I'm amazed how you managed to reach another person even while you were dying.

I know you don't want to be remembered with sadness, and I'm sorry for being so sad when you died. I'm sorry I didn't come see you as often as I should have. I think this must be a running theme with me....I said the exact same words to Aunt Jeanne when she died. There is a quote I have always loved and it reminds me of you: "Remember me with smiles and laughter, for that is how I will remember you all. If you can only remember me with tears, then don't remember me at all."

~Dr. Edwin Lowell Adams: 4/24/1918- 1/31/2008~

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Our House

After almost two years of living in a cramped apartment, Michael and I decided we should buy a house. We received an ad in the mail for 123 My First Home. Obviously, this particular realty company directs their focus on first time home owners, hence the name 123 My First Home. In November 2010, we filled out a profile on their website, and a couple of days later a realtor contacted us. As it turns out, this realty company works with a home building company called Arbor Homes. The next thing we knew, we were looking at different model homes to get an idea of what we wanted to build. We finally found a model that we agreed on and that was in our budget. The picture you see below is of the model home we found. Please keep in mind, the quality of the picture is not the greatest, but there is so much one can do with an i-Phone.
I thought building a house would be a pain; however, it's not nearly as painful as what I thought it would be. In fact, I've looked at it as like a bonding experience with Michael. Who would have thought of building a house as a way to bond with your spouse? Maybe it's the fact that we're doing it together, and it's "ours". Or it could be that this is the house we will raise a family in. I think that's why I'm already in love with the house, and the builder hasn't even broken ground yet (We had our pre construction meeting today, and they will break ground within the next two weeks!) I'll try to post more as the weeks go by and hopefully I'll have pictures to go along with those posts.