Buying a House...Take II

Call us crazy, but Levi and I are embarking on the house-buying process once again. We recently signed a contract on this lovely jewel:

It's in my sister's neighborhood!

It's funny because every house I've ever lived in since I moved to Norman has been literally right next to an elementary school. I had a feeling we'd get this house simply because it made sense that I would end up in another house next to a school. We're really excited, but it doesn't seem real. Please pray that nothing will go terribly wrong like the last house.

By the way, if you know anyone who would be interested in subletting our house that's within walking distance of the OU campus, let me know!

Fun in the Sun

Levi and I went on vacation last week to the Outer Banks in North Carolina. We stayed in a beachfront house in the tiny, quaint town of Duck with Levi's dad, brother and various friends. It was wonderful to be able to walk right out to the beach whenever we wanted, but I think the best part was the relaxation. We both really needed a break from the daily grind, and this trip was just the ticket!

Levi tried surfing!

While the trip was great, we had a hard time getting home. We drove to Norfolk, VA to fly out on Thursday and sat at the airport for 3 hours before we were told our flight was so delayed that we couldn't make our connection. I was supposed to work Friday, but I had to call in and we had to spend the night in a hotel in Norfolk.

The next morning, Southwest put us on the first flight out (which was the ONLY flight with two open seats to OKC that day). The flight took us to Orlando, where we had to change planes and were delayed again due to a mechanical problem. Next, we landed in Houston where we were AGAIN delayed because of rain. Finally, we arrived home 21.5 hours after our originally scheduled arrival and Levi only got an hour of sleep before having to go to work Friday night.

We realized on this trip that we've taken four trips in the last year and have had plane-related travel problems on EVERY ONE:

• In Greece on our honeymoon, one flight got overbooked and since we were the last ones to check in, there was only one seat left so we had to take separate flights.
• In NYC, the marathon traffic was so terrible and we couldn't, for the life of us, get a taxi to take us all the way to the airport so we missed our flight.
• When we went to NC in January, we flew standby with free tickets and didn't get to leave when planned because the flights were booked (it was a holiday weekend).
• This last trip

What a year of travel conundrums! Nevertheless, we are both grateful to God for safe travel and the means to enjoy His creation in so many different places.

Happy Belated Birthday, Holten!

Last week, my oldest sister, Amy, was in town from North Carolina and she brought her two kids. Holten just turned one in May, so we had an informal family birthday party for him last Saturday. It was fun to see how much he's grown since Levi and I went to N.C. in January. He's mobile, super ticklish and has a great belly laugh.

Kayla's also matured and was very eager to share that, having just finished second grade, she's reading above her level. I'm very proud of her and hope she grows to love reading books in bubble baths as much as I do!

Unfortunately, I thought I left my camera at home during the party and only realized I didn't as I was leaving. I still caught some cute stuff:

Holt's signature look

Kayla, my sisters' cousin Suzanne and her son Luke

                                            

A Whirlwind of a Week

Whew. So much has happened this last week and I didn't even have a second to blog about any of it. So here it goes.

Last week started out like most other weeks, except we had

a house guest who arrived on Saturday. Her name was Anna, and she was part of a mission team from IN that came to our church to help do service projects around Norman. She lived with us until yesterday, when she left to go back home. I had a great time getting to know Anna and, sadly, it seems like we were becoming comfortable friends just as she was leaving.

Not only did the mission team do service projects during the days last week, but they also helped our church run a VBS in the evenings. I planned and lead the arts and crafts class during VBS, and it was a lot of fun. It was especially uplifting that several kids from a trailer park where the team had been working came to VBS each night and they loved learning about Jesus.

I should also mention that I fall more in love with our church family every time we get together. It was awesome to spend so much time with them last week. I think that the mission team did more than help people in need around Norman; they brought our church together in a way I haven't seen before. It was great, and I'm excited to see those bonds continue to develop. If you don't know much about the church Levi and I have been attending for the last few years and are in love with, check it out at www.UniversityFellowshipChurch.com.

Tuesday of last week was a big day. My dad's colon surgery unexpectedly got moved from Friday, so he went ahead and had the procedure to take care of his diverticulitis problem. The surgery went great and he just got home from the hospital today.

Also on Tuesday, Levi's great grandmother passed away. She was 93 and a wonderful woman. I will never forget her beautiful snow white hair (not a single gray strand!) and her unconditional love of OU. She was an especially big OU football fan and knew everything about each player. I've known "Grandma" since I was 16, and when I told her I had decided to go to OU after high school, she said it was because I wanted to get a good education (to her, a good football team meant a good school overall).

Grandma saw more in her lifetime than I think any of us every will. She remembered when it took a whole day to get to Oklahoma City from Edmond and her family was the first in Edmond to buy a car. We went to her memorial service today and it was really beautiful. It was truly a celebration of her life and we are all so happy to know she's with God and her late husband in Heaven. The only picture I have of her is from our wedding day. She's the one on the right in the wheelchair:

On top of everything I've mentioned, I have started working summer hours at work, which are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. with half days on Friday. This made for an extra busy week considering VBS was from 6-8 every night. There were times I didn't think I would survive last week, but now that I've had some rest, I'd say it was pretty great.

Belated Anniversary Pics

One Year

Sunday was our one-year wedding anniversary, and Levi and I both agree that our first year together was the best we've had. To celebrate, we ate dinner at The Melting Pot (a delicious fondue restaurant) and then stayed at The Arcadian Inn Bed & Breakfast in M'Lords Chambers, where we stayed on our wedding night. The whole evening was incredibly relaxing and enjoyable with special touches like a rose on the table at dinner and champagne in our room that my parents dropped off as a surprise (it was a leftover bottle from our wedding!).

Our first year has included many changes, mostly for Levi. He moved back to Oklahoma and has had three different jobs and applied/tested/interviewed for many others. We also almost bought a house and I got a promotion. It's been quite a year!

Yesterday we embarked on our second year of marriage and I'm sure it will prove to be even better than the first!