House Hunting in Texas

These past four weeks have been exhausting.  We have had long days and long evenings.  Poor Caden is just ready to be settled back into a regular routine, as are we.  Thankfully during the days while Collin is at work, Caden and I have been able to meet up with various friends and visit the zoo, museum, and play at the park.  Also he has enjoyed seeing my parents and siblings as well as some of Collin's family.

Since our household goods arrived last Thursday, we decided we needed to make a decision this weekend. This is difficult as we are both extremely picky. We came across two great options.  Here are the two options we're considering.

House #1: Perfect, beautiful, new, but top of our budget. Cons: far from family and Collin's job - it's on the other side of town so we'd deal with bad traffic. Pros: good schools and close to friends and church.

House #2: Pros: Great price and closer to Collin's job and my family. Neat neighborhood with water park and bike trails, etc. It has a strong HOA and many kids in the neighborhood go to private school. Cons: 8 years old, not as good of schools, at least ratings wise. On the other hand, we could afford private school if we go with this option and there are several really good private schools nearby. There's also the possibility of homeschooling.

If we bought House #2 we would plan on later renting it out and expanding our housing portfolio. Basically, we'd buy it and "rent" to ourselves until we decide to move. If we buy House #1 we plan on living in it for a long time, at least 10+ years.

What would you do? Go with House #1 or House #2 and why?  Thank you to those who have responded on Facebook.  If you have not put in your two cents, please do so.  We have made our decision and are making an offer tomorrow on one of the houses above.  More news to come!

We Moved Home!

I have not had a chance to blog in a while.  To begin with, overseas moves are difficult.  They are exhausting and being away from our own "home" has its many challenges.  The first week we were in town we stayed at my parents.  Collin's parents graciously are letting us borrow one of their vehicles.  Now we're renting a furnished house and it was been somewhat easier.  Except for the 45 minute commute of taking Collin to work in the morning if I want the vehicle for the day.

Collin's birthday was Wednesday! I have to say, he is my favorite person in the world. I am so blessed to be married to such an awesome man! I love you, Collin!  My parents took us to Red Lobster for dinner and I bought him a Marble Slab ice cream cake.  We had a nice evening.

This past Tuesday our vehicle arrived!  We are so excited!  The past few days have been less stressful as we've both had a vehicle to drive.  Also, I love our SUV.  I'm just more comfortable driving it.  Thankfully my Dad watched Caden while we drove to North Dallas to pick it up.  Love having a little help from family.  It was a LONG trip and very time consuming getting it.  There was some damage and they wrote us a small check for $225.  We have less than a month to get license plates and take care of a few other things regarding our vehicle.

We have been super busy since moving and have been house hunting like crazy.  We go round and round on neighborhoods and parts of town.  Last night we got an email saying that our household goods have arrived!  Yay, but yikes!  We have yet to decide where to live!  It took 2.5 months to get them when we moved to Germany.  It took about a month for them to arrive in Texas.  This weekend we plan to make a decision.  Please say a prayer for us. 

Caden has done great overall.  He's almost adjusted to this new life.  However, he has relapsed in potty training.  Never having lived in the States with a child I'm having to learn some things.  The first week we were in town I was trying to open a post office box.  Well, there's no public restrooms at the post office.  I ask the lady what to do.  She was no help.  So I said, "so I guess I'm going to have to let him go on the side of the building."  What a shame!  I'm having to learn where to stop and let my son go to the restroom.  It's frustrating but as anyone knows with having a young child, when they need to go potty, they need to go! 

We are loving being back in the States and around family.  We look forward to visiting Collin's parents and can't wait to see them!  When I have more time, I will write more.  As for now, that's my quick update.  We miss our friends in Germany but are overall very happy to be back in Texas.  We're loving the sunshine and warm weather.  And Collin loves his new job!

2 Days left in Germany

We have only two days left in Germany. Collin and I moved here almost exactly 3 and 1/2 years ago. It was kind of a fluke that we even moved here. A fluke or maybe part of God's plan for our lives. About 6 and 1/2 years ago my husband started working for the Corps of Engineers in Texas. Soon after he started he noticed the Corps had a department in Germany. We both joked about how cool it would be to live overseas, something we both wanted to do since we were in middle school.

One day Collin saw a job open up in Heidelberg, Germany with the Army. I said with excitement, "that's great! Apply!" time passed and the evening the job closed he said, "the job closes tonight, I need to apply for it." I told him it was really late and he could always apply for another one. He said it would only take 5 minutes. This is coming from a man who is very detailed and perfectionist. I told him to go ahead. He literally was done applying in about 5 minutes. I really couldn’t believe it. Granted he was very well qualified and most of his resume was already in the system. 2 months after he applied, we arrived in Germany, a country we had never been to before.

We have had a great experience in Germany but have also endured many challenges. Some of my friends have lived in Germany for 6 or more years, others have only been here a few months. Others have lived here their whole life. One verse that I really relate to is Jeremiah 29:11.

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

The background to this verse is that a number of Jews were uprooted from Jerusalem and exiled to Babylon. This had to be very disruptive to them. Many of my American friends in Germany can relate to the Jews Jeremiah is writing to in the sense that they didn't have a choice to move here. Others of us made the choice to move to Germany and encounter the challenges that come with living in a foreign land. And some of you have lived in Germany your whole life. Never the less, I think we can all relate to this.

God's message to these people was to go on with their lives. They would encounter hardships. But that didn't mean they should give up. They were to work hard, have children, live with the people and seek the welfare of the city where God sent them into exile and pray to the Lord on its behalf. For these specific people God had plans to return them to Jerusalem and to fulfill His promise to them. Many of us who live overseas will one day return to our home country, whether that is the U.S. or somewhere else. God didn't make a promise to us about where we would live. However, I believe God has plans for each of us. He has a purpose for us. But what does God say we need to do? We need to pray to him, we need to seek him. He says in verse 13: "you will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart." I want to encourage you to seek out God. To learn about Him, lean on Him during difficult times and lean on Him during joyous times. God wants a relationship with you. God loves you and sent His Son, Jesus, to earth to die for you. There will be times that you feel lonely or maybe afraid. Pray to God and ask Him to comfort you. Lean on each other.  Surround yourself with loving friends. There is no way I would have made it without my dear friends in Germany. When we arrived 3 and ½ years ago I only knew my husband. Now I am blessed to know people who have or will live all around the world. No matter where you live, you don't have to walk this life alone.

 

I don't know what God has in store for us in Texas.  But I trust Him.  We are praying that God uses us to bring glory to Him.  We are truly blessed to have been able to spend these last 3 and 1/2 years in Germany and are forever changed because of it. 

3 Days left in Germany

I can't believe our time in Germany is almost over.  During our final week here we are battling our landlord who wants a little over 1000 Euros from us.  700 Euros to "replace" an old shell shaped sink that has a small hair line crack in it that we missed reporting when we moved in.  We priced a new, nicer sink and saw a great Villeroy and Bach sink for 75 Euros a piece.  We could buy him two new sinks for 150 Euros plus about 100 Euros to install and save 450 Euros. Hopefully we can do this.  Also he wants 300 Euros to re-grout the shower, which the owner of the German hotel we're staying out said re-grouting needs to happen every 3 years anyway, that is what he does for his hotel so that's normal wear and tear.

On a positive note, we saw firsthand the benefits of driving a used car while in Germany.  Collin bought a commuter car for $3100.  We sold is last Friday for $2800!  He drove a car for $300 plus a little maintenance (very little, it was in great condition) for 3 years!  When we first arrived we rented a car for 2 weeks and it cost us about $1000.  So our second car provided great savings for us.  Insurance for the 2000 Ford Focus was only about $35-$40 a month depending on the exchange rate.  It was a diesel and got between 35-45 miles per gallon.  We were tempted at times to buy a fast, new German car, but we also know we have other financial goals to save for.

We are excited about moving back to Texas but also a little sad. We have made some wonderful friends while living in Germany and will miss them a lot.  However, we look forward to reuniting with our friends and family in Texas as well.  We hope to keep in touch with many of our dear friends here.

It's Moving Week!

This week has been exhausting.  Have I mentioned before that I really don't like moving?  And moving with a child versus without child are two different stories.  Simply put, the move to Germany was a little easier than this one.  I didn't have a 2.5 year old running around.  However, life with Caden is a lot more fun and entertaining than without him. 

The packers and movers came Monday and Tuesday.  They were at our house most of the day.  There were four men and they packed and moved everything out and onto a huge truck and trailor.  Wednesday, Collin and I spent ALL day cleaning and throwing empty boxes and trash away (or recycling them).  We worked our tails off preparing our house for the walk-thru with our landlord today.

We are so blessed to have many wonderful friends in Germany.  They have been true lifesavers at times.  Monday our friends Kailin and Rober watched Caden for us (it was a long day!).  This allowed the packers to pack all of Caden's room and the majority of things he would get into or upset about.  Tuesday my friend Nicole was going to watch him but her daughter got the flu, which was sad, but she's doing better thankfully.  Wednesday, our friend, Jane, watched him from noon until 8pm, thanks, Jane!!  She put him to bed at 6pm and called and said for Collin and I to go grab dinner alone before getting him.  What a wonderful treat!

Originally the movers told us they would take until Wednesday to finish.  I really wanted to hire someone to do a final clean.  I'm all about saving money but lets face it, my stress levels are high, I'm tired, and cleaning a 4-story house is hard work.  Yesterday I was at my wits end.  When I took Caden to Jane's house at noon, she could see I needed a break.  So I called Collin and he encouraged me to go to lunch with her.  Her babysitter/maid was over so she watched our kids.  It was such a nice break.  I can count on one hand the number of meals I've had without Caden since he's been born and it's not many.  Collin and I stopped cleaning around 6:30pm and headed to one of our favorite restaurants in Eppelheim.  Jane only lives 5 minutes away so thankfully she was close by.  Poor Collin!  He was allergic to a spice in his food and started throwing up.  It was awful!  He had such a horrible nothing of a lunch and couldn't keep any dinner down.  Thankfully the window to the pharmacy across the street from the restaurant was open so he walked over there and got some medicine.

Today we were reminded how cheap and unfair our landlord is.  I'm not sure how much of our 3200 Euro deposit he's going to take but we're guessing anywhere from 500-700 Euros ($645-$905).  I'm too tired and mad to type all the details right now.  But basically a hair line crack in the sink that was there when we moved in 3 years ago, he is blaming us for and said we need to pay for a new sink which includes labor.  Also to re-grout the shower which was nasty when we moved in which he told us would cost 300 Euros.  Even though we got rid of all the lime deposits and the whole house looks a lot better than it ever did when we moved in.  Collin and I were both very dilligent when we cleaned to make sure it was spotless.

On a big positive note--God has blessed us with wonderful weather this week which made packing and moving a lot easier.  It has not snowed or rained on us until today.  It was rainy today.  And, we even got sunshine on Monday and Tuesday.  Sunshine in Germany is not very common in the winter.  It's usually rainy or snowy.

Tomorrow we're driving to Ramstein (an hour away) to sell Collin's car.  We have to meet our landlord at 3pm to hand over the keys.  Then Collin's farewell dinner is at 6pm.  Things are quickly wrapping up in Germany.  Caden has been doing pretty well with it all.  He's had a lot of sad moments though.  He cried when we sold his rug and his shrunk (closet).  He was sad when his toys were packed away.  I told him they are going on a big truck then a big ship to Texas and we will see them in a new house.  He does seem to be excited to go to America and live in Texas. 

Last Sunday our church family had a going away party for us.  We are truly blessed to have such wonderful friends at church.  This is the smallest church I have ever attended.  We are going to miss our church family in Heidelberg.

We moved into the hotel on Monday and will be here until we fly out.  We will miss all our wonderful friends in Germany but are looking forward to seeing all of our wonderful friends and family in Texas.  Hopefully we will keep in touch with many of the good friends we met while living here these past 3.5 years.

Getting ready to move!

I really don't like moving.  The process of moving, that is.  I'm not naturally super organized, which I am striving to become, but have yet to master.  I have a system, it works for me, but I don't maintain it as well as some do.  So getting ready to move and going through things is somewhat of a challenge to me.  I easily get overwhelmed with what needs to be done.  Thankfully, my friend, Angy Hughes, came over today to help me.  She was a huge help!  This is only my 4th time to move a whole household to another place.  I don't count all the times I moved in college since the stuff I had in college was so minimal compared to what we have today.

Today we worked tirelessly getting the kitchen, bathroom, and most of Caden's toys ready for the packers.  While throwing out half-opened food such as pasta and flour, I let Caden dump a lot of it in a big container and gave him a big spoon to mix it.  He made quite the mess but it kept him entertained.  I wish I would have taken a picture.  We also packed Caden's clothes.

There is plenty left to do and we will stay very busy through this weekend going through stuff such as paperwork, Collin's and mine's clothes, and the rest of Caden's toys and a few other things here and there.  Another big thing we've had to do is go pick up all our German medical records so we can get them translated before we leave.  What a pain!  For instance, we called a doctor I saw in Mannheim and asked where to pick up the records and when.  They gave us a date.  So when we had to take care of some more out processing, we stopped by the hospital.  They didn't have the records, it was in another location.  They said to come back in a week.  A week?!  We are running out of time!  And the hospital in Mannheim is about 30 minutes away, so it's not right around the corner.

On the bright side, it looks like we found a place to stay when we arrive in Texas.  Some friends from church have a furnished house they rent to missionaries when they come home.  Some missionaries returning to the Ukraine are moving out this week, so it will be available when we return.  God is taking care of us.  Now we just need to decide on a second car and a place/neighborhood to buy a house in.

I wanted to give a quick update but I need to go finish up some more things tonight.  Customs is coming tomorrow to inspect everything.  They said they will be here from around 8am-4pm.  I'm not sure what to expect but it seems to be never-ending.

8 Exciting Years!

Last week Collin and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary.  This was not quite as exciting as our first anniversary we spent in Germany when we stayed at a castle for our 5th.  However, we did have a wonderful day.  Collin had to work but he took me to one of our favorite restaurants called the Kartoffel in Ladenburg.  We both ordered steak which is seasoned and placed on a hot stone.  Individually you cook it to the doneness you desire.  Their steak is very good, hormone free, and imported all the way from Argentina, which is kind of strange since Germans are big on growing their own produce as well as having their own livestock.  Anyway, it was delicious.  Kartoffel means potato in German.  And the potatoes you get at Die Kartoffel are some of the best we've ever had.

This year we gave each other Polish Pottery since pottery is one of the traditional gift ideas and we do this every year.  We now have two serving pottery dishes.  We used them early for Christmas.

Here's our 8 tips to a great marriage:

1. Be friends, be best friends if possible, if not best, be at least very good friends.

2. Always be honest with one another.

3. Learn to forgive.  Neither person in a relationship is perfect.  We all have faults and they will come out.

4. Have fun together.  If you enjoy traveling, make it a goal to see something new every year.

5. Eat together.  It's amazing how many families don't eat together on a regular basis.  I think this has really helped us.

6. Support one another and cheer each other on.

7. Be kind to each other.  Belittling and making fun of someone is not cool. 

8. Put God first in your marriage.  If you are both on the path to doing God's will, you will have a much more fulfilling life together.

Collin, I am truly thankful to God for bringing you into my life.  You are my best friend, a terrific Dad to Caden, and the love of my life.  I look forward to many more years together.

Love you always,

Marisa