We're Here!

We are finally "home" again. We moved to Champaign, IL last weekend and just got internet on Friday. It feels good to finally be plugged back into the world! I am really enjoying this city. It seems like there is so much to do around here and the kids and I can't wait to get out and start seeing all that it has to offer. Ty starts his new job tomorrow, we will miss having him home. I have gotten used to having an extra set of hands and I'm sure it will take some time getting used to doing it all on my own again.

We are renting a house for a year and hopefully after that year will buy a house here. Hopefully this will be our last move for at least a few years. I am thankful we were able to find a place to live since Ty had less than a day to find something. We are only 2 miles from Ty's work, the mall, Meijer (YES! You have no idea how excited I am about shopping at Meijer again--weird, I know but I missed that place :)!!), and less than 1.5 miles from a kids museum, churches, parks, etc. I am so excited to have somewhere to take the kids. We also start MOPS tomorrow (although we're not going because R and L are both sick) and we already met a new friend last week who we're getting together with this week.

My Dad, Jamie and the girls came down to help us unpack which was a HUGE help. Dad and Jamie helped unpack and the girls played with the kids--we wouldn't have gotten so much done without their help. No to mention that Ty's best friend, Luke, flew all the way to WV to drive our truck to IL so Ty could drive the van with the kids and I. I'm not sure he knew how grateful to him I was, but I tried to make it very clear. It would have taken me 12, instead of 7 hours if Ty wasn't with me...but thanks to Luke, Ty drove the can while I took care of the kids! What a blessing!

I miss all of my WV friends and always wish I could bring my friends with me whenever we move, but I look forward to having lots of visitors and going to Chicago to shop :)!!

Here is a recap, in pictures, of the our first week in Illinois:

Saying bye to some of our best friends in WV (the Kirk's--minus Skylar):

Riley and Luke posing while packing up the truck:

Me being very excited about shopping at Meijer again:

Emmersyn has started "crawling" backwards:

The kids taking a break from "unpacking":

A trip to the the kids museum:

Carousel Rides at the mall (it has a great play area too!):

Sickness (Unfortunately, both R and L have been really sick the past few days. Both have spent a lot of time here and Riley has been throwing up. Not a very fun weekend!):

Thanks for all your thought and prayers as we went through Ty's lay off and moving again, you have no idea how much your support and encouragement as meant!

On the Move Again!

That's right, we're moving again as most of you know. However, our plans have changed (again). When Ty go laid off we were planning on moving back to Michigan since that was our best option. However, God has different plans for us and has opened some amazing doors. I have no doubt this has worked out only because of God and the timing is no coincidence!

Let me start at the beginning. About 3 months ago Ty interviewed for a job in Illinois just because he thought the job looked interesting and because it was closer to home. He wasn't really applying to other jobs because he was happy where he was in WV, however, he thought this IL job was a great opportunity. So he interviewed, but even after following up with them, he never heard back. He figured he was out of the running, so left it at that. Then, literally 15 minutes after Ty was laid off at his current job he got an email from them asking him for a second interview. He was thrilled and shocked because he hadn't heard from them in SO long. Anyways, to make a long story short he drove to IL to interview a week and a half ago, had a third interview last week and was then offered the position on Thursday, right before Christmas. Probably the best Christmas present we've received. We are so thankful and so excited and a little stressed all at the same time!

So, as of Thursday we had one week to find a place in Illinois, pack and get everything that comes with moving in place. Ty went yesterday to find a place for us to live temporarily (until we get to know the area). Today and tomorrow we are packing like crazy and Thursday we are loading up and moving to IL. Ty starts his new job on January 10th! What an answer to prayers that he got a job so quickly! It will only be 1 month from when he got laid off until when he starts his new job! You have no idea how much weight we feel lifted off of our shoulders now!

"Let Go"

Two words I never knew would change our lives so drastically! Ty heard those two words on Thursday from his boss at work. He, along with his entire department and most of the people in the Operations department, had been let go. Just like that. He went to work one day, went about his normal schedule, then out of the blue got called back to his boss's office, was told they were doing major reorganizing in his company and that his position had been terminated.

I have to be honest, I never thought we'd be in this position...ever. Ty is a very hard worker, he has a great education, and people love working with him because he's such a positive person! It wasn't his fault that he was let go, but the possibility of being "let go" just never occurred to us. He was with a good company who seemed to be doing well.

So, here we are, with a brand new baby (and two other little ones), in WV with no family, plenty of bills, and now no income. Most people would be freaking out right now and I'm not saying that we aren't but we are doing our best to trust in the Lord and lean on Him during this time. My sister sent me this verse which has really stuck with me and each time I start getting upset, down or worried about how we're going to make ends meet I think of it:

Matthew 6:25-27

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?

²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

I know God has a plan for us and our family and He gave us the opportunity to move down here for a reason. Now, He has something bigger and better in store for us. I am so proud of the way Ty has handled the situation. Last night Ty's co-worker (who used to be his boss when we first moved down here, she hired hm) and her husband stopped over for a few minutes. She said that one of the reasons she hired him to begin with was because he subtly witnessed to all of them during his interview (she is a very nice, Christian woman). She also said that through his year working with his company she saw Ty witness to many co-workers and that he had gotten many of them interested in finding out more about God. Ty told her that then everything we did, moving down here away from family and friends and now getting laid off, was now worth it. Maybe that's why God opened the door for us to move here. Maybe it was for Ty to impact his co-workers lives. Maybe it was to lead others to the Lord! I am proud of my husband and know God will provide and protect us!

We're praying for a new job to come our way quickly, but until then we are planning on moving back to Michigan at the end of the month (right after Christmas). We moved down here for his job and now that he no longer has it, there's no reason to stay. 5 moves, in 5 years--yikes! I've been hoping we would move closer to home, so I'm glad we are, just not under these circumstances!

West Virginia here we come...

Looks like this...

... is going to be our new home state for a while. Ty got the job in WV last Monday, but since the papers hadn't been signed until today I hadn't announced it yet. We're excited, scared, nervous and anxious about the move, but have been really praying about it and feel like it's the right decision. Sure, we're not thrilled about moving away from all of our family and friends, but we're hoping the experience can open even more doors and eventually bring us back "home"! Plus, the offer was just too good to pass up.

Ty will be their account manager. Essentially he'll be managing their local and national accounts. He starts December 7th, so we'll be moving down at the end of November. Ty and I will make the trip down soon to find a place to live and hopefully get more acquainted with the area. Thanks for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers!

West Virginia Roadtrip II

As I said, we woke up bright and early Tuesday morning. Riley and I let Ty get ready for his interview and we went down and ate breakfast. His interview was from 8am until 5 pm! A WHOLE day of sitting in a room interviewing with 5 or 6 different people. The CEO even flew in from PA for the interview! Once Ty left, Riley and I went back up to our room and watched cartoons, showered and got ready to hit the town. The had a "shuttle" back and forth to the city. I was glad not to be stuck in the hotel all day since Ty had the van. We went to the mall and shopped till we dropped!

In the mall elevator going to eat on the 3rd floor.

Once Ty got out of his interview we quick hopped into the van and drove an hour west (I think) to check out the "New River Gorge". It's a HUGE bridge, in fact the largest single arch bridge in the US and second in the world. It was an hour away, but it was great to check out the area for a while. Riley fell asleep in the car and we enjoyed the beauty. The pictures absolutely don't do it justice.

On our way to the New River Bridge.

Daddy and Ri walking to get a good view of the bridge.

Here it is! The sun was right in the way when we were taking pictures, but it was awesome nonetheless.

The New River. I've heard the white water rafting is awesome down there. I've only been once and loved it, so hopefully we'll get the chance to do it again.

On our way back we also stopped at this waterfall. It was called Kanawa Falls and it was beautiful as well. We walked all the way too it and Riley really enjoyed it:

This is the New River Dam (I think). I just loved the picture!

We got back after our normal dinner time, went back to the mall for a little more shopping and dinner then headed back to the hotel for what we thought would be an early night. Riley didn't agree. It took her until 10 again to fall asleep. It's hard to get her to sleep when we're laying next to her pretending to sleep.

The next morning we got up, went downstairs, ate breakfast then packed up. We wanted to go to a different part of the city to see if there was anyplace we would potentially live. I was nervous because before today I hadn't seen even one typical subdivision that I was hoping to see. I told Ty I couldn't even consider living here if I didn't see at least a few "normal" houses. Ones I could see us in. We drove around for 2.5 hours and found some beautiful homes and subdivisions, I was pleased so we took off for home. We were in the car that day for a total of 12 hours. Riley was a champ and only complained once saying "Mommy, my bottom hurts from sitting so long..." I told her mine did to :). We were all going a little crazy by the end of the drive, but I couldn't wait to get my littlest one from my mom. When we got to my mom's I about jumped out of the car before it had even stopped. I ran in the front door and I could tell he was happy to see me! Man I missed him! I'm glad we're all under one roof again. We got home, kids in bed then began to unpack...

As I said, she was going a little nutty by the end of the trip!

West Virginia Roadtrip I

Monday morning we woke up bright and early. Ty went to get the rental car they had reserved for us. We were excited because we had a choice of some brand new, 2010 sweet cars! Well, when Ty saw how much room there wasn't in the cars he asked for a minivan instead!! I was laughing so hard when he picked us up in it because he always says he'll never have a van!! My mom came and got Lincoln, and I cried when they left. I knew he'd be okay, but I was going to miss my little guy! Then we finished packing up the car and took off.

Poor Riley had to go to the bathroom "SO BAD", but there was nothing in sight. Good thing we brought her potty seat along. It definitely wasn't ideal, but it worked. I was thankful on a few occasions that we brought it with us!

We made it three hours without breaking out the portable DVD player, Riley took a nap and we chatted the whole way down. It was a very easy drive...well, I guess I can say that since I wasn't driving :)! Once we got out of the cornfields of Ohio and into West Virginia we saw how beautiful it really is down there! Perfect time of the year to be making a long drive. The leaves are still changing and like Ty says "how can someone look at all this beauty and deny that there is a Creator?" It was beautiful, especially when you're used to the "flat lands" of Michigan :).

Stopping for gas! (I think Ty was trying to watch the movie too!)

Hand her a sippy when she's tired and she usually falls asleep drinking it! Works every time!

We stopped a few times at McDonald's to have a bathroom break and for drinks and apple dippers. We order and I then decided that I wasn't sure if we could move here because 1. none of the McDonald's had Dr. Pepper and Ty seconded that because they had never even heard of a Frappe. We were in shock, seriously no frappe and no Dr. Pepper....and NO, Mr. Pibb does NOT count! We also knew we were getting closer to our destination because the accents were getting stronger and we were being asked if we were from North Dakota! Not sure why, but I guess that's where it sounds like we were from.

What kept us going: Dr. Pepper and coffee!

We crossed over the bridge into West Virginia and the first thing I saw was a trailer park--I about freaked out. haha, Ty says I saw it only because that's what I was looking for. Don't act like you all don't believe the West Virginian stereotypes everyone talks about!! I know I did. Anyways, we found our hotel, the Hampton Inn. It was very nice and once we got our mini unloaded we jumped back in and headed out to check out the city. We were right downtown Charleston (the capitol)--that's where Ty may be working. It was 5:30pm and we were shocked at the traffic on the street during rush hour. It was exactly the opposite of what we thought. Rush hour means LOTS of cars, etc, but not in Charleston. There were literally a handful of cars on the streets and we're told that's how it always is! That will be wonderful if he does get the job!

The Ohio River Bridge connecting Ohio and West Virginia!

We found the mall and I was in shopping heaven. I told Ty he could take the job because their mall is great! 10 times better than the one here or in GR. I was thrilled. Honestly I didn't know if they would even have a mall--like I said, I totally thought of WV differently than it really is! We went to dinner at Outback and then drove around the city trying to find his building and where his interview would be the next morning. We went back to the hotel, Riley jumped on the beds and I'm pretty sure Ty would have to if the ceilings were a little higher, watched movies, then tried to get Riley to sleep! It took a LONG time, but finally by 10 she was snoozing in her own bed.

The next morning began bright and early...to be continued!