OFFICIALLY SOLD!!!!

WOO-HOO!!!!!!!

We have OFFICIALLY CLOSED on our house in Kerrville! The buyers wanted to push the closing date up as quickly as possible, so Jeff and I headed to the bank today to sign off on the deed and get it notarized before sending it away forever...

WE'RE FREE!

One month without a mortgage payment. Sweetness. I guess we could continue living with my parents indefinitely and save a ton of money...people do that all over the world...

Nah.

I think it's time to hit the road!

Corn Casserole

It's true. McDonald's Happy Meals keep kids happy in more ways than you'd think...

Gabe discovered the many utilitarian functions of the Happy Meal box, but his favorite use was to wear it as a hat for long periods of time during our recent road trip to Kerrville. I don't know who was more entertained - Gabe or us!

We made a super-fast trip to Kerrville last weekend to pick up the last of our stuff from the house. I was surprised how emotional it was for me to walk into our empty home for the last time. It was like a tidal wave of emotions hit me when I thought of all the special memories we'd made there. I gues it hit me the most when I walked into Gabe's room. Wow. But, at the same time, I am getting so excited about finding a new house in Temple and seeing it be transformed from just a house into a real HOME. I think that's what we are all longing for. To find our new HOME.

On a totally different note, my friend Colleen asked me to post my recipe for Corn Casserole. This has become one of my favorites, and I have to thank my sister-in-law, Crystal, for introducing it to me. Here it is:



CORN CASSEROLE

1 Can Cream Style Corn
1 Can Kernel Corn
2 Eggs
1 8 oz. Sour Cream
1 Box Jiffy Cornbread Mix
6 Tbs. Butter
1/2 c. Cheddar Cheese

Mix all ingredients except cheese. Pour into 13x9 pan (or 9x9 pan for a thicker casserole - I like it this way, though you'll have to bake it a bit longer). Top with the cheese. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes or until cheese is browned a bit and the casserole is set.

Enjoy!

SOLD! (well, almost...)

Hooray! It looks like we may FINALLY have a buyer for our Kerrville house. It's only been a little over three months, but I guess when you're not living in the house that you're still paying the mortgage payment on - any amount of time seems too long. But, after back and forth negotiations about the price and closing costs, we finally reached a point of agreement. The scheduled closing date will be the end of this month. Pray all goes smoothly!

We found out about the offer this past Sunday, which was the same day as the grand opening of Harvest Church's new building. To me, the timing was significant. It was as if the last chapter to one story was closing, and the commencement of another exciting chapter was just beginning. I guess Solomon was right. To everything there is a season.

And speaking of the seasons, I am SO READY FOR FALL! The weather has been so cool and crisp in the mornings, and I love it! We decided to take full advantage of the beautiful Saturday by going to the park with our friends, the Allerkamps. And, as if planned, our boys wore the exact same outfit! (I promise, we do not coordinate our sons' outfits...)

Gabriel and Evan in their coordinating stripey-ness..
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