Miracles Do Happen - Update Part I

Miracles Do Happen! I finally decided that my blog needed some help so I changed the background from Thanksgiving to the 4th of July, and have downloaded some pictures from October to December 2010.

As you probably know, Dave was layed-off from his job in October 2010 when the company announced the closure of their Tallahassee division. So, he and 191 other employees were given notice that at the end of the year, they would be unemployed. Dave was fortunate and blessed to find a job with GE in their transportation division in Melbourne, Florida. He works on train switches.

After 2 weeks of searching for a decent rental apartment, it became apparent that it would make more fiscal sense to buy a house in this downturn period of the economy as the monthly mortgage payment would be cheaper than rent.

This is the home Dave found and jumped on. It's a 4 bedroom, 2 bath, 1800 sq ft with huge enclosed porch and pool built in 1978. The good part: Great price, great bones, 3 blocks from the beach. The bad part: a fixer upper with pink carpeting and simulated wood laminate on particle board cabinets.

We had the inspection of the property on December 31st just hours before we were meeting up with good friends, Ron & Donna Davis in Tampa (we were headed out on a cruise on Jan 2). So here are the house pictures from the inspection:

The house from the front - don't you love the green driveway? What were they thinking?

The house is in Satellite Beach, Florida on the "Space Coast" on the central coast. We are about 25 miles south of Cape Canaveral right on the beach side of the state. Satellite Beach is one of the barrier islands just over one of the three causeways from Melbourne (about a 15 min drive).

Master bedroom & bath

Looking out through the kitchen windows out to the porch and pool (lovely green don't you think?)

Looking into the kitchen from the family room and laundry room (where I am standing)

BackyardFamily room

Our beach - 3 blocks away!

Christmas 2010

Sorry these are out of order but Blogger won't let me move them. :(

Ethan was Joseph in his preschool nativity presentation

Our wasp's nest in the yard in Georgia

Our Christmas tree - full of bears

Christmas morning

Dave's picture was deleted inadvertantly - oops. Blogger has been a pain!

Ethan

Ethan, Danny, Stef (with Riley on her lap)

Emily

Christmas Eve at Danny's Dad's & Step-Mom's House
Emily and her new camera - she loves cameras and taking pictures!

Ethan

Danny and Emily

Our Church Christmas Party

Ethan, Emily, Stefanie

Ethan with Santa

Emily loved her candy cane

It was a cold December in Georgia and this was the fountain out front of the hospital where I was working

Early December we headed to Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World

Danny and EmilyThe gang outside Mickey's house - Barb, Danny's mom came along - we had a ball!

Stef, Danny, and kids with Mickey and Minnie. Emily called Mickey "Hotdog" after a song he sings on the cartoon show

Mickey was quite the gentleman!

The frosted castle at night - pretty huh?!

November 2010

The Florida Caverns, Marianna, Florida

The day after Thanksgiving we met up with friends Bob and Marianne Conger who were visiting their daughter Megan and her hubby Aaron who live in Pensacola while Aaron attends flight school for the Navy. It was fun and the caves were beautiful!

Marianne and me!

Stef, Danny, and kiddos

Aaron and Megan

Dave and I with Marianne and Bob at a nearby restaurant

Stef's 28th birthday on November 22nd

Emily's 2nd birthday on November 30th

Stef made the Mickey Mouse cake -she is quite the fondant queen!

Presents

Happy birthday girl!

October 2010

Mother-Daughter trip to St. Augustine, Florida

Stef and I decided to escape for a 3 day weekend and head to St. Augustine, the oldest city in America. We stayed at an Inn on the beach and drove into the historic old town. We took a trolley tour, visited the old and haunted Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum, and went on a Ghost tour one evening. We had a blast and the weather was perfect!

Flagler University - used to be an upscale hotel

The beach across from the Inn-

Our ghost tour of the Ripley's building (one of the most haunted places in the US) took us to the media room which actually was a former hotel room and the place of a murder. Note the orb in the right hand corner.

The lighthouse. Stef climbed the 120 steps but I was too chicken

October 2010

A visit with Aaron and Megan Kinghorn who came up and just picked up their puppy in Monticello, Florida which is just a 20 min drive from our house in Georgia. Megan is the daughter of our friends Bob and Marianne Conger from Washington. They brought their new puppy for us to meet. She is an Airedale they were calling "Georgia" but ended up as "Allie" Allie was just adorable!

Megan and her brand new baby

Halloween - October 2010 at Southwestern State Hospital

My colleague Cher McDaniel as a "Gift from God"

Guess who was the Queen of Hearts--funny thing, another department dressed up as all the characters in Alice in Wonderland except for the Queen of Hearts. I ended up fitting right in with them and it was NOT planned!

That's it for the quick update from October, November and December 2010. I hope to get the first half of 2011 up before the end of the year!

Ha! Ha!

Please leave comments to motivate me!

I know, I know....

Life has been unbelievably crazy these last few weeks. For the past 3-1/2 I have had a lingering virus. Now it's just bronchitis.

Many things are happening in our lives right now, so be prepared for an updated post sometime in the next week or two.

We are all doing pretty good and I have quite a bit to blog...but not right now.

Hope you are all doing well.

And, oh, my baby turns 28 tomorrow! When did that happen?! Life just seems to be flying by.

Will update soon!

Finally~ An Update!

OK, OK, I've been neglectful of my blog, but you'll see there are now 5 new posts. So, please enjoy. Last week the kids and grandkids came by our house. While Ethan and Emily colored, I ran to get my camera. At first Emily didn't want to smile, but then as I got sillier, the smiles came. Enjoy... She didn't want to look at me...

Then a cute little smirk from bothAnd, finally, I got a smile!Aren't they cute? I'm blessed to have them nearby. Sure wish we could have Caleb and Caitlin closer.....ah well, we are blessed.

Enjoy the next 4 posts!