Lots and Lots MORE news!

So..........the last few weeks have been crazy......of course......I should probably stop saying that and say that the last few weeks have been normal.........

Normal or not here's what's been going on (not necessarily in chronological order because it's getting blurred in my brain):

- bought last minute tickets for Emma and I to travel to New Mexico for my Grandpa Mason's birthday and the balloon festival....balloon festival canceled on our day due to weather.....trip with family good, but exhausting (Nashville airport is not 1.5 hours from my house - it's 2.5 FYI). The trip ended up being couched by work trips for Scott, so it was single mommy-hood (or it felt like it) for a few weeks.

- HOA in CA sent nasty letter citing our new deck as a violation and setting an ultimatum. We don't have a new deck; we refurbished the old deck. Hopefully we've put this fire out.

- Scott's dad had a break down and went from the most independent to the least independent to beligerant/non-compliant and eventually put on the eviction notice at Sunrise. We thought we had 30 days to find him a nursing home, but in the meantime he stopped taking painkillers for his back and things have improved. YEAH!!!! So for now - that fire is under control

- Scott's truck finally croaked. So - we bought a new one. It was a great deal: 0 down, 0.9% financing, and WELL below dealer invoice cost......We're thankful for 2 working vehicles, and one brand new vehicle, but are bummed to have a monthly payment and we are now on a spending freeze.

- Speaking of fires, there were some in CA. They came a few miles from our door (which is very normal and not usually worrisome.) What was worrisome is that there was a snafu with our homeowners insurance....and we supposedly didn't have any for a few weeks. We discovered this and tried to rememdy it, but no one will give you coverage while there are fires in your neighborhood. So, we had to wait.....I was very humbled and realized that maybe my faith had not been in God alone, but also in our insurance. This was brought home by the fact that our dear friends, Brian and Rori - who live in Porter Ranch on the top of Topanga and are usually the house the reporters park in front of to demonstrate how close to the houses the fire has come, but have never had any damage before - actually sustained damage. Their house caught fire. It wasn't a total loss, but many of their belongings are ruined from smoke and water damage. Rori is so cheerful it's hard to tell over the phone, but I have a feeling it's much worse than she's letting on. So we're thankful our friends weren't hurt, and that they were only renting that house, but we're sad for their lost belongings and all the misery that goes along with a clean up job like that. We're also thankful that our house is fine and should be insured shortly.

- We are going to CA on Thursday for my Grandpa DiCamillo's birthday and family reunion! Exciting, but exhausting..........I'm truly, truly hoping for no more travel until Christmas, or maybe even later, but everytime we've tried to make a sit and rest period, we've had something that required we leave (usually a family emergency or funeral). So - while we want to sit still for awhile (and our current budget should make that easier), really our plans are ultimately God's.

More later about life in Alabama.