Backup Plan

By the time I laid my head on my pillow, I had accepted the fact that we wouldn't be leaving the next morning.  So plan be was in the works.  I had got on line and rented a SUV for me to drive to Spokane on Saturday.  The 2 VRBO's that I had originally booked were not going to get used.  One of the owners even reimbursed us, which not the normal policy, after I had called them to let them know we wouldn't be using their homes.  I booked a new VRBO that was located approximately half way to Spokane for all of us to stay at on Saturday night.

Jake was originally going to drive the BMW to Denver, CO for a fraternity conference with some of his friends for the weekend and then on to Spokane on that Sunday.  He decided the best plan was for him to skip that, which was already paid for, and caravan with me and my mom.  This option gave us more room to pack stuff and more cars for people to ride in.  So Jake and Owen would ride together, Mom and RJ in her car with the hamster, Allie and Lucy in my car.  Plus, we got one more day to say some more good byes.

Saturday morning won't be the smoothest leave, but I will share the "Road Trip" for tomorrow.

Sorry for the delay!

So, my laptop went dead and the charger was MIA.  Therefore, I was unable to blog for about a week.  But the problem has been resolved and the blogging will continue!!!

As I have said before, MY plan isn't always the right plan.  On August 2, I was getting the car ready and the kids were with me buying last minute "road trip" essentials.  My mom and her husband had arrived earlier today and were at my sister's house waiting for her to get off work so we could all meet for our last supper in Wichita.  I needed to run back by the house from Target to check on something, when disaster struck!

I was heading east bound on 19th Street, crossing over 127th into our neighborhood.  Now, 127th is under construction and only one lane (North bound) open.  There is a lot of construction signs and debris in the road and in both shoulders.  I stopped at the stop sign, which happens to be a hard to see spot.  I looked and didn't see anyone coming.  Normally, I stop again just past all the blockage for cars.  But I was confident I didn't see anyone and just continued to drive across the street.

That's when I heard the horn honking.  Only seconds before my car smashed into their driver's side.  Thank God, I wasn't going very fast and no one was hurt.  But the damage was real.  With ringing in my ears, I immediately looked at my kids to make sure they were ok.  Owen was in the front passenger seat calmly telling me he's fine.  The air bag didn't even touch him, since his seat was so far back.  He did have a mark from the seat belt on his right jawline.  Allie was crying!  Not a single mark on her, but she just kept crying that it was all her fault.  If she hadn't been talking to me, I wouldn't have been distracted.  I immediately tell her it wasn't her fault and make sure she isn't hurt.

Approximately 5 minutes after contact, I am out of the car checking on the other vehicle.  The man was alone in his car, but had a bloody nose.  The very first car on the seen was an off duty paramedic. He called the accident in and waited for both the ambulance and police to arrive.  One of God's angels on Earth for sure.

My kids were sitting on the curb with the few items left in my car.  I called Jake at work to tell him I was in an accident, but everyone was ok.  I called my mom and sister.  They both arrived within 15 minutes to help with the kids.  After the professionals arrived and I wrote my report, the officer said I could go home.  The funny part was we were so close, that the kids and I walked home.

I called my insurance to start the process, not exactly sure what my plan would be since we were planning to leave the next morning.  By 7:00, my mom took me and the kids to dinner and I started working on the "New Plan".  Little did I know then, this new one would become so much better!  I'll share that with you tomorrow.

Friends Forever

We set our closing date to July 31st, but as the trend has been going that doesn't happen.  Apparently some paper work was holding up the motion of the closing process, SO we took possession of the YELLOW house on August 3rd.  The day we are planning to leave for Spokane.  The up side is we will own the house when we get there on the 5th.

I will use my free days to get my car serviced and road ready and spend the last few days in Wichita with our friends.

This will be a short entry, but a serious turn of events will be posted next!

God give me grace for others

After getting up early Friday morning to go and wire the money to to title company, my agent in Spokane calls me to say she's put an extension on our closing date to the 31st.  Perfect!  We sign some documents and that takes care of that...or so we think.  But I'll get to that later.

I have some AMAZING mom friends that I've made into part of my tribe over the last 5 years.  Some are moms of my son's friends and some are moms of my daughter's friends.  And some have just joined in along the way.  These ladies that I love, wanted to get together for lunch at one of my favorite places, Fuzzy Taco.  I couldn't wait!  Unfortunately not all of them knew about the CRAZY I had been through.  This was a perfect time to share my adventures with them over tacos.

I got there early, which is normal for me, and ordered my food.  Slowly the rest came, so I started to recount my tales.  But before I could get to relaxed, I get a phone call from the local movers asking if there was a "box" outside my house.  I told them no, so they informed me they won't be working with this national moving company I had 1-hired to do this move and 2-prepaid the money for this move.  We are talking a LOT of money.  So I call and leave a message with the coordinator of this national group, Nina.  The bonus is she is the sister of a friend of ours.  So she texts me that she will be calling me back shortly.  This unsettling news takes my appetite and my friends understand.  We get our hugs in and I head home to wait for this phone call.

Later that day, she fills me in on what happened to my box.  Apparently, the driver got a better bid in route to Wichita and decided to take that job instead.  So now Nina was calling other moving companies that she works with in KC to see if they could fill in the job.  The down side is it won't happen before the kids and I leave for Spokane on August 3rd and then it won't get to Spokane until much later after we get there.

Most people I've talked to about this, are furious and tell me to demand my money back.  For some reason, I don't share their sentiment.  I have this over whelming sense of peace and that God will take care of us.  Plus, I am confident that Nina didn't make the problem but will do everything in her power to fix it.  And she does, but the solution is later than desired.  The movers are scheduled to pick up our belongings on August 13-15.

This is actually the best situation.  We got to sleep in our own beds up until the day we drove to Spokane.  Jake was back then to finish working.  I got to ask my dad, which I almost never do, to help me out and supervise all the loading.  He didn't even have to ask off, those were already his days off.  Plus, we had Lucy, the 10 month old Golden Retriever with us not getting in the movers way.

It's ironic that when we make a solid plan and that plan doesn't go accordingly, God steps in to show us an even BETTER plan.  I just need to have grace for others and myself when my plan doesn't work.

If it's not one thing...

So I get up early Thursday morning, I'm not sure what time the movers are showing up so I call them at 6:30 to find out.  I hear from a guy named Scott, who informs me that my "box" hasn't shown up in Wichita YET but might still show up because he had 4 workers ready to start loading my belongings. We decide to keep each other in the loop if one of us should hear from the driver.

I then call Community Bank and leave a message for Nolan asking him to call me back to talk about the loan I was approved for yesterday.  He returned my call less than an hour later.  What soon followed was what I can only explain as "Verbal Diarrhea".  The call went like this.

"Hey Nolan.  So I wanted to let you know everything about the loan I needed yesterday.  You see, I DO need the money, but it's not for a "BIG CAR"..."  I tell him about the mortgage company calling me and telling me to go and get this loan.  I tell him about the 401K check that will be arriving any day.  I apologize for lying to him, but letting him know that I was really stressed out and didn't want a break down in his office.  This went on for about 15 minutes.  When I was done, I waited to hear what his response will be.

He laughed and then paused.  He informs me that he appreciated my honesty and that it really didn't matter WHAT I was using the loan money for.  BOY, was I relieved!  He then tells me the paperwork will be done by lunch and he can wire the money to the title company then.  I thank him several times and lets me know he will call when it's all done.

I am thinking problem solved!  So I start finishing the remaining boxes so that everything will be ready when the movers show up.  Then I get a text around 8:30 that morning from Bryan at Movement Mortgage.  It says, "Carrie, I just got an email from Processing the loan program does not allow for borrowed funds (a loan) even with secured assets.  So you need not go get the car loans today.  Sorry I didn't know this yesterday, I was just thinking outside the box."  EXCUSE ME?!

Now I must call Nolan back and tell him that I don't need the loan after all.  I am starting to lose my mind!  I call Bryan and ask him what he wants me to do.  He then decides to have them send the wire and if the title company doesn't accept it, they will deny the wire.  So I call Nolan and tell him this.  I get the sense he is feeling how CRAZY this whole process is.  So he tells me he will call me when the paper work is all finished to make sure I want him to wire the money.

Around lunch time, I call Scott about the movers.  Still no sign of the driver or the box.  Scott tells me that even if it shows up now, it will need to wait until tomorrow and hopefully he will have enough men to do the job.  AWESOME!!!  (Note the sarcasm)

I continue to pack some random boxes just to feel like something is going well.  The kids and I go and check the mail for a break.  Guess what I find?  The 401K check!!!!  I call my agent and tell her it came.  She instructs me to go deposit it right away so that it might clear tonight and I can wire the money first thing tomorrow morning.  I then call Nolan and tell him I got the 401K check and he celebrates with me.  He then tells me he is shredding the paperwork on the car loan.  Unbelievable!!! I wasted so much of this guy's time and he just throws it away to help me.  On top of that, I didn't have the actual titles to those two vehicles.  So Nolan sent the paper work in and had them mailed to our Spokane address.

We quickly drive to the bank and deposit the check.  The teller tells me that I will have access to the funds tomorrow morning.  I smile and say I will be back when they open to send a wire.

Now...what to do with the movers?

Not a good liar

So as I said yesterday, there was a stress peak that I will confess now.

Our closing date was to be the 27th for the YELLOW house.  We had scheduled movers to come on the 26-27 to load up our belongings.  On the 23rd, we received word that the check had been cut for our 401K loan.  We were hoping to have it by the 25th, so we could deposit it and wire it to the title company.

I am in full on packing mode this whole week.  When Wednesday comes, I am in ripped up shorts and very sweaty getting more boxes filled and ready to send the next day.  After lunch I go and check the mail.  No check.  I get a text from my Spokane agent asking if it came.  I told her no.  She then calls me panicked.  She informs me she will call the mortgage company to see if they have any ideas. I continue to pack.  About 30 minutes later I get a call from Bryan at Movement Mortgage.  He gives me specific instructions which I write down.

• Go to a close bank
• Ask for a Signature Loan or a Home Equity Loan
• The amount of the loan is $38,500
• I need this loan by tomorrow, so it can be wired to the title company by Friday

I start to panic, but I think I'm handling it all well.  I grab my keys and head to the Community Bank down the street.  I walk in, looking like a crazy lady, and say I need a loan.  They direct me to Nolan. I go into his office, sit down and proceed to read off my little note sheet.

He tells me the Home Equity loan will take 5-10 days.  I scratch that.  He then asks me if we own our cars.  I say yes and he asks me what kinds they are.  My mind blanks.  I pull out my insurance cards and hand them to him to read.  He types some things into his computer.  He tells me I can get an vehicle collateral loan on the Toyota and BMW for the amount needed and we can get it by tomorrow.  I almost cry with relief, but keep it together.

I start filling out paper work and he asks me, "$38,500...is this for a car?"  My mind is a mess and the only thing I get out of my mouth is "YES".  WHAT????  I guess I thought if I started telling him this whole crazy story I would lose it in his office.  A few minutes later, he asks me what kind of car am I getting.  I kid you not, I stopped writing and all I could think to say was, "A BIG CAR."  WHAT???? I couldn't even think of a type of car on the spot.  He asks me where I am getting it from and I reply, "Augusta.  That's that way, right?"  And I point in a random direction.  Thankfully, that's the last of the interrogation.  As I finish the paperwork, he tells me the money will be ready by lunch tomorrow and we can wire it then.  I barely walk out believing I was able to solve this problem.  I text my agent to let her know the money will be there tomorrow.

I get in the car and start sobbing from the stress.  By the time I get home, my conscious is heavy with guilt from lying.  I decide to call back early the next morning and tell Nolan the whole story.

I wish I could say that was the end of that, but the next morning would prove to be more than today.

To Be Continued...

PAPER, PAPER, AND MORE PAPER

If someone would have told me what all it takes to buy a house these days, I may have paused before jumping into the whole process.  So let's reflect on the CRAZY that we had to go through just to get the house.

Once the offer was accepted, we had to get the mortgage approved.  The closing date was set for July 27th.  This turned out to be more impossible than it was to build our house in Wichita.  Since Jake's dad was moving in with us, he wanted to gift us some money for the downpayment.  Unfortunately, the bank wanted verification that we had income sufficient to cover the monthly payments and told us that he could only contribute 15% downpayment.  We would have to come up with the remaining 5%, plus have 12 months of mortgage payments in liquid assets.  Jake's 401K would allow us to take a loan out from it to cover the 5%, but this would have several people involved making several hiccups along the way.  First we had our broker in Wichita that would set apart the funds to be liquidated into the loan amount.  Then the 401K company had to receive these orders to make the loan and repayment plan.  I'd like to add that we got this plan about 2 weeks before they sent us the actual money.  We soon discovered that this company was actually a middle man for another company that was handling this loan and that we couldn't directly communicate with their reps.  We would utilize Jake's office clerk, Abbi almost 2 weekly for updates on this loan.

This loan was just one aspect of the crazy.  The mortgage people would be contacting me almost daily via email or phone call about some papers they would need.  I had to send them copies of the canceled checks from the last 2 years to show we paid our taxes.  They needed an offer letter from Jake's future job to show verification of employment.  This alone was a task, since the new group didn't actually send him a letter.  A huge hiccup with all of this paperwork was the process of sending it to them.  Since I was out of state, they requested I send them this information via email.  Well, we don't own a scanner, so I resorted to taking pics with my phone and sending them.  On several occasions my photos didn't work.  So eventually I was visiting Jake's office and asking Abbi to scan papers and send them for me via pdf.  (FYI-there is an amazing app that I didn't get until the last 2 weeks of this process that will take pics with my phone and convert to a pdf.)

This was all to get the mortgage for this new house.  I wish I could say this was the most stressful part.  But tomorrow I will share the peak of the stress.

My Yellow House

Once we decided to move to Spokane, I got serious about looking on line for our next house.  I have to confess, there was ONE that stood out to me from the very beginning.  It was bigger than I thought we would get, more expensive than I thought we could afford and how often do you get what you've always wished for.

As long as I can remember, I've been drawn to yellow houses.  When Jake and I were first married and living in an apartment in KC, we would drive by this cute little yellow house that was for sale in a neighborhood near us.  I LOVED IT!  But life took us to Wichita, so we did the next best thing and built our dream house.  However, it wasn't yellow.  It was perfect for us as a growing family.  There wasn't a thing I would have changed.

Fast forward to May 2018, we are planning a move to Spokane and looking on line for houses we would like to walk through on our house hunting trip as a family in June.  I fell for this yellow house the first time it's pic popped up on my screen.  I showed it to Jake and the kids.  They liked it too.  I showed it to my father-in-law and friends.  They approved and thought it was perfect.  But just so we didn't put all our hope into one house, we made a list of about 7 houses we wanted to walk through with our real estate agent on June 11th.

As a family we flew to Spokane and checked the city out over the weekend.  Which included a fun rafting trip.

On Monday, we were eager to start walking through the houses.  One of the 7 was pending by the time we got to Spokane, so we made a plan to check out the remaining 6.  Our agent knew we had a favorite, so we started with that one.  It didn't disappoint us.  As we walked through each room, we could visualize ourselves living there.  Even with the furnishings of the current owner.  We loved it!  And it was YELLOW!!!!

We spent the next few hours going through the remaining houses, finding a second option that would have worked for us.  But after Tuesday's second walk through of the yellow house and plan "B" house we all decided YELLOW was our next home.  So we put in an offer and prayed it would work out.

After a counter and another counter back, we agreed to a price and a closing date.  The date would prove to be the harder part of the agreement (more about that later).  So we flew back to Wichita to get serious about packing and finishing out our last summer in Kansas strong.

Home is where your heart is

Now that we know where we are moving to, we must get our current home ready to sell.  I had started this process several years ago, when we thought we might move to Nashville.  But this was different. I knew who we wanted our agent to be, Amelia Sumeral.  She actually lives around the corner from us.  But as we were going through all of our stuff, we began to realize...WE HAVE A LOT OF STUFF!

Over the next 8 weeks, I would go through our belongings and get rid of the stuff we didn't want anymore.  Then buy boxes.  And more boxes.  And more boxes.  In fact, I was buying boxes up until the day before we left Wichita.  But it was a job I actually enjoyed.  Yeah, something may be wrong with me.

To add to our equation of factors, we have asked Jake's dad to move to Spokane WITH us.  As in he would live in the house with us.  So he too asked Amelia to help sell his house and began getting rid of just about everything except a bedroom set and some boxes.

We love our house.  We built it 11 years ago.  It was perfect for us.  Unfortunately, that doesn't translate into perfect for someone else.  It is currently still for sale.  We've had several showings and a couple of open houses.  But no takers.  The 2 dogs that we have in our family have made it somewhat challenging with the dog smell that apparently we are used to.  But now that all of our stuff is out of the house, I'm sure it will sell quickly.  The right family will walk in and fall in love with it.  Just like I did the first time I saw our Spokane house online.  But I will share that tomorrow.

And the winner is...

Sure enough, Spokane met and decided they needed to find a position in their group to offer Jake a job.  So now we have 2 AMAZING places that Jake can be working for.  The discussion with the kids has been completely open and honest about both groups and cities.  I knew that with Owen moving away before freshman year of high school, it might be hard.  Especially since he had been going to school with his friends since kindergarten.  But he was very excited with the possibility of being an "in state" college student at his DREAM college.

Allie was planning to start 6th grade at AMS.  She not only was worried her friends would forget her, she had taken the time to get to know several of the teachers and staff at AMS through the meetings I attended regularly.  We already knew that middle school in Washington was only 7th and 8th grade, so Allie would be attending an elementary school next year.  This thought didn't help sell the idea to her.  So I took the interests angle.  Before we were planning to move, Allie and I had already looked into getting scuba diving certified.  We were even thinking this summer would be perfect, but plans were changing.  I explained how easy this training would be in Washington.  I also had her looking on line with me at possible homes for us to check out in June.  She wasn't enthusiastic but at least on board.

The evening of May 10th, we came home from dinner and were about to play a quick game of basketball.  We decided that a decision needed to be made so we can start the process of finding a home.  So we let everyone get a vote.  Allie went first.  She made her shot and announced Spokane was her vote.  Owen made his basket and stated Spokane for his vote.  I went and announced Spokane for me.  Jake smiled, sunk the ball and said, "Spokane it is!"

I'm not sure if that's how big decisions are normally made, but we AREN'T the normal family.

Now with a group and city selected, we start the process of selling our home and getting serious about what our next home will be.

Gone, but NEVER forgotten

We woke up Saturday morning like normal, but there was a little buzz of excitement with the thoughts of where God may be sending us.  Jake and I went to morning yoga, then were planning to go and visit his parents.  When we walked out of yoga, there was a missed call from Jake's dad.  Right away, Jake and I looked at each other with the same thought.  So we got into his car and called Tom back.  The call was to let us know that Joan, Jake's mom, had passed away early that morning.

There is that moment when sadness over comes you.  All I could do was cry.  We sat there for about 5 minutes letting the loss sink in.  Then we proceeded to drive home and let the kids know, Grandma was gone.

God has a way of timing events in our life that seem completely overwhelming and out-of-control, while at the same time peaceful and taken care of.  Joan's passing was definitely one of those events.  She wouldn't have been able to make the move to Washington.  We were still in Wichita to help plan a memorial and set Tom up for the next chapter in his life.  (There is foreshadowing statement.)

Over the next week, while waiting to hear from Spokane, we started going through our belongings and weeding out what we wouldn't move.  A memorial service was planned in Salina for Joan for the day after school got out for summer.  Life started to feel like one phase was coming to an end and another one was ramping up to begin.

Looking back, I'm so thankful for the relationship I had with my mother-in-law.  I always made time for the kids to see her and tried to invite her to all of our functions.  Before she passed, I spent a few hours just sitting by her bedside talking and listening to what ever topic came up.  You know you have lived a good life, when those you leave remember and think of you often.  I pray I live my life as a story worth telling and when someone thinks of me...they smile.

Plan A...Plan A+?

With 2 amazing options for interviews, we set up the flights, hotels and car rentals.  My amazing family steps in to watch the kids and keep their schedules in Wichita going as normal as possible.  Our plan is to fly into Spokane with a group dinner following an interview.  Then drive to Olympia and repeat the same events followed by flying out of Tacoma.

Now for a little back story...Jake's mom hasn't been doing well.  Her health has been steadily going down over the past year.  His dad had arranged for a nurse to come by the house and help during the day.  We didn't want to upset her, so she wasn't aware of the prospect of us moving.  His dad was supportive and announced they would go where ever we ended up.

So as the time got closer for us to travel to Washington, we were nervous something might happen while we were gone.  Jake would call or visit daily to talk to either his mom or dad.  We had peace that God was orchestrating every detail of this adventure so we proceeded with the plan and flew to Washington.

The 2 groups were both amazing and yet uniquely different.  The 2 cities these groups were in had different settings that allowed for a variety of activities.  Talk about being given 2 awesome choices.  All we had to do was see if and when these groups would let us know of a job opportunity.  Fortunately, the Olympia group sent him an offer email the day we were flying back to Wichita.  The Spokane group needed to have a meeting to discuss the possibility of hiring Jake.

We flew home anxious to share the news with the kids and to visit with Jake's parents.  As soon as we landed we called to see if we could stop and visit them.  His mom was already asleep, so we agreed to go over first thing the next morning.  The kids were starting to wrap their minds around living in Washington and the goodies we brought them home helped.  Now we wait to see if we end up with both cities to choose from.

But the next morning would give us some sad news.

When doors start opening

Picking up where I left off...Jake and I go out to dinner the next night to discuss what the previous few days had been like for him.  I see a spark in his eyes that lets me know this is going to happen, so we need to get a plan.  But like all good plans we make, God has a better one!

I tell Jake, I don't want to move to Maui, and not Florida.  But that New Hampshire is a possibility.  However, I have a nagging feeling about moving to the east coast.  You see, back in February my son decided his "dream" college would be WSU.  Don't get too excited.  He wasn't referring to Wichita State University.  Nope!  He wants to attend Washington State University.  He even made a power point presentation for his English class with graphs and charts showing how much out-of-state tuition would be.

With this knowledge weighing on my heart, I inquired to Jake if he would consider checking out the west coast at job possibilities.  He said he would.

The next morning we were on our way to yoga, when Jake gets a text from a former resident that has been practicing for a few years in Spokane, WA.  A current resident that is graduating in June will be joining him and his practice and wondered if Jake would ever consider doing the same.

So over the next few days, Jake contacts both this Spokane group and the group in New Hampshire to set up interviews.  He has a week off in April that he is trying to get them both in the books, but I don't feel comfortable being away from the kids the whole week and flying across the country that much.  I tell Jake I will go to Spokane with him, but he will take on New Hampshire by himself.  He gets nervous about going there by himself and loving it, then having to come home and convince us it's our new home.

As we are driving to lunch a week later, he gets a text from a group in Olympia, WA that wants to get an interview with him.  We decide it's God's way of giving us 2 good options without having to split up the travel.  We let New Hampshire know it won't work out and proceed to schedule the 2 Washington groups during his week off in April.  Now our plan is to both go and see each city.

To Be Continued...

Time to "LEVEL UP"

Back in January, I told Jake that 2018 was going to be a BIG year for us.  Little did I know how BIG this year was going to be.  I'm going to start this adventure with the week in March when everything changed.

Jake has been president for his physician group for 15 months.  This has been a stressful endeavor that has waned our family.  As an outlet for professional satisfaction, Jake has been chosen to be an ABA examiner.  This takes place in Raleigh, NC for about 4 days at different times throughout the year.  Jake was scheduled to partake for his first official examiner session the week of March 4-8.  He packed his bag and we waited back in Wichita to hear how great it was.

Just a few days into his week, stress from work was reaching him via texts, emails and phone calls.  He was feeling down and didn't want to do it anymore.  His "good night" phone call that evening, left me praying that he feels valued and appreciated.  Looking back, I guess I wasn't that specific.  Because over the remaining days of the exam, Jake was not only approached by the ABA board to be added to the list of possible future directors.  But 3 different physicians came to him asking if he would be interested in working at their facility.  I should add that these 3 locations were Maui, New Hampshire (Dartmouth) and Florida.  By the time I picked him up on Thursday at the Wichita airport, his head was spinning with possibilities.  He quickly filled me in on all that had transpired over the last 48 hours and we decided that the next night would be a date night for us to discuss our options.

I will stop this post here, and continue the story tomorrow!