I want to record our home sale and transition specifics (at least, so far) so that I can remember how faithful God has been in a season of great change.
The offer that we accepted on our house came with a [what I thought was] a terribly early and inconvenient closing date of May 29th. Due to the Memorial Day holiday interfering with the schedule, our moving company said they would have to pack us 1 week prior on May 22nd. With Mikel's work extending to the 28th of June, that meant 5 weeks of life in Rochester outside of our home. Seeing that on paper -- I was inclined to grumble.... and worry.
Where would we live? If with friends, how would Nolan do bouncing between houses?
It seemed so inconvenient....
What would we do with the pups?
5 weeks in the kennel would be expensive and stressful on them...
Where would we store our belongings?
Could a moving company even be booked on such short notice?
It was only a 30-day closing, after all...
But the bigger question was: WHY couldn't we just stay in our home that we love and where we are comfortable for a few more weeks?!
But God knew better.
** He orchestrated our calendars and provided a timely rental property in Phoenix.
Our original plans were to travel to San Diego in early May for a urology conference and make a separate trip to Phoenix 3 weeks later over Memorial Day weekend to house-hunt. Even before getting our offer (and despite having already purchased flights), we opted to combine the two into one trip -- even though (we thought) it would mean securing a rental home waaaay earlier than needed.
We booked our tickets, reserved the kennel for the pups, then got the offer on our house.
Thank goodness for the change, since Memorial Day weekend was needed to clean the house and, of course, be in town to sign closing paperwork. His timing was perfect. We had a wonderful trip to San Diego, then hopped over to Phoenix where we enjoyed time with new friends and found a rental property that perfectly suites our needs. Already having this property means we were able to ship our belongings directly from house to house without needing storage in between.
An answer to prayer. God knew better.
** He paved the way for a successful 30-day closing.
I called Mayflower moving company immediately after negotiations ended -- and learned it was only 2 days before their "cut off" to book us for the necessary dates. The assessor came out on the last possible day: during the May 2nd blizzard, along with the home inspector (see previous post for those details!). No issues arose from the inspection, and though our radon came back high at 4.7, the buyer split the cost of mitigation -- an easy, relatively inexpensive fix. And installation was able to be done while we were in San Diego!
God knew better.
** And the biggest one so far -- He provided the perfect transitional housing for our family.
- Despite multiple very, very generous (and equally appreciated!) offers from friends to share their homes with us, we chose in the end to rent a comfortable 2BR furnished apartment that exactly meets our needs: private, quiet, pet-friendly, safe location and allows us to get our necessary 5-week lease. Also enables us to remain in one place for the duration instead of bouncing around.
While I was worrying, God knew better.
In the month of June when resident families are moving and others are flocking to the Clinic as patients, these apartments are not readily available; in fact, it was the only one like it we found. And an added bonus: it's only just been furnished and has never been lived in as such before. That means it's especially clean and comfortable.
**And here's the main way in which He knew better:
I grumbled about the early closing. Wishing to remain in our home longer. I thought we would be so inconvenienced. That our remaining weeks in Rochester would somehow be spoiled.
And instead?
The closing is complete. The house stress is done.
Our possessions are moved.
The rentals are secured.
And we now get to spend these remaining weeks in relative tranquility!
It's great. Mikel can focus on finishing well in residency and studying for boards a bit. I am going to the gym and relishing time with girlfriends. Nolan is happy and relaxed and able to keep his little routine -- even starting some solid foods. The pups are actually great little apartment dogs, and we have time to take them outside a fair amount for walks and off-leash play.
God knew better than to grant my requests. He has more than provided what we've needed; He has blessed us with a lot that we wanted -- we just didn't know it.
Thanks be to Him for His limitless blessings. No detail is beyond his recognition. We are only half-way through the transition, but He has shown He's got it all figured out.
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San Diego was great! Mikel attended part of the annual AUA meeting, and Nolan and I got to experience California for the first time.
Pack & Plays can stow a ton of diapers -- 76 this time!
We went for a few walks around the hotel grounds while Mikel was at the conference. The scenery was beautiful!
California dude
While beautiful, it was chilly... We've had a cold spring in MN, and you can imagine my sentiments our first day in San Diego when this was the temp comparison with Rochester. Thankfully it warmed up for the rest of our trip!
Enjoying some Saturday morning cartoons and snuggles in the hotel room.
Really glad we had time to go to the San Diego Zoo. The weather was perfect, and the zoo is incredible. Mikel and I kept saying just the landscaping and vegetation are worth seeing -- much less the animals and exhibits! I could have taken pictures all day long and never done any of it justice. Definitely a great use of our Saturday.
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- May 9-12 -
It was great to return to Phoenix! The interview trip last fall was a whirlwind (as they always are), so we were happy to be back for a few days.
Chris Stewart (Chair of Canyon State Urology -- the practice we are joining), his wife Kelly, and their two kids Lauren and Joseph kindly hosted us in their beautiful home during our visit. Their hospitality was tremendous. They even treated us to a wonderful outdoor concert to see the renowned trumpet soloist Chris Botti. We felt very Scottsdale! :) Can't believe I not only failed to get a picture that night, but I didn't come home with a pic of any of the Stewarts except for their dog, Prince! Shows what a busy weekend it was for all. Thankfully I'm sure the future will hold lots of opportunities to remedy that.
Phoenix babies get to have lots of nekkid time!
Mikel ventured out with our realtor Kim to look at properties while Nolan and I hung back at the Stewarts' house and suffered the likes of this pitiful backyard --- wink wink
Already 100 degrees out, so Prince takes a dip in the pool about every 20 minutes...
We think it's hot, too, Prince.
We think it's hot, too, Prince.
Home for the next year -- 4421 East Meadow Drive, Phoenix
The backyard -- aka, the house's best feature!
This sign was hanging in the garage of the house. Mikel took it as a good omen.
Mikel and I wondered how much Chic-Fil-A is paying this poor guy.
97 degrees and standing on the corner in a full-on cow costume.
We were really glad to get some arrangements in place. It helped us be able to start envisioning a bit what life might look like in the next couple of months, as well as shift our energy toward preparations for moving on this end.
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Upon returning to Rochester, we picked up at the dogs from our wonderful, wonderful kennel -- and the owner Tammie gave them and Nolan this quilt which she made. I was speechless! There are so many good people in our lives. What an incredible blessing to be able to say.
Also awaiting us when we got back: Minnesota springtime --- my favorite.
Taken May 17 -- our 5-year wedding anniversary
Enjoying some time on the deck
Won't see many of these in AZ...
Appeared we brought back something else from Phoenix -- except now with humidity.
May 2nd: 15.5" snowstorm.
May 14th: 100 degrees and sticky!
Two extreme weather records in such a short span... MN is crazy!
A good excuse to whip up an iced coffee. I'll be downing these at record rates in AZ, I'm sure.
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Very soon after getting home from AZ, I set to work around the house -- purging, purging and purging some more. How did we accumulate so much stuff in 5 short years??
This was just the first pass - a lot more went out... We donated 2 full Suburbans' worth of gently-used items (most winter-wear) to a family in our church who was holding a garage sale to raise money for their adoption proceedings. Was glad to see it all go to a good cause.
Goodbyyyyye, sweaters! Goodbyyyyyye, boots! Goodbyyyyyye, snow shovels!
Goodbyyyyye, sweaters! Goodbyyyyyye, boots! Goodbyyyyyye, snow shovels!
While cleaning out, I found a few of these and laughed out loud! The first winter that we lived here, Mikel and I honestly thought this would suffice as our winter's supply of sidewalk salt. The first big snow/ice came -- I grabbed the box, popped open the side and started shaking... It might (??) have covered the front step. So funny now!
And another cleaning-out find -- I cashed in the coins from the piggybank I've been adding to since college. $195 later, Piggy wasn't the only one smiling!
Before we knew it, the day came: May 22nd, the packers arrived -- tape, boxes and markers poised. They had us packed in under 6 hours. Bless them.
The next day, May 23rd, our belongings started their trek to AZ. It all arrived safely 5 days later, and I owe my life to Kelly Stewart for giving up her morning to watch the movers unload it into our rental home. She saved the day! I can't say it enough -- thank you again, Kelly!!
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And as I mentioned - we've since settle comfortably into the apartment, and life isn't so bad.
The pups think they're off on a great explore every day.
We're establishing some ground rules...
Neighborhood Watch. Look out below.
Since move-out stress is done, we get to enjoy quiet weekend mornings...
Thinking of Cousin Eliza and her awesome mom and dad. Thanks for the great book!
Helping me make banana pancakes -- a little Saturday morning tradition.
Dads are so fun!!
During the week, Nolan and I load up and head to the gym around 9AM pretty much every day. He has fun watching the other kids and playing with the childcare ladies (the RAC offers THE BEST childcare!), and I enjoy getting a workout and spending the time with friends. We love it!
We retained a few toys for Nolan at the apartment -- and of course, the beloved swing got to come along. I'm a little concerned Nolan will still be using that swing when he's 15... but oh well.
Sometimes Khaki hops up and gently nibbles his toes, which cracks Nolan up!
Sleepy buddies.
Working hard, or hardly working? A busy day at the office.
I might have creeped on our buyer on day of closing -- May 29th. I was in the neighborhood; really! Was going to Steph's! Anyway, it's odd to see new cars and the U-Haul.
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And lastly --- a few shots from our family play time earlier this week. There is a huge soccer field right behind the apartment complex which is perfect for getting some energy out.
Khaki: A working dog stuck in a weenie dog body. She takes playing fetch very seriously!
Nolan was mostly focused on getting his socks off.
Oh hey down there, Scarlett!
Love these handsome guys.
While Khaki chases a ball, Scarlett prefers to stand in the sun and work on her tan.
Appears they think this is hot -- 71 degrees and breezy. Yikes! They're in trouble soon!
Love that little hand reaching out to touch his dad's face.
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Simple living. The eye of the storm. Call it what you may -- we are blessed and thankful indeed for the chance to slow down and take extra time for important things like this:
These are treasured days. The Lord holds us in the palm of His hand, knowing and securing every detail. While we love our life in Rochester and will deeply miss many relationships and blessings enjoyed here, we are confident and excited to make the move to Phoenix soon and see what He has in store for our family.
We pray that we will be tools in His hand, useful and valuable for His kingdom's work in the lives of others.
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