Good Bye Kansas, Hello Illinois (Part 2)

This move to Illinois, although meant to be a short term thing, is more difficult for me than the last one.  We are MUCH further from our family and friends and I feel more isolated.  We got used to being able to go home (either to Ames or Omaha) for weekend trips and we loved having visitors as often as they came!  Here, we're not going to enjoy the frequency of either of those things.  It's almost 6 hours to Ames and almost 8 hours to Omaha....can't just decide to be spontaneous and have Brandon take off a few hours early from work to be to either place by supper time!

Thankfully we do know one couple here in Champaign, which helps me a lot!  Nate and Lina have been a great help to show us around town and help me not feel so alone.  I don't know what I would do without Lina here!

But I already miss things.  I miss certain stores that I loved shopping at....I miss certain restaurants that we frequented in KC....and I miss certain people too!  I asked Lillia if she liked living in Illinois and she said she missed her Olathe house and playing in the basement.  Our house in Kansas had a finished basement, here it's unfinished and not really set up yet.  She doesn't like going down there (partly because it's cold on her feet, which can easily be fixed by putting on socks!)

So, this move is harder for me.  But I know that it can help refine me.  It's a good move for our family, for Brandon's career.  It's answer to prayer for Lina, for God to bring a good friend into her life as this is a challenging move to Champaign for her too.

So, if you're going to Trader Joe's or Super Target or Jason's Deli, think of me, and be thankful you have that where you live.....because those are just a few of the establishments that are missing in my neck of the woods!  (Katie Euken, how do you do it.....with NO Target in Muscatine?!)


Back to the move itself.....

We surprised the kids in Omaha and stayed for a few days and got to enjoy time with the family.  Even Brett and Caitlyn came for a visit!  We taught Lawson how to eat sweet corn and he loved it!  :)

After spending a few days in Omaha with the kids, we were finally cleared to close on the house and we made the LONG (to us) drive to Champaign. 
My parents stopped on their way home from a family wedding in Michigan and helped for a few days.  We were so grateful for their handy work!  Then they left us to it and we tried to make quick work of unpacking boxes and getting as much done as possible before the munchkins returned!

The first room finished was Lillia's room.

And we've slowly been making progress since....

Good Bye Kansas, Hello Illinois (Part 1)

It's been 3 weeks since we moved into our new house in Illinois, but it's been about 4 weeks since we moved out of our Kansas house!  We had a few bumps along the way, with our closing being delayed and being "homeless" for about 5 days, but thankfully it all got worked out.

After all our things got packed up in the big moving truck, Brandon and I cleaned up the house, making it sparkly for the new owners.  I looked just like I remembered it did when we first walked into it 2 years ago.  However, the outside looked a bit fresher with a new paint job and some updated landscaping.

Then it was time to leave the keys and drive away for the last time.  We had no where to go, since we were no longer closing on our Illinois house the next day, so we decided to have a "date night," even though we were both grubby from cleaning and sweating.  But hey, we had no kids!  So off to get Thai food and see a movie we went! 

Turns out we ended up going to Omaha the following day, as our closing was delayed yet again.  So we got to spend some unplanned time with the Fischers and with the kiddos before the craziness of starting a new life in Illinois began!  More to come....

Before the big move....A {little} Fischer update

We've been having fun filling up our days before our big move from Kansas to Illinois!

The first week of July we traveled to Nebraska to see the Fischers, make an appearance at a family reunion, and go to Island Oasis Water Park in Grand Island!  We had a fun time and sure tuckered out the kids!

A few days after returning home from Nebraska my mom came to town for a few days.  We went swimming in our neighborhood pool, ate out, got ice cream almost every day, and took the kids to Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead.  We had a great "last horrah" with gramma in Kansas!

Then the Fischers came to town for their last Kansas trip!  Once again we went swimming, ate out, enjoyed ice cream, and went to the farmstead.  What fun!  The kids (and I!) took a long nap after all our company!

Now we are about 2 weeks away from moving and are trying to take advantage of the time we have left.  We plan on going to the pool and spending time with friends as much as we can.  Hard to believe our time in Kansas is quickly coming to an end!  But we are looking forward to the new adventure that is ahead in Illinois!


And, if you're still reading this post....
What do the following have in common?
-I unashamedly admit to eating cookies for breakfast
-I have to take a nap almost every afternooon
-I am in bed by 8:30 almost every night
-And as of a few days ago I can't button my favorite pair of shorts (probably from all those cookies)

Have a guess?  (You're right!)

I am 12 weeks pregnant with baby #3!  Due the end of January.

So we will have three babies, born in 3 different states!

Now to just get over/past this all-day sickness.....

Here We Go Again....

I started this blog about 2 years ago, hoping to give a little glimpse into our world as we were preparing to make a big move.

Well, that's happening again.

Brandon has a new job with John Deere and we're heading to Champaign, IL.  It's a short term gig, expected to last just a couple years.

This is bittersweet as it's a lot further away from our family and friends, but it's a great opportunity for Brandon and his career.

These past few days we spent in Champaign so Brandon could go to his new office for a few meetings and we could do a little house hunting.

In the mean time, our house went on the market.  And I feel so blessed to say that after going on the market Wednesday morning, we accepted an offer Wednesday evening!  So, our house in Olathe is SOLD in just a day!  Praising the Lord for a quick sale and great price!

Now we're waiting to hear back on an offer we have in Champaign.....

So, in a month or so, our time in Kansas will come to an end as we start a new chapter in Illinois.  But, here's hoping, that it gets the Fischer family one step closer to the goal of being back in Central Iowa!

And because you can't do a good blog post without a picture.....here's a belated Father's Day Pic!

Our Month of May

The month of May flew by.....can't believe it's JUNE already!  Here's a few highlights:

-Lawson turned 16 months on May 1
-Brandon and I took a trip with some friends up to Minnesota to celebrate Kiley's 30th Birthday!  The kids stayed in Ames with my family and had a blast!

-We enjoyed celebrating Mother's Day with Brandon's parents in St. Joseph, MO.  It was a perfect meeting point where we ate a yummy lunch and then went to a local park where we played and even fed some geese!

 

-When we weren't traveling on the weekends, we found ways to fill our time during the week.....Lawson found a new hiding spot for hide and seek.....

-We went to Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead and had a fun time checking out all the animals and having a picnic lunch! (I included the link to our trip to the farm last year)

-Over Memorial weekend we went to Omaha.  We took a day to go to the zoo and put our new stroller to the test!  The rest of the weekend was filled with good food and family fun as all the brothers and their significant others were home! 

And now it's June!  Lawson is now 17 months old and is saying SO MANY WORDS!  Lillia is well over 3 1/2 years old and is such a little mom.  We are loving the "summer" we have been dealt so far and are looking forward to it warming up a little so we can venture down the street to the pool!