Tom & Brenda's Family Journal

This week started like every other week. I meet Joyce, my sister-in-law, for running down Kettle Lake Drive. We've been doing that every Monday for years. On Wednesday we run in a different location. We run about 3 miles and we think it is a great way to start our day. But this week, I stepped in a pothole which I didn't see because of the dark. I twisted my ankle. At first, I thought it was just bruised but by Wednesday, the bruising and swelling convinced me to get it checked out. I have a small fracture and am now on crutches and keeping off my feet. This has really crimped my style. I did work yesterday but because I work in a school and visit many classrooms, I put many 'miles' on my crutches. Today I'm so sore that I can barely get around. The soreness is in my arms and shoulders and I'm bruised from the crutches too. I see an orthopedic doctor on Monday and I hope I can get more mobile then. I am developing a new appreciation for people wit...

Here are some pictures of our new condo. You can see that we aren't completely unpacked and there aren't pictures on the wall but we are getting there. Moving was very stressful but actually everything went smoothly. I learned a valuable lesson during the entire process of selling the house and moving. Don't focus on how much work you have in front of you. Focus on what you have already accomplished. I found that once I started thinking about how much I had to do, it slowed me down, made me nervous and kept me from doing all that I could do. We are living in a complex called Jasonville Farms which is near Caledonia, Michigan. We only moved 2 miles but went from a 5 bedroom house to a 2 bedroom condo. Our balcony is enclosed and gives us extra living space. We put an air mattress in there last weekend when Jen visited and it worked well. We call this space our Arizona room because it reminds us of the time we spend at Kristen's in Arizona last winter. Every d...

This first picture was taken on our moving day. I looked out front and found Madelynn laying on the couch that was ready to leave. She was reading a book she had found and was enjoying herself there. This week has been one of special treats. We got Anna and Madelynn American Girl dolls. The plan was to go to Chicago and pick them out at the store but with the move this fall it became impossible to find a day to do that. We're still planning on a trip soon. So we ordered the dolls and they arrived Monday. It was very exciting. The boys weren't as excited about the dolls as you can imagine so they have a special treat coming-yet to be decided upon. Tom and I went up to the Soo over the weekend and returned with our new toy. A 5th wheel camper and a truck to pull it with. We're looking forward to many happy days traveling around with the 5th wheel. We haven't planned any trips yet but will be in the future. We are newbies to the RV life, so if you have any hints ...

Back in March when we decided to put our house on the market, I never thought we'd be to this point. However, yesterday was our closing and the new owner is moving in today. It was a group effort to get to us moved. We worked hard to get the house ready for showing. Over the summer, we made many trips home from the Soo to keep the house ready for showing and open houses. The timing on all the events since the first of September certainly show the Lord's leading. September and October have been so full that I know I'll forget much in the retelling. When the offer came in on the house, we had no idea where we would be moving. But the Lord lead us each step of the way. We found a condo in Jasonville Farms in Caledonia to rent. The two bedroom condo keeps us near our friends and family here but the condo lifestyle allows us to travel and spend our summers away without worrying about the house. Many people helped us the task of downsizing from a 5 bedroom house to a much ...

The past few weeks have been unbelievably busy but we really feel God's leading in every step. We received an offer on our house that we accepted and things have been moving very fast since then. Our closing is scheduled for Oct. 23 with possession at close which means we have to be out by then. We had a garage sale that was very successful. Here's our front yard full of stuff from the barn and it almost all sold. Tom's stuff was very popular. We used Craigslist and it worked very well. We are going to use Craigslist to sell the few remaining items. Unfortunately, my side of the sale wasn't quite as successful but we did sell lots. The rest of the goodies will be donated to Goodwill or Mel Trotter. This weekend we headed up to the Cabin with a load of furniture we want up there. The colors were beautiful on the way up and at the Soo. Sugar Island, which you see in the picture, was in full glory. This was our last sight of Scenic Drive as we drove out for the l...

Things have been going up-side down in our live lately. But I'm beginning to see a light at the end of the tunnel. We're cheering about that! I know I haven't been posting for the past few weeks because things have been crazy in my life. I'll give you a quick update. My Job I work in schools as a consultant helping teachers improve their teaching. The current grant I work under expires on Sept. 30 (today) so I have been working every day this month. Not what a retired person wants to do! I'm looking forward to a day off tomorrow but this weekend we are having a garage sale-see next section to see why we are downsizing. Our House Our house sold recently after having been for sale for months. I was worried that we were going to be homeless but we found a condo to rent down on Monday and will be moving into it the end of October. It should work well because we will be close to our gra ndkids. We will be in Jasonville Farms at 8634 Jasonville Ct. Our Family L...

Anna, our 6 year old grand-daughter, loves to take pictures and does a great job. She has a great eye and sets up the photo very carefully. She took this shot of Madelynn and I and I love it. Last week we had the grandkids for an afternoon. Tommy & Sherry were very involved at their church with the funeral for Nick Roush, a young man from their church who was killed in Afghanistan. So we picked up the grandkids after they had spent the morning swimming with their cousins. We took them to Gun Lake and they played in the water and sand with some 'cousins' down there. So this is what it looked like in our van on the way back to their house. I'd say it was a successful day. We also took Tom's mom with us and everyone seemed to have a good time. Yesterday was quite an exciting event here at the Soo. My sister, Kathy, organized a Sault Triathlon. We held it at a local township facility that had a covered picnic area. It was a rainy, windy and cold day as you ca...