We have housing!!

I will proclaim the name of the LORD. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! Deuteronomy 32:3

I know you are probably thinking...what they got it back??? Nope, we didn't! I kept telling myself yesterday morning throughout church and then after on my walk with Benjamin that we lost the other house "for a reason" and that "God had something better for us" over and over again...trying to have faith and believe those words that I have heard so many times and probably have said so many times to others in the midst of their trials. I desperately wanted to believe it and I guess "mostly" believed it....I suppose I knew it was just in God's timing and that might not be our timing (moving in two weeks!)...so I prayed "Lord, please find us a house to rent if we're supposed to stay here..." and I think some other stuff...I know it was really simple and not into details like "let the rent be this much $, and let it have enough rooms and space for us and my photography business etc.." I didn't even ask for it to be pretty, just somewhere decent for us to live! So I'm walking (for like an hour and 1/2 with Benjamin in the stroller) and come to this nice looking house (like 2 minutes after I prayed and prayed) and was like YES!!! After walking over to call the number I saw that the sign had in small writing 1 BR...which means...WAY TOO SMALL for us! ha ha!! Obviously not an option...so I was like "oh no....that's okay, Lord I know You'll take care of us..You always have... I just know it...I know You have a plan...I just don't know what it is yet...but I know You have one...:) I get home from running OOPS.. I mean walking...(is that my subconscious mind telling me to get it in gear?? :) and it's Ryan's turn to go for a run (yes he actually runs :) and he comes back and says that he needs to go and drive by this house he saw for rent and check it out for the number etc......weeeellllllll long story short - God is good all the time - All the time God is good!!!! The guy said Ryan could go and look at it in half an hour meanwhile we are getting ready with the boys to go and meet my friend, Aileen, and her husband (who are SuperCamp friends from CA) downtown for dinner...we rushed around and got dressed up and went to go see this house... We pulled up and prayed quickly that the Lord would show right away if this house was for us...what we needed and were looking for.

So you know when you are with someone close to you (spouse, mom, sister, dear friend, etc..) and you are looking for/shopping for something and you make eye contact that tells each other "YES! This is the one!!"?? Well, we walked up the stairs to the porch and "Eric" was sweeping the beautiful hardwood floors of this freshly painted beautiful house that has the Fox River in the BACKYARD!! Ryan and I gave each other "that look" IMMEDIATELY as Ryan played it "cool" and asked about the house etc. Eric just closed on the house 'last week', fixed up the inside, and put the for rent sign up like five days ago. He bought the house (a two flat - so they will rent the upstairs apt. out after they fix it up) so he can tear it down and build his dream house there in 5 yrs. The view from the front porch is a huge park with mini-golf and playground...not just a playground park...like a forest preserve park....(great for photography!!!!) also close to Geneva shopping, the river etc....there's also the walk/bike trail like maybe a block away..... YAY!!!! We are so blessed! We basically "floated" through the house on cloud #9 with excitement welling up inside our souls. It's bright and airy, clean and freshly painted....amazing compared to the other properties we have looked at. Eric owns a boat and is going to use the backyard etc.. for him and his family (wife and three small kids 5, 3, and 8 months old!!) this summer so they can boat etc...He said "you and my wife will probably end up good friends"...hmmm....another mommy to talk with etc... sounds good to me!!! :)

We are baffled again. Our Heavenly never ceases to amaze us, fill us with His love, and confirm and grow our faith in Him!!....We said we would praise Him in the storm...but we are so thankful the storm was a short one. He has truly blessed us beyond measure and beyond our wildest imaginations of what we thought was "so good"..... It is so amazing b/c had that other woman not found someone else to rent the other house we would have probably been bound by our word...but since it was rented out from underneath us our "word" didn't hold much water and what was needed was a "signed contract" that Ryan did not do b/c she said we had it and was going to be gone for a week...so Ryan figured he shouldn't be pushy and "bother her"...when she thought we weren't interested anymore! So....we were not bound it turns out...it's as if God let us see what we would have had so we could be so appreciative of this amazing gift He had in store for us. The reason we say this new one is amazing is b/c it is so beautiful and in such a prime location...and the rent is even CHEAPER than the other house that was "okay" compared to this one and less than what we are paying right now (and got a deal b/c it is on the market and has showings all the time) I am sure this property wouldn't have lasted long - especially at the prise we are renting it for! Ryan said that he kept thinking, maybe I should wait until Monday morning to call but was so prompted to call right then...thankfully he did!

Ryan's sister LuAnn wrote us to say she was praying for us....thank you LuAnn!! and thank you to all who prayed and are praying for us!! God has answered!! She said that our situation reminded her of Job and posted the verse below...Ryan was thinking of Job also and what he went through...how small our problems were/are compared to Job's....I also thought of this verse in my low time yesterday morning/afternoon....but so clung to God's promise that He would provide for us....maybe not in the way we wanted...but how He saw fit...and He did...even more than than we wanted or thought we needed.....


Job (1:20): "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised."

I will close with this verse that I usually use when I celebrate the birth of a new baby...it is so right for today too...

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17 NIV

Sorry there's no pic today...I'll take a pics of the house and post them soon! :)