Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes...

Wow does this blog ever need an update! I have wondered how and when I would resurrect this blog, and I guess now that we have so much going on, this would be the perfect time! I love blogging, mainly because it's fun to go back and read through all that was going on in our lives in a particular season, but I also despise the time it takes to upload pictures etc... So I will admit I have been mostly micro-blogging on Facebook and posting pictures there (because it really only takes a minute!)

But here is a mini update of sorts!

Baby girl is...ready for this?...almost 8 months! Talk about time flying by. I still can't get over that, I really feel like we just brought her home from the hospital. But she is growing in leaps and bounds. She is starting to repeat sounds and sometimes words, but she definitely is coming up with her own little language. You know the kind that only Mommies understand? :) The other day she was watching Baby Einstein with me and they were showing all the animals and saying their names and Miya was just in her own little world and all the sudden goes "doooog" I was shocked because it was right after they had said "dog" on the video! Amazing how their little brains work. She says lots of Dada, still waiting for that consistent "Mama" she has said it but I think it was more an accident. She is getting mobile which I am so thankful for, now that she can scooch/crawl around more she tends to be more occupied because she can explore a little more. I might not be so thankful when she starts getting into stuff she isn't supposed to..but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it :)

She has been working on the same 2 teeth forever now. I don't know if we will believe it when they finally pop through. They have always looked like they are on the verge, and she sure acts like they are hurting her, but no pearly whites yet. I have a feeling they will come soon though. She just got over her first big virus. We ended up at the ER because she was wheezing and coughing pretty bad. Thankfully after 2 weeks it is mostly gone and now we are just dealing with the teething. Miya is still doing her Physical Therapy for torticollis. For those of you who don't know, because of Miya's position in utero her head was tilted slightly to one side and as a result she has weakened muscles on one side of her neck causing a tilt. Her's is very mild (not noticeable to most people) but the Physical Therapist describes it at very stubborn. We have been going once a week for about 3-4 months now....and hopefully will be able to cut down on that soon.

And like I said, I hate uploading photos here...so here is a link to our Facebook album of Miya for the last few months:
Family Photos
7 Months
6 Months

Another BIG change is we are moving! I still can't believe it (as it's only been a few days since we made the big decision) but before the new year we will no longer be in our apartment! My Parents have so generously offered for us to live with them for 8-12 months to allow us to save up/pay off debt in order to be able to own a home. I am so thankful for their kindness to us. We have been meeting with a financial counselor at our church and he has been telling us that we can survive the way we are going now, but if we really want to make progress towards buying a home, we really need to take drastic steps. In all honesty we are more excited than anything. We will be living in the home I grew up in, so for me it feels like home! It will be so great to be able to save more and make a dent on some of our debt. Plus to have help with Miya will be so great! Originally we were going to have to pay to get out of our lease. In the long run we knew it made sense to pay to get out of our lease, because we would be paying 1,000 to break our lease which would save us up to 12 thousand since we wouldn't have a rent payment anymore. But here is where I clearly see God's hand in all of this. A few days ago a good friend of mine, Rachel, asked if she can stop by with a friend of hers for a visit. They are both moms as well and so it's always nice to have Moms stop by with their kiddos. Anyways I met her friend Jen and we got to talking. She mentioned she moved to this area from Kentucky because her husband found a job in the area. She has been living with Rachel because they are trying to save money and find a place to live. She mentioned she had been looking at our apartment complex (in fact she really wanted the exact unit we have) but has been told that they don't have any openings right now. As soon as she said it I was shocked. I explained to her that we are actually going to be moving out, and she just looked at me in disbelief! Our time lines exactly line up in that we want to move out before the first of January and they want to move in January. So, we call our leasing office to ask if they would allow us to turn our contract over to Jen since they could move in right away and were shocked by their response. They don't allow people to sub-lease, but because we have a replacement they will wave our fee and give us back our deposit. We are both so overjoyed because it's so clear God has opened this door for us, but not only that, in us moving God is providing a place for this nice family to live! It just blows me away. So, now we have a lot of packing to do, on top of getting ready for the holidays...but we are very excited for our transition!

Also this Christmas we will be taking our first big road trip with Miya! We are going to Indiana to be with the Lewis' and couldn't be more excited. We are planning to leave and drive through the night, hoping Miya will sleep most of the way! I will let you know how that goes :)

I think that is a sufficient update for now :) If you have even read this far! I have never been good at keeping things short!