Countdown to Moving Day ~ Getting Closer!

Ah! It seems like just yesterday I was writing to share about our move...and yet some days it feels like it's been forever! The garage sale...is over. (Thank you Grandma Gayle for all of your help!!! You made pulling that off MUCH easier than it could have been!!!) It was somewhat of a success, but compared to others that we've had here, it was a little slower. You can really tell how the economy has had an effect on East Texas since the first of the year. So~we'll box up that which is left (and worth trying to sell again) and have another garage sale in Norman when we get there! If I have it in me.... :0)

Nana Joyce is coming tomorrow!! Yeah!! She is the pro at packing. She has managed a great number of moves during my dad's career in the Air Force, so, she's got a pretty good idea on how to get it done and get it done well! It means the world to me that she is coming!!! (Thank you mom!!) Papa John (my dad) is going to come down Thursday night after work with a trailer. (Thank you dad for helping as well...I know this isn't the first time you've done this!) We'll load the trailer with all the outdoor furniture and swingsets etc.. and the moving truck on Friday (praying weather will cooperate)... finish up the last few things on Saturday....and head back to the promise land in Oklahoma where we will call home for the weeks that follow.

So, what was going to be NEXT Monday to move, has become this Friday, which seems crazy in a way but in another way, it's the best option for us so that we have unloading help over the weekend in Norman. There are so many people here in Tyler that have called or written in the past few weeks and I just wanted to send a note out to tell you that I haven't forgotten about you and that I PROMISE to do all I can in the next few days to write you back or at least give you a call. My cell phone and email will remain the same for the time being...so, don't hesitate to call. If I'm not up to my eyes in packing tape, I'll be sure to answer!! Ah! There are so many of you that I want to see before our time here is over....so many of you I want to thank for the vital role you have played in the lives of the Cole's in the past 4 years! We would not have survived had it not been for your prayers, love, and support that went beyond anything I could have ever thought existed!! I love each of you so much and I just pray in my heart that you know that!!

There is no new news on the job front for Daren, but will keep you posted on future possibilities...thank you for your continued prayers in that area as well. Please also pray for the kids during this transition.....I worry about taking them from the only place they have known as home and a place so familiar to them that they can wonder in the dark and still find the side of my bed when the need arises for a little extra cuddling. Please pray for my peace as well...that during all of this, I not loose sight of the One who provides for all my needs...the One who has carried us all the days before...the One who will sustain me today, as He has yesterday. I need Him now, just as much as I have before. I know He is in control and I just pray that I see His hand...no, I look for His hand, His presence in the days ahead. Thank you to everyone for lifting us up!

Aug. 2008 ~ And we thought that was a crazy time in life!! :0)....

In His Grip~