Letters from Pemberley

This week has been so encouraging that I thought I’d give an update on how we’re adjusting.  We’re at Cornerstone Church of Moorpark, after months of searching.  The pastor’s sermons are really convicting, and I love his humility and how hard he attacks the lies of our culture.  A few weeks back, we finally were all healthy enough to join a weeknight small group.  While it’s not the dear old Nerd Herd by a long shot, almost everyone has boys Tommy’s age and girls Elizabeth’s age.  I dropped the toxic MOPS and tried a new one at the church where I’m doing Community Bible Study.  The new MOPS is much friendlier, though tummy tucks and plastic surgery did come up (of course…) at my first table.  I changed tables the second week, and there are a couple girls there who seem kindred spirity.  CBS has been good for accountability to be in the Word every day, and the kids really like their Bible classes there.

If that wasn’t enough, I’ve met a couple new homeschool moms with boys Tommy’s age and girls Elizabeth’s age.  They’re both down to earth, eat normal food, wear normal clothes, and generally seem fun and interesting.  We’re trying to get together with them more.

This weekend I got to hang out with two old Missouri friends.  Amy (from Columbia) drove down to spend the day with us on Saturday and helped me pick out fabric for Susie’s big girl quilt.  Then Melanie (from STL) and her husband came over on Sunday to watch the Superbowl (and Downton Abbey) with us.  They’re both too far away to hang out with on a regular basis, but since neither has kids, they’ve graciously made an effort to drive to us more than once now.

And this morning was really the icing on the cake–like God decided, I’m going to blow Emily away with how well I can provide for her. Our church has a mom’s group called Legacy, which is like MOPS except without the dumb, expensive crafts.  The new session started this morning, and I showed up knowing only the two moms I’d met at small group.  One of them, who has two five year olds, is my table leader.  She is an adoptive mom and homeschools.  The two mentor moms at the table are both veteran homeschoolers.  One has five kids, the youngest of whom is five.  The other mentor mom, and one of the other girls at the table, are from metro Detroit (Troy and Rochester Hills, to be precise) and had to move out here for their husbands’ jobs.  They both obviously love the midwest and mentioned the adjustment to living out here!  The girl beside me is from PA and is married to a Navy Pilot who went to the Academy some years before John but had training at many of the same places.  A lot of her family went to Penn State, so she understands how I love State College so much, and she’s obviously moved around a lot, too, so we discussed that.  The remaining girl at the table has kids who are 4, 2, and baby.  And she plans to homeschool.  Unbelievable.  They are all a normal size, have normal clothes, and were all eating normal food from the brunch table.  After the toxic MOPS, I can’t take such things for granted!  Legacy’s set up is great for building relationships.  We meet every Tuesday and have a park day the last week of the month.  I liked every girl I met, and I’m looking forward to getting to know them all.  The kids had fun in their classes, which were mainly staffed by home school high school girls and moms.  Tommy even learned about measuring.  He went into the room without crying (practically a first since the move) and recognized several of the kids from Sunday mornings and small group.  With so many four and five year olds, he’s definitely going to make friends his own age this spring.

Anyway, thank you so much for praying for us.  God is definitely blessing us, me especially.  I still fantasize about moving home to the midwest, and we miss our families so much that we’re counting down the days until G&G Muller come next week and my mom comes next month.  But my attitude has definitely improved, and God is working!