Moving into the Next Stage

At long last (for me, at least), I offer you another chance at a glimpse into the life that is Brooks.  Timeline Stats:
* First week of September 2011 (yes, right during back-to-school prep) - Keith is contacted about a position in North Texas/Oklahoma with the company he works for now.

 Back to school

* Three weeks later, the offer is made, accepted, and plans begin for heading back home... Keith will begin his new position just a short 5 weeks from this point (Nov. 1).

* Sept. 22-25 - Keith and Shelley attend a parenting conference called, "Empowered to Connect" (http://empoweredtoconnect.org) and our parenting approach gets a dramatic facelift... with much prayer and learning still to come!  (Thanks to the Yarbroughs for housing us and hauling us around for the weekend and to Rachel Beavers and her family for entertaining us for an afternoon.)

* Shelley's parents are agents on the ground, scoping out places for us to live... close (but not tooo close) to Shelley's hometown!  A lease agreement is signed the second week of October for move-in the week of Nov. 1... McKinney, Texas, is our destination -- just 30 minutes from Shelley's parents, 3 hours from Keith's, and a (mere) 7 hour drive to Shelley's West Texas family!

* We decide that Christmas is too long to wait to be with dad (and too expensive to navigate), so plans to depart move up to Thanksgiving week.  (That's less than three weeks from now, people!!)

* Week by week, we have purposefully made plans with family after family to say our goodbyes.  We've squeezed dinner in with the Bergstroms, Kauzlarics, Condons (what a great indoor game of whiffleball!), Fosters (divine appointment), Boyles (World Series memories), Thompsons, and Kuhles/Chappells (birthday cake for Zinash was a bonus)!!  Extended talks at Tae Kwon Do, after school, and during church have helped to bring closure.

Jeff, Keith and Kurt as Halloween party bashers

* Friday, Oct. 28 - Murphy passes his Brown Belt test for Tae Kwon Do and is recognized for outstanding achievement with a trophy.  (We are excited to continue TKD at a center in TX where Murphy's current instructor's close friend has a studio!)

* Sunday, Oct. 30 - We are grateful for the Bergstroms and Boyles (both still living in denial) who pull together a fabulous going-away party.  We appreciate so many of our friends who brought all the goodies and utensils, games and themselves!!  Special thanks also to the Fergusons and Caldes who drove so far to attend on such a nasty weather day.  We are honored to have so many devoted friends.  If you didn't make it, you were missed.

Mace Windu, Here Kitty, ER tech, and Firefighter YoYo

* Monday, Oct. 31 - Keith heads out in his truck.  With his mounted fish and deer for company and some basic household furniture in a U-Haul, he manages to meet a rogue snow storm which throws his schedule off a bit -- alas, he is not deterred.  He should arrive at his parents' house Oklahoma on Weds. night and drive on in to the new house on Thursday morning!!

So, that you are pretty much caught up now!
Prayers for a peaceful, quiet November.
* It's been two years since my Panhandle Dad (Terry) passed away.  Time has flown.  He is missed.