house hunt...

jennie hacking into mom's blog :)

so we made it to puerto rico (my suitcase took a longer route, but finally made it today. yay!) perhaps a bit battered from our long day of traveling, but we made it. of course the visit is really business oriented: find mom and dad a place they can comfortably live for (at least) the next year.

mission accomplished!

yesterday we spent what felt like the whole day looking at possibilities, and we narrowed it down to two choices, but as mom talked them over with dad and evaluated her responses to both she decided to go with a house that was fully furnished (which will take a great deal of stress out of the preparation process) and in (or at least very very near) the town of isabela where dad's company is based.

it really is a lovely place, and completely ready for them to simply move in!

the front of the house was ok. not great, but the second you walk in... air conditioning!!! there is always a breeze blowing here, but it is rather warm. electricity bills can get high here, and the locals are accustomed to the temperatures, so a/c units are not common.


the living room is bright and airy, and very nicely furnished (this was taken while standing in the kitchen).



















the kitchen isn't large, but there is an island which gives lots more counter and storage space. plus, the open floor plan opens everything up nicely.

it's extremely unusual for private residences to have dishwashers. extra bonus!

nice big master bedroom, with a king size bed and still lots of room. (picture taken from master bath doorway)




master bathroom. (anyone know how to use the second toilet/foot wash?)

We're off to see the.....

The company that Marlow will be working for in PR, pays for a house hunting trip. Since Marlow is otherwise occupied til the middle of August, and we need to be down there the end of August, it was causing great stress.

One day I was wondering if Marlow had to go????? He consulted the company and he does not, so Jennie was able to get a few days off from work, and so Jennie and I are off to Puerto Rico.

It is a horrible flight schedule, but we wanted to fly into Aguadilla, not San Juan. We leave from Huntsville about 1, fly to Charlotte, NC. Then we go on to Newark, and then fly to Aguadilla arriving at 12:30 am. Yuck yuck!!!!! At least doing that I can go with Jen. There is NO way I would try driving from San Juan.

I have been working with a real estate agent in Isabela, and hopefully we can find what we need in the price range we would like to keep it. We have talked to several church members there, and I will give them a call for their suggestions. I think we might be shown the high end stuff, and I would like to know options. The branch members have been SO wonderful and helpful. That is one aspect of moving that is awesome, a ready made family. Brother Luis even offered to come pick us up at the airport if the rental car place was closed that late. Very touching. I talked to the RS pres, and she has a spare room she wanted us to stay in.

Jennie hopes that we find something the first day so we can veg on the beach the rest of the week. I put her in charge of where to eat, and what to do. She has been combing the internet for listings in that area. It will be fun to spend time with her. I tasked her with keeping me focused as we see the differant places.

I'll let ya'll know what we find.

Quilt update

I wanted to document the differant steps in making this particular quilt. It is put together in a very differant way because of all the differant elements in the quilt. It has taken a LONG time to piece all the differant elements, but now that is done, it will go together very quickly.

I wanted to show some of the individual details in the quilt. There is a total of 16 of these stars. They are extremely difficult to put together. Stopping at the 1/4" spot so you can turn and inset the next piece. It is a pain in the sewing sitter.

The middle star works up rather quickly although it is very complicated. This quilt takes a long time to cut out because of the differant angles and sizes of stuff. It is definitely a labor of love for my Jennie bug. I know that she is looking forward to having this on her bed.

This one of the inside borders where the fan block first makes its appearance. I love the colors that Jennie chose. She does not like organized, she loves a state of caous in art. I on the other hand love things to be matchy matchy, so we had to work together to make sure both parties involved liked the finished product.

Her dominate colors are blue and yellow, but we have a lot of peach, pink, a little purple, green for the accents. I absolutely love this 30's reproduction fabric. I find myself very drawn to quilts out of this era fabric. I'm excited to figure out a project for the scraps.

I am excited to have Jennie's Grandma Moser hand quilt this one. It will truly make it an heirloom.

It is hard to see the design on the white fabric, but it has a nice pattern on it. The white really sets off the pieced blocks.

I love the yellow sawtooth blocks around the second star. Jennie wanted a mish mash of yellows, where I wanted one yellow. So we compromised, and it is a very organized use of multiple yellows.

I love the polka dot yellow. Every diamond cut from that fabric is differant, adds great interest to the quilt.

Drum Roll Please

We have accepted the job offer we received from Infotech in Isabella Puerto Rico. Marlow will begin work the end of August. We are both excited and terrified at the prospect of relocating. We have a LOT to do between now and the end of August.

We will be putting our home up for sale, and downsizing. I plan on selling a lot of our furniture, and giving some to our kids. We will rent a furnished apartment the first year, so don't really need to move that much down.

I am trying to gain a great positive attitude, and not become totally overwhelmed by all that needs to be done. I know that with God's help we will accomplish more than we think possible. I remember when we were getting ready to move from Pennsylvania. Our home was literally over 100 years old. We had worked on it while living there for 5 1/2 years, but much remained to do. I remember wondering who would ever want to buy a house like this. We met with the real estate lady, signed all the papers, but arranged not to start showing the house for a week or so. I had just moved my sewing school back home, and the whole house was in a state of upheaval. Well, Ella (the real estate lady) showed up at our door the next day!!! Someone came in to look at houses, and she felt ours would be a good fit. Truly a blessing. I am counting on many miracles.

Saturday Stuff

I know that we are completely crazy, but... we have wanted to remodel our kitchen for a long time. Despite our current state, we are pressing forward. If we move, the kitchen needed to be updated to sell. If we stay, the kitchen needs to be updated for us. A couple of Saturday's ago we tore the wall out that separated the kitchen and dining room. Friday and Saturday was demo of the floor. The dining room had a beautiful oak hardwood floor under very disgusting carpet. We were sad when we pulled the carpet to see the floor in such good shape, we should have pulled it years ago. You just never know what condition the floor will be in.

We are saving the wood, when we have the wood floors re-finished in the rest of the house, they will be able to use this wood to patch the damaged parts in the other rooms.


We were surprised how much sand was under the oak floor. Made me realize how it can work its way into every nook and cranny.

Marlow pulled the linoleum and backing out of the kitchen area. We are planning on putting tile down for the new floor. We'll get all the new backer board and cement board down, and then pull the lower cabinets.

While Marlow was tearing the floor up, I mowed the lawn, and worked outside. The heat and humidity about did me in, so I moved on to an in-door project.

This is the center of Jennie's wedding quilt. It might get done by her 3 year anniversary. I have all the piecing done, been working on it for several years. Hopefully I can get it put together in the next month. I guess better late than never.

Hyrum's quilt

We are so excited to welcome our first grandson. I hope he will love this BRIGHT quilt.

Musings of an impatient woman

I appreciated Kendi's comments. I have often thought that if we were only aware of the trials of others, our journey wouldn't feel so hard.

I had to smile after posting the other day, I picked up the conference issue of the Ensign to continue reading. The talk that I was on was from the Priesthood Session, entitled "Continue in Patience". Isn't it ironic that is exactly what I needed to hear?

Pres Uchtdorf told of a study that was done with four-year olds. Large marshmallows were placed in front of the children, and they were told that they could eat them now, or, if they waited for 15 minutes, they could have two.

They left the children alone and watched what happened from behind a two way mirror. Some children ate the marshmallows immediately, some waited a few minutes before eating the marshmallow, only 30% were able to wait. I think I would have eaten my marshmallow immediately.

Here are some of the things that struck me: "the children that ate their marshmallow right away struggled later in life and had more behavioral problems". And I thought I was a brat and misbehaved because I was the youngest in the family!

"The ability to wait-to be patient- was a key character trait that might predict later success in life". That is a very telling statement, although I have often pondered what does SUCCESS actually mean. How do we know when we have been successful (that's a topic for a later discussion)

"Patience--the ability to put our desires on hold for a time--is a precious and rare virtue. We want what we want, and we want it now...without patience, we cannot please God; we cannot become perfect."

Pres Uchtdorf goes on to tell of his experience in school, stuggling in a new school to keep up with so many new things. He had a teacher that taught him to be patient, and that steady, consistent work-patient persistence-would help him learn. Over time the subjects that were difficult became clearer. He learned that if he applied himself consistently he could learn.

From that experience he learned that patience was more than just waiting for something to happen-"patience required actively working toward worthwhile goals and not getting discouraged when results didn't appear instantly or without effort. Boy, do I need to hear that particular statement, don't get discouraged when results don't appear instantly.

Is it a happen stance that this article was the one to be read today. Maybe, but I also feel it was there because that is the message I need to hear today. And to go along with that, today I was working on some devotionals for YW camp that I am going to in a couple of weeks. We were assigned Emma Smith/Endurance for our woman to focus on at camp. I was reading an article about Emma by Pres Hinckley. It references D&C 25, and the many instructions to Emma.

D&C 25:13 Wherefore, lift up thy heart and rejoice, and cleave unto the covenants which thou hast made."

President Hinckley goes on to say "I believe He is saying to each of us, be happy. The gospel is a thing of joy. It provides us with a reason for gladness. Of course there are times of sorrow. Of course there are hours of concern and anxiety. We all worry. But the Lord has told us to lift our hearts and rejoice". ... Cultivate a spirit of optimism. Walk with faith, rejoicing in the beauties of nature, in the goodness of those you love, in the testimony which you carry in your heart concerning things divine.

Now to put all that into practice, and be patient and see the good in my life as I go forth. I'm grateful for the lift these talks gave me. I keep reminding myself that God has assured us we will not be asked to shoulder more than we can bear. With God's help, all things are possible.