Well, it’s been a week or two since we decided on this crazy journey. After all of our problems in the last couple of years…(Keith’s getting sick, getting laid off, losing the house, finding a rental, finding ANOTHER rental, and dealing with increasingly severe rheumatoid arthritis)… we finally feel like we are on the road to recovery.

We found out this morning that we may have to finish paying off Keith’s medical bills before we can secure a loan for our farm. (He was in the hospital ICU 4 times in 5 months… two of those times with NO insurance. You can imagine how high those bills are!) This was quite a blow! If we have to pay off those bills, we won’t have the money for our down payment for the farm.

Keith and I took a step back last night and said, “If this is not the right way to go… we trust that God will block it.” We talked with our realtor and she told us that the owners are willing to do a “lease back” for us until we can get our loan. Basically that means that we would rent the farm at the price of their mortgage payment for 6 months to a year and then secure our loan. This option would allow us to save more money to begin making improvements on the farm. (We need new flooring in the house, materials and a few tools to build the chicken coop and barn, etc.) Is this the best way to go??? We have no idea. We do risk losing the low interest rates… but maybe 6 months won’t make a huge difference. Who knows!

Above all… we are trusting God. He is our guiding light. He is molding us… changing us… helping us. While we wait, He is teaching us to appreciate the little blessings in our lives, helping us strengthen our marriage, and try to repair the struggles we have had in our family. We are so incredibly blessed. We have 5 beautiful children… though only one lives with us… and we love them all so much. It has been a bumpy journey being a blended family, but as we rely on God, He will rebuild our family. Today’s blessings included getting up early to cook breakfast for Keith, watering our container garden while it was cool outside, finding our first ripe tomato on our tomato plant, and reflecting on the love I have for and receive from my husband, wonderful parents, sisters, children, and amazing Academy girls. Also, I am blessed by being unconditionally loved by our three precious “furry” children. It’s amazing how much the pups make me smile.

**deep breath**…. I am rich.