Whirlwind of chaos
WOW! It's been so busy around here I hadn't even realised how long it had been since I posted a new message! And the chaos hasn't completely subsided yet either, just a lull in the storm I think. So I'm taking a momentary breather to post a few words.

The big news is...

IT'S A BOY!

His name is George, he is 4 months old and he is already potty trained and behaves very well, and knows the commands Sit and Off, and is learning Come. Yes, we got a puppy!

For the more detailed version of the story... As some of you know we've been really tight on money, and last week Hubby said *Don't spend any money on my birthday, we can't afford it* but also over the past couple weeks/months he has sent me some links about finding a dog at the humane society, and other such puppy-related websites. Well I learned that it costs $150-250 just to adopt from a shelter now! So that wasn't going to happen. And while I had gotten him a night out for dinner, I truly did not have a present for him. And Monday morning he started sounding really depressed, like very down & out. And I had come up with some kinda cheezy sounding homemade gift ideas, but I knew every one them just screamed "we're too poor for birthdays" and that wasn't the message I wanted to convey. Hubby is making better money now, we're just trying to dig out of the hole we got in while he wasn't making enough money, and we will get there, and I think we will be ok - we're just not there yet. So I really wanted to be able to get him something that would encourage him, and that would show him that God does care and God IS helping us. So I prayed for the Lord to help me find a present he would really like, that would really make him happy, and to provide a solution to our bill problem.. And then I went back to searching for our Mortgage bill (to see about refinancing, for the purpose of being able to skip a payment - but that's not the smartest thing for us to do right now because our interest rate is only 4.625% which is lower than anything they could get us in the market right now - so we won't be doing that). And while I was digging through the pile of papers on my desk I came across an old want-ads newspaper and saw a listing for Australian Shepherd puppies for sale here in Newberg. The ad is 6 weeks old, but I thought oh well, what can it hurt? So I called. And the lady who answered said her puppies were gone, but she knew someone else who had a litter of puppies that had the same stud as her litter had. So I called the number. The husband answered, they still had 3 left, one was definitely spoken for, one was maybe spoken for, and one remained but had to figure out first which 2 the other adoptive owners had decided on. Then I asked how much, $400 he replied. And I winced and then explained that I didn't actually have the money but wondered if we could work out some payments or if I could do some work for them or something in exchange, and he didn't say no outright, but continued to tell me about the puppies and he asked when I could come see them, and said he had to talk to his wife first, and they would call me back about a time to get together. So I waited a few hours, and then I had some errands to run so I decided to call first, and this time I got his wife on the phone, and she was very very nice, and we chatted a bit, and she hadn't understood that I still wanted to look at them, so we arranged a time the next day (the 14th). And I reitterated my concern, that I didn't have any money right now, but that I was hoping to give the puppy to my husband for his birthday this week, and asked if she had any concerns about that. And she said, "Do you believe in God?" (I about fell out of my chair at this point. It was the second time that day I'd talked to someone who said they were acting out of a faith in God, the first being a phone call we got from a man who might be able to pay Hubby for some technical consulting over the phone.) Of course I answered "Yes, yes I do!" And she went on to say that she is even more willing to work with me than her husband is, that the important thing was the puppies go to a good home. After driving out to their farm to see the puppies, and see how they acted around the kids (not timid at all, but not dominant either, great temperment - after my experience with the dachsund I wanted to be very careful not to make the same mistake twice!) and how the kids felt about them and how they looked, I knew this was perfect. And she was happy to see the puppy playing with all the kids. So you see, God provided a show quality, registered puppy that is already housebroken, gentle, intelligent and good with kids... for free, well for work. All I have to do is clean her house a few times in exchange for payment, at which point she will give us his papers. But she let me take him home with us yesterday, so Hubby got his birthday present a day early.

Just goes to show, that with God, all things are possible! Even birthday presents and puppies! I wanted to share that with you, and hope that the Light of the Lord brightens your day.

Other than that I'm fighting allergies as normal and looking forward to seeing my Grandma and other relatives this weekend. Fun stuff! God is working everything out splendidly... now if I could just get MY act together, we'd be great! Hopefully this will be my last *lock the keys in the truck experience* for a while. /sigh Walking home from the store with 4 kids and 2 gallons of milks isn't exactly my idea of a fun outing. But, at least we didn't have a whole big heavy armloads of sacks to carry... And as soon as hubby gets home with his keys we'll be able to walk back, open the truck, and all will be well again. Just another day of chaos in the Tiny Zoo!

-Blessings to you