"Artoo and I have decided we will stay here...."

So after all that talk about leaving this apartment...we're staying. There is still a hole in the bathroom ceiling that we need to get fixed and the window may or may not still be leaking (the guy came and looked at it both inside and out...I am not sure but he might have miraculous powers of fixing-things-rays in his eyes or something because that's usually what he does and then we don't hear anything about it til I call the office and ask.) But despite the fact that we kind of really wanted it to be God's will that we move and be closer to Andrew's work I think we are both really finding some peace in the whole thing knowing that THIS is actually God's will. (like Andrew and I keep saying "why would we want something that's not God's will for us?)
I switched the living room around and am currently looking for some neat prints to hang in the bathroom (and as ever I am striving to keep the kitchen clean clean CLEAN!), Andrew surprised me the other day and bought us a water filter for the sink so that we didn't have to lug barrels of water from my parents home every time we went over to visit (although it DID kind of make me feel a bit old fashioned in a way...in a good way) and so that now we can drink our own water without too much fear of it smelling like hot socks or doing us harm the good ol' chlorine way.
And it's kind of nice knowing that we will still be close for sure to my family and my older sister for the summer. I think it's kind of teaching me a lesson that no matter where you are there is always something to be REALLY really thankful for!
Also things are seeming to pick up a bit around here, it seems they've suddenly decided that perhaps trash all over the parking lot is not considered really cool and stylish by anyone. Also there seem to be surveillance cameras mounted in the parking lot...whether for monitoring for suspicious activity or just someone taking up more than the one allowed parking spot remains to be seen but all in all it's nice seeing them take a little pride in this place.
Sadly it doesn't seem like the tenants take much pride in the place either sometimes as the garbage being in the parking lot in the first place attests....still I am hoping that the landlords are setting an example that will be infectious to everyone.
They also just had some landscapers in which is a good sign I think. All in all I think things are looking up a bit!:)

To sum it all up, we're together: we're happy..God is good!:)'

God DOES have a sense of Humor!

So if anyone was in doubt that God has a sense of humor, last night as me and Andrew were finally settling down to bed, after a major wrestle with a huge chair we were trying to wrap in plastic bags so we could safely get rid of it in the dumpster (we finally had to settle for writing all over it in black marker that it could possibly be bed bug infested so LEAVE it lie!) and our own personal symphony of music as the leaking from the bathroom ceiling was now dripping and plunking onto tile and into glass jar, and Andrew opened the Bible to a random spot and started reading Psalm 84: "How lovely is your dwelling place...." Andrew looked over at me and then we both just started cracking up laughing, the words were so ironic and we couldn't help ourselves and we couldn't stop laughing for a good five minutes. Andrew closed his eyes as he was laughing and said "Thank you Lord!" A good laugh is always a blessing from God, especially when going through a bit of a difficult time. Andrew tried to work his way through the Psalm without us going into laughter again but it didn't work too well, finally I shouted "Don't start over from the beginning again every time, that's what's making me laugh!" and in retort he yelled "Oh, for goodness sake, let me get through it once!" in Charles Thomson fashion from 1776.
We've been laughing a lot even through dealing with some of this apartment stuff, but that was laughter specifically sent from God and specifically pertaining to our situation and it was perfect!:)

Don't say it!

Just to let everyone know what's been going on with Andrew and me for the last couple of weeks...okay...months that I haven't been writing on here.
Recently we've been having some...issues with our apartment. Leaky sinks, leaky window sill...now leaky BATHROOM ceiling! :) Also we have been the rather unfortunately selected as party hosts to a number of very...disturbing guests: otherwise known as bed bugs! We are in the process of getting all of this fixed so that some normality can return to our lives before the next crazy thing happens! :-D Might I point out the fact that you may be laboring under a misconception that bed bugs means that we have a messy apartment and that I have not been keeping a good house...labor under that no more because I am actually rather good at keeping the apartment clean...well except for the kitchen which is clean every other day, and in actuality if you do some research online you will find that bed bugs are NOT a result of uncleanliness as was once thought; they are making a rather insidious comeback as a result of the DDT ban, apparently it was keeping bed bugs in check so well people didn't realize...until they stopped using it! Bed bugs actually, rather scarily, just are really good hitch-hikers and can be in any motel, hotel, or inn whether it be five star or minus five star...so it would be a really good idea to familiarize yourself with their signs so you can look for them before you accept any hotel room. Also they can hitch-hike in old sofa's or mattresses if you are the trash-picking type (which we are not), and I am also sure that you might be unfortunate enough to possibly pick up some at a thrift store if you buy some furniture you haven't inspected enough to be sure of. Also sadly you can get them from someone else if you live in the same apartment building...which means our case might actually be someone else's case. The other frustrating thing is that 50% of the people who have them don't realize they have them because they never feel the bites...which means if someone else in our apartment DOES indeed have them they might just not realize. Luckily it's exterminator procedure to check all the other adjoining apartments to make sure they don't have bed bugs so that the whole maddening cycle won't start over again. IN short...do some investigating, and do some research if you are thinking you might have them or you are thinking of picking up some 5th hand furniture. :)
I am now in the process of doing approximately 2,000 hundred million loads of laundry in hot water and hot air...I might be exaggerating the amount of laundry...but you can't prove it, can you? :) I am holding together well mostly on account of having an awesome God who is going to take care of everything, an amazing husband who keeps me calm when I start crying about 'freaky little bug things everywhere', and both sides of my wonderful family who give me hugs and send me encouraging notes, comments, and Psalm 91's! :)
Still through all of this I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to be married to the best husband anyone could ask for and have a place to live (albeit a leaky, buggy, coldish one) and plenty of food and especially a God who loves me and who gave me the gift of eternal life so that I never have to worry about anything here in this earth: because in the light of Eternity....what's a couple of bed bugs? :)