It has been WAY TOO LONG!!!

Well, it has been almost 3 years since I have really blogged and I struggle with the overwhelming feeling of wanting to "catch up" and try to remember all that has happened over those years, or just simply forget them!!  We have had a lot happen in that time and I feel guilty for not writing about it.  I had a great excuse for the first 2 years, as I did not reliable internet and it was impossible to even download pics while living at Shoestring Ridge Road.  It is a place and time I would rather forget so, I suppose not writing about those few years might not be as hard as initially expected.  I guess I will wrap those years up by saying:  We moved to Gallipolis into a rental (on Shoestring) that we would probably not have ever chosen had there been any other options here.  Nate started his first "real" job after residency and has done an excellent job of providing for our family and making up for the years of poverty we endured!  The children went to Washington Elementary the first year here, then transferred to Green Elementary when we knew that we were building a home in its' district.

 We bought 39 acres of land and built a house using Schumacher Homes and a whole bunch of subcontractors to do many different jobs.  It was perhaps the hardest year on our marriage we'd ever endured and was difficult having to drive the kids to school and back and forth from the building site and Columbus for supplies and tile and whatnot.  It was a long 10 months of building, but in the end (as with most things with hindsight) it was totally worth it!!  We love our new home and have plenty of space to let the kids roam around and play (both inside and out).  It truly is our dream home and we feel super blessed to have it!   We have now lived here since June 2013 and it is starting to feel like a real home (with furniture and decorations).  There is still a ton of work to do both inside and out, but it is coming along nicely and we love it!

We really like the small-town feel of Gallipolis, and although it has taken almost 3 years, I finally have some really good friends here and feel like I mostly belong.  The hardest part of living here has by far been our small and dysfunctional ward.  Church has always been like home to me and given me all the social outlets I have needed, but not here.  We are all so spread out and far away from each other that it is hard to get together and do things as often as I'd like.  I served as the ward primary president until this past October when I was called to be the YW president instead.  I have loved both callings.  Nate has served as scout master, YM president, Elders Quorum advisor, Sunday School teacher, and now Ward Mission Leader!  We have been trying our best to strengthen our unit and still feel like the only real cure is to get new families to move here that have already seen how the church is supposed to function elsewhere and are ready to work.  Most of our converts seem to be here for a free ride and only last a few weeks or months.

I think that about wraps up the last 3 years in the most succinct way I can do, and so with that I will post some pics (if I can find them on this computer) of the events I've talked about.