Knoxville: We have arrived!

The Brewster clan has finally arrived in Knoxville. It is too late for the Farragut folks to hide now. We are thrilled to finally be getting to meet our new church family members. Everyone at First Farragut has been so great! We have been welcomed and made to feel right at home. Thank you all!!

We are still in the camper...sigh. The boys love it, but for me...the bloom is definately off the rose. I am ready to be in a real house. Please....someone in Kingsport....buy that house!!! It really is not so bad right now, but soon we will need to get Kile registered for school. I think we really need an address for that...lol

John is doing a bang up job at First Farragut. I am very proud of him. He is working hard and getting to know his staff members. I have been interviewing, but no job yet. I will worry about that later.

Worry. This brings me to a realization I had this week. What a pointless activity worry is. When there is nothing I can do about a situation, I sit and worry what is going to happen. That is just so dumb. If you can't do anything to improve the situation, worrying is not helping. It is just giving you wrinkles and stomach aches.

We all seem to climb in that fret and worry boat though. God will take care of it. Leave the worry boat. You won't sink. These are the things I have been telling myself all week. If you are having stressful problems and can't solve them on your own, give them to God and leave them with Him. Don't pick them back up.

Well, I guess this is goodbye Kingsport

The boys and I have left Kingsport. I packed the clothes we need into the camper and packed some to take to my mom and dad's place. It was a little sad. My good friends, Kathi and Melissa, went out to eat with me Saturday for our last hurrah in Kingsport. That was very sad. As I drove out of Kingsport, I prayed to God to take care of all our friends and neighbors, and I asked Him if we were doing what He had planned. I then felt better.

You see I felt calm. We haven't sold our house yet, but I was calm. We haven't bought a house in Knoxville yet, but I was calm. I don't have a job yet, but I was calm. I had two rowdy children and one big dog in a little Saturn, and still I was calm. I guess I felt calm about everything because God calmed me. He gave me a feeling of peace about all the details. I know we are heading toward something that God has mapped out for us, and that can never be wrong.

We are going to be closer to our families. We have already made wonderful friends. We are going toward a terrific opportunity for all of us. There are a lot of things that still need to be worked out, but God is in the midst of it. So, I was calm. It was kind of eerie, but wonderful.

The boys and I will be staying at my mom and dad's this week, and will join John in Knoxville this weekend. We will be camping for about a month in Knoxville until our house sells and we can buy a new home. I will be going to interviews, and the kids will get to visit with their grandparents. It is all going to be good. Keep praying everyone! God is good...all the time.

Homeward Bound

It is now time to head back to Kingsport. This has been an adventure. We have all survived two weeks in the camper together. I must say that the simple things mean a great deal to me now. I miss my own bed, a real shower, a hot bath, and a space big enough to get away from other people when I want to.

Now we have to start stressing about the move again. (we have been stressing even on vacation) I am in hopes that our next open house is going to net us an offer, and that I will finally get some kind of notification from Knox County about interviews. If these things start falling into place, we can house shop and get out of the camper...lol This is no slam on camping life. The beauty of camping, however, is that there is a home to go home to. I am ready to move and get started making friends in Farragut. I am ready to get my kids involved and have them make friends so that when school starts, they will feel like they fit in. Hopefully, this will all start to happen soon. Keep us in your prayers.

We will be loading up in the morning and heading back. We will pick up our loving hound dog at the spa on Friday, and visit with friends before we head out of Kingsport. We love you all, and will be visiting. I promise to keep in touch.

Lake livin'

Well, Annual Conference is in full swing here at Lake Juneluska. We are staying at Camp Adventure and have a beautiful view of the lake. Kile, Max, and I spent the first full day at the pool, and I do mean all day. Unfortunately, the weather is a little tricky here. I didn't feel like I needed sun screen, and time just flew by as I played in the water with my boys. Yeah, you guessed it. I got fried. I am officially lobster girl. The really bad part of it all is that I am not going to be able to enjoy the pool anymore while we are here.

We have had a really good time so far. I must say I really don't care much for the actual traveling in the car stuff, but I have a blast once we get somewhere. Because I don't enjoy the travel, the first few hours after we arrive anywhere, I am a little grouchy. (a little is the term I use, you will have to ask John and the kids to see if it is accurate.) I don't know why I get that way. I guess I get so excited about what we are going to that I forget that the journey is just as important as the destination.

I was traveling with Max in the van, and as I look back, he was very well behaved and really funny. He would come up with some fun chants to pass the time and practiced counting to ten in Spanish. (He is really into counting things right now) Max would watch his movies for a while and drift off to sleep.

Kile road with dad in the camper. He was the official map keeper. He would talk to dad and read to him to keep him from getting bored. The funny thing about this to me is that I know John. He would be as happy as a pig in slop if he could travel in silence for the whole trip. (I truly believe that is why he bought a Jeep Wrangler. It is so noisy, we can't talk to each other) Every time we stopped somewhere, I could tell that John had had too much communication time with Kile.

Both of the boys have really gotten to be little water pups this trip. I feel so much better about Kile's swimming abilities. Max needs some lessons and practice, but he is not as afraid as he used to be of the water. All in all, the trip has been a really memorable one. The only thing that would make it perfect would be that we have an offer on our house when we get back to Kingsport. (and that I had a job to go to in the fall) I guess with these things I also have to keep in mind the journey. My new mantra will be enjoy the travel as well as the destination.

The Brewsters' Last Hurrah at Myrtle Beach

Well, we are now at our last day here at the beach. You know what that means....do everything you have been meaning to do the whole trip. John and Kile hit the paddle boats (much to John's chagrin.) John said he was glad that he didn't run today because he got plenty of exercise.



Max has now gotten very brave in the pool. He will now jump off the side and into his floating ring. He also loves the lazy river now. Kile and Max insisted on an icee by the pool. (4 dollars a piece!!!)



We hit the big seafood buffet last night and Kile ate steamed oysters for the first time. He loved them. It almost turned John's stomach to watch him eat them. Kile and Max have gotten to swim, fish, and play in the waves. The trip has been wonderful.



We are off to Lake Junaluska next. Got to get the duck food ready. Keep praying for our house to sell. We need to buy a home so I don't end up living in this camper. Take care all!!

A Knight to Remember

Swords, shields, knights, and horses!! Normally, this would be a recipe for disaster with the Brewster boys, but at Medieval Times the Brewster clan had a great time. There were good guys and bad guys and good food. (no silverware) The boys loved eating with their hands. The best thing about the night for me was getting to see both of my boys' eyes light up with awe at the show.

One thing I have noticed on this trip is that Kile (the 8 year old) has suddenly gotten too cool for all of us. When did 8 become the new teen ager? I really miss his little eyes lighting up at everything new he sees. Max is still quite appreciative of everything we do, but I can't seem to get excitement out of Kile.

Is this how the craziness starts? Parents having to "one up" themselves constantly to get that innocent look of awe back into their kids' eyes? I, for one, refuse to play that game. I have seen kids having "stuff" and doing "stuff" that is too old for them because their parents want to make them happy. I can see how it all happens.

Okay, the jousting and fighting and horse tricks were neat to watch for all of us, but it was also educational and had a good message of trying to work for peace in troubled times. It was a little high priced, but worth the show and dinner to me. Did I give in to the pressure of making my oldest happy? I hope not. I am going to keep telling myself that anyway.

Max and the IMAX theater

The Brewster clan hit Broadway on the Beach yesterday. I was amazed at how the place had expanded since the last time we were at Myrtle Beach. We took the boys to see the sea monster video at the IMAX theater. Kile had his fingers in his ears the whole time because he thought it was too loud. I think Max was in shock. He couldn't figure out why he couldn't touch the 3D pictures coming at him. It was very hot yesterday, so we ended our shopping trip at Margaritaville Restaurant. Here the kids got balloon animals and saw some really fun decorations and characters. We had a great time!! We completely wore the kids out today. I was worn out too. Tomorrow is going to prove to be another wonderful day. We are going to hit the jousting show for dinner tonight! This should be interesting. I know sword fighting will be in our future for the rest of the trip because both of the boys are still in the "monkey see, monkey do" stage. Take care all and God bless.

PirateLand lubbers

Hello all!!
My husband has been blogging for some time, and I thought it was time for me to write as well. We have taken our children to the beach to camp this year. What a grand time so far. I didn't think we would ever make it to Myrtle Beach, but we are finally here. Our boys are 8 and 3, and they both have more travel patience than I. Our youngest has seen the beach and the ocean for the first time that he can remember. He calls the beach his big sandbox. He actually rolls in the sand like a dog....sigh. We have enjoyed our first two days here. See you all soon.