As of 2pm today, Kevin became the official owner of Independence Nursery & Garden Center. The process of this change in our lives has so many pieces. It seems long at times with various delays - but God shows us His complete sovereignty through it all. He reminds us every morning to take one day at a time. Through the process of delays, we are both learning to have JOY in the hard times & to trust that He IS fully in control. Even today as we signed papers, there are a few small details that have to be finalized next week to make it "officially official". So once again a few more delays! :) It has been a great growth time for us all to say the least! Kevin has been working here since early January - learning the ropes, setting up a new cash register system, & bringing his experience of paver work to the SE Kansas area. There is no one in this area doing the kind of work Kevin did in K.C. - so people are very excited about what he can do. The crews just completed a huge retaining wall for a gentleman who asked our company to do it last year - but they just didn't have the experience or confidence to do it. So they had Kevin look at it as soon as he arrived on the scene & it was well within his scope of experience so they went forward. It was a huge boost for all the employees & Kevin. He is excited to bring his experience to expand the business here. He was taken out to lunch last week by a paver company that is trying to win Kevin's attention because there is no one really addressing the market in SE Kansas for patios, retaining walls, etc. They are very excited to have Kevin's experience & knowledge in SE Kansas.
Kevin's favorite part right now is getting to know the nursery side of things & helping with the retail store. He has always dreamed about doing this, so this is very exciting & new for him. Over the last 10 days - the retail store has been very busy. They are seeing a huge increase in people wanting seeds & garden plants. With the economy struggling, more people are looking to grow their own food - this is very evident on a daily basis.
In the near future, the kids & I will be at the nursery a few afternoons a week to start learning the ropes. The kids love to be there & are learning about the nursery as well. For now, my role has been behind the scenes. My first order of business - straight from the boss - was to make a postcard to mail to all the customers. It was fun to be creative & do something new. Here it is:
We continue to ask for your prayers in regards to the sale of our home. We are asking the Lord to move quickly in this. Please pass the word if you know anyone looking for a house.
The kids had a great day of school yesterday both inside & outside. . . after lunch, we had a field trip. The lady across the street invited the kids & I over to feed their 1 month old calf. It was very interesting - the calf hits its'mother to get more milk, so you have to hold the bottle very tightly or you'll get hit with it. The kids thought it was really fun to do, & we were all amazed at how fast the milk was consumed. She had chickens for us to see as well . . . Isabelle was pretty excited about that. She has one called a "turkin" - it is a chicken, but it resembles a turkey - very interesting! The kids actually thought it was a small turkey. It's hard to see here, but it is right in the middle of this picture. 
We spent lots of time riding bikes, playing soccer, & creating a chalk village - complete with every store you could need, housing, a jail, & a church. It was very fun. The kids rode their bikes & scooters all around our city! It was so warm - I even have a sun burn on my arms! They slept great last night - it was a very FULL day! I slept great too - in bed at 8:22pm - SO tired!
This picture was taken last week - he is much improved on his handwriting. It gets better each week. That is fun for a mom & homeschool teacher to see! I posted a pic back in Sept. of his first attempts at writing his name - you can check that out for fun in you want. 
This drawing is of him (the orange face) on his dad's shoulders. I'm the angry one standing on his arm - I need to smile more! :) & Isabelle is riding a dog. These are some of his first "stick figures". Pretty cute - even though I am the mean one in the pic. 
Isabelle is excelling like crazy. We are extremely proud of all that she is accomplishing. She is determined to learn cursive & fast. Her favorite part of school she says is Bible time. We read a daily reading & answer some questions. Then she writes a summary of what we read & draws a picture of what she read. It is a great project for her - she loves that she has her own "Bible journal" with her own words & pictures. She has worked very hard on it! She also loves to read & take comprehension quizzes - we found a free website for this that gives her points for all the answers she gets correct on the quizzes. They will then give prizes for the points or I can create coupons that she can redeem her points for . . . her dad agreed to give her $5 for every 1000 points she receives. She has a little over 4000 points since Jan. 1 & is working to earn enough to buy a Mario game for the Wii. She is one very determined little girl! 
For Valentine's this year . . . Kevin planned a date night out for us with his brother Richard & his wife, Sarah. It was great fun to get out for the night. Kevin spent all last week investigating places he might want to take me. He & his brother even asked their parents ahead of time if they would mind watching our kids on valentine's night! :) Sarah & I were very proud of their planning & preparing for our night out. We felt very special. We had an amazing dinner - the restaurant made their own bread, croutons, salad dressings, etc. It was so yummy! 
I can't believe how strange the weather has been lately - warm, cold, windy, stormy, beautiful, & then back around again. We have tried to take advantage of all the warm weather by getting outside. The kids (especially JM) have been battling a cough/cold for more than a week, so their trips outside are short & sweet, but fresh air does a lot for the spirit & the body! The pictures I posted here were taken in about 45minutes of each other. You'll see in the 1st 2 - it is very sunny, but the last 2 show how the clouds rolled in quickly - & the temps cooled rapidly. It was bizarre.
I'm still waiting to see if we get one more snow . . . it's not out of the question! Despite the possibility of snow & cold, I am so excited for spring. I love the warm temps, the sun shining, the flowers blooming, the trees budding, the grass turning green, & the fresh smell of Spring! It is wonderful. 
