turning over investments

2010 was an interesting year for those of us invested in the residential real estate market.  Homes that, 4 years ago, sold for $200,000 were flooding the market as foreclosures for 50% of their original sold value this year.  We were living in Hawaii at the time but still watching the Oregon real estate market closely. 
Matt and I make a great 'real estate' team- It's an interest we have shared since shortly after getting married.  I usually locate the house I think we should buy (months of looking and months of analyzing the market so that when the 'deal' pops up, the decision to buy the selected home is made before we even step foot inside with the realtor) and Matt completes the remodel needed on the home (our rule is to buy the worst house in the best neighborhood).
We had also been watching the market on Kauai, trying to decide if it was a good idea to purchase local.  While Oregon had been hit hard with foreclosures, Kauai's market was only moderately hit.  I had found an online auction site with a couple of properties on Kauai that were of interest to us. Around that time I had also found a property just minutes outside of our Oregon hometown.
The Kauai property was located in Lihue.  It was a vacation rental type of a complex with a 2 bedroom condo available.  The unit overlooked the pool at the complex and had air conditioning.  When Matt and I went to look at it, our first impression was that it had a funky odor in the breezeway you walked through to access the front door of the condo- It also needed a bit of cosmetic rehab work done- Overall it was a great deal and penciled well.
We had already set the price we were willing to pay for the unit before the day of the online auction arrived.  The bidding stopped $100 short of what we were willing to pay.  The time was running out on being able to bid- It was literally just minutes before the property was closing that it struck me....living on Kauai was one thing- owning real estate on the island was a commitment I personally was not ready for.  Matt was gracious and said he understood- We also agreed that I would fly out to Oregon to look at the property we were interested in.

The trip to Oregon was successful.

On Dec. 1, 2010 we purchased a 1967 Square Foot foreclosure on .29 acre.  It sat at the end of a cul-da-sac in an older community (built in early 70's) but shared a back yard fence with higher end homes in a golf course community.  The home was built on a moderate hill and was not engineered.  Over the years, ground and soil shifting had gone on and the house had literally fallen apart at the seams.  The bank holding the title was willing to negotiate so that, even with all the work needing done, it would still turn a profit when sold (it would also turn a profit if rented).

We have held onto the home over the past 4 1/2 years as a rental.  In April of this year we decided it was time to sell- we are looking forward to using some of the profit to develop a small RV park (6 sites) and the rest of the profit to go on a serious shopping trip....

We listed 4/17
Went pending 5/22
Closed and funded yesterday (YAY!!)

p.s. I'm kidding about the shopping trip....I WISH!! :)

2010

2015

Back yard

a month past four

Here we are, to the day, a month past four
really nothing monumental to document...just my precious girl enjoying her summer and growing up.

go for it!

I remember my Aunt Anne telling me how important it is to stay interested in what your kids are interested in.  Basically she was saying, as a parent, stay relevant.  Be able to track with what your kids are doing.
Fresh in my memory is also the smile on my friend Kristi's face last night and the twinkle in her eye as she encouraged several of us ladies to 'go for it!' To get in the lake (up here at the ranch) even though evening was coming quick, the wind had kicked up, and it was a bit chilly.  It was a fun float and made some great memories

When Eli and Ry asked Matt and I if we wanted to head to a lake about 20 minutes from our house and watch them jet ski tonight we were like 'absolutely!!' 

My boys newest thing is jet skiing
This mama hasn't been in that saddle for 20 years (except for a very short ride last week)
This mama wants to take Aunt Anne's advise and stay relevant to my boys (I love you Eli and Ry)
This mama also was impressed with her friend Kristi's advise last night to 'go for it'

Just as the boys were finishing up skiing I asked- 'Hey Ry, can I try riding your ski?'
Eli hooked me up with his life jacket and Ry handed over his ski...

For my mama friends out there....pick something your kids are loving to do right now and go join them- IT'S SO WORTH IT :)

Ry

Eli

the mammogram and brave rita

The tears started just before I was called back for the mammogram today.  My friend Deb had just left from a quick drop by to say 'hi', I had already gone through the registration process and met back up with my friend Janelle, who was so graciously waiting in the waiting room.  When I sat down by Janelle she was just finishing up reading a text from her mother in law Rita.  Among some other things Rita told Janelle she was praying for the appointment I had today.
Rita
One word comes to mind when I hear Rita's name mentioned or when I see her at church on the weeks she is in town visiting her family.
Brave
God has allowed Rita to battle a significant diagnosis of cancer- a battle that did not start and end with surgery and treatment but instead a battle that was fought and then needed to be fought again.....and possibly again. I have never heard her complain or grumble...she addresses it honestly and matter of fact with grace and class.  Instead of relating to her cancer with fear she has chosen to trust God and His call and control on her life.  I admire you Rita and thank the Lord for how you show Him off in your life- I admire that He is seen so evidently as you travel the road of cancer.  I admire that instead of sitting in self pity, you live life to the fullest with your kids and grand kids....I admire that you have gone to your cancer treatments by yourself and not crumbled with fear.
You are brave Rita and you honor God with your bravery

The tears I was crying sitting with Janelle had been building for longer than just this morning....
Three months ago was when I first felt the 'lump'.  It was painful, which was reassuring, but persistent.  By late last month I couldn't ignore the lump anymore- I have learned, as a former anxiety attacker-er, by the time something is keeping me up late at night and causing fear to start taking root in my heart, it needs to be addressed.

Doctor's are not my favorite place to visit (I would rather eat brown eggs and drink Llama milk). I had secretly hoped the lump was going to go away if I ignored it long enough- When it didn't, logic won over fear and I made the call.  The morning of my appointment I was anxious and praying.  I was praying for the courage to face the day and to actually go to the appointment and not bail at the last minute.

Rita's daughter Kimberly (who lives in London) does not know how much God used a post and picture she posted on facebook the morning of June 23 (the same day as my appointment) to calm my anxious heart.  Here Rita was at Chemo (by herself) with a heart of gratefulness- If she could face her day with gratefulness I could at least show up to my appointment.

"Wanna know how I KNOW that my mom is amazing? We were comparing our "views" via text... Mine, in Covent Garden, where I'm reading and waiting for a meeting in about an hour. Hers? At UCD having chemo with her special blanket keeping her warm. Her response? "This is my view BUT I AM GRATEFUL." And when I said "I'm so sorry". She replied with "No be grateful something is working." That, my friends, is courage. And determination. And strength. And beauty. And I have the utmost respect for her. All my love"

My appointment went smoothly and very much as expected.  The doctor felt the lump and said she thought it was a calcified milk duct or something along those lines.  She was very reassuring that due to it's shape and size it didn't feel like cancer BUT a mammogram would definitely be the best route to go. 

I had dried the tears just as my name was called to go back for the mammogram today.  The tears stayed at bay as the first couple of pictures were taken.  As the tech made her way over to where the lump was I asked 'can you tell if something is weird right away- like as soon as the picture comes up on your screen?'.  She was gracious but vague and said that she had been a mammogram tech for many years and had seen a lot of lumps that were cancerous and lumps that were non cancerous.  She said that I had fibrocystic tissue which would mean I would probably experience many mammogram's in my future.  She adjusted her machine so that she could get a reading high up in my arm pit and all the way to my chest wall.  As she did this, my tears started falling- They fell down onto the mammogram machine.  The tech glanced up from adjusting the machine and kindly asked 'are you crying?'
'I'm a mom'
'I have 3 kids'
'worst case scenario has been running through my mind for months'
She was so gracious as my tears continued to fall- So gracious when she allowed me to come over and see the picture she had taken of the lump area.  She pointed to two 'lumps' and vaguely explained what typical 'cysts' (non cancerous) looked like and how the radiologist would be reading the pictures for the final answer but to her, there was nothing that looked alarming (my doctor left at noon today so the final conclusion as to what the lumps are will not come in until Monday morning).

It is such a comfort to know that we have a God who knows our fears and meets us where we are at.  How He uses the prayers of our friends, the bravery of others, and in my case, the medical staff to place His loving arms around us.  How He does not waste a single hard time we go through but will use it to grow our faith in Him and to give others courage and comfort to face their own trials (Rita).

We have hope no matter what our diagnosis
We serve an amazing God
and He gives us others to spur us on as we walk this journey of life.
Thank you Jesus

p.s. I can not end this post without bringing up Duane- a brave father who has fought a courageous battle of cancer and is still fighting- His wife Linda walks by his side with a bravery much like Rita and has had her own battle with cancer.  I am praying for you guys and your family and admire so much how you choose to honor God through all of your journey.

p.s.s. Thank you Rita and Kimberly for letting me post about you without you knowing :) :) :)

UPDATE 7/13/14
Just got the news that my mammogram results were 'non malignant'- (non cancerous)!! Thank you SO much for all the prayers and messages- It brought tears to my eyes reading all of your words of encouragement. 

Rita

Janelle (L) Deb and I

when the rainbow does not mean what you thought

In December of 2010, Matt and I had been home study approved to adopt for 6 months.  We had retained an attorney in Hawaii who handled adoptions and signed up with an adoption agency on the mainland.  By the time December made the calendar that year, Matt and I had seen quite a few birthmother profiles but nothing had been a match.  If you are currently a 'waiting family' or have adopted, you know what I'm saying when I say that it's a tough wait.  Each day you anxiously check e-mail looking to see if there is a possible match- you wait for that phone call- you pray- you imagine what life is going to be like with your little blessing.

Sometimes you want something so badly you start grasping at straws to convince yourself of things that are not true.  Sometimes in the convincing, you put God in a place that He's really not- you speak for Him in a way that does not line up with scripture.

 

The message was on our home answering machine that December day...
A baby girl had been born at 34 weeks in Chicago- due to her early arrival and some other complications she was in NICU. Were Matt and I interested in becoming parents to this precious baby.
Matt and I prayed
prayed
and prayed some more
We ran it by our boys and then prayed some more
I personally didn't know what it was supposed to 'feel' like when you were told that you had been matched with a baby but I did know what it felt like to want your longing fulfilled so bad you would look for anything to confirm that the filling had arrived.

I specifically prayed that, if it was God's will, He would send a sign- something blaringly obvious that He was calling us to this adoption. 

I kid you not, as soon as I prayed the prayer, the most beautiful rainbow showed up in our front yard(never mind we lived on Kauai where rainbows were not so rare- I wanted to believe the rainbow was a sign so much that I compartmentalized any and all reasoning).  Matt had gone off by himself to pray and had come back just around the time the rainbow appeared- He said that he had been praying for a sign also and was shocked to see the rainbow. 

We called the caseworker and told her yes.
I booked a flight out to Chicago, leaving early the next morning- Matt was going to join a few days later..  I also booked a car and hotel.

I continued praying throughout the evening and had an unsettled feeling.
Was God really giving us the OK to adopt this baby by confirming it through a rainbow?
The unsettled feeling continued and by late that night, I was sitting on our bed crying to Matt telling him I thought we had made a mistake in saying yes....I knew this baby needed a mama but I didn't think I was the one- I kept going back to the rainbow and begging God not to be disappointed in me because of the sign He had given us to adopt this little girl.
An unsettled feeling had come over Matt too and we decided to call off the adoption.  The flight and hotel was cancelled and the case worker was called.

A firm conviction took root in both Matt and my heart that December evening- nowhere in the Bible does it say that a rainbow is for anything other than a covenant between us and the Lord.  A covenant that He would not flood the earth again (like He did in Noah's time).  There is nowhere that it said He would use it as a sign to confirm His calling on any of our lives- He uses His word to confirm His calling...He uses His word, the entire thing, to guide our lives- to teach us how to live and how to make wise decisions.  He uses His Word to teach us right from wrong and how to stand firm and not compromise. 

Matt and I made an error that day.  We spoke for God in a way that did not line up with scripture.
Each time I see a rainbow I am reminded to run to God's Word for His truth- To be careful that I am wanting something so badly I claim 'Jesus' when really it is the desperate longing for my own way.

Below is the rainbow I have been telling you about...When I took the picture, I thought it was going to be for our daughter to see when she was older- the sign God gave us that we were called to adopt her.
I was wrong
and
God was right
our birth mother Heather was 8 weeks pregnant with our Ellie at the time
I followed up with the caseworker on the adoption of the baby girl- at the last minute, the little girls mom decided to parent instead of place

Genesis 9:13-16New King James Version (NKJV)

¹³ I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. ¹⁴ It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; ¹⁵ and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. ¹⁶ The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.”