Pine-ing Away for Minnesota

Okay, that title doesn't have the same ring to it as my Sunshine Day post, but as it turns out we will now not be moving to Florida. My job transfer had been approved and we were minutes away from signing a lease on a rental house when we felt God saying "no". We just didn't have a peace about moving to Florida right now.

So we are staying in Pine City. I'll be working at Walmart and hopefully moving into management in a little bit. We are excited to settle in and get involved in the great church we have been attending here in town (Evergreen Church).

We are very sad not to be able to be closer to my dad, aunt, and friends in Florida, but that's what vacations are for, I suppose. We are also sad to leave the wonderful sunshine and warm weather behind (it's supposed to snow Tuesday and it's almost April!) Of course we have nice scenery here, too, from time to time - that's sunset on Lake Pokegema in the picture up above.

On the other hand we are happy to be able to stay close to the wonderful friends we have made in our neighborhood and at work. And we are glad to be able to keep the boys in the great schools in Pine City. (Now if someone could do something about that awful auditorium... but that's a topic for another post.) I also have greatly enjoyed working at the Pine City Walmart and have made some good friends there.

So, Pine City, you're stuck with us for the time being. If anyone in the Pine City school district knows a house we can rent, let us know! Be seeing you!

The Real Estate Agent Who Called Back

No, this is not an imaginary story, dream, or fantasy post. We actually had a real estate agent who called us back today! If you are wondering why this is a big deal, you obviously haven't dealt with real estate agents recently. We barely hear from our own agent in Pine City who has listed and - finally - sold our house. Trying to find someone in Florida to return a call - because they never answer their phones! - was difficult. I even tried contacting an old friend I grew up with who manages properties and even he never called back.

So how did we find a real estate agent who would call us? We went through Dave Ramsey's web site, clicked on his real estate Endorsed Local Provider (ELP) link, and found one in Florida near where we will be moving. In a few minutes we had a name (Steve DuToit) and contact info for our agent and in less than 24 hours we got a call from the agency with a very helpful agent who is assisting us in searching for a rental in the area. Dave comes through for us again! I know they are careful to endorse only great agents which makes me feel good about who we are working with.

It's pretty sad, in a sense, that something as simple as returning a phone call/email/etc. can make such a huge impact but so few do it. I can't tell you the number of churches I've contacted whom I've never heard from again. Several years ago this happened with a large well-known church in the Madison area. We had spent the entire day meeting on site with the search team and the senior pastor (who also gave us a tour of the city). We left with a great impression and were never contacted again - no email or anything to indicate that we had ever been there or been under consideration! Seriously, for churches that are supposed to be caring for people, the way they treat potential candidates is abysmal. I suppose it does give you a clue to the church leadership and culture, though.

In any event, we now have a realtor in the area we can work with and you can bet we'll be in touch in a few years when we're ready to buy another house. How hard would it have been for one of the other agents we tried to contact to reply? They could have had a faithful customer (and a cool write-up on our blog!)

It's a Sunshine Day!

You may already have heard via my Facebook page or the rela-net (relative network), but our house has sold and we will soon be moving to Florida. We're still waiting to lock down details on exactly when we'll be moving - depending on our closing date here and when we can find housing and employment in the Sunshine State - but we'll be back in my hometown of Bradenton by the end of May.

I never thought I would want to move back to Florida, but over the past year or so that has really changed. We were talking with a church in Bradenton recently about a youth ministry position and our whole family was very excited about the prospect. We decided that even if that opportunity did not work out, we all still really wanted to be in Bradenton near my Dad and the rest of my family and many friends who still live there. It'll be a great chance for Jordan and Jonah to get to spend more time with their grandparents on my side of the family whom they have only been able to see once a year or so until now. It may mean that I will be out of vocational ministry for a season, but we really feel like God is leading in this direction. I'll still be actively involved in a local church and be able to volunteer with the youth ministry wherever we end up attending.

Another attraction of living in Florida for us is the great weather. We are all very tired of the snow and cold - it seems like this winter has been worse than most. None of us are into winter sports (other than the occasional broomball game) but we love the water and swimming which we only had the chance to enjoy twice last year. I've lived in the Midwest for over twenty years now and am ready to warm back up!

We'll keep all our friends and family posted with our new address once we know what it will be. Our e-mails will remain the same so you can keep in touch that way, via my blog here, or through Facebook. Plus we'll look forward to having many of you visit and stay with us on vacation! (You can spring for Disney World.)