Go Away Rosanna!

It has been a crazy five months, since I last posted in August. It seems that an unwelcome guest had moved in with us, by the name of Rosanna, Rosanna Danna. You've met her before, right? She is famous for her saying "...if it's not one thing, it's another!" Every day, it was something new. Duckie died. Pipes froze, and then drain lines, and we narrowly missed flooding the camper. Mold abounds; we lost the bottom half of our mattress and then discovered a leak in the roof and now there is mold in the space between the roof and the ceiling. The Hillbilly hurt his back, bad. I got sick in January and still can't kick this cough. Less than three weeks ago I got a text; my dad was headed in for quadruple by-pass surgery, so I threw some stuff in a bag and spent the next two weeks in GA. And we have had our usual ups and downs with the Outlaws, some worse than others. These are just a few of the things that stand out. Honestly, there at the end of the year, it was something new EVERY day!

And yet. God is good, all the time. And all the time, God is GOOD!

I have seen families torn asunder by lesser trials than we have been through in the last 10 months. And here we are. All cozily living in our 250 square feet, getting on each other's nerves from time to time (ok, since we are being honest, on a regular basis) but when the rubber meets the road, we are tight. We are growing amazing relationships with our kids and they are learning compassion on a deeper level than many adults ever do. They are learning to live with little and be content. To share. To let the needs of someone else supersede their own needs, and be okay with that. It is something wonderful to experience.

We have also made some new friends up here, and have been richly blessed by their kindness and sweet friendship. We have been heartily lifted up in prayer by our family, those related by blood and those related by life. I celebrated my 50th surrounded by the folks who have invested themselves into our lives, and I can't imagine doing this life without them all! Oh, and toothpaste! Remind me to tell you THAT story!! It deserves it's own post!

And then this:

I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
From where shall my help come? 
My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth. 
He will not allow your foot to slip;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel
Will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is your keeper;

The Lord is your shade on your right hand. 

The sun will not smite you by day,

Nor the moon by night. 
The Lord will protect you from all evil;
He will keep your soul.
The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in
From this time forth and forever.

Psalm 121 NASB

Enough said.