Friday, March 23, 2007

ARIZONA HERE WE COME!!!


I've been kinda MIA (missing in action) for a few days, I did come in to post my Slow Cooker Recipe but haven't even made it to everyone to say hi, the reason is that we got orders and we are PCSing (Permanent Change of Station) to Luke AFB, Arizona.

Yep, Arizona here we come, bring on the hot weather, the grand canyon, the petrified wood forest and most of all, bring on the closer proximity to the beach. LOL


Yes, my kids have never seen the ocean but we're going to be much closer to California and being able to drive to the beach. I'm OVER the moon.

We're so excited and I have to tell you, God works in mysterious but amazing ways. You know that we've been planning our trip to Africa this summer, everything was pretty much ready and done, we just had to save a bit more money to get the tickets which were $8000.

I have been praying every night and asking the Lord to please help us get to Africa somehow because it's a lot of money and it's just not really doable right now. Thank you Lord, you answered my prayers. Yes we're moving to Arizona, but we're going to be just a few miles from Phoenix which has an International Airport. Since we will be moving during the month that we were supposed to be in Africa, we've decided to look into going there maybe for Christmas for about 3 weeks, and wouldnt' you know it, the plane tickets are WAY WAY cheaper???? $3000 CHEAPER!!!!!

I could be negative and say "Oh but we still have to pay so much and we can't go in the summer, I really wanted to stay at THIS base blah blah blah", but we've all chosen to be positive, downright giddy with excitement for the new possibilities and a new place to live. We're so excited it's actually sickening to be around us right now LOL


Now the fun part begins, PACKING!!! Laura Laura where art thou LOL I could really use your organizational skills for this move.

I'm either a sick person or I don't know, but I'm looking forward to packing.....yep, I think I'm not normal, who in their right mind looks forward to packing up a whole house???

So the kids are excited but also sad, they were both born here on this base, so I've decided that I'm going to take pictures of ANYTHING they want, no matter how silly it may sound to me, then we'll make a Scrapbook that they can keep forever and whenever they're sad or miss Idaho, they can look through it.

Anyway, I have a LOT of things to do, lots of planning involved, paperwork, moving etc....3 months goes by really fast. I am coming by to say hi to the ladies that left their recipes yesterday, I can't wait to see them.

Hope you all have a wonderful day, I'll be back tomorrow with my Five Senses Saturday.

Oh and I want to send a big hug and kiss to Anabela in South Africa, I can't believe you read my blog, it makes me happy :)

God Bless,

20 comments:

Susanne said...

I am so excited for you! Arizona! No more scraping snow off windsheids or remembering to turn you defrost button on!

That is such a great idea for your kids to do as memories!

Happy packing!

Maggie said...

Hi Sandra, Congrats on all the good news. I'll be watching for your moving and packing tips. We are getting closer to putting our house on the market. But we will be moving maybe 30 miles form our current home so we can do it ourselves and in shifts.

Kelli said...

We just moved to the big AZ ourselves. If you want, email me and maybe once you're settled (we aren't either, don't worry) we can share some tips to survival here :)

Unknown said...

congrats on your move to sunnier climates and the beach and everything, would you believe on March 21 the first day of spring we had another 5-6" of snow and then it was 10 degrees and sunny yesterday i think Mother Nature is so confused right now. So happy for all of of you take care Sue in northern b.c. canada

AliceAnderson said...

How exciting for you! Both the move and definitely the cheaper tickets. I'd be dancing on the ceiling. :)

My Trendy Tykes said...

Good luck with the big move....and packing!

Linda

Eden said...

How exciting!!! AZ is definitely warmer than ID, I'm sure. We'll be closer to each other, I think. It would be so neat to meet you.

We'll be PCSing soon too. Steve is already in Monterey. We're just waiting until he is given permission to put in to have us moved.

Oh, will you be doing a DITY or will you be letting the AF come in and pack all your things and move them for you?
Just curious because we're trying to decide if we want to do a DITY or just let the AF do everything.
Any suggestions?? This is all so very new to us and I have tons and tons of questions.

Sandra said...

Thank you all for the well wishes ;)

Eden - We might do a partial DITY move, I just had a friend do an actual DITY and it was the biggest pain in the butt. You have to move everything, which means you pack the whole house yourself and drive the huge truck etc. When you get to your next base, you unpack everything too LOL
We will probably do a PDITY, partial DITY and move some of the stuff ourselves, let the AF move the rest. If you ever have any questions feel free to contact me :)

Paula said...

I'm so happy that you're happy! When we made a long-distance move I didn't mind the packing; it was the unpacking that nearly drove me insane!

You are doing a very good thing by finding the POSITVE side of taking your trip later than anticipated. I hope everything goes smoothly! :)

Michelle said...

Congrats on the orders!! How exciting - especially since this works out better for you for the trip to Africa! Guess it's a good thing you didn't get too far in your house hunting process!

Hey we are not too far from AZ - actually we have a mutual blogger friend in that area; it would be neat if our 3 families could meet up! Email me and I'll let you know who it is (I can't remember if she's shared her location or not). So send me an email!

Courtney said...

OMG! OMG! Wow I'm so excited for you!!! I'm so glad you get to see your family & you seem so happy Sandra! I just wish it was closer to me:( but I'm still happy for ya! God is good. No, God is great!

Kelli said...

That is so exciting, Sandra!!!! I'm so happy for you and your family and wonderful news about the plane tickets too!!!


Kelli

Christina said...

I feel for you with all the work it takes to PCS, but I am so happy to hear you will get to go to Africa. That is awesome. Also I have heard Arizona is a great place to be. You aren't far from Texas either. Texas is pretty cool I think. Good luck on the move and I hope it all goes smooth.

gail@more than a song said...

I'm so excited for you! How wonderful that y'all are excited, such new adventures ahead for you. And I'm glad your trip to Africa is working out too.
Keep us all updated!

Unknown said...

Congrats on your new assignment. Arizona is definitely warm and close to CA. I'm sure you'll love it!

Laura said...

Sandra I'm here! I've been away and I was just now trying to catch up on bloglines and see that you are moving! How exciting, especially to have some nice HOT weather!! I'm so happy you get to go home at Christmas time, how wonderful is that!
Yes moving is never fun but I have a feeling you will have everything under control and will be just fine :)
Laura

Unknown said...

I live just about 2 miles directly west of LAFB. Matter of fact we get a free airshow almost everyday which is wonderful. Nothing better than the sound of Freedom. It is wonderful here, I have been lived by the base for about 19 years now and even thought the summers get hot there is always a way to keep cool. Welcome!

Unknown said...

I know what's that because I'm also moving but the difference is:it's just one road down (ehehehe) but I also have to pack and I've been there for 18 years as you know Sandra.So you can imagine a lot of things, my God.
Anyway Sandra, I'm happy because fron now on you'll be in a central place so in about 2 years time I hope to go there.
Love
Nela

Jen said...

I'm trying to catch up. How exciting. I'm so happy for you. The Grand Canyon....wow. You are going to be busy honey. I'm so happy for you though....a change.And letting the kids take pictures of everything will be a great summer project for them. What a grand idea. Keep us posted...and I will pray for your safe move girl.

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