Finally! We have a place! Part Deux!

Here are pictures of our new place!  These were taken before we moved stuff, and I'll take more after we unpack and decorate!

Our Cute Little Home!

Our Front Porch

Our Kitchen (1st half)

Our Kitchen (2nd Half)

Our Dining Room

Our Livingroom (1st half)

Our Livingroom (2nd half)

The Sweet HUGE door from the Livingroom to the Guest Room/Den

The Guest Room/Den

Asa and Emmett's Room (Asa is super excited!)

Our Room

Our nice long Bathroom

So that's the new place!  I really look forward to making it a home!

The Story behind this house:

The fall before Brandon and I got married, we had driven past this house and noticed that it was for sale, and so we stopped and got one of the fliers.  We really liked the idea of owning a home, and it got our minds thinking about it.  The house was quickly snapped up, and we didn't stand a chance.  But God was good, and we found our apartment, and have lived here for 18 months.
Over the last 18 months, we've tried looking at houses twice, but it never worked out (see Previous blog Title "So Long, Fare Well").  Brandon and I both agreed that we just felt like the Lord was saying, "Wait, I have something planned, and I want you to wait".  But our lease was up, and we needed to move.  So we started looking at new places to rent.
We found a cute 2 bedroom in Ankeny that would've been great.  It was close to Brandon's work, and my sister and mom's houses, and had all the amenities that we wanted.  We were pretty excited about it.  And the landlord was very sweet.  A few nights later, we agreed to fill out the application and send it in.  But before I mailed it, I felt very anxious, and took that to the Lord.  I talked it out with Brandon, and we agreed (once again), to keep looking, just in case.
**side note, this house went on the market again back in March, which is what got the ball rolling a 3rd time for looking at places, lol, but again, was snapped up before we started officially looking**
I was looking on Craigslist that night, and saw an ad for "DMU/Drake House", and I skipped over it because I thought for sure, it was going to be in a bad neighborhood... like the one we want to get out of.
I kept looking, and I went and looked at several apartment buildings, and found a lot of really great ones.  But all the ones we liked didn't have openings until mid August, and we needed be out before August 1st.  As I continued to look on Craigslist, I kept seeing this ad "DMU/Drake House"... so finally I looked at the ad.  What was interested was that there was no address, not even a cross street mentioned, just pictures... but I recognized the pictures.  It was same house that got us thinking about homes 2 years ago!  I was in shock!  So I emailed the gentleman.  I heard back from him, and the rest was just God's amazing handy work playing out in front of us!
I am truly amazed at how evident God made himself during these last few weeks.  And I'm even more amazed at the plan that he had in mind for us.
Granted, we will probably grow out of this house, but I love that God took into consideration the desires of my heart while he was guiding us to a new home.

In other news, I've also learned the disastrous effects of Evil.  My van was broken into 2 mornings ago before I left for work.  It's so sad.  They stole my wallet and pretty diaper bag (which was actually just a very large purse).  I lost all of our credit cards, checks, and a lot of money that we had just received after pay day and were going to use to purchase a new washer and dryer THAT evening.  It's been a crazy few days trying to get everything sorted out.  But God is so gracious.  He's blessed us with AMAZING Family and Friends who have been there to help us through.  So here's a thank you to ALL of my family who has been very understanding and been so helpful with the boys.  And a thank you to ALL of our friends who have helped us out.  A special Thank you so Christine, my sister, who graciously let the boys spend the night so that Brandon and I could take time to meet with our new Landlords and pack, and another special Thank you to Anthony and Kathy Johanns, you know what you did!

Prayer Request:
That the move would go smoothly and no one would get hurt while moving furniture from our 3rd floor apartment to the new place.
That I would forgive the person who stole from us.
That the person who stole from us would find Salvation in Christ, and repent of their sins.

Thank you all so much!  We love you so much!