THROCKMORTON reunion was a blast.  Steve and I had  a wonderful trip to Texas this past weekend and got to spend time with about 40 Throckmortons.  Wow, what else can I say?

Today we closed on the home we are buying.  It will be a couple of weeks before we get moved in, but I am looking forward to decorating and making it (our) home.  I was almost moved to tears this evening while considering the goodness of God in giving us this home.  Yes, Steve & I are making payments on this home, but it was definately God who has made every provision.  Each step of the process he has made known his mighty power. 

I have been quite satisfied and thankful the past couple of years with the apartment that God blessed us with, but a few months ago we began to realize it might be time to move forward with purchasing another home.  In the natural,  things did not seem to be in place for that to be feasible or even possible.  Step by step we moved ahead with the process;  although, we reached a few hurdles, God gave us the strength to jump each one.

I know, I know, it's time for an update.  Where do I begin?  Okay, first of all my weight loss is still ongoing and I'm now 25 pounds lighter.  Praise God for that, plus I should be getting a copy of my lab work soon and I will update that at a later time.  I feel better than I have in years.  Praise God !

I started my new job at Belden's Jewelers at the Towne East Square ( the mall on the east side of Wichita).  Currently my position is part time, but hopefully will work into a full time job with benefits.   There is something crazy about my personality, I suppose, but I find challenges to be quite exciting and rewarding.  Trust me that must be true with so many changes going on in my life at almost 50 years of age. Karissa just graduated from high school and will be starting college in the fall.  So Steve and I will be empty nesters for the first time.  Also we close on our home in a little over a week and will be moving (again).  I thought this was the time in life that you were supposed to be settled somewhat.  Oh well, I guess that could be boring.

The fantastic news is that spiritually I'm more settled than I've ever been.  God is so good to me and his peace rules and reigns in my heart.  Believe you me, there are many challenges I face every day, but my experience with God has been tried and found true over and over again.  In fact some of the current challenges are as great as I've ever faced before, but the kingdom of God that reigns within gives me the strength and courage to fight, perservere, and win. 

I love where I am in my life at the present.  In four short months I will be 50.  In many ways that's hard for me to imagine, yet in others quite imaginable.  At almost half of a century, I have experienced a lot of life.  Many wonderful, precious memories have been mine to enjoy. 

Today I was sharing my feelings with Steve about where I see myself at this milestone in my journey.  I wouldn't want to return to my twenties as that was a long stretch of hard knocks.  Then in my thirties, I came to realize that life had not exactly turned out for me as I had envisioned or dreamed.  I had to face the reality of life, who I really was, where I was going, how I was going to get there.  Then came the forties, which at the present, have been my most enjoyable years (other than childhood and teen years). Those years have been spent in much introspection and allowing the healing of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ to transform me into the person I am today.  In true humbleness of heart, I have come to see myself as the lovely creation God intended me to be, with all of my flaws and imperfections, but beautiful in every way. 

I look forward to my fifties now, before it was a dreaded place to enter.  I am embracing life now one moment at a time.  My goal is to be truly "Fabulous & Fifty" in every way, body, soul, and Spirit.  I am well on my way as I have changed my lifestyle dramatically in the past 4 to 6 weeks.  Discipline is becoming my best ally, although for my personality type it's not always natural.  Exercise is my favorite companion (other than Steve).  Over the past 5 weeks I have lightened over 15 lbs. off of this small frame.  Eating has taken a back burner as I have whittled my caloric intake to a little over 1200 calories per day.  Soon I will be back in the land of employment and I look with anticipation to what God has in store for me.  Spiritually I am becoming more fit, engaging in warfare and winning against Satan and his demonic forces.

Let me encourage all of you younger women by stressing the importance of allowing the process of life to work for you.  Don't try and skip necessary steps of becoming exactly the woman God intended you to be.  Enjoy where you are now, even if it's not where you always want to be!  I welcome your feedback....

Good News!  Steve and I are under contract to purchase a home here in Wichita.  Praise God!  Each step of the process has been directed by the Holy Spirit.  Too long to go into that right now, but those of you in Wichita pretty much know anyway.  For those of our long distance family and friends, let's just say God is so faithful to us his children. 

The house will be great for hosting a house church or whatever God wants us to use it for.  It was built in the 1960's, so not a historic home like our Victorian one in Webb City; however of lot less upkeep.  The house is full brick, 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, formal living room, formal dining room, family room or den, roomy kitchen, attached 2 car garage. It's a little over 2100 square ft. of living space.  A lot smaller than our previous home, but after spending two years in a 900 square ft. apt., it'll feel plenty big enough for us I'm sure.  The really exciting part for us is that with the purchase price, we will be able to make cosmetic changes to the home and still be building good equity. Of course that means we get the opportunity to personalize this house, something that I really enjoy doing.  Those of you who know me understand that, right? 

It's hard to tell which one of us is more excited about this.  I of course am elated, Karissa can hardly wait, Steve is ecstatic(imagine that).   This apartment was supposed to be temporary housing for us, preferably no longer than six months.  That six months has been extended into over twenty-one months and extremely close to two years by our closing date.  At this moment closing is set for on or before June 5th.  The elderly woman we are purchasing the home from needs to find a place to live.  At the rate God has been orchestrating this process, we could well be moved in by May.  We have to follow the normal procedures for purchasing this house, inspections, etc., but as our prayer has been all along, "Thy will be done".