Travel Journal Day 2 West and South

Today we headed to Texas we drove for around 11 hours. It was a very long day. At one point we all had the giggles which I am sure would have been a sight to see.

The scenery today really was beautiful. Here on in we know it will continue to change. Today we went from hills, to prairie, and on to the wide open fields of Texas. Tomorrow we will get into more hot dry weather as we head more south through Arizona.
Here are some snap shots from our day today.


Gateway to the West!


Time for hugs!


Wind Power!


Visiting a very large cross with some wonderful statues to look at.






The sun sets on another day as we head west bringing us closer to a new home.

Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
John 16:24

Travel Journal Day 1 Headed West

Day 1
New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indian, Illinois. 12hours

Here we are again at the crack of dawn packing our belongings into the car. Headed in a new direction this time we set off and head south west, feeling much like pioneers. We are hopeful that the Lord is bringing us to a home that we can settle in. A place where we can stretch out and sink in our roots, we each have different ideas in our hearts how this might look. I see a hiking trail that winds off into the distance, my son Liam sees a friendly cat sitting in a window warming itself in the sun, my daughter Anna sees horses nibbling in a pasture, my son Noah sees large boulders to climb with the hopes of a snake nearby, and my husband I imagine he sees a winding country road, and himself on his motorcycle wind in his hair.

We are not completely sure yet what God has in store for us. But as we each look forward we also look heavenward thankful for all the blessings God has placed in our path on this most recent journey. Anna has a sign that hangs in her bedroom that we all enjoy reading it says God gives us dreams a size to big so that we can grow into them!

We have been experiencing crisp morning air.....


New towns along the way.....


Opportunities to stretch our legs and look around at new things.....


Wonderful old stinky books with stories that are new to us.....


And beautiful sunsets that each evening bring us a little closer to a new home.....


James 1:17
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Tea and Treasures at Grandpa's

We are visiting with my father Anna's Grandpa, before our big move to the west coast. Anna has a special relationship with her grandpa, when Anna was born we were actually living here with my father we had recently moved back from Alaska so this is Anna's first home. We are still enjoying Tea where ever we seem to be and our Tea time looks a little different, with our teapots and teacups packed up for our move.

We enjoyed Rooibos Tea with a little milk along with some enjoy life gluten free cookies. My Dad has a wonderful odd collection of mugs. Anna chose the vintage Star Trek mug that when heated shows the Captain Spock, Captain Kirk, and the doctor beaming in! The heat activates the image making it show up. So it was enjoyable watching them beam in on the mug hehehe!





I chose one of my Dad's old work mugs. He is retired now but I think this mug is probably about 20 years old. This is a great mug it looks like it may last for another 20 years! It says get enthused with Tower Power lol!! that must have been great motivation in the office.



Anna enjoying some gluten free cookies. Lucy hoping Anna drops one on the floor!


We also went out to the thrift store before our tea time so we had fun looking at our thrift store treasures during tea.
We found some new to us but old books to read. .50cents



A hand knit sweater vest! 1.00$


A very old marled knit cardigan looks like it is from the 70's $1.00


And we looked at it all through our new glasses and boy did everything look so nice crisp and clear hehehe!!


We hope that you have a blessed Thursday filled with much sunshine, lots of laughter, warm family love, and a spot of Tea!

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13:13

Snapshots from San Diego!

Thank goodness Adrian thought to bring paper and a pencil on the plane, I was completely unprepared for a long plane flight!

Our trip to San Diego went well. We looked at many homes took in all the beautiful scenery, and discovered what area we would like our family to live in. Apparently Adrian and I left quite the impression on the realty office as well. They are wondering who these people are who can some into town and in three days find a house make an offer and have it accepted! Well we all know that is definitely nothing to do with us but more with the amazing God we serve who is faithful to his children. And what a wonderful legacy that we live that people say "who are they" about our family? and we can then point them to the direction of our Heavenly Father. Also I will add that I also mentioned many times our wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ who have so faithfully been praying for us. God has heard every prayer and we see and feel testimony to this everyday. And this is all pretty extraordinary when you hear about people they are currently serving who have put 50 plus offers on houses with no sellers taking and they are not seeing any end in sight for getting into a house.

Now our realtor has a funny saying about buying a house in California he always says it is only business till you get the keys. It makes most buying situations seem pretty bleak out here. But so far we seem to be making progress with the offer we made on one particular house and with everyone including us praying we are hopeful that in a few weeks we will be able to call it home. There is still much to pray about it needs to pass inspection and many other details need to happen. So we will just keep lifting that all up to the Lord.

Here are some snapshots of our trip, the landscape pictures are from the area we hope to be living in. It is a desert like climate, much different from the tropical oasis we have known in Florida. There are also some pictures of the Pacific ocean that edges San Diego also much different from the Atlantic coastlines that we have recently been exploring.





















"I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ." Philemon1:6

Thank you for all the prayers ~Love The Watts Family!

On our way again but not home yet!

Praise be to God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade kept in Heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 1Peter 1:3-7

Adrian and I have finished up with our house hunting trip in San Diego and are ready to fly back tomorrow. I can't wait to get home and see my children, I really do not like being away from them. But I am thankful that my Father has been very busy taking care of them and they could be with family.

We have a few offers out there on some houses but here in California the real estate is really quite ridiculous. There is nothing straight forward and they are all about doing things not by the book and in the most misleading ways. So it's really in Gods hands now what the out come will be and hopefully we will have some accept our offer.

Now we are into crunch time and we will be preparing for the movers this week and then on Sunday heading out on our long drive to San Diego. Adrian wants to take route66 so that should be a great adventure for all of us.

I am trying to just take this all in. I am definetly feeling overwhelmed and spending much time in prayer and in my bible to remind me of who I am, where I belong, and the things that are most important. We are inbetween homes and are not sure where we will end up, but we have much faith that God knows exactly where we will be.

Jesus said to them" My Father is always at work to this very day, and I too am working."John5:17

Beautiful and Different Country

We have arrived safely in San Diego, thanks so much for all those praying for us we so appreciate and covet your prayers during this time. It is such a comfort to hear the bing bing of my blackberry and look down and see such encouraging words and prayers offered to us. I can't even tell you how much it means. I leave them in my phone and go back and reread them as encouragement. As many of you know moving is not easy no matter how the situation is packaged. So thank you again for the prayers and encouragement they are wonderful reminders that we are in the hands of The Lord Almighty as we walk day by day through this move.

We have had a day and a half now to drive all over and really get a feel for the area. Adrian and I have definitely fell in love with the country out here. It is so different from any where we have lived and so beautiful in new ways that we have not seen before.



We have spent much time enjoying the majestic scenery on the country roads looking for afordable homes for sale. We are hoping that once we meet with the realtor today he will be able to show us some homes that might work for us.

Heading West!

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Adrian and I will be leaving the children with Grandpa and heading west to San Diego. We have a few days to look for houses and get a feel for Sunny San Diego. Then we are back just in time for the movers to pack our apartment and then we hop in the car and drive west!

I do not think that this has really all sunk in yet. It almost seems like a dream. Which is probably in part from trying to fight off this infection in my mouth while trying to also move cross country and home school.

I felt very blessed today to discover a satellite school in San Diego that will very easily contact our Umbrella school in Florida that we use and it seems fairly simple to switch over with the homeschooling yet another answered prayer.

I should have lots to share when we get back from our house hunting trip. And here is a picture of some of our journey's as a family from the different places we have lived. The new red line to San Diego is now on the map!

The LORD gave this command to Joshua son of Nun: "Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the Israelites into the land I promised them on oath, and I myself will be with you."Deuteronomy 31:23
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."
Joshua 1:9

Kind of Inbetween........

At times like this it is especially wonderful and a blessing to be a follower of Christ and to know where we belong. We are in between places now with our move waiting for the movers to call and set a date yet enjoying our visit in New York with family, and then of course wondering what God has in store for us in San Diego. This Thursday Adrian and I fly out to California to look for a new home.



Our home school right now takes place in Grandpa's kitchen. Which is the wonderful blessing of homeschooling our children. Their stability comes from God and since we are on the rock the whole world could be moving and we can still function normally and peacefully. I think it is truly an enriching experience that the children can open their books anywhere and sit down and study when it is time for school. Our classroom may constantly be changing but the core of our Christian Home school always stays the same.



I have some photos to share with you of a wonderful heirloom that we leave here at my fathers house. Since it is so special we do not want to risk it being damaged or broken in our frequent moves.



My Grandfather was a carpenter and a very good one. He has made some wonderful pieces of furniture. The piece I would like to share with you is the Doll house that he made for me. It is Cleaning day in the doll house today since it was rather messy, but the dolls are now enjoying a nice clean and organized house thanks to Anna! Most of the furniture is the same furniture that I played with as a child.














Boy those dolls look tired after all that cleaning!!



Matthew 7:24-27 (New International Version)
The Wise and Foolish Builders

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

The Wisdom Tooth Saga Continues...

Well here is the rest of the story of my on going drama with my wisdom teeth hehe! I sure am feeling grateful to be in God's hands surrounded by his perfect timing and divine will. I once again sparked up yet another infection in my mouth where my wisdom teeth were pulled. This has been a very painful experience. For weeks now I have been on my oral surgeon that I felt like I was coming down with an infection. I think I had been in his office at least once a week and he kept telling me no that it looks fine. At one point I spoke with another doctor on call who prescribed me a very mild antibiotic but I knew it was not going to do anything. The first antibiotic helped very minimally but in the back of my mind I had this feeling that all it was going to do was cause it to become a raging infection.

So sure enough yesterday I knew it was getting ugly my mouth began to swell with much pain. But I feel blessed with how it is all turning out. I was able to get in with my old dentist here in NY and my Dad was able to help out with the children. Looks like I had a socket filled with pus *lovely I know* and so the dentist used this needle like syringe to flush it all out with a peroxide solution. Which was a pretty awful experience with just the most raw pain to follow. I now have some nice strong penicillin in hand and I am praying for a swift recovery with hopefully some relief from this pain, swelling, and exhaustion the tell tale signs of infection.

But God is so good, I was so thankful to be home and be seen by a dentist that did not just send me home again, the dentist even waved all the xray fees since I am no longer eligible for them because I have already had a ton. And it has been a blessing to have the extra helping hands of family around.

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I would like to share with you some snapshots from around the area we are staying in.
Over the weekend we went to a Blues Festival that Adrian's mother helped organize. There was some fabulous music and lots of bikers. Not quite the crowd though for Adrian and I, although we enjoy biking we are first Christians and the Biker crowd seemed a little to intense for us. In California we are hoping to hook up with a group called Biker's for Christ that we have been hearing about.


Look at all those motorcycles ours was in there somewhere!

And here are some snap shots of Buffalo New York, some of the Art I spotted while driving around town. Buffalo is a wonderful city for artists it reminds me some of Seattle, you will see some punk rockers but I love how freely people express there creativity even if it is in the form of pink hair hehe! Being an artist and a creative person myself I love environments that support artists and encourage them.
Buffalo also has fabulous architecture which I when I am feeling better will definitely get some shots of to share!












After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. "Follow me," Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.
Luke 5:27-28