You know that verse that says, “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep” (Rom. 12:15)? Well, I invite you to do that with me.

When we moved to Houston, we knew that it would be a while before the moving van arrived with our goods. Because of this, we (the kids and I) were looking forward to a couple of weeks of vacation-ish time, with nothing much to do.

Well, it hasn’t quite turned out that way. We have, instead, been fairly busy, with things to rejoice about, and some things that made us feel like weeping a bit…while giving thanks in all things, of course!

Following are some snippets of our time so far. We’ll label them, just for giggles, as “good” and “bad” in place of “rejoice” and “weep” for two reasons:

Nothing that has happened has really warranted weeping. Nothing, that is, except for saying goodbye to Layne and Rett at the airport (THAT one I have wept quite a bit about) and saying goodbye to other family and friends.

Good and “Bad” lend themselves well to the humorous nature of these sorts of lists. Good and bad aren’t really accurate, however, when one believes that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose, and walk not after the flash, but after the Spirit (my paraphrase of Rom. 8:28). So, when you read “Bad”, think “Less Pleasant”.

Another, more serious reason to use the words “good” and “bad” is that as challenges presented themselves, the Lord kept spurring me on to just keep moving forward, looking for the best ways to solve each problem (“Keep calm and carry on”, maybe??).

Here we go:

Good: The younger Hubers had all been anticipating our flying down to Houston together as a family. In fact, the request had been made that we have as many layovers as possible, for maximum experience. Dad and Mom didn’t share that desire. We settled on one layover in Dallas.

For most of them, this was their first time on a plane. The day was finally here!

“Bad”: We had to say goodbye to Layne and Rett at the airport. That ranked right up there with one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I still cry when I think of it.

Good: Our flights were fun, but uneventful, other than the obligatory turbulence.

Good: we arrived here safely on Sat. evening, July 6, 2013.

“Bad”: We had no vehicle.

So Very Good: Ray and Katie, our wonderful realtor and his lovely wife, who are quickly becoming friends, picked us up at the airport — in two vehicles, to accommodate us and our luggage!

“Bad”: Stepping outside of the airport was like stepping into a sauna. We vaguely wondered, “So, how do you breathe, here?!”

Good: We came at the hottest part of the year, and are therefore jumping in with both feet. The temperature only gets better from here.

Also Good: Ray and Katie’s vehicles were, of course, air conditioned.

Also Very, Very Good: Our house was air conditioned. Cold, in fact, after being outside.

“Bad”: We were awfully hungry, after being in the air much of the day.

Deliciously Good: Katie brought along a delicious huge meal of hamburger crock pot stew, salad, and dessert. Yum!

“Bad” We had no beds. We were pretty exhausted. There was nothing to sit on but a huge, hard window seat.

Good: We had a window seat to sit on!

Good: Another great family, Doug and Pam Dickie, who are also becoming friends, and Doug’s awesome parents lent us some air mattresses.

“Bad”: It was about 10 PM by the time we were done eating our dinner.

Good: The Dickies were still up. Ben and Daelynn drove off into the long-past sunset to borrow some air mattresses.

Speaking of sunsets, it’s really weird to call our sons Layne and Rett later in the evening, after it’s dark here and our kids are heading to bed, and find out that it’s still broad daylight in Calgary, and the guys and their friends are up and playing volleyball or whatever.

“Bad”: That first evening in our new house, one of our Dear Children was opening a window blind — and it flew off the window onto the floor. Oops. It’s still waiting to be reinstalled.

Good: We finally got everyone settled onto various air mattresses and to sleep.

Our big moving day was complete. What a shock to start out Saturday morning living in Calgary, and by evening to be living in Houston (Cypress).

After way too much packing (and not enough time to do it well), we are on our way.  Layne and Rett came with us to the airport to say farewell (and drive the big white van home).

Some pictures of the episode thus far…

The first long line (subsequent lineups at customs and security moved a whole lot quicker).

Rett says his goodbyes.

Lori and the guys

It took a while to clear the ticketing and bag weighing (sadly we had one bag over the limit and choose to pay the extra fee rather than attempting to re-pack very full suitcases on the fly).

Then it was time to say goodbye to Layne and Rett and get in the customs line, which wasn’t too long and moved quickly.

We ran into a hitch in Customs, whereby they could not admit the kids on relation to my visa without birth certificates and our marriage, all of which were securely packed at home. However with us coming back to Calgary in October, the were able to admit them on a visitor visa.  Major crisis averted.

Clearing security was interesting as our “food” carry on suitcase was flagged as suspicious.  The home movers will not transport food across the border.  so we have a suitcase with spices, vitamins, and other small cooking items.  Thankfully after opening it, they eventually cleared it.

Everything took a while and we got to the gate just a couple of minutes before they started boarding.

Here we are at the gate:

And on the plane…

And that’s all for this post.  We’re starting to descend into Dallas.  I’ll try and upload it there.

Just to let anyone know what is going on with the Hubers – we are currently in the Dallas airport, having just eaten at the local high-brow Wendy’s establishment. We are getting ready to take a spin around on the Skylink traing.

Ben