Our house in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, through the seasons

I was born & raised in Florida where they say that the only change is in the license plates (when all the "snowbirds" from the north flock to the warmer weather there!) I never saw snow till I was an adult and moved away.

We have lived in Ft. Wayne, IN for nearly 3 1/2 years now. Though Rick & I have moved a lot in over 33 years of marriage, this is the farthest north that I've ever lived. We definitely have changes in seasons here. It's hard to imagine on a gorgeous summer day that it could ever get so cold and it's hard to believe that it will ever be warm again when it seems like the arctic. Here are some views of our house that I've taken over the years.



Christmas scene, complete with a Moravian star, a mainstay of our decorations since our days in Winston-Salem, NC



Late winter, early spring scene in FW - it's nearly summer before I can plant flowers around Mother's Day



Late spring, early summer - I love planting flowers and watching the humming birds when they return




2008

2008

Sunflowers have been a part of our late summer/early fall yards in Port Charlotte, FL and Buford, GA as well as Fort Wayne.

Autumn scene

All in all, I like living in Ft. Wayne. It's a pretty nice place to live, despite the FREEZING half of the year. When I married a "preacher," I knew that our life would be interesting & it has been. We married in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, where we met. We have ministered in Birmingham, AL, Arlington, TX, Lake Worth, FL, Winston-Salem (Midway), NC, Port Charlotte, FL, and Duluth, GA (near Atlanta) before moving to Indiana. I've met lots of wonderful people & enjoy keeping in touch with many of them.

My biggest complaint is being so far from our spread out family. My parents and brother's family live in the Orlando area, Missy & family live near Pensacola, FL, Becky lives in Augusta, GA and Paul and Katie live in Nashville, TN. I'm so very thankful for all of the ways that we can keep in touch. I definitely know that the Lord is using us here in Ft. Wayne & has a purpose for us being here. But, I have asked Him more than once how it is fair that some people live in the same town with all of their family and we're apart so much of the time from ours. In that sense, I can empathize with missionaries, who live much farther away from family for longer periods of time. It's a good reminder to pray for missionary friends.

If you live near your family & they drive you nuts at times, hug them tight and be thankful. You don't know what a blessing you have. :)