Crazy van Renens part 2.

Yes, it did most certainly not happen quite as smoothly as we had set it out in our minds.
Nr 1- We still had like a house to sell
Nr2- I didnt have a transfer yet- even though I had been stalking HR for months and it was  January. Time was money.
We just prayed. I cried. And then we prayed some more.

Somehow it wasnt a reality to me I suppose. Like move to Cape town. Really?!
Ive dreamt of it ever since I figured out we would never move to Durban, because there was no film industry.  Or ...sorry...but no music industry either.

But anyway, on the day of my 30th birthday everyone was welcomed with a massive For Sale sign outside the house. I guess thats how we broke the news.

And then two weeks later, end February- we accepted an offer. It was a miracle- surely from here on forward it would be smooth sailing.

As Rafiki would say : "No, wronnnng again!"

I needed a transfer!

The call came middle March- just after UIF finally paid me after 4 months of endless phone calls, queues and tears. Yes I cried a lot. It was really horrible. I envisioned staying in a one bedroomed apartment with my sister, 2 kids and 2 (naughty Scotties), while Loedi goes to Cape town without us.
Yes, 13 days before 7 April I got the call.
If I want a position that has just opened up for me, I had to start in 13 days.

Of course I said Yes.

Did we have a moving company? No.
Did we have storage?No
Did we have a school for the kids? No.
Is this really happening? Yes.

Looking back- I guess thats why UIF took such  a long time- God knew better. The money came in as a lump sum, exactly enough to cover the whole move. And let me add- the move  and storage quote in itself had God written all over it.

At this stage youre probably thinking "poor people". And at the time we really did feel super sorry for ourselves. "God, why us? We are good people."
I never thought I'd stoop as low as to question God's motives.
Fact is- we were getting it easy, really.
Our parents came through for us, praying for us, blessing us. My in laws opened their home to us for as long as we needed to stay. They started looking for schools, day mothers, even ballet classes for Hunter. And they interviewed them. They gave away their tortoise so that our dogs could take over the yard. O gosh all we had to do was pack up and leave.

So.

I cancelled my holiday to Durban, and Loedi went to Splashy fen, without me, again.. I was left to pack half of the house by myself, leaving the other half to Loedi for when he returned (coincidently on the day the kids and I would leave).

Storm wasnt sleeping well, but I was on maternity leave so it didnt really bother me. She would wake at 11pm, 3am and 5 30 am which wasnt too bad.

The real thing I was struggling with was letting go of oumie and my sister. I sat crying with oumie until I freaked out Hunter. It really must have gotten to her, because months later she saw me get upset one day and suddenly she said : "Please dont cry like that day when you said goodbye to oumie?"

Of course I was going to miss my friends, but they werent old and helpless. Also- I would see them just about as much as I currently was...

So I just soldiered on, packing our lives into boxes and bags- future unknown.

The kids and I were booked on the 8am one way flight to Cape town on 5 April...

Crazy van Renens . Part 1.

I find it quite shocking that I havent posted anything in nearly 10 months. Truth be told, theres so much happening all the time, that I keep on postponing it- but at the end of the day the story just gets longer.

Last week the pastor at our church said something that made me want to write all the more. He said that we must share our testimonies. Ive always done that, so why stop now? Because of Time? That sounds rather lame.
When we just moved to Capetown I also listened to a sermon called: What are you doing with the Promise God gave you?
Uh....

So here goes- 10 months in a nutshell spread over 4 days.

It all started with Loedi switching jobs in October last year- fully believing that he made the right choice-but being retrenched 3 months later. Yes- during the month Storm was born and that meant that I was already on a 30% salary cut. It took a lot of strength to not resent his employer and stay away from living in regret.

It got intense- we cut down on every unnecessary expense possible- DSTV, garden services- you name it.  The only place we never compromised on was blessing those in need. I remember this one day, where a friend asked me for money to buy her baby formula- and the amount she needed was exactly what I had left in my account, and I still gave it to her.Looking back, I believe these type of gestures saved us during that time. Because God sees everything.
Is this embarrassing to share? Ofcourse, but if I could encourage one person or family going through a difficult time right now , it would be worth it.

Luke 6:38
"give and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap, for with the measure you use it will be measured back to you"

And as more encouragement:
Matthew 6:31-32

"Do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'..."for your Father knows all these things"

As much as we prayed and sometimes just sat staring helplessly at each other, we put the house in the market. We would just move to Capetown and start over. Loedi will start his own company, his life long dream, i would get a transfer, we would stay with his parents temporarily and the kids would have an amazing future. We declared it over our lives. Crazy van Renen style.

Well.
It didnt go quite as smoothly.

(Tune in tomorrow for the crazy journey to cape town, our marriage test, sleep deprivation, living with the in laws, our support system and a whole lot more you thought you knew about us)

Be blessed,
Lee