Beyond settling in

People are still asking us if we are feeling settled here and we realized this week that we have indeed past that temporary, but critical phase of transition and have moved into the next stage of life here. I'm not sure what we are calling it, but I would like to come up with a name I think.

Last Friday we invited about half of our block (the people we have talked with), several people we have met from the dog park (worthy of it's own post - the dog park), and couple families from church over to celebrate Olivia's birthday and our first Fall in San Diego. We called it A Pie Stop-by - so I had to make some pies, right?

I was nervous. Would people come? Would they stay? Would they like my pie? Every single person we invited came. We couldn't believe it. And they stayed...talking with each other for a long time. We found ourselves introducing next door neighbors to one another. One couple said they had lived here 15 years and never been inside another neighbors home. This is why we are no longer settling in. God has given us a job here. A role to play on our block. We knew we would have a role here, that is why we rented the ABF truck and moved our stuff. We just didn't know where it would start exactly and what it would look like specifically. This party is only one of the many ways lately God is affirming his call of us here.