* Found a home!!
* Moved into said home!
* Unpacking!
* Dad, August, Seth and Ben headed down to the Denver, CO for an Iron Maiden concert
* Took a quick trip to Idaho to visit family (specifically Grandma Great)
* The girls had their 8th Birthday! They have been wanting to get their ears pierced since they were 6 and we had told them that they could on their 8th birthday! They are super excited to be able to wear earrings. We celebrated their birthday in Idaho :)
* Ben stayed back on the farm to help grandpa with his chores and to spend time with Grandma and Grandpa Vogt
* Mom got a calling as a Scout leader and so has been going to cub scouts on Wednesday nights (for the Wolfs)
* Celebrated Mothers Day!
Our "Nice, Hot Breakfast" was delivered!!! We are so grateful! Here's the story...
My (mom) full-time job has pretty much been looking for a home. I check Zillow, Realtor.com, Billings Rental forums on FB and freerentalfinder.com multiple times a day PLUS go to each of the 12 individual Management Property websites daily. Looking for a house has consumed me! The inventory in Billings is very limited to begin with and there was literally only 1 or 2 homes that could even be a serious consideration for us. I was getting stressed. I was worried we'd not find something in time and have to start paying for the hotel out of pocket (which retailed for about $600/night for the place we were in)... plus our 30 days of storage for our household goods was quickly coming to an end! Several times I felt anxious enough to consider taking one of those "Milk and Bread" homes and start the moving in process but then John would remind me to have faith and patience on the Lord.
It was a Wednesday morning and I'd already checked all of my daily sites (actually twice already and it was only noon!) when I went to freerentalfinder.com and clicked on "new residential listings" like I always did when I saw a new property pop up and my heart literally did a little flutter and my stomach did a flip flop and I just felt that this is what Heavenly Father had been preparing for us! It was a 4 bedroom/3 bathroom, 2900 sqft home on 2+ acres right on along the Yellowstone River (plus a 3 car garage that also had an office and work space included) and was located in Park City (20 miles west of Billings). I immediately sent John the listing and called him and he was just as excited so I called the owner (who didn't answer so I left a message telling them that we were very interested in viewing the house that day). I got a text back shortly that stated he'd call me later that day to set something up. We were so excited! The whole afternoon passed and no call. As the evening approached, I texted the owner and asked if it was possible for us to come that night to check it out (it was about 6pm at this point) and he replied that he was trying to set something up. He indicated it was empty but he was trying to arrange someone to come let us in (since he lived out of town) but wasn't be successful at getting a hold of anyone. So we went to bed with the plan that we'd get up super early and head over to the house to check it out and see the location and peek through the windows to see if it was anything we even wanted to pursue. John had to be back in Billings to work by 8 so we were up and out the door by 6:30am. The closer we got the house, the more excited we became. As we turned on the private drive, our hearts were soaring and we kept saying to each other "I love it already and I love this area!" and then as we pulled into the driveway and saw the house we both exclaimed "This is it!!" We got out and walked around the grounds and just couldn't believe it! We peeked in the windows and loved what we saw. On the back deck, we were looking in through the patio door and for fun, I twisted the handle which was unlocked and opened up to a beautiful kitchen! We both thought "this is trespassing but we want to see it!" so we did a super fast walk-through (like less than 5 minutes) of all 3 levels and quickly went back outside. There was no doubt... this was our house! We walked back out to view the river and then we noticed the neighbor getting into his golf cart and heading our way. We panicked! We were busted! (note: since it was 6:30am, I hadn't even bother to get dressed out of my sweats or even comb my hair... big mistake! haha) So an older gentleman approached (and I was relieved to see that he was still sporting his pajama's as well!) asked if we were the ones that were interested in the house and that Rob (the owner) had emailed him asking if he could show the house to us. We said that we were indeed the ones and he said "Great! I've brought the keys so I can let you in to take a look!" So we went through the house again - not being rushed and really taking in all of the details (all the while, trying to act surprised with each thing we saw). We chatted a bit longer with the neighbor, thanked him for seeing us and coming over to let us in and then headed back into Billings. Back at the hotel, we immediately prayed and asked if this was the house we should pursue and both got the undeniable answer that IT WAS!! I immediately texted Rob and told him that we had driven to the property to do a drive-by to see if we liked the location/area and while there the neighbor let us in and after viewing it we definitely wanted it and to send over the Rental application. He said he'd do it later that day, but nothing came. Then Friday came and nothing came. I called him and texted him and no answer. We were getting worried. We have made it our goal to go to the Temple every week and so Friday night we were at the Temple and I expressed my anxiety to the Lord and got a peaceful reassurance that all would be well and to not worry about it. FINALLY on Saturday night, he sent over the application and we had it filled out and sent back to him within 30 minutes! Then it was crickets again... no word for another 2 days! Finally on Tuesday afternoon he called and said all looked great and we could move in the following Monday (which was the date that we had scheduled for all of our belongings to be delivered). We were kind of worried about his lack of communication but we have since found out that he and his wife were having 2nd thoughts on even renting it out (the house has been their "baby" and project for the past 11 years - they moved out over 9 months ago and just weren't sure if they wanted to rent it out or not. Then when we pounced on it within 30 minutes of it being advertised, I'm sure it all moved a bit too fast for their comfort level). Anyway, the movers came and delivered our goods on Monday and Rob flew into town and met with us on Wednesday of that week to show us everything about the house (and after meeting each other, I think we both felt relieved!).
We are so grateful for this beautiful home that Heavenly Father prepared for us (and prepared the Stile's hearts to even rent it out!). Just like in the blessing I had been given, "He knows our family's needs and has a specific house and ward waiting for us..."
One thing I hadn't mentioned is that the price was $200/month OVER what we felt comfortable in spending, but as we prayed we felt that this was really where we needed to be. The Friday before we moved in, I decided I'd better to our taxes (since it was pretty much April 15th!) and I had been procrastinating doing them because I just knew we'd owe (like in previous years) plus I hadn't really had a lot of free time with the move and all :) Anyway, so I set to work on getting them filed and.... another miracle!!! We were actually getting a REFUND this year What?! The amount... $2400 (the exact amount to cover that additional $200/month). Heavenly Father is so aware of us and watching out for us!! Again, we are sooooo very grateful for his blessings to us and especially for providing such a wonderful HOT BREAKFAST for us!! Here are some pictures of our new home (interior pictures will be coming shortly after we get everything unpacked and put away :)
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