A home in Decorah

As many of you know, Allen and I traveled up to Decorah, Iowa this past week in search of a new home and a school for Caroline.  Let me just say that God provided in ways we could not have dreamed.   The home that we have a contract on came on the market while we were in town.  We were the first one's to see it, because the listing agent was in the same firm as our realtor.

If you want to read the whole story, hop over to my other blog "It All Boils Down to Faith."  There, I detail just how perfectly God has provided!

This house was built in the 1880s and is truly Victorian.  I have always wanted to live in a Victorian style house.  This one is fully updated--it even has central heat and air!  For this home grown Texan, that was good news!  It is also a short walk from downtown and from a fabulous park!

Here are some pictures of the house and the neighborhood park.

We are so excited about our new hometown!  The median age of Decorah is 31!  There are lots of young families with children, and we have already met several people that we would love to build friendships with.

Please be in prayer for us:

1)  To find a new church home and a body in which to serve
2)  To find a moving company that will be reasonable financially
3)  As we begin our goodbyes

One Hightower Less...

There is no doubt that this week has been a roller coaster ride of emotions.  Allen and I returned from Iowa this week and witnessed God moving in amazing ways.    But this joy was quickly joined with sorrow as we had to say goodbye to a precious member of the Hightower family.   She went by several nicknames:  buffygirl, boo, buppa (Caroline called her that as a baby), waggy-tailed girl, buff buff, alpha dog...

After 6 years of fighting cancer, Buffy lost her battle yesterday.

For those who don't know:  Allen and I found and rescued Buffy from the "Cocker Spaniel Rescue" that is based in the Houston area.  It was October 2001--just a month after we had lost our first child, Ross.  There is no doubt we needed someone to pour our love into, and to love us back.   We were sitting in a Barnes and Noble talking about what kind of dog to get, and a man sitting next to us heard our conversation and told us about how his sister was the owner of the Cocker Spaniel rescue.  He told us that they were having an adoption day in Spring that Saturday.  As I look back, I see that God orchestrated the whole thing and led us straight to Buffy.

She had been abandoned and was not in good health when we found her.  Once we brought her home, we realized that she had most likely been abused.  It took a few months, but Buffy eventually began to trust humans again and became a permanent part of the family.  She went from sleeping on her own bed on the floor to sleeping right in the middle of us on our bed. 

Throughout her life we have commented many times that she has to be the sweetest dog on the planet.  Buffy would never hurt a fly.  Allen and I often remarked that if ever a dog should go to heaven, it would be her.  We jokingly called her our "good Christian dog."  She never barked at anyone.  The only time she showed any sign of aggression is when we brought a lively little puppy home (our McCoy) who just would not stop nipping at her ears.  She finally got tired of it and barked at him!  Needless to say, he stopped nipping.

Another thing about Buffy--she would wag her tail constantly.  Even during her final days, she would still wag that tail when we pet her.  She had a certain resilience and survival instinct--except during thunderstorms.    We always knew when a storm was coming because Buffy would shake from head to toe and would not be consoled.

No matter where we were, she could always find a soft place to lay down to sleep.  If there was a stray towel on the floor, Buffy would end up laying on it.  She was also fond of extra pillows, blankets, and even newspaper piles!  One time, she walked into one of Allen's pile of audition sheets for the SHSU Chorale and plopped her self down right in the middle.   She was ready for a nap!

I could go on and on about her little ways, but you get the idea.  We loved her and she loved us.

We knew this day was coming.  But I wasn't ready.

We are going to miss our waggy-tailed girl.

Why Iowa?

For the last couple of weeks, Allen has been singing a song from The Prairie Home Companion.  The lyrics are:  "Why Iowa, why Iowa?  We could have gone anywhere...why Iowa?"  For any of you who listen to the show, you can hear the melodious voice of Garrison Keillor singing these words to the hymn tune "Love Lifted Me."

Well, I'm sure many of our friends and family are asking the same question--why Iowa?

I thought I would start by posting just a few pictures of the beautiful little town that we will call home:  Decorah, Iowa.  Decorah is in the North East corner of the state and is only 15 minutes from the Minnesota border.  The twin cities are a little over 3 hours away, and the nearest "large" town is Rochester, MN (with a population of 100,000).  Rochester is about an hour drive from Decorah.  There is a mall there (yay!).

But, I digress.  For those who are curious about our new town, here are some photos.

In Decorah we will actually have 4 seasons--including my favorite--FALL!  I'm really looking forward to experiencing a real fall season. 

But, of course, being so far north means brutal winters!  We are going to need heavier coats!

Decorah is known for its beauty.  There are several walking and hiking trails right in the town.  Caroline will love watching the waterfalls!  There are also several bald eagle nests in the area--very cool!

When we go to visit Decorah next week, the College is putting us up in this lovely bed and breakfast--a town favorite!  There are many B&B's in town.  Many city folk from the Twin Cities often come to Decorah for a weekend getaway.

As you might have guessed--being Iowa and all---there is a lot of farm land in the area.  Allen said that there are plenty of red barns to go around!  Of course, what excites me about this is FRESH ORGANIC PRODUCE!  The people of Decorah pride themselves on their fresh produce.  There is a great co-op called Seedsavers.  They have a website (seedsavers.org) and it will be so fun to have such great fruits and veggies right at our fingertips!

 Many have asked what church we will attend.  Well, we aren't sure.  As you would guess, most of the churches in town are Lutheran!  We will see where God leads us!  I am actually quite fond of the Lutherans--I was choir master at a Lutheran choir when we lived in LA--while Allen was across the street leading worship at a Presbyterian church! 

Of course, our reason for moving is to impact college students at Luther College.  Luther is a small Liberal Arts College that has an outstanding Choral program (see above pictures).  We are really excited about  joining the music faculty there.

Allen will be conducting the Nordic choir, which is a very fine choir with an outstanding legacy.  He really felt like he made a wonderful connection with the students during his audition and was really stimulated by the music making and conversations he had with students.

Okay, so we are asking for some serious prayer in finding a place to live in Decorah!  Please pray that God will provide a place that has the room we need and at a price we can afford.  We are actually looking to rent for the first year.  Right now, there doesn't seem to be a lot of houses for lease.  Pray that God would open doors for us--literally!

We fly up to Decorah June 12th.  I will post some of my own pics when we return and update everyone on our progress!

Blessings,
Kristin