Simply Elated!!!

We received the absolute BEST answer to prayer this week!!!!!!!!!!!

Our oldest son, IK, has 2 best friends. The first best friend, T, has been his best friend ever since they first met 10 years ago when we moved into our current home. T lives on the same street about 14 houses down. They're the same age, and back then both families had 2 kids...and both boys thought it was incredibly amazing that their moms were both named Karen and they both had little sisters with the exact same name too! It was a friendship that was simply meant to be right from the start!

Our boys became instant best friends back when they were only 4 years old. I've scoured my photo files and I'm so mad I can't find a digital photo of the boys together back then, but hey, that was 10 years ago and we were still using 35mm film most of the time.

T's dad was their soccer coach for several years as the boys grew up loving the sport...

...and just being boys. Our families fell in love with each other too, so much so that we've actually had a pact that if one family ever moved we would simply have to take the other family with us! No, seriously!

They've shared every birthday together, countless sleepovers, camping trips, etc. The boys take turns practically living at each other's houses. T's become another member of our family and IK has become the same for them.

Their first day of middle school...such a huge milestone for our babies growing up!

In 5th grade IK found his second best friend, I, and the twosome become a threesome of best friends. These boys are totally inseparable. They go to school together, sleepovers have become an almost every single weekend event in their lives, and they've become soccer refs together...their first jobs.

These boys already have dreams of going to college together, being roommates when they get older, etc.

And then the worst thing happened last fall. T's dad was laid off as part of the awful economy. While they tried many options, T's dad was simply unable to find a new job here. So forced to find a paycheck, T's dad eventually accepted a new position in early Dec. in Kennewick, WA...about 4 hours away from here.

The boys (and families) were completely devastated at the reality that they would be forced to move away. They put their home up for sale and for the past 3 1/2 months we've been doing our best to console the boys and prepare them for the move, already making plans to ship IK out to WA for part of the summer and to have T come stay with us too. We've even gone so far as to look for jobs and a new home for us in WA to actually move with them.

Of course their house hasn't sold, so T's dad has been living in an apartment in WA and coming back here on weekends and as often as he can visit. It's been a very stressful time for them to be separated as Karen stays here with the kids.

Well, about a month ago T's dad noticed a job posting back here in Boise and applied. A month went by and he heard nothing, but then he noticed the posting had been listed once again. So Karen thought maybe his application had gotten lost and suggested he reapply. He did, had an interview this past Monday, and was HIRED on Tuesday morning!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The company is matching his higher salary from the job he accepted in WA. When he put in his 2 week notice, the employer in WA tried to make a counter offer, offering to buy their home here to help them with the move, but thankfully they said no. It really helps that most of Karen's family lives close here too, so they have more incentives to stay besides our boys' friendship.

T called to tell IK the amazing news that they're NOT moving!!!!! When IK told me I immediately called Karen and we screamed and cried on the phone, SO happy to know they would be staying here! They're taking their home off the market and T's dad will be back here in a little more than a week.

No more talks and consoling our boys about preparing for your best friend to move away! To say they couldn't be happier is an enormous understatement!

And it's a huge bonus for our girls too, since their daughter is right in the middle of my 2 daughters ages and the threesome have become much closer friends this past year, asking for tons of playdates. The whole thing has been the biggest answer to prayer and both families are totally overwhelmed with joy!

Even now, just thinking about how awesome the situation has turned out, I'm still moved to tears of joy, knowing our children won't be separated. Miracles do happen!!!!!! And little boy's dreams can come true! Best friends forever! What more could you ask for?