Learning how to "stage a house"

Dear friends,

It is a Monday and I spent the day packing, sorting, tossing and generally just getting the house ready to sell. We have a 10 x 20' storage area that we are taking things over to most days. We are also setting things out in the driveway to get rid of, and Greg is delighted when someone takes something and actually pays him for it. Any of you who have known me for a long time, know that I am the clutter type. One way I can tell is that I just packed 10 "How to De-clutter Your House" books! Ironic.
Greg has remodeled our kitchen ceiling, rebuilt the drawers with real wood (thanks Mike!), a laminate counter top that looks like granite was put in Saturday (it looks so nice!), we have a new microwave in and an electric stove to match given to us by friends (Thanks Don and Diane!). A new dishwasher will be put in tomorrow, which is great since our OLD one died Saturday evening and ran it's last cycle with clamps holding it shut! Greg has painted room after room, trying to get done before he leaves next Monday for 2 1/2 weeks. We are getting as much in storage as possible so we can show and sell the house and be ready to move in mid-July. We are planning to have most of the house re-carpeted on May 21, so it will be ready for Jenni's graduation on the 24th and then her party on the 25th. Then the house goes on the market May 26th.
We are in the last weeks of Jenni's high school career and she is down to her final days of deciding about colleges. Stanford turned her down, she was wait-listed at Cornell and Duke (She didn't take the SAT2's in math and science they required, as it was during my chemo and radiation treatment times and we were not on top of the schedule). She was accepted at Swathmore, Syracuse, Univ. of Portland, CO School of Mines, Univ. of CO, Boulder, Univ. of Denver-DU, Grove City and Bucknell. She is deciding on Grove City, we are fairly certain and will send them notification this week. That will be a relief to have finished! Many have offered her scholarships, but only 2 have offered enough to make their cost less than Grove City. She is excited about going to a Christian Liberal Arts school where she can be involved in Music as well as Mechanical Engineering. She will work hard for her degree there, but knows she will also be very marketable for jobs when she is done.
I think I am up to 75% of my former strength. My doctor put a shot of cortisone into my right shoulder 2 weeks ago, and it decreased the tremendous pain by at least 1/3 to 1/2. I don't feel like I have a migraine in my shoulder now like I did. I will check in with him tomorrow and see if that is good enough. These are not days to have an arm I can't move.
My jaw nerve is gradually continuing to heal. After being damaged during surgery January 15th, the area of numbness is getting smaller but the area still affected is now feeling like a bumped funny bone in your elbow, all the time. I am ready for it to finish healing! There was one area in my jaw the surgeon didn't remove when he did the rest. He didn't see any problem visually, so didn't want to take out too much in my upper jaw. The part he didn't remove is now still very sore and achy, whereas the area he cleaned out feels fine. I will see him next week, but I suspect I will have him get the part out that is hurting before we move, since he knows me and what has been going on. There is about an inch -3/8ths inch deep- that is causing the problem.
My back and neck are still healing from the after effects of the cancer treatments. The discs in my back are healing and getting softer and re-hydrated from the bottom up. So I am doing pretty well up to my shoulder blades now. I am getting treatments on radiation scar tissue (Thank you Nancy and Mandy) that seem to be helping. My neck and upper back are the focus now. I am doing some acupuncture weekly and getting good adjustments. I see my nutrition doctor on Wed. to get my body back on track with this now that I am done with the cancer treatments.
Thank you for praying for my heart and spirit. I do feel like I am doing better gradually. I have finished with the counselor for now and will only need to go back if I need to. This morning Greg visited the former staff who still work at the same building but for Pioneers now. He said there were many tears, but it was good to see the 10 or so who work there. We area still praying for a few former staff who are still looking for their next steps. We would appreciate your prayers for continued direction for those needing it, and also for us to be able to do what we can to finish our time here with relationships healthy. Thank you!
Now, for the house question...We still haven't bought one in Spokane as we are waiting for the closing of the one we saw and fell in serious like with when we were there. There is a very small chance that if something goes wrong with the closing of the folks who saw it first, we would be able to get it. That is supposed to happen any time today or tomorrow. We know that if God wants us there, He will make this work our for us. If not, we still have a little time to find something else. With Greg being there for 2 weeks, he will be able to go look at some. We have seen perfect ones online that are in the wrong area, and others in the right area, but are too small. Pray that we would find a home that will lend itself to lots of hospitality. There are features we would each like, so we will have to see how much of what we envision comes true in one house. Always, the neighbors ending up being my friends, so we want God to put us in the right neighborhood. Having a house chosen soon will make everything easier, so we covet your prayers with us for that.
I see my oncologist on May 9th- maybe for the last time. As far as I know I am doing well. He will determine if there are any last tests he wants me to do before finishing with him. Thank you for joining me on this journey. It has sure been a year I won't forget! Blessings to you! Nancy