New Table!!!
Many of our readers have already heard the news about our new table through Facebook, but I wanted to share the table story in it's entirety here.
A little over a month ago we sold our beloved pub height dining table on craigslist.  The table was only able to hold six people comfortably,  and since it was pub height we never had enough tall chairs to add more seating.  The last time our family gathered for dinner, there were eight of us (including my parents, brothers, and their respective girlfriends) snuggled around the table using one stool, and one crate and bucket combination to provide two more seats.  It was a less then desirable set-up.   Since our family will not be shrinking anytime soon (in fact it will be getting larger with the new engagement of one brother), we decided we had good reason to look for a more suitable table.
After selling our former table we set up our old antique table for temporary use.  I began to search on Craigslist for the perfect replacement table, and I was willing to wait as long as it took to find the right one.  We also decided that we wanted to find a table that would cost us less than what we sold the other table for, so that we could use the remainder of the table money for our much needed lights in the kitchen.  It was a pretty tall order to find the perfect table for the amount we had settled on, but I knew that if I was patient, we would find just the right one at just the right time.
I happened to have a couple minutes to kill the other day, so I took a quick peek at Craigslist.  It had been a number of days since I had last looked.  I found a table that was the  fourth table listed for sale, and it had just been posted moments before.  It was the exact table I had dreamed about getting.  I immediately called, and we set up a time to drive down to San Leandro to see the table.  The owner even said she would take $50 off the asking price, making the total the exact price we had decided upon spending.  When we first saw the table, we immediately knew it was perfect.  While it did have a couple blemishes, it was even more striking in person than in the pictures we had seen.  Somehow we managed to get the table and four chairs into the 4Runner.  We got home, set up the table in the dining area, and were thrilled with how perfectly it looked.  We are also thrilled because the table expands to fit 10+ people, which will be perfect when Scott's family comes out to visit next Thanksgiving.
The wonderful thing about this story for us is how God has provided something very special to us during a very lean time in our lives.  We truly do not have the luxury of anything more than our basic needs at this point, and to get an extra special gift like this table is really exciting for us(even though it is not a necesity).  I see it as our little anniversary/Christmas gift from the Lord this Christmas season.  We can now use this table to do something we love to do, which is to share food and fellowship with friends and family.