This Morning...

   This morning, much like my mornings the past few weeks, I awoke to the little flutters of baby movements across my belly. Our sweet little girl has taken to reminding me that she's there right at 6am every morning. She moves and goes all day long, to the point where I am exhausted and ready for a nap by the afternoon. But with each little kick, hiccup, and flip I feel, I am more and more overjoyed to be carrying this little life. Joel has told me that every time I feel her move, I act as though I am feeling it for the first time, and I believe it. These sweet little movements will never stop amazing me from the little flutters, to her pressing on scar tissue. I hope to soak each and every one of them in until our Emersyn Jubilee makes her arrival.

   This morning, is also unlike most mornings, in that it is a day that we celebrate our mothers. A day that we recognize all they have done to raise us, all they have sacrificed so that we could have what we need, and all that they continue to do for us and our babies once we become adults. My mama is my best friend, and quite possibly the person I admire the most in the world. She shares my birthday and blessed me with her looks. She has shared in my triumphs and failures, my joys and my heartaches, broken arms, countless doctor's appointments, and late nights running high fevers. She's at almost every game, chorus concert, and school event, regardless of if she was staying up extremely late the night before working on a trophy order. She's our biggest fan, and the first one to stand up for us when we've been wronged. She prays over us, points us to Christ, and fights for us to know Him. She's not the best cook, but she's an awesome party planner. My mama deserves so much more than just Mother's Day. If I can be half the mom to Emersyn that she is, I will be grateful.

    So this morning, when I woke to a text from my mama telling me she's been a terrible mom this week and wishing me my first "Happy Mother's Day," I couldn't help but cry. It has been a rough week for both my mama and I. She had a tooth taken out this week and a kid with the flu. I have been battling sinus issues with the funky weather we've been having, dealing with Joel's forever long training days, realizing that some friendships aren't what they seem, and crying over the day that was our glory baby's due date. It's been a hard realization that I should have a one week old today, but it's been a week filled with love over our joyful little girl as we had great appointments to check on her.

    My mama, my mother-in-law, and my nana, all took the time this week and this morning to wish me a Happy Mother's Day, and I couldn't be more grateful for them. These wonderful women who have helped to mold me and my husband into the people we are, took the time on a day about them, to send a text or card to this soon-to-be mom. I have had the privilege of carrying two little lives in my womb, one I get to meet in just 15 weeks and the other I will meet in eternity. Two little lives that I prayed over, planned for, and loved more than ever thought possible. As my mama said in her text to me this morning, "you know the stretch, the depth, the love and the pain of a mother's heart." I have only experienced a small glimpse into the life of a mother. This Mother's Day for me, is this in between time as I wait for my little girl to be earth side. Next year, this day will be so much sweeter. My exhausted days and sleepless nights are only just beginning. Fighting for my child, worrying over her, and praying over her are things that I've come to know over the past 25 weeks and will only continue to do. Experiencing life with her, giggles, arguments, and seeing her grow into who God has created her to be will come all too soon.

    This morning, and all day today, I celebrate my mama especially and all the mothers in my life. Not just the ones related to me, but all those who have impacted and loved on me. Thank you all for pouring into my life, and for showing me so much of what motherhood is. For loving on your babies with such grace and beauty. You will never know how much it means to me to watch you as become a mom myself. Happy Mother's Day!

"Her children arise and call her blessed;

her husband also, he praises her:

Many women do noble things,

But you surpass them all."

Proverbs 31:28, 29

Our year of Jubilee

   Let me start by that I will never stop being in awe of how great my God is. I am so amazed at how He speaks to me and fulfills His promises. This precious baby growing in my belly is such a testament to that. Finding out that this little one is a girl Saturday and then confirming it again yesterday was such confirmation to what God had spoken in the months before.

   In the nine weeks between our miscarriage and getting another positive test there were countless prayers, and not just over a baby. Joel was at the point where he had about a year left in his contract, so he had a choice to make as to if he would reenlist for a few more years and try to PCS to Ft.Stewart or if he would get out for us to move back home. As we prayed for clarity in which direction to go, it was abundantly clear that either way would be going home to Georgia, but that staying in the army at Ft.Stewart would provide a little bit of stability when he transitions out and back near our family. We had this time of Jubilee where we would be returning home at the end of 2016. We were so excited to be moving closer to family, near one of our favorite cities (Savannah), and also having a short drive to the beach! 

   We were also deeply praying over a baby. There were times where we would pray together before bed, Joel would roll over and fall fast asleep, and I would lie there continuing to pray for a little one. It was in those moments that God worked. There were two nights that I had vivid dreams of a bald baby girl. I was on the phone with my mom one day telling her about the dreams while I was out shopping, and she begins to tell me that my dad felt the Holy Spirit telling him our next baby would be a girl. At the time, I didn't know what to make of it all. It was this overwhelming moment of knowing a baby was coming, but not knowing God's timing of when. A few weeks later, in my routine of praying as Joel slept, a piece of a chorus to a song I grew up hearing in church was laid on my heart.

  Lift your voice, it's the Year of Jubilee. 

   This sweet little phrase rang through my head and has stayed on my heart. I could not for the life of me think of the name of the song though until one day it hit me: Days of Elijah. As December rolled around and we got a positive test, I knew without a doubt this baby was a girl. I told Joel and my mom her name would be Jubilee. My mom of course loved it, but Joel thought it would be better suited for a middle name. Plus, he thought the baby would be a boy. As I searched and looked for boy names, nothing really sounded good. I definitely had a girl's middle name and a few ideas for first names but could not for the life of me settle on any boys names, I had it set in my heart that this baby was a girl. Flipping through the baby name book, I ran across the name Emerson and fell in love. I thought it was a perfect name for a little girl, especially after reading the inherent meaning, "victorious," and the Scripture with it Psalm 20:5. The other plus was that it isn't common, and that it also reminds me of Ralph Waldo Emerson, who is one of my favorite writers. I've seen so many different spellings of it, however we finally settled on Emersyn, because it ends -yn like my name. :)

   The year of Jubilee in Biblical times was every 50th year. It was a year of returning home, a year of joy, year that is holy, and a year of celebrating what God had done. Our baby is due almost exactly year after we had our positive test with Levi. When she arrives this year will have come full-circle from the hurt we felt five months ago. In January, my mom sent me further confirmation that Jubilee is this little girl's name. Whole Magazine sends her alerts each morning, and she contributed an article to them a few months back. Well the alert for January 1st declares 2016 the year of Jubilee, "a time of freedom and of celebration when you receive back what was yours. A year to declare liberty and restoration in your life". Sweet little girl, our Emersyn Jubilee, you have already brought so much joy to our lives and we are so anxious for your arrival.

Little Miracle

  I have attempted over and over again to sit down and write this post. Each time I go to type out my thoughts I backspace and backspace until the page is once again blank. The past four months consisted of nothing less than a whirlwind of emotions. October was a month of heartbreak, of asking "why", of pouring into my Scripture looking for comfort and hope. It was a month that drew Joel and I closer together. A month that we knew without a doubt that we were "ready" and hoping for children to come along. There is this hole when you lose a baby, even in miscarriage. You lose your hopes and dreams, this future that you have carefully thought about for this small life you've created. It's hole that I don't believe will ever just go away, but that will eventually heal and grow smaller with time.

   As I dove into my Bible in the days, weeks and months following our loss many verses brought me comfort. My favorite was Genesis 25:21, it reads, "Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife because she was childless. The LORD heard his prayer, and Rebekah conceived." I often wonder if Rebekah had trouble conceiving. Did she and other women like Rachel, Hannah, and Elizabeth deal with losing babies too soon? I like to think that they know the frustration, and heartache I have felt and that is part of why their stories are so precious and included. Without their longing for children, there would not have been Jacob, Joseph, Samuel, and John the Baptist. Men that God used for great and amazing things. What stands out to me about Rebekah is that Isaac prayed on her behalf, which of course hits me right in the feels. Joel and I spent weeks and months praying. We prayed together, we prayed separately, we poured our hearts out in desperation over our longing for a baby. Oh how we prayed! Emotional could be considered an understatement for how I felt; half the time I was hopeful and the other half I was in full on tears. There were so many ways God revealed Himself and spoke to me, but that is another post for another day.

   December was hectic, with family visiting and preparing to travel back to Georgia for Christmas. We looked forward to what the new year held, finally moving back to Georgia and the possibility of going back to school or work. We focused on the areas of our life that we could see God working in, and continued to pray for His timing in having children. Little did we know that His timing was a lot sooner than we thought. The second week of December, Denver (our spoiled pup) started getting really clingy. I know dogs can sense things but I did not suspect a thing at all. Until, I mentioned it to my mom, who of course responds with "you're probably pregnant." I waited until that Friday to actually test, which happened to also be the day Joel's parents and two of his sisters flew in for his eldest sister's graduation. To my surprise, the faintest of faint pink lines showed up right next to the other pink line. I freaked out, text my mom, then my doctor, and then headed to the lab for blood work to confirm. Joel had no idea, and if it was a definite, I did not want to tell him until Christmas.

   That night I picked his family from the airport and attempted to keep that positive test in the back of my mind. We enjoyed a short visit with his family and dropped them off at the airport the following afternoon. Then I got a text from my doctor that my levels were 17, so possibly pregnant, since anything over 25 is considered pregnant. The doctor put in another order for blood work to follow-up the next week and to make sure my levels were doubling like they're suppose to. I told my mom the news, and eventually Joel guessed in a game of twenty questions to figure out what his Christmas present was. We were overjoyed and thankful. I basically took a test every day for the next week, to make sure the faint pink lines were turning into dark pink lines. By the next Friday, I headed into the lab for blood work, then we hit the road for Georgia. Sitting in traffic, a text popped up from my doctor that my levels were up to 444. Which officially meant we are expecting again! We told Joel's family, my siblings, and my grandparents all on Christmas day. When we came home in January we scheduled an ultrasound with the doctor. The baby was eight weeks along, exactly where it should be. It was such a relief to see our little one, this sweet promise of answered prayers, its heart flickering perfectly on the screen. Our last appointment was at ten weeks, once again our little one measured perfect and was so active wiggling, jumping, and waving.

   I am in such awe each day I wake up sick and exhausted in this first trimester. We passed the hurdles of measuring past six weeks and having a great ten week ultrasound. Every single day, I praise God and pray over this sweet little life growing in my tummy. We are so so beyond thankful for His faithfulness. Baby Reece is due August 23rd, about year after we found out we were expecting Levi. I am remembered, I am loved, and I serve such a good good Father. He is so faithful.

"Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!"

Luke 1:45

My Levi

   Oh my little one, how I wish I could hold you in my arms. How I wish I could see you grow up. I had so many dreams of who you would be, what you would look like, how your face would light up when you smiled for the first time. Your daddy and I knew about you so soon, finding out that you were in my belly at three and a half weeks along, and just days before then your little heart started its first beats. You daddy bought a rocking chair for your nursery that very weekend, because we were so excited. We got to see you a few weeks later, being stubborn just like me. Your little heartbeat flickered on the screen, and in that moment we knew we were parents. Little did we know that same little heart would stop beating just a few days later.
   I started a registry for all the things we would need for you, researching and picking out the absolute best we could afford. Your daddy and I bought your travel system that we were to use to take you home in just 7 months. Slowly, the little room that would be yours started to gain little baby things. We talked about what we would name you. You were and still are so loved. We couldn't wait to meet this little face that had made us parents, the life that had been given to us.
   And then week ten rolled around, and something was off. There were no signs of it being a miscarriage, but it was just off. Your daddy assured me you were fine, prayed over you and for my nerves to be calmed, and then he did something he hadn't done in the weeks before. He called you by a name we had picked out. He called you Levi. I went for my scheduled appointment to finally meet my doctor. We talked, addressed my concerns, and then checked on you with an ultrasound. I wasn't able to see you. The doctor looked concerned as she told me she couldn't find your heartbeat. My heart sank, tears came flooding, and I didn't want it to be true. My nurse came in and we cried; she was so encouraging. Then my doctor took me over to radiology for an emergency ultrasound. I waited in this cold, mostly empty room for what seemed like forever. And finally the tech came to get me. He didn't and couldn't tell me anything while he took his pictures and made his notes, but I knew. Your daddy got off work, called me, and then met me at the hospital; he drove us home just listening to me cry, and then held me while I cried the rest of the night. The next day I woke of crying, which pretty much lasted all day. I waited more than 24 hours before my doctor called to confirm what I had known in my heart the day before.
   My heart ached for you, I longed to know that you were still there, just being stubborn again. My heart still aches for you. For ten weeks, I carried you my little one. Ten weeks of putting my hand on my belly knowing you were there. Knowing you had small but functioning organs, little finger and toes far too small to see yet. Ten weeks of your daddy and I praying for you every single night: that you would grow, that you would be protected, and that you would be healthy. Weeks of craving hot sauce and donuts. Weeks of planning a dreamy nursery to bring you home to.
   But God had other plans. I will never know why you were given to us and then taken away so soon. Why I only had a few short months with you, the baby that stole my heart, but I never got to hold. What I do know: God is using our story. His light is shining in this dark moment, and it's bringing Him all the glory. His ways are good. He is a good good Father, and He kew the number of your days before I could even fathom them. He protected you, far better than what we prayed for. You will never know heartache or see the suffering of this world. I know that you are in a far better place, a home with the glorious King who created you and I, where I know I will one day meet that beautiful face that I have dreamed of these past few months. You will forever have a piece of my heart. My first baby, my Levi.

"For it was You who created my inward parts;

You knit me together in my mother's womb.

I will praise You,

because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made.

Your works are wonderful, and I know this very well.

My bones were not hidden from You,

when I was made in secret,

when I was formed in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes saw me when I was formless;

all of my days were written in Your book and planned

before a single one of them began."

Psalm 139:13-16

I'm not chasing the American Dream

   So this title might be a little deceiving. I love America, and everything that our founding fathers stood for. I love having life and liberty, but I no longer want what we call the pursuit of "happiness". I don't want to climb a corporate ladder, work 9-5, become famous, or even the perfect house with a white picket fence. This week in my time with God I've been pretty convicted about the comfy life I live. The things society tells us we have to do in order to reach the world's definition of successful: a nice car, the latest apple product, a four year college degree, the list goes on and on. Our purpose in life is so much simpler than all of that, He just wants us to love. God tells us that the two greatest commands are to love Him with all our hearts, our souls, and our minds, then He tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-40). This is obviously easier said than done, as I have grown up hearing these verses time and time again, but it's like a new light has been shed on them. 
   Even more so, I admire what Paul writes to the church of Thessalonica about the life we are to live. He tells them:

    "About brotherly love: You don't need me to write to you because you yourselves are taught by God to love one another. In fact, you are doing this toward all the brothers in the entire region of Macedonia. But we encourage you, brothers to do so even more, to see to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, so that you may walk properly in the presence of outsiders and not be dependent on anyone." (1 Thessalonians 4:9-12, emphasis added)

  If we are loving God with everything that we are, we will then love others, and not just those closest to us. In fact, we are told to do so even more, so that outsiders will notice. We will grow to love the girl that keeps to herself at school or work, the man who is homeless on the side of the road, the widows, and the orphans. Oh how we will love those who are less fortunate than us, how I pray that my heart will be overfilled to see their needs! 
  Now to be clear, I'm not saying to give up getting your college degree or your 40 hour a week job just to fulfill this purpose. Because if you look at the passage above Paul tells the church to work with their own two hands. God is going to use what you are doing, and the people you encounter everyday for you to fill His two greatest commandments. And in time, the things you thought would give you the happiness will fade away, and He'll start to align things in your life to give you joy, everlasting joy. He will give you those blessings you need when you need them, in His timing.
  I'm also not saying I have it all figured out, far from it actually but, I am looking to Him and His abundant love to flood my cup so that I can love on others. My heart aches to just do something more than just sit in comfort, and while I do not know what exactly that entails yet, I know that I'm starting somewhere. After praying and searching through Compassion International's website, Joel & I have sponsored a little girl from Togo. Her name is Shalom, which means peace, and derives from a root which means complete, perfect, and full. I am so in love with this precious little girl whom I have never met, and may never get to meet here on this earth. I pray for her daily and for all those around her to just teach her about our Father and that her needs are met. God is using this little one to break my heart for so much more than I can currently fathom. I am praying, willing, and waiting for Him to use me for His purpose of loving others because it is so much greater than chasing after the temporary that is the American Dream.

Home Sweet Home

   I have been a terrible blogger. And while I would like to update y'all on everything that has gone on, that would take entirely too long. So, I'll keep that part of my post short. In August, we came home to visit family for two weeks. It went by way too fast, but I was so very thankful that we had time to relax and enjoy time with our loved ones. September was spent packing our little house into a storage unit and spending every little moment possible together. The day I was suppose to come home turned into a three day weekend for Joel, so I was unexpectedly able to stay an extra few days. I came home to surprise my family a day early and then Joel left less than a week later.
   Moving back home, I've wasted no time whatsoever when it comes to getting back into the chaos that is a big family. It definitely makes me miss the quiet that I've grown used to back in Texas. However, I love seeing my siblings everyday and being around my family has made the past seven weeks pass by so very quickly. One thing I've started to realize in this season of life is that God has placed so many wonderful people around me to listen, support and just be loved on by. I am so beyond grateful that He knows what I need before I do, and blesses me with it before I even think to ask. The past five weeks my church has been doing a series called BLESS in the book of Nehemiah, and it has been so awesome to see how this series has just lined up with things I am going through in my week with God using other people to bless me. I have learned so much and I am trying so very hard to let God use me as a blessing to others, which is one of my greatest hopes in the difficult season.
   I know this was a pretty short post compared to my previous ones, but take a listen to the link I have up above, and I hope to be writing more often over the next few months!

"The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace."

Numbers 6:24-26

Anything but Ordinary

  Yesterday, one of my closest friends shared her testimony on her blog. If you'd like, you can read it here. As I read, I was heartbroken by the fact that we've been friends since middle school and I never once considered how differently we'd grown up. I grew up in a family where my grandparents, parents, and siblings all attended the same church every Sunday and Wednesday night. Where I accepted Christ as a child and was baptized. I can remember being a kid and my parents having other couples over for Bible studies, or sitting in my grandparents living room watching my Pawpaw study intently in King James Version Bible.

  As I sat reading her story, it hit me that I had been so caught up in being a "good" Christian, that I hadn't paid much attention to those around me, that I had just been lukewarm. And then, I reread it. The words stood out to me, like they should have been bold, italicized, underlined. She wrote, "because my testimony is short and simple". I was not reading something short and simple, I was reading something inspiring. Growing up in a Christian household, I felt as though I was the one who had a "short and simple" testimony. I never really struggled with my relationship with God until I had graduated high school. Even then, I have never experienced even half of what my sweet, enduring friend has gone through in her twenty-one years.

  Later on in the day, I was reading in a wonderful book called Glimpses of Grace by Gloria Furman. Side note: It's about treasuring the Gospel in our everyday, mundane life. Gloria uses examples from experiences with her husband and kids to really hit home the points she is making, which I love. She is a wonderful writer, and I highly recommend this quick read. Anyways, I came across this amazing little passage in the book about testimonies. Y'all, sometimes I am in awe of how the Holy Spirit uses things to show us about God and His glory. Our "short and simple" testimonies that we just think are no big deal, are actually a HUGE deal. Colossians 1:13-14 puts it like this: 

"For he has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

  In other words, there was a spiritual battle going on for your soul. A battle of which Christ has been victorious because He defeated death and you chose to follow him. I like how Gloria Furman describes it too.

"The Holy Spirit of God peeled the scales from your spiritually blind eyes, awakened your soul to the bright light of the gospel in the face of Jesus Christ, and breathed life into your lifeless soul."

  This simply amazes me. I cannot ever say it enough, especially when it's put that way. Not one of us has the same story of how they come to know Christ. No matter how simple our stories maybe, if we're 5 or 105 when we accept Christ, our testimonies are anything but ordinary. He works in all of our lives in different ways, molding us to become more like Him and to fulfill God's will for us. Nonetheless, when we come to know Him, the scales are peeled off, just like that described of Paul in Acts (if you haven't already look up Acts 9:18). Paul went on to do some amazing things to spread the Word, and we are called to do the same!

Why I celebrate America Everyday

   The 4th of July holiday weekend has come and gone. The decorations have been discounted and school supplies has taken its place on the shelves. Girls have put away their American flag shorts and taken off their blue and red nail polish; boys have put their 'Mericas chubbies away. We now wait another 364 days for another celebration of America's birthday.
   While some people wait for holidays and three day weekends for barbecues, endless instagram selfies, and some quote on Facebook/Twitter that talks about how great America is, there are some of us who wake up and celebrate the land of the free everyday.
   Each morning I wake up in my 2 bedroom, 1.5 bath town home with basement and bonus room on the largest military base in the free world. Come visit us in our home and you will find a vast majority of red, white, and blue. From the kitchen, to my red bathroom towels (plus navy & white shower curtain), and the handkerchief quilt on our bed, you can pretty much see my love of the US of A. And let's not even get started on the fact that half of my clothes are in red, white, or blue (the cowboy boots I got married in anyone?).
   My husband wakes up at 5:10, goes to PT, then comes home where he puts on his ACUs (complete with 1st Cav. patch and American flag), and goes back to the company where he spends his day working until 5pm Monday through Friday. Sometimes he is away for a week at a time, sometimes he will be gone for months, but I am so blessed to be married to a man who serves our country.
   A country in which I am free to serve a mighty God. A God who continually pursues His people even when we fall so far away from His Word that our nation was founded on. A country in which as a woman I am able to vote and was able to receive a free education. Where I was not refused the right to go to school because my parents could not afford it or because I was needed more at home. A country that fights to give other nations the same basic human rights we so often take for granted. Our Founding Fathers knew exactly what they were doing in 1776, when they chose to shake up the world in order to pursue happiness. Thirteen colonies took a huge risk, and over the next 6 (almost 7) years they would fight to defend their Declaration that took over a year to prepare for and write. The Declaration of Independence is one of the most reproduced and inspiring political documents in the world. How many of us have taken the time to read it besides the little excerpts we read in U.S History, Government, or American Literature class in high school/college? I would venture to say very few, even more so many of us probably don't even remember what we read. Soon after it was written, the Declaration of Independence was mass produced and spread throughout the colonies. People took the time to read it! Our ancestors took the time to read the many reasons why they left and separated from England, most would read it every 4th of July from then on. It is still the most inspiring and copied political document in the world. Fun Fact: Both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died on the 50th anniversary of the 4th of July.
   Needless to say, we are beyond blessed to live in America and we take that for granted. Since 1870, when Congress made the 4th a national holiday and 1938 when again Congress made it paid holiday for federal employees, we have made the 4th a day of fireworks, picnics and Nathan's Hot Dog Eating contest (that started in 1916). We love parades, carnivals, and downtown celebrations. We get together with family and friends to celebrate the day that we told England we were better off on our own. Then we wait for the next three day weekend to barbecue, and wait until the next year to do it all again. I however, will choose to revere America everyday. I celebrate America everyday for my husband and all the many who serve/have served over the past 238 years to defend all that we have here, for all those who are currently deployed (R.E.D. Fridays anyone?), for our ancestors that took a risk coming to a new land, for our freedom we experience daily, and for the men who wrote an amazing document that shaped the course of history. I celebrate America.

Everything's Bigger in Texas

   YES, y'all are getting two post within a week of each other. I know I've posted like a billion pictures on Facebook lately, but we have done A LOT of sight-seeing and wandering here. I strongly believe that the reason they say "everything's bigger in Texas" is because the state itself is huge. Since we are in Central Texas, we're right smack in the middle of all the major cities, BUT that does't mean they are close by. Austin and Dallas are both at least two hours away, then San Antonio and Houston are a bit further. We went to SXSW in March, but since then we've found all kinds of neat stuff events that are out here.

    One weekend we went cliff jumping and swimming in the nearby lakes with some guys from Joel's company. We then learned of a neat/odd little event in the nearby town of Copperas Cove called RabbitFest. It was the first time Joel had been to a carnival and so we rode a lot of the crickety, look like they are going to break while on them carnival rides. It was so much fun, other than the fact that I had not been on any of those sorts of rides in ages and they are apparently not as fun as I remember. We came home that night feeling sick to our stomaches because we had spun way to fast on one of the rides, but it was completely worth all the fun we had. 

Joel at the lake.

Ferris wheel

   The next weekend was Memorial Day weekend. We had a four day, decided to look up somethings to do, and found RedFest, held at Circuit of the Americas in Austin. Jeff Foxworthy put on the entire event for the weekend, and gave out over 6,000 tickets to soldiers and their families. Thankfully, I was able to find who had extra tickets and we got in for free on Saturday & Sunday! There were so many great performances by wonderful artists. Saturday night we saw Kip Moore and (the other love of my life) Tim McGraw, then Sunday morning we got up early to see Phil Robertson of Duck Commander and his son Alan preach. Joel & I were as red as tomatoes from an hour of sitting in the sun that morning, so we went to the nearest tent to hear all the music before going back to amphitheater to hear Jeff Foxworthy and the Florida Georgia Line. 

Meeting Bruce from Swamp People

Suburnt afternoon. 

Waiting for FLGA Line.

   A few weeks later, some of Joel's family came to visit us for a few days. It was fun having a house full of people, and made me miss the hectic crazy family of mine back home. After all the girls left, Joel's brother Jon stayed over the weekend to spend time with him before he left for Hawaii. Joel left for the field and I drove Jon to the airport in Austin with both dogs. When Joel got back and had his next four day we took a trip to San Antonio. We kicked off the trip by going to SeaWorld. It was so very crowded, but we made the most of it and enjoyed it. Although, Joel kept referencing Blackfish and hoping the beluga whales would eat the trainers. Afterwards Joel wanted to see the Alamo, so we went to downtown. It was so pretty, but again crowded. Then, we walked across the street to the Ripley's Believe It or Not! and the wax museum, which were pretty neat. We decided to walk a couple of blocks down to the RiverWalk to get dinner after a long day of sight-seeing.  The atmosphere at the RiverWalk is amazing, pretty crowded, but gorgeous. I was really hoping to eat at Rainforest Cafe, but there was an hour and a half wait, so we put our names on the wait list, and then went down across the river to Hard Rock to get on the wait list there. We decided to see which one would have an opening first and waited it out. Which means we ended up at Hard Rock.

   Joel has been in the field for the last week and a half, so he will be home just in time for a four day weekend and my favorite holiday. We haven't really decided what adventure we'll going on, but it looks like we need to explore the major city of Dallas.

Puppy Lovin'

   On May 31st my wonderful husband finally agreed to let me get another puppy. Lord bless him, he's not a dog person, but somehow I've been able to get two sweet four legged babies. I found an adorable lab puppy online at the local animal control the day before, so I called Saturday morning and she was still there. So as soon as adoption hours started, I went to pick her up. Joel laughs because his birthday was that Friday and I got a dog for his birthday.

   She has been so much fun to have this past month. Dawson loves having a little sister, even though they are constantly aggravating each other, and she steals all his toys. She's also a sweet cuddly pup, which I love because Dawson isn't much for cuddles. We named her Denver and are still absolutely in love!

Georgia On My Mind

   On April 24th, I made the trek back to the Peach State. The drive was exhausting and since it was just myself and our sweet pup Dawson, it was quiet. It took FIVE hours just to get through Texas. Dawson loved the car ride, and pretty much relaxed the whole way. I'm pretty sure we own the laziest lab ever.

 Then, it was Louisiana, and the boring state of Mississippi. Needless to say, I was so very glad to get to my brother's apartment in Alabama that night. I loved being able to spend time with Daulton, since we've both been busy with becoming young adults, we haven't really spent much time together over the is past year. Friday morning, we went to the the much needed and missed southern eatery that is Waffle House before I drove the last three and a half hours home.

  Being home was quite the adventure! Seeing the Wiz (of which my sister-in-laws were amazing in), baseball games, spending time with my grandparents, hanging out with my in-laws, visiting friends, delivering plaques, going to church, and surprising my great grandmother (who turns 90 this year!) were just a few of things I packed into my two week trip. I also went to visit all my sweet kiddos at Kennesaw Elementary, as well as my old-coworkers and boss. I missed all those little faces!

   I had so much fun being surrounded by people that I love so very dearly, and wished that I could have seen everyone else that I wanted to (It was kind of an inconvenient time since it was finals week and right before Mother's Day)! Thankfully, I'll be coming home again in the next few months and Joel will be able to come also. We'll hopefully make the trip in one day, so we can have as much time at home as possible. Since it's just us and our sweet lazy pup, I had forgotten how hectic and loud it was being in such a big household. I left out on May 11th, and made the drive back in one day. It was A LOT easier of drive back since Texas is in the Central Time Zone, it didn't seem like to long of a drive. It was very nice to come back to my quiet clean home. Plus, I missed my husband! Since I've been home, we've started preparing for family to come visit and for the Texas heat in this upcoming summer.

The Lone Star State

     It has been almost three months since I've written and a busy three months it has been! On February 13th, after a lot of snow, my parents and I made the trek across four states, so that my husband and I could move into our house!

     We made it to Fort Hood on Valentine's Day and moved into our 2 bedroom and 1.5 bath town home. The last two weeks of February Joel was on a night detail, so I had the house to myself all night, until I had to pick him up at 4am. When March rolled around we were finally on a somewhat normal schedule. So the first weekend of March, we adopted a dog!

    Dawson is a spoiled 17th month old lab mix that we found at the local animal control facility, and he had such a personality. Since bringing him home though, he hardly leaves my side (hates being home alone) and lounges around the house all day, except for when he gets Joel to get in the floor or yard to wrestle with him. Yes, they wrestle. I also had to go to the ER in March.

    While home alone, I was slicing apples on a mandolin slicer and accidentally got my pinky. I definitely freaked out since I was bleeding like crazy, and called my momma then my husband (who had the car). Thankfully, he was able to rush home and get me to the hospital. After two washrags and a lot of gauze full of blood, I had a numbing shot in my finger and three stitches. A few days later we celebrated my 21st birthday in Austin, where we wandered 6th Street, ate dinner, and listened to a lot of bands participating in SXSW. We didn't really know that the festival was going on until we got to the town full of hipsters.

   Since then, we've dealt with taking Dawson to the vet, a few weeks with Joel in the field, and a sinus infection that made me look like a Who for a few days. Last week was tough, I know that Fort Hood was all over the news, and we told our families as soon as we knew what had happened. Thankfully, we were already home and safe. So between last week and the arrival of the President tomorrow, April has had quite the start! Hopefully, I will write every week or so now.

January Wedding

  

   For those of you who do not know, or those of you in shock.... SURPRISE!! After a lot of praying, talking, and reading in Bible study together Joel and I were married Friday night. I know many were surprised that we had only been engaged for three weeks, however I believe when you know, you know. On Friday morning I picked Joel up from the airport and drove down to the courthouse to apply for our marriage license. Eight hours later back at the courthouse, we exchanged our vows and our rings. Honestly, I do not believe I would have had it any other way. Neither of us like to be the center of attention. Plus, I would have been a nervous wreck getting married front of 150+ people. Thankfully, our family was in support of this and we had a small reception of just our siblings, parents, and grandparents. It was sweet and simple exactly like, if not more than we could have wanted. 
  I think that the movie When Harry Met Sally says it best, "When you realize that you want to spend the rest of your life with someone, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible." Joel and I knew we wanted to spend our lives together, so why not go ahead and build our life together now? Especially when we have put Christ in the center of it all. I am so blessed to have married a man who loves Jesus as much as he loves me, and even more so he loves me as Christ loves the church. I've always been told and firmly believe that true love is putting the other person before yourself, which is what we strive to do and I pray we will continue to do. We have taken a big life changing step, but  we serve an omniscient God who knew our future together before I could even imagine it! I never would have thought that I would be married to the boy I had a crush on over a year ago, but Psalm 139:16 says, "Your eyes saw me when I was formless; all my days were written Your book and planned before a single one of them began." I am so excited to start this journey with my best friend. I know were made for each other; he truly is my other half and God certainly knew what He was doing when he brought us together. With that, here are a few of my favorite wedding photos: 

"The man said,

"This is bone of my bones

and flesh of my flesh;

she shall be called 'woman,'

for she was taken out of man."

That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh."

Genesis 2:23, 24

I have found him whom my soul loves.

   One of my favorite books in the Bible is Song of Songs. I love the story that is created between King Solomon and his bride. Not only does it reflect the intimate relationship between a husband and wife, but it also reflects the relationship of Christ and His bride, the church, which we are called to have in Ephesians. Another reason why I love this book is because Joel included a passage of it in one of his letters to me while he was in OSUT.
   I don't think I can begin to tell y'all enough how much of a blessing he is. He has such a giving heart and always makes sure that I am laughing or smiling. He listens to me when I rant, tell him stupid stories, and when I'm down right confused on what to do. I praise God that he is a man who prays before every one of our meals and before he makes decisions. I am thankful that he seeks after God in everything that he does. People see Christ in him; one letter I got from him while he was training talked about how some of the guys had started reading their Bibles and were asking him questions. Most of all, he loves me, just as Christ loves the church. I have absolutely no doubt that Joel will be the leader of our household that God has called him to be.
   We took our engagement photos the Friday before he left to go back to Texas. Miranda, Joel's (and soon-to-be my!) sister-in-law, took some amazing shots. Pictures that captured our silliness and our love for one another. There were so many great ones that I wanted to include on this post, but I've narrowed it down to some of my favorites.

"His mouth is most sweet,
and he is altogether desirable. 

This is my beloved and this is my friend,

O daughters of Jerusalem."

Song of Songs 5:16

He has made everything beautiful in its time

   I met Joel Gregory Reece a year and a half ago. I had ran into a friend on campus who invited me to a church he was interning at and the college Bible study at his dorm. Lately I had felt God was calling me elsewhere to a new church community and I needed a group of people my age to fellowship with, so I took him up on his offer and visited.  One Sunday afternoon, all the college kids were meeting up at the dorm to have lunch and get to know each other before we started meeting regularly for the summer. That was the same day I met Joel. I had seen him around, we had some mutual friends and played ultimate frisbee at the same place, but I had never really talked to him. Plus, he's quiet. I think he barely said a word the entire time we were eating lunch that day. He tries to play the mysterious role, and can honestly do it pretty well haha. Over the next few months, he actually started talking to me though and eventually picking at me. Joel didn't really like all the sweets that I brought each week, so I had to start cooking real food every week to take to Bible study. We learned a little about each other, like we both worked our butts off at jobs and we both come from big families. I had a HUGE crush on him, but I'd never admit that. Like I would come home each week and tell my mom about him. He would walk me out to my car every week and carry my stuff, but never ask me on a date. Once school started, I had in mind joining a sorority and I did. It was something I felt would be good for me and something I thought I really wanted. I became busy with it and tried to balance it with our Bible study, but eventually everyone became busy and our group got harder for everyone to meet up. Jon, Joel's brother, was leaving for YWAM Hawaii, so we met for dinner one night. I remember Jon telling me to keep hanging out with Joel while he was gone, which was something I didn't do. Those next few months, we went for walks at Swift-Cantrell, went to dinner, and eventually stopped talking for about six months.
   Fast forward to March of 2013, Jon comes back from his YWAM trip and I am in need of guy chaperones for youth trip to Dare2Share. So I text Jon and see if he and Joel want to help out. Jon says okay and tags along on this awesome trip to Chattanooga where we see God move in the lives of so many middle and high school students. The next month, Jon invites me to his birthday dinner, where I am the only one there not related to him. I sat between him and Joel at dinner, of which Joel talked my head off and I learned that he had enlisted in the Army. He would be leaving in August for OSUT. Afterwards, we all went to a movie and I wondered what I had been missing the last six months. From then on I started going over to the Reece household each week for Bible study. Each week, Jon paired Joel and I up for prayer. I got to know his family, he met my family, we went to frisbee together, took a trip to Charleston, and saw a lot of movies. Joel and I started to spend just about every day together.  I guess you could say "the rest is history," but I don't necessarily believe that, our story is still being written. All during this past summer, over and over again I was told "this isn't a date" and "I'm leaving soon," but I very much knew that he was the one. I'm crazy about him and have been from the beginning. Finally, on August 1st, we sat in his truck and talked for a long while, one of many talks we had this past summer, and established that we we're indeed dating. A week later, was the first time either of us said "I love you." Then, on August 19th he left for OSUT at Fort Benning, and the next three months we wrote over one hundred letters. With a blessing in disguise, Joel was snowed out of Texas after his graduation at the beginning of December, and he was able to stay home for four days. Then come home again last week for Christmas, where Joel surprised me with the best Christmas present ever. On December 22nd, after our first real date, he took me to the Marietta Square and proposed! 

Our first "real" date

How he asked me to marry him

  I believe our relationship is such a blessing from an awesome God. It may have taken us a while, but it wasn't our timing, it was God's. Like Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, "He has made everything beautiful in its time." I had to let go of my want to fit in with the crowd and God was working in Joel's heart too. While I wish I hadn't waited months to talk to him, I realize that it all worked out for our good. He has made our relationship beautiful, and He has so much more He wants to do.