What's been going on Part 2

So here's the big news....




WE'RE MOVING TO MARYLAND!!!






This is new news to this blog, but really I've known about this for almost 2 months now. You may remember an older post where we knew change was coming, but we were not sure what the change would be. After two visits to the East Coast, my husband was offered a youth ministry/worship ministry intern position at a church in Maryland. After a great deal of prayer and affirmation from the Lord, we accepted the position.

We are in a unique position because Joe will be employed by the church and by Reformed Youth Ministries (RYM). As a RYM intern, Joe will receive training through the organization, and he will receive mentorship in the context of the local church. He will also have the benefit of going to seminary while we are in Maryland. Our plans are for Joe to go to Reformed Theological Seminary and work towards a Master of Divinity. (He's going to be really busy, huh?) Find out more about RYM here.

So what are we waiting for? Why haven't we moved yet? I know these questions are probably running through your head. While we will be receiving the majority (about 67%) of our income from the church we will be working at, we have to raise about 33% of our income since Joe will be a RYM intern.

We are currently in the throes of fundraising, and boy let me tell you it has been harder yet more rewarding than I ever imagined. The Lord is working miracles. In just 1 month we reached 60% of our goal!!! In the last month, fundraising has been much slower, and Joe and I have been wracking our brains to get the last 40%. Yet Lord is taking this time of slower fundraising to teach us many lessons. First of all, I can't tell you how much my faith has been stretched. I have NO idea how we are going to raise the last 40%, and but the Lord does. When worry finds its way in I have to tell myself that. The Lord knows where every last cent will come from, and I can rest in that. If this is the Lord's will (and we believe it is), we will make it to Maryland!!

Second of all, the Lord is making my heart long to give. In the midst of needing gifts from others, I find myself wanting to give like never before. I feel like some "scales" have fallen from my eyes, and I see that Joe and I have not been near as generous as we are called to be. Thank you God for revealing this to me!!

Finally, I have seen God work in very OBVIOUS and BIG ways. I will talk about some of the HUGE things God has been doing in my next blog entry (since this one is getting pretty long).

If you or anyone you know has any experience with ministry fundraising please let me know. We can use any and all help! :0) Please pray for us as we continue with fundraising and as we prepare for this new chapter in our lives.

What's been going on

So I'm terrible about blogging....obviously. Well a lot has happened since my last post IN AUGUST!! I'll try to give an update daily on the past few months (because man have they been eventful!).

Update #1

Eden turned 1 on November 25!! Wow, where does time go? Lately, I keep getting told by everyone that she no longer looks like a baby. I keep reminding myself to savor her remaining babyness. I find myself doing things like holding her longer before bed because I know that this time really flies. The fact that she is already 1 is testimony to that. Although I'm struggling with her new 1-ness, I'm also really enjoying it. Here's what Edie has been up to lately:

1. Walking-She's been walking for about a month now. She LOVES walking. She spends the majority of her day walking around and carrying a baby doll. She stopped crawling about 2 weeks ago and now only walks. It's so cute to see her waddling around. :)

2. Pretending/Mimicking-I didn't know pretending starts as early as 1, but it has with Edie. She loves her babies. She feeds them bottles, carries them, and loves them. I love seeing her "love on" her babies. We say, "Eden love her, " and she squeezes the dolls and grunts....SO CUTE!!! She also loves to get baby wipes and wipe everything. She'll grab a wipe and walk around the whole house wiping...carpet, tables, even mommy. She has also started pretending that she is putting lotion on herself. Whenever we are lotioning her up after bathtime she has started rubbing her hands together and acting like she is putting lotion on. The first time I saw her do this I laughed until I cried. She is hilarious!

3. Being sooo sweet-She has recently increased her snuggliness which I LOVE! She did not used to be the cuddliest baby because she was always on the go and interested in everything. While that is still true, lately she has been taking time to lay her head on my shoulder and pat me. She also now walks over and just wants to sit in my lap (she was always way too wiggly for that).

4. Talking up a storm-Edie has always been our little chatterbox, but she now seriously talks ALL the time. She says numerous words and even a couple of phrases like "Here you go." Her favorite words are "Bye-Bye" and "Mom."

More updates to come soon...:)

Almost Wordless Wednesday

This is how I found my sweet girl yesterday morning...:)

Our little snaggletooth

Eden has had only one tooth for about a month now. I love that we have a snaggletoothed little girl. :)

Change has come

This week ended a very special chapter in our lives. It was Joe's last week as the youth pastor at our church . It is hard to believe that this wonderful chapter of our lives is over because the church holds so much of our hearts, so much of our love. However, we both know it is time to move on. The Lord has made that very clear, and He is demanding that we follow no matter how much we long to stay.

So what are our plans? Good question. :) At this time we still have no idea what the Lord is wanting us to do. I'll just go through a couple of possibilities.

Possibility #1 Joe is employed by RYM (Reformed Youth Ministries) and a church. He concurrently goes to seminary.
Possibility #2 Joe is employed as a youth pastor and we pay off debt and save money for seminary.
Possibility #3 We stay where we are and work. I find a full time nursing job (I only work 16 hours/week now), and we work to pay off debt. We go to seminary when our debt is paid off.
Possibility #4 Joe becomes a famous musician, and we tour the United States...better yet the world. :)

So right now these are what I see as future possibilities. However, the Lord may have completely different plans for us and that is okay. Our focus right now is on living by faith and not by sight. Let me tell you this is not always easy especially for me. I am a planner, a worrier, and a person that longs for security. The Lord has been working hard on me though, and he is showing me that I need to throw out all my plans and just follow. So Joe and I have been following hard after Him, and we have such a peace about everything (even though as I said we know absolutely nothing about our future plans). We've not only had a peace we have had excitement! We are excited to see what path the Lord takes us down, we are excited to see if we end up in another town or if we stay where we are. We are excited because where we end up will be in the center of His will...the most exciting place...the place where we will have the adventure of our lives.

A more natural, greener life (Part 2 of 2)

As I stated in Part 1 having a child has made me very conscientious about not only what she eats but what I eat as well. The switch to organic products has had a trickle down effect into other areas of my life. I haven't done anything that you haven't probably already done, but here are areas where I have switched to a greener alternative:

1. Cleaning products-There are so many more natural, safer cleaning products out these days. I have tried several, and I am converting all my cleaners to greener options. Now I must admit that I was skeptical of switching thinking that there was no way that they were going to clean as well, but I have been pleasantly surprised. The cleaner that has surprised me the most is this bathroom cleaner. It has worked great. It doesn't cause my lungs to burn, and I haven't had any coughing fits like I usually do. That's reason enough to switch right?

2. Carpooling and public transportation-Now I must say that these greener methods of transportation has happened mainly out of necessity, but hey it's still helping the environment. I work Mondays and Fridays at Vandy where my husband works too. On Mondays we ride in together which is so much fun. We spend time talking and we stop for breakfast at Panera...I am digressing here...:) On Fridays though we usually can't ride together because he usually has to work later that day. So I have opted to ride the bus to work. I started doing this last summer when gas was outrageous. I have really come to love riding for numerous reasons. 1. Super relaxing 2. No driving involved for me 3. I get to read 4. Saves gas 5. I don't have to walk 5 miles to get from where I park to my building 6. I meet interesting people 7. I see parts of Nashville that I never get to see otherwise. I should do a commerial for MTA. :)

3. Reusable shopping bags-I have recently bought reusable shopping bags from Kroger, and I must say that I am quite a fan. I really feel that I am saving the world when I use them, and they are handy for me as well. I love that I only have to lug in 5 of these babies instead of 15 of the plastic ones. Now the hard part is remembering to bring them on the grocery trips...I don't always remember. :(

4-Transitioning to Compact Flourescent Lightbulbs (CFL)-From now on we are buying CFL lightbulbs. They use 2/3 less energy and last 10 times longer than traditional lightbulbs. They are more expensive on the front end, but they actually end up saving you money because of their energy effectiveness.

So this is a few ways our family is living greener. What is your family doing that I should try? I'm always looking for new ways to save money and to be green. :)


Bonus-Here's a picture of Eden eating her beloved biter biscuits. Isn't she just the cutest?

New happenings

Sorry it's been so long since my last post. Our family has had a lot going on. To my many readers out there don't worry soon I will complete Part 2 of my organic, green series. :) I mentioned in my first post that I knew that God was about to do something NEW and BIG in our lives. I felt the stirrings; I felt God really preparing me for it. So we are now in the process of the new and the big. As things start to pan out a little more, I will share what this is, but for now I would covet your prayers.

So you may be asking...what exactly should I be praying for? Well please pray for the following:
1. That God will make His will clear for our family
2. That Joe and I will remain focused on the Lord
3. That Joe and I will walk by faith not by sight....or fear, or worry, or practicality, or anything else for that matter.


These requests pretty much sum it up...though vaguely I know. Thanks for loving and praying for us friends!

A more natural, greener life (Part 1 of 2)

So over the past few months I have found myself spending a lot more time in the organic, natural parts of the grocery store. Normally I would buy a few natural items, but these days I am being much more conscientious about what I am bringing home. Why the change? No, it's not because everyone on TV seems to be talking about the more natural route. It is because of my 20 pound beauty (my daughter Eden). I have read that babies consume 4-5 times more fruits and veggies for their body weight than adults. That fact really made me think. It made me realize that if she is eating significantly more fruits/veggies than adults, then it is significantly more important for her to eat clean, pesticide-free foods. So about 90% of the time Eden eats only organic baby foods (unfortunately not all baby foods have an organic option).

My revelation about my daughter's food has had a trickle-down effect into my eating as well. I realized that I wanted her to continue to eat organically after she has outgrown baby food. Therefore, I needed to switch to a more organic diet now. (Notice I used the phrase "more organic"...I can never go 100%. I love certain processed foods way too much!) I have started this process slowly. Every time I go the grocery store I focus on one area where I can improve. The first change I made was organic produce because it was the easiest switch. Now I have switched to natural chips, popcorn, cereal, granola, as well as other snacks. I must admit I was skeptical if the food would be tasty, but so far I have liked it all.

I will never be a completely all-natural kind of gal. My hope is just that by making these changes I will have a girl who is healthy and who enjoys good nourishing foods.

Part 2 of 2, my journey to "green." :)

Marriage Builder

Several months ago the pastor at our church gave all the married couples a copy of the book Devotions for Couples: For Couples Who Want More Intimacy in their Relationships by Patrick Morley. He said it was a great devotional, and he really wanted the married couples in our church to work through the book. My husband and I laid the book aside and kind of forgot about it. Several weeks ago, I found the book while dusting our bedside tables (this gives away how often I dust those tables..lol). That evening my husband and I read the first lesson together and found ourselves laughing a lot and really enjoying the questions.

Since that time, we have made this a nightly ritual. I have to admit many of the lessons and questions don't leave us laughing like the first did, but from each lesson I feel closer to my husband. This book helps us communicate better; it tackles questions and topics you would not discuss on an everyday basis. There have been numerous questions that I feel uncomfortable about answering because it forces me (and him) to discuss definite areas of weakness, selfishness, and inadequacy. However, confession is good for the soul. Confession is good for marriage.

So this post is written to say that I recommend this book to you married folks out there. It has been good for my marriage, and I pray that it will strengthen yours as well.

New blog

Throughout the years I have always kept journals and even other online blogs. However, over the last few years I have let this go. I stopped writing because I stayed busy; however, now that I have a daughter I'm not sure what I stayed busy doing. :) I feel that at this point in my life I need this blog. I need to share the joys and trials of being a new mother. I want a place to share with others what God is doing to my life because He is doing many new and big things. Many new and big things... So anyways, this blog will most likely be therapeutic. A place for me to sit and hash out thoughts, fears, prayers, and joys. I'm interested to see what it will become.



"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor, he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion-to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praises instead of a faint spirit; that they may called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified." Isaiah 61: 1-3