Refreshing

I fail.

Every day.

But I am so thankful that my God still loves me.

He accepts me every time I come back to him.

I spent about an hour praying and spending time with the Lord this morning. I'm not really sure when the last time was that I have truly done that, with no distractions. Why don't I remember how refreshing it is to spend time with my Savior?

"for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10

So Many Things to be Thankful for

Several people I know have done the "Thankful" challenge either on facebook or on their blogs. I was tempted to do it, but I knew with my track record, I would fall behind and end up only writing about 5 things I am thankful for. So instead, I wanted to wait until Thanksgiving (tomorrow). I wanted to really think about everything I am thankful for, and not just post little things that are really unimportant.

God has blessed Landon and I beyond our wildest dreams this year. We have had lots of ups, lots of downs, and lots of just a-ok's. Through it all, God has been SO faithful to us.

1. God has so graciously provided jobs for Landon and I. When the education system looked like it was going to fail us, God had a bigger plan.

2. In the midst of our job crisis, The Lord opened up a door for us to be able to buy our first home. While there are many home improvements we would like to do, we are so thankful that God put this home in our path at just the right time.

3. While it might seem silly to some, and it might have even seemed silly to me a year ago, I am thankful for my 2 crazy dogs, Ranger and Myla. They sure keep things interesting around here, but they are great company when I'm home alone, and they definitely keep us entertained. I will admit, I am officially a dog lover:)

4. Last October, Landon and I changed churches. Landon had been leading worship at a satellite campus in which they decided to shut down that campus. Landon and I prayed about where God was leading us, and we wanted to be where we could be in community with people in our stage of life. We are so thankful that God led us to The Village, and opened a door for us to join a homegroup of wonderful young couples who love the Lord. We have been challenged, encouraged, and loved on in just the few short months we have been with them.

5. Today marks 2.5 years of being married to my husband. I couldn't ask for a better person to share my life with. Landon is my best friend and my soul mate. I'm so thankful that God allowed our paths to cross:)

6. Both Landon's and my family have been such a huge support to us over the last 4 years. They have been encouraging when things are rough, and rejoiced with us in our victories. We couldn't be more thankful of 2 families who love and desire the Lord.

Give thanks to God, for he is good. His love endures forever.

Psalm 107:1

Halloween

Landon and I dressed up as a couple for our first Halloween party together. GUESS WHO WE ARE?????

Kat Von D and Jesse James :)

(Landon told me when I dyed my hair red that I looked like a tattoo artist.)

We also had our first Halloween in a neighborhood where we had trick or treaters. It was a lot of fun, but after spending almost $40 on candy and my dog bursting out the door to attack another dog who was trick or treating, I'm glad the night is over.

Let's just hope my kids are too high on sugar tomorrow, or else it's going to be a LONG day!

short and sweet

I've been wanting to get this written down but just haven't known how to write it and answer all questions but not write a book. So here it is.

Landon joined the military. There are many factors that have led to this decision over the last several months, and it has finally all fallen into place. Yesterday he signed with the National Guard, which is a reserve branch of the Army. There are so many benefits that will happen because of this decision that we had a hard time just brushing it to the side, the biggest being that Landon's nursing school will be completely paid for by the military which means no loans. And he really is excited about this. Joining the military has always been an interest of his, but he knew he wanted to go to school first. Now that the opportunity has come up, he has been excited to take on this challenge.

So here is what the next year looks like for us (in my head anyways)

• Landon will begin training with his unit next month while he finishes off teaching this school year. He will go train with them 1 weekend every month.
• He will leave in May for basic training in South Carolina and will be gone until August.
• He will return in time to star another year of teaching until he gets into nursing school.
• He will continue training with his unit 1 weekend each month and will be training to be an Officer which will take 18 months.

I think over the last several months with our jobs and now with this, the name for God that has been revealed to me has been Peace. God has definitely been my peace through this. While I know there will be difficult times, especially, being alone, I know God is going to take care of both me and Landon.

Please keep us in your prayers as we figure out how we will transition into this new military lifestyle!

help!

I want to paint my front door, but I don't know what color because of the color of our brick. Any suggestions??

Here are a couple pictures of my house. Not the best, but it's all I have on my computer right now.

Never Once

This song brings tears to my eyes every time. It's truly how I felt between March-July when dealing with Landon and my job situation. God has been SO faithful. It's only through Him that we had such a peace through the entire process and it's only through him that we are where we are today, standing on this mountain top.

one more

I really want to learn how to sew. When I was younger, I did 4-H, and I made a vest (yes, I actually wore it, and yes I know, pathetic), and I probably made a pare of flannel pants, but I don't remember anything. I want to be able to make my own simple things like pillows, curtains, sew the hem on pants and shirts, etc. So I'm going to learn. I'm going to get a sewing machine, and I'm going to learn!