A Calling

"So Father, give me the strength
To be everything I'm called to be
Oh, Father, show me the way
To lead them
Won't You lead me?

To lead them with strong hands
To stand up when they can't
Don't want to leave them hungry for love,
Chasing things that I could give up

I'll show them I'm willing to fight
And give them the best of my life
So we can call this our home
Lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone

Father, lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone"

I am so blessed to have a husband who strives to give us his absolute best, his everything. A husband who leads me. A husband who truly loves me. A husband who is not only 100% committed to me, but also a fully committed father. A husband who doesn't back down and when he becomes overwhelmed or discouraged leans on God instead of worldly things. 

As we sat down to update our resume, I realized how crazy our lives are going to get in the next few months as we look for a church to pastor. A new town, new home, new church, new jobs, the list goes on. I began to ask myself, how do we decide? How do we know for certain we make the right decisions during this important stage in our life? 

One thing I know, without a doubt, is that God will provide a peace. A peace beyond our understanding. I believe that when we find our new home, we will be overwhelmed with peace, excitement and enthusiasm. We will not be burdened with worry, doubt and fear.

The song above really got me thinking, specifically about Jimmy. It is our desire that God leads us in this decision and that He gives us "strength to be everything we are called to be." Unlike most careers, pastoring isn't about the money. It isn't about whether or not the church offers us health insurance benefits. It isn't about the nice home or it's distance from Target. It is about the souls, the people, the hearts that God is already preparing for us to minister to. And for that I am SO excited. While Our Heavenly Father guides Jimmy through the process of finishing his B.A., obtaining his pastoring license and concluding our church hunt, I will trust in my husband, who God HAS given strong hands to lead us and love us. I cannot express how truly blessed I am to have married such a godly man and how blessed we are as will live out God's will for our life, family and ministry!!!

So please, as we head into this season of our lives, pray with us. Pray for us. Pray that we are sensitive to the Spirit and that we trust fully in God to place us in the church he is preparing for us. Pray specifically for Jimmy, that he has the strength to finish this last semester of schooling strong. Pray that he has confidence and wisdom in the search for our new home. Pray for me, that I am open to new things, to change. Pray that I am able to close this season of life and transition without fear or anxiety to my new roles. Pray that I lean on the knowledge and faith of my husband, and his calling. Pray for James. Pray for his precious little heart, that he grows up to love the Lord as his daddy and I do! Pray for our future church, that they are open to us, that they are ready for us. Pray that God continues to prepare their hearts for all He has planned for US.

We are eagerly awaiting our call and praying earnestly that God will make it clear to both of us, where we should go. I know that this road won't be easy, but God has called us and He will provide. We will be tested and tried but we will stay strong and give our all for Him. We will stand on Him when we are weak and we will persevere through the hardships. I am so excited to be on this journey with the man God has blessed me with! A strong man. A God-fearing man. A leader. A lover. A fighter for all that is good and a man that leans fully on God, because "we cannot do this alone!"

Enchiladas, it's whats for dinner!

numbers

He has been out as long as he was in!!

42 weeks in this big world

294 days

7056 hours

2296 nursing sessions

 2009 diapers

27 inches

19 pounds

4 teeth

1 hair cut

Happy 9 months, little dude!
Love, Momma

Cooped Up far too long!

James and I got outside for our first walk of twenty-fourteen!

HOORAY!

A few walk facts:

It was 34 degrees outside.

I ran over a pile of dog poop with the stroller.

The stroller lives in the back of our Pilot for easy access.

I had to scrape the poop off the stroller wheel with my shoe so that I could put it back in the car.

     **yes I tried rolling through snow, slush and puddles.. It was stuck on there good.

I then had to scrape the poop off one of my favorite sneakers

     **meanwhile James is sitting safely in his car seat, screaming.

The stroller wouldn't fold up.

I threw it across the parking lot.

     **I kid.

The stroller finally folded and we went home. 

All in all it was a nice walk. We only walked about a quarter of a mile, around the city's South Park. Through the slush. But boy, lemme tell ya, the fresh air felt GREAT and we were both refreshed! Now back to our cave for the freezing windchill today! Happy Winter!

Comfy Saturday

I am a fan of comfy clothes. This is a normal saturday for me. I love my Keens because they provide great traction (especially when carrying James!) I also like to wear a lighter version of my normal "face". This is great for travel, grocery shopping or just around the house to get me out of my routine yoga pants!

Hoodie: Similar
Jeans: Similar
Shoes: Similar
All Make up from WalMart or Target
Cami- I have a million, find on that works for you! :)

High Five for Friday!

It's the weekend!

Can I get an amen?!

I don't think we have any plans for the weekend. I am going to be doing laundry, cleaning the house and hanging out with James! I am sure Jimmy will be ice fishing the majority of tomorrow and we have nursery at church this week. Aside from those few things I plan on coloring my hair, rearranging the nursery and hopefully playing outside, weather permitting!

This week was wonderful! I spend the majority of Monday and Tuesday at work. I just moved into my new office.

I. LOVE. IT.

My old office lacked a window and while most would think a large office would be nice.. it felt empty and cold. My college roommate, who also happens to work with me and be my work out buddy helped me paint it last week and now I am all settled! 

Wednesday came with it's challenges as Jimmy headed back to class for the LAST SEMESTER of his undergraduate studies!!

 I am so proud of the man I married. He desires to continue his education and get his maters and then doctorate someday. But for now, I am so, so, SO proud of him! He not only has a wife, son and household to care for, he does all of this with (what seems to be) ease, along with a 4.0 GPA! He will be graduating with a triple major (Christian Leadership- Youth Ministry, Christian Leadership -Pastoral Ministry& Biblical Studies) and a minor isn psychology and counseling!

wowza!

James turns 9 months old today. I am not sure where THAT time went. It seems like I was just pregnant with this little guy and now all of a sudden the topic of more kids has been floating around?! Not yet, NOT YET. I am enjoying this time with my only son and don't yet have strong desire for another. I know I want at least  one more someday, but not today. Today I am enjoying the three of us! :)

I fit into my first pair of my "pre-pregnancy" jeans yesterday... 

I also started working out this week.. I think that fitting into my largest pair of pre baby jeans gave me more of a drive to fit into the REST of them! I am doing both weight training AND cardio.. I could do cardio all day long, I have never enjoyed weights, but I am learning!

Jimmy started Insanity yesterday. I am proud of him for going to the gym every morning before class!

It really helps that we both have accountability in friends. I have my college roommate and Jimmy has her husband! :) win-win! 

I hope you all have a blessed weekend! :)

Snip, Snip

James will be 9 months old tomorrow.

WHERE DID THE LAST NINE MONTHS GO?

I so badly wanted to make it to his first birthday before cutting his hair. That didn't happen. The poor boy had hair in his eyes all the time and it drove him (and his father) crazy.

I compromised and said, let's do it at 9 months. perfect!

That didn't happen either.

After dinner last night, with the oatmeal, broccoli, apples and sweet potatoes smeared throughout his hair we decided it was time.

So there you have it, my little boy got his first hair cut! Despite his newborn hair being chopped off, he is still a baby. (for some reason I assumed he would magically turn into a BOY and no longer be my baby...)

before:

during:

after: