And I Would Drive 500 Miles...

See what I did there? Do you have that song in your head now? Well, if you didn't, now you do. You're welcome. My connection with that song? Seeing it framed with a picture collage at the home of a family that I was close to in college and who did our premarital counseling/officiated our wedding. Miss you guys!

Back to regularly scheduled programming. I drove over 500 miles today and spent 12 hours in the car. We left home at 8 am, drove two hours south to pick up my sister. We then drove two hours northeast to pick up her wedding dress. The dress was beautiful and so was she. We found our bridesmaid dresses and also found a replacement bridesmaid for one who decided she couldn't participate. No hard feelings, just wasn't working out. We drove two hours southwest to see the church where my sister is getting married and the venue for her reception. They are both awesome. We decided on shower dates and had fun, too! (Jacob learned how to pick his nose) Then we drove the rest of the way back to drop Emily off at her house and then two hours north back home. We arrived around 8:45.

Emily- I know today was a little bit stressful for you. But we have almost 200 days to amend things and it will ALL WORK OUT. I love you and am here to help, even if it means calling to vent about something or making save the dates. Thanks for letting me be such a big part of your big day!

Easter 2013

March 31st was a great day! Not only was it Easter (which is the most important part) but it was also Opening Night for my favorite baseball team, the Texas Rangers. We won't discuss what actually happened at the game because it was a giganto let down (Astros? Really?) but we've since moved on.

Normally, the ministry that we serve in at church has small group time after the 11 am service because the chances of a college student making it to church at 11 and then staying for free lunch and small groups are much greater than said college student making it to 9:30 small groups and then staying for church at 11. For Easter Sunday, we didn't have small groups after church so that the students and leaders could spend time with their families. We were encouraged to serve somewhere instead, so Jim and I worked the Nursery for the first time. We had two year olds and it was great. The preschool staff was there for any issues we ran into. We are now on the rotation to volunteer at least once a month. I snuck this picture while washing my hands after a messy finger painting project:

For lunch, we went to my Dad's house. We had delicious food and snacks and Jacob went on his first official Easter egg hunt. We had plans last year of walking kids everywhere, but alas, Jacob had to be carried everywhere to pick his up. Back breaker. He loved it, though, and all the cousins went on a wagon ride that was super fun, too!

That evening we hung out at my Mom's house for a delicious dinner. We were home by 7pm to watch the disaster of the Ranger game. 

Hope you and your family had a great Easter weekend!

Jacob's First Birthday

We had a baseball themed party for Jacob's first birthday. Here are some of the details:
I cut out baseball hats with my Cameo and used them as the invitations. I made a pennant banner that says "Jacob is 1"and had each of his monthly pictures on it.

I made baseball cupcakes, ordered baseball sugar cookies, served "ballpark" food (hot dogs, nachos, cokes and sweet tea) and decorated the backdrop to the food like above. I also made Jacob a smash cake which he only wanted to lick the icing off of. He got lots of great gifts, some functional (which I love) and some fun! Here's a few more pictures:

So Thankful for my Church

Yesterday, I had one of those weird moments where you feel like you're walking through a flashback in a movie or tv show. I was at my church getting ready for our dance recital and I had to go in a different entrance as they were doing some exterior work at the main one. I was walking down the long hallway and all of these memories flooded my head.

I set foot in that church for the first time to attend the funeral of my teammate and friend Lacey. She had decided that the world was more than she could handle and had ended her own life my freshman year of high school.

I didn't start seriously attending services there until my junior year. From that point forward, God began great things for my life that were, well, life-altering. My journey on this earth took a drastic turn from where I thought it would be going.

I graduated from high school and decided to stay home and attend school here, met a guy who would be instrumental in involving me in children's ministry and introduce me to my mentor, Julie. Walking down that long hallway, I remembered walking into offices and getting schedules and tasks, helping out and learning new things about ministry. The walls were a different color and the break room for the janitors was filled with faces, some who still work there, others who have moved on in jobs or from this world, and I half expect one of them to come around the corner.

I would move on from children's ministry to youth ministry. There is a special group of girls that hold their place in my life when I felt so alive and really loved what I did. They're all in college now, taking on their own journeys. Julie would introduce me (in a most embarrassing way) to my husband. I became an assistant after directing the sports ministry and learning that being in charge is NOT my thing. Being an assistant was hard, but I was so appreciated by my bosses and loved what I did that it made it worth it. Now, I'm just a volunteer and love doing what I can to help out and teaching dance to four sweet girls.

As I pushed Jacob down that hallway, I just connected all those dots and got a little sentimental. Of course, it was God's plan all along, but my life is what it is in part because of all of those memories and circumstances that the hundred year old building holds. I am who I am because God used them for my good and His glory. There are some rough spots and some spots that weren't very fun, but I'm so thankful for each of them. I'm thankful to be on this journey with my Lord, and it makes me excited for what's down the road: the good and the bad, but all beautifully orchestrated.