LIFE: The Last Decade

I am sitting in front of my computer and trying to process through what I have to say about the past decade. I have had a tearful start to the mornings of this past week as I have tried to do the same. 2017-2018 I have had a struggle with the coming of October 11. The best way to track a decade is start at the beginning.

2008 age 20

     I was a sophomore in college at Oklahoma Baptist University. My roommate and some of our suitemates blindfolded me ( which lead to me falling asleep) enroute to a place I had talked about so highly from when I was touring colleges- POPS 66 Soda Ranch! The thing is that these girls had never been there and it took WAYY longer than it should have to get there but it was soo much fun introducing them to POPS. That weekend I headed to San Antonio with my fiance to get our engagement photos. 

    

     I got married during my 20th year to the love of my life. We planned our entire wedding in 6 days after I caught the bouquet at his cousins wedding on January 3.  We were married at the church we met at in 2005. 

     We moved back to San Antonio after our spring semester and transferred to online colleges so we could be around to help my wonderful in-laws. I started my time at Castle Hills as a preschool teacher. 

2009 age 21

     I started off my 21st year with a 5k race in Austin. My brother, Bryant, and sister- in- love, Becky, were saints that stayed with me though they could have ran laps around my pace. I knew that I needed to get in shape to be healthy for future kids and for myself. My nana came in to the US to meet my Hubby and celebrate my birthday. 

     

This is the year I found out that I actually really enjoy jury duty 

( I know, I am weird). I also transferred to CUNY SPS to study Communications and Culture. We met Jack Johnson at his concert in the Houston area. My mother in law went through her thyroid removal surgery during this year. This is also the year I qualified for Starbucks Gold.

               2010 age 22

     Well this year ended up being eventful. In January, John dislocated his ankle, my mother in law went through radiation after her thyroid cancer removal, and I had pneumonia all during the same week. John had a long recovery with physical therapy and I had a long recovery learning how to do physical activity with my crazy lungs. 

     During the summer, we helped start a preteen camp at the church we got married at, and I transitioned to working not only in the preschool, but also in the high school as the yearbook teacher and then eventually as the cheer coach. 

     I was introduced to Leading and Loving It shortly after John got hired at a local church part time. I met some of my favorite people during this year. I grew a lot as a person in this year. 

2011 age 23

     I spread myself too thin during this season. Working full time at the preschool, part time at the high school, coaching cheer at the school, coaching cheer at Churchill Baptist, full time college and wife to a youth pastor. I burned out by the summer, which lead to me nannying for a family over the summer and coaching gymnastics after college graduation in September of 2012. I took my first solo drive up I35 to audition for "The Biggest Loser".

     I did something for myself and took a running class and did a few 5ks to see how I improved. This is also the time that John and I became pescatarians to see how we could improve our health. Both running and food changes have been a focus in our lives since this point because we had felt so yucky after being on bedrest and rehab from ankle and pneumonia.  

                                  2012 age 24

     This was probably the first time I went ALL out for a birthday. Since my birthday is 10/11 it was 10/11/12 :) So we went to breakfast at 8:09 am on 10/11/12. I also celebrated in the PM that year. 

     We got the opportunity to do some traveling during this year for church interviews. I took a step out of my comfort zone and left the gym I was working at and took to working for a church as an admin asst and learned so much about ministry. 

                                 

                                         2013 age 25

     I celebrated my birthday by meeting Bart Millard from MercyMe ( ie: the man that looks like my husband). I helped plan and execute a tree farm in South Texas ( never again in South Texas but I would love to own a tree farm). Went to two theater productions at the Majestic Theatre.

     We interviewed and accepted a call to Greenwood, Indiana. I fell in love with Indiana and with One Mission Society. I enjoyed every moment of ever season, and seasons actually changed for the first time in my life. I got on a plane and flew to Alaska to meet and take care of my sweet niece.
John started seminary. 

2014 age 26

     My infatuation with the midwest grew and grew. We traveled home to San Antonio for breakfast tacos, to see our friends get married, and for John to be ordained. John did his first wedding and we took our first legit vacation to Hawaii with my inlaws. We felt our calling for foster kiddos.
     My mama and Kloey came to visit Greenwood from Alaska, and met John for the first time.

2015 age 27

     I worked for a high school as a virtual lab teacher and had amazing conversations with students about God and about their futures. John and I got to experience the Creation Museum and an apple orchard for the first time.  My in-laws came to visit for Christmas, and a small tornado happened about two miles from our house while they were visiting. We also had some excitement when we woke up the day they were going to leave to puncture holes in both of our car tires. 

    We had a mournful goodbye to Indiana and a season of rest in San Antonio. We travelled to California, Indiana, West Virginia, and variously through Texas for interviews. We began making
wood signs under the name Fenced No More. 

 2016 age 28

I began to nanny for a super sweet family and we swallowed some hard no's from churches. I took on an internship with Together We Rise where my love for foster/adoption ministry grew. I wrote through the toughness of not having a kiddo at my age and we found out we were expecting within a few weeks of the blog post. We had a whirlwind summer that had camps and a epic road trip to Indiana to meet long lost family members. We experienced the Ark Encounter, driving a Jaguar car, Yelp Spring Break and meeting some of my closest friends at Jen Hatmakers house. 

                                                               2017 age 29

     This birthday started off with tears due to a hormonal reaction to my TDAP shot during pregnancy. I realized on this day that I was struggling with the fact that my twenties were coming to an end. It was bittersweet because I was FINALLY pregnant but Satan was attacking me with feelings that I had not accomplished enough and I was not in the shape I wanted to be when I had a child. Each day growing closer to January was exciting. We didn't find our the gender to our little one, so it was bigger than the anticipation of Christmas morning.

      This year brought new friendships both in Texas and upon moving to Virginia
(1500 miles with a two month old). We welcomed the change in family dynamic in the addition of our long awaited child, Malachi.
     I have grown in the past 9 months. We have celebrated and mourned with friends. We were able to visit Liberty University (Johns seminary) for the the first time. We visited the US Capitol. 

     October 11 is the anniversary of my birth, also known as my birthday. Since I have been with John, we have chosen to celebrate my birth month. I never thought that turning an age older would bother me, and I do not know that it is the number that I am struggling to get over. I think the struggle is something anyone goes through in life: What am I here for? What am I suppose to be doing with my life? Who am I?

     So today, the eve of my 30th birthday. I am a little weepy. Partly because hormones, and partly because I feel like the past year has flown by too quickly. I can not believe my little guy is almost 9 months old. I will continue to seek guidance of finding my niche, because looking at this blog post reminds me that my seeking journey has taken me on a whole lot of adventures. Next adventure, 30... and shortly after that John and I will embark on the next decade of marriage, and raising a one year old- we will see where it takes the three of us.