Infinitely More

It's funny how life turns out.

If someone had walked up to me just 2 years ago and told me that by this time I'd have a baby boy, we'd have moved across the country to SoCal, and my husband would have this new career... I would've thought that was crazy talk. Yet here we are...

Remember when I said Jon got offered a job in less than 3 months, a process that typically takes over a year? (if not, you can read a little about that here) Yes, that was a God thing, but let me back track a little. What I didn't say is that that wasn't exactly our first choice. It was actually our last - or so we thought. It was the least pay, training was away from home, and we knew it was a long process so it was going to be a last resort if nothing else went through.

Jon had passed the first couple tests quickly, so we figured the process would stall for a bit since we were told the whole thing takes a while. But then on one of the days Jon went in for another test/interview, they happened to have all the decision making people there at the same time. After a very long day they called him back in and gave him a one time offer. His choice was to either accept it right away and have his start date in September or wait to think about it, but then there was no guarantee.

So he took it. He didn't call me, he just took it.

Oh boy was I angry when he called to tell me the "good" news. How could he not call me to discuss this?! Especially because this involves being apart for so long! This was my initial reaction, but once I had a chance to process my thoughts I realized he made the right choice. Trust me, I'm all for couples making decisions together, but this was one of those times he had to make the call. You see, he knew. He knew that I would react emotionally and that in turn he would also. It was a limited time offer, he needed to make a rational decision and so he did.

Now that we are where we are, we've realized that this "last choice" was actually the best choice. Being apart is not our favorite, but God knew what he was doing. God knew that physical + academic training + husband and dad duties at home (and still sharing a room with a baby) would be overwhelming. Jon needed to take this time away to focus. And for me - having him home but too busy, here but not "present" would've been really frustrating and probably taken a toll on our relationship. It also turns out that, yes, the starting pay is a little lower than the other jobs he was looking at, but in the long run he will actually make more.

So what we thought was our last choice turned out to be better than what we were asking.

"Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think." - Ephesians 3:20 NLT

We are just learning how to do this long distance thing. Once again we make a temporary sacrifice that will be worth it in the long run (this seems to be the theme of our lives this year). It's not the greatest, but as I read this verse I am reminded that God's mighty power is at work within us, and that he will continue to accomplish even more than we can imagine.

In the meantime, thank God for FaceTime :)

- A

Thankful

It's been about a week since we moved into our new place. We are so thankful for God's provision and timing. We were stuck between a time constraint and unique circumstances and just when I thought for sure  it would be impossible to make this move, everything fell into place.  We were able to find a new home situated close to our new church family and within a short commute to Jon's new job (we had been living about an hour north of here). This is what we were praying for and God totally came through!

We are so thankful for Jon's new job. My heart is so mixed with emotions though, since he will have to go away for training for nearly 5 months! I am both excited for him and sad to be apart for so long. I'm sad that he'll miss out on Nathan's baby phase and milestones, but I'm also glad  that it's now while he's little and won't feel it as bad. I know it will be hard, but I'm also at peace  knowing that  God has led us up to this point and will strengthen us through it.  So instead of worrying and thinking about the negatives, I'm choosing to be thankful.

Thankful  for technology that will allow us to keep in touch and see each others faces.
Thankful for NOW- this time we have together before he leaves.
Thankful  for having my parents living with us - it'll be nice to have the extra help while he's away.
Thankful for a church community I can get involved in and keep myself busy.
Thankful for a God who takes care of all things, big or small.

So Jon officially starts working the end of this month, and then he has to go to Georgia to train from late October to early March. We are still figuring out the legistics  of it but  we're told he'll have off weekends and that I can go visit.

In the meantime, we'll be settling into our new home and soaking up as much time together as we can these next couple weeks. Please pray for us!

- A, J & N

Do Not Worry

After weeks of tests, interviews, and more tests came the time to wait. I think what makes waiting so hard is the silence. You don't have any answers, only hope... along with doubt, fear and worry. Questions were running through our heads like- Will Jon get offered any of these jobs he applied for? How long will it take? Were we crazy thinking we could pull this off? Are we going to burn through our savings? And then what?

I have to admit- I'm a worrier. It's in my nature. But in these times I am reminded that God tells me not to. He says "6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." (Philipians 4:6-7). I cannot even describe how much truth there is to this. Whenever I pour out all my worries to God, I am overwhelmed with His peace. 

Two Sundays ago Jon was pretty upset that something was wrong with his ear. We had his mom and brother over visiting and we had been at the beach the day before. We weren't sure if it was water or some wax buildup but his ear was clogged and he could barely hear from it. We tried over-the-counter  stuff that not only didn't work but made him worse. I was worried about his ear and he was worried about having to pay a doctor visit out of pocket because  we  don't currently have health insurance. I woke up  late, he had a rough night and was in a bad mood, and church was an hour away. It would've been so easy to stay home that morning, and the thought of suggesting it crossed my mind, but I knew we had to get ourselves to church. Thankfully we made it and boy am I glad we did!  Not only was the worship and message so spirit-filled, Jon's ear was healed by the end of the service! We knew that was God telling us directly "do not worry". If he heard our plea for something small like a clogged ear, how much more does he care about our overall well-being? 

Fast forward a week and that job that the hiring process supposedly  takes a year or more? Yeah, Jon got an offer and starts this September! Is that God or what?!  We are so thankful to God for hearing our prayers and providing for us! 

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭25-34‬ NIV)

Making Room for Baby - Part II

Once upon a time I wrote the first part of this blog post with the intention of writing Part 2 once everything was put in place. Well since then we've moved twice, each time to an even tighter space, making room for a baby quite a challenge. We've managed, and we're still managing, although I hope our next move means more space rather than less. In the meantime I choose to enjoy this season of having my little family snuggled up in one bedroom.

It's funny how things turn out. I used to be the one who thought my baby would have his own room and sleep in from day one. I also thought I would start sleep training as soon as he was old enough. Turned out I got pregnant while we were living in a one bedroom apartment and then we decided to make this big move cross-country which put saving money a priority over having separate rooms. So here we are, many months later, with a crib next to our bed and sleep training down the drain. I'm pretty sure he's capable of sleeping through the night; the problem is how many nights of letting him cry would it take and is it worth it when we're still in the same room? Some days I think we should try it out for a couple nights to test if he's ready, and then I quickly take it back because I know he'll eventually grow out of nursing so why rush it?

As challenging as it seems right now, I know one day I'll look back at this time as a sweet memory. I'll miss having my baby real close, and I'll even miss that quiet bonding time nursing him in the middle of the night. So I'll keep reminding myself to enjoy it for now.

In terms of space, there's nothing a little organization and creativity can't handle. Plenty of storage is key, as well as making every space count. The first set-up in our apartment consisted of Nathan's crib, a rocking chair (not pictured) in the corner next to my nightstand, and a shared dresser doubled as a changing station. I used the drawer space for items I would need on a regular basis, and left extra blankets and my "going out" clothes in the closet. Nathan's play gym and extra diapers and wipes fit perfectly under his crib.

Our second set-up was similar to our first, only much more spacious since we were privileged to be in a large bedroom at my in-law's house.

Our current set up is a little tighter, so we left our long dresser behind and our rocking chair is sitting in storage. I bought a smaller dresser for Nathan's clothes and his changing pad still fit perfectly on top. I use drawer compartments in the first drawer to keep all changing and grooming supplies neat and close to grab. 

In the living room, Nathan's toy storage unit is doubled as a tv stand and we even made a little room for his tent (although it looks big, it keeps the space looking clean when you just throw his toys in there)!

I dream of the day Nathan will have his own room and hopefully a play room. But for now this will do ;)

Moving in, 7 months, 9 years

 Jon and I keep asking each other, "Can you believe we really live here?" Yes, it's been 12 days but it still feels surreal. What we've been planning over a year is actually happening. We're not on vacation, and we're not flying back in a few days.

It caught us by surprise earlier this week when our moving company called and said our stuff, which was estimated to arrive on the 18th, was here and ready to pick up! WHAT? We rushed to find a storage unit we thought we'd only need the middle of the month and set to pick it up later in the week. 

We are so thankful for my parents for letting us squeeze in with them and share their space, and also for our friends Tiff and G who helped us move our stuff in!

Yesterday I finally finished organizing our stuff and having a sense of familiarity here definitely made me feel at home.

 

 

On top of the eventful week moving in, we also celebrated Nathan's 7 months and our 9 year dating anniversary!

UPDATE: Jon has been pretty busy with his job application process. Things are slowly moving along and seem to be looking good so far. We are feeling confident that God is paving the path ahead of us. We have definitely felt his provision even in the smallest details happening around us. Please continue praying for us as we embark in this new journey!

Love, 

J, A, & N

Goodbye, Hello

Today is the day we say goodbye to the home we've always known, and hello to a new one. It's a bittersweet feeling as we're so excited to experience this new journey, but there's so much we're leaving behind. NJ, you've been good to us... Your people, your places, and the memories we've had here we'll hold dear to our hearts forever. We may miss some things more than others, but you'll always be a part of our story.

GOODBYE  sunrise, HELLO sunset

GOODBYE old friends, HELLO new friends (with a few recycled ones ;) 

GOODBYE to some family, HELLO again to others

GOODBYE snow & never ending winters, HELLO sand & ideal weather

GOODBYE  lushous green nature walks, HELLO mountains & hiking 

GOODBYE refreshing summer rain, HELLO cool summer nights

GOODBYE new jersey, HELLO california

We're Moving!

WHOA, it's been a while! Last time I was here I was about 6 months pregnant and this time around my little guy is almost 6 months old! I realize I have some catching up to do, but first I'd like to start off with some NEWS (if you didn't already know) - WE'RE MOVING!

It feels so surreal to be writing about this because it means that it's actually happening and getting close! Backing up a bit... a little over a year ago (right around the time I found out I was pregnant) we started brainstorming the idea of moving from New Jersey to San Diego, CA. I always dreamed of moving out of state to someplace with more "outdoor friendly" weather, but during my dating years and engagement with Jon it was pretty clear that his idea for our future was set in NJ for a while - so I put that dream to the side and just let him know that if he ever changed his mind I would totally be on board. Well, it definitely caught me by surprise when this idea came from him less than a year into our marriage! We spoke about it a whole lot and more and more the pros were weighing more than the cons. Really, we both knew, but decided to pray more about it and wait it out to see how we felt when we visited my parents out there last Summer. I can't explain it any other way than it just felt right. Yes, it's a challenge to leave the security and familiarity of life here, but we truly believe God has a plan for us over there. Simply put - we believe that God created us and put certain desires in our hearts, and as much as New Jersey is dear to our hearts, it is not the place that fulfills our desire for the kind of lifestyle we want our family to live.

After making our decision, we started planning. We would have the baby in NJ (while we still had job security and health insurance), move into Jon's parents' for a couple months to save some extra money, and make the big move in the Summer of 2015. Here we are, Spring of 2015 and the date is set - July 1st!

So why am I sharing this? We have our perspective plans, but there are still a lot of unknowns. So please PRAY for us. I promise I will try my best to keep up to date and blog our journey along the way :)

- Angie

P.S. We'll be having a GARAGE SALE in UNION on May 30th to help downsize our amount of stuff since we're limiting ourselves to 1 U-BOX container to ship. I'll be selling some of our clothes, shoes, jewelry, kitchen gadgets/appliances, decor, furniture, etc. SAVE THE  DATE!