Announcement!
This is a pretty big announcement, so stick it out to the end of this thing! Unless you're hoping it's a pregnancy announcement, in that case you can stop reading! (haha) I have wanted to share some of this for quite some time, but just couldn't put my thoughts into words. So here's me being completely vulnerable with you all:
Let me start at the beginning, 4 and a half years ago AJ was active-duty Army and we were stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. We were young, overwhelmed and I was struggling with my usual post-baby depression, and we decided AJ would not renew his contract and we would move back home!
Fast Forward several months, there we sat in our new living room in Newton, Kansas, still surrounded by boxes. We looked at each other and I knew we were thinking the same thing, "we made a mistake." We felt like AJ should have re-upped and retired from the Army. But of course, it was too late, so we decided to make the most of it! We left financial security, a nice savings account, and a built-in community for AJ to go to school full time and work night shifts. Let me tell you, it was rough. On top of that I was also working and this is when we really started to have troubles with Emery. He was not adjusting well, to say the least. Also during this 3 years of college, we had Reid (our 3rd child) 2 months early, and Emery was diagnosed with autism. All together this made for the most overwhelming time in our marriage, and I honestly wasn't even sure AJ and I liked each other anymore. (Kind of joking😂, but really... we had a heated argument about spatulas once. SPATULAS!! 😜)
Somewhere during this not-so-great 3 years, we stopped regretting our decision for AJ to get out of the Army and we were so thankful to be near family for all of this craziness! God knew we would need their support and love, and he led us here for this time! We also learned and grew so much. I learned that I am helpless without Christ and I need him every second, every minute, every hour. I started to completely turn things over to God and trust him (which I'm still not perfect at). He is so good. It's during these tough times that God really molds and chisels us, and I am grateful for the work he's done in my heart.
Here are some verses I clung to during this time:
“casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.”
1 Peter 5:7 NASB
“After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.”
1 Peter 5:10 NASB
"And to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far MORE abundantly than all we ask or think, according to the power at work within us" Ephesians 3:10-20 NASB
Also, I don't know if you guys know AJ, but he was made to be in the military, he just "fits." He's that hyper-organized, perfectionist, clean cut, determined personality that we all wish we were more like.
Ok, if you're still reading, thanks for making it this far! (haha).
SO, Last week AJ was officially accepted into the Air Force Nursing Corps! We will be moving to state #4 in February!
I read a quote once that said, "sometimes we have to choose between giving our children roots, and giving them wings." Well, I guess we're choosing wings!
Let me start at the beginning, 4 and a half years ago AJ was active-duty Army and we were stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. We were young, overwhelmed and I was struggling with my usual post-baby depression, and we decided AJ would not renew his contract and we would move back home!
Fast Forward several months, there we sat in our new living room in Newton, Kansas, still surrounded by boxes. We looked at each other and I knew we were thinking the same thing, "we made a mistake." We felt like AJ should have re-upped and retired from the Army. But of course, it was too late, so we decided to make the most of it! We left financial security, a nice savings account, and a built-in community for AJ to go to school full time and work night shifts. Let me tell you, it was rough. On top of that I was also working and this is when we really started to have troubles with Emery. He was not adjusting well, to say the least. Also during this 3 years of college, we had Reid (our 3rd child) 2 months early, and Emery was diagnosed with autism. All together this made for the most overwhelming time in our marriage, and I honestly wasn't even sure AJ and I liked each other anymore. (Kind of joking😂, but really... we had a heated argument about spatulas once. SPATULAS!! 😜)
(Here is AJ with his bachelors degree, And just to prove to you that I'm an emotional basket case who doesn't manage stress well (enneagram 7 problems), I cried through the ENTIRE ceremony. I was just so happy to close this chapter of our lives, and also super proud of him!)
Somewhere during this not-so-great 3 years, we stopped regretting our decision for AJ to get out of the Army and we were so thankful to be near family for all of this craziness! God knew we would need their support and love, and he led us here for this time! We also learned and grew so much. I learned that I am helpless without Christ and I need him every second, every minute, every hour. I started to completely turn things over to God and trust him (which I'm still not perfect at). He is so good. It's during these tough times that God really molds and chisels us, and I am grateful for the work he's done in my heart.
Here are some verses I clung to during this time:
“casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.”
1 Peter 5:7 NASB
“After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.”
1 Peter 5:10 NASB
"And to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far MORE abundantly than all we ask or think, according to the power at work within us" Ephesians 3:10-20 NASB
(Disclaimer: I do know that some people, a lot of people, have gone through much worse than we have! And I know we will go through trials again.)
But even all throughout this completely insane time in our lives, we still felt strongly that AJ's time in the military was not over. (And he's also over halfway to military retirement...so there's that).
AJ looked into several different programs, and he decided to apply to the Air Force Nursing Corps. It took him a year to put the packet together! (My military friends feel me here). There were a lot of hoops to jump through, but we felt confident that this is where God wants us, that this is our ministry, and this is where he wants us to go.
Also, I don't know if you guys know AJ, but he was made to be in the military, he just "fits." He's that hyper-organized, perfectionist, clean cut, determined personality that we all wish we were more like.
Ok, if you're still reading, thanks for making it this far! (haha).
SO, Last week AJ was officially accepted into the Air Force Nursing Corps! We will be moving to state #4 in February!
I read a quote once that said, "sometimes we have to choose between giving our children roots, and giving them wings." Well, I guess we're choosing wings!
(seriously, stud.)
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