dear florida

((or "flo-rida" as Hubs and I like to call you))

I have to admit. I was a little nervous about making you my new home. Don't get me wrong...I was insanely excited. But you have to understand, you're 22 hours from my family, closest friends, and the place(s) I called home for the last 22 years.

But I've been here for about a week, and I've learned a few things about you. Wanna know what they are? Here are a few (in no particular order).

Finding a Dr. Pepper can be a bit of a struggle.
You have 7-Eleven, which makes me feel like I'm back home.
The Target by my house smells super funky. Can you do something about that?
Your palm trees...gorgeous. Wonder if I'll ever get over them.
Oh, and Macy's smells weird too. Just sayin'.
You're really hot. Don't let it get to your head...I'm talking temperature. But I like it. Makes me feel at home.
Your roads are weird and confusing, but I'm slowly figuring them out.
Your people are pretty nice. One guy even touched my hair at the mall. Okay, that wasn't nice. It was creepy.
I've always loved the beach, but now...I LOVE the beach. It makes me think.

Everyday it feels a little more like home. I'm really trying to treasure each passing moment because I know how special they are these days. Someday, I'll look back at this season of my life and wish I could relive it. I can't even begin to imagine what the journey ahead of me looks like, but I'm so excited to find out, and I can't really complain about the journey being by the beach. :)

Thanks for making me feel welcome.
I really, really like ya.


lindsay

((big news))

this is one of those posts I never thought I'd be writing.

Isn't it funny amazing how God's plans are beyond our wildest dreams?

And when I say wildest...I mean wildest.

Well the picture pretty much says it all....

WE'RE MOVING TO THE BEACH!

Okay, maybe that's not all of it. You probably want more details, right? I can't just leave you hangin'. 

Okay, here goes:

In a nutshell: We've been hired on as the new kids pastors at a church in Fort Myers, Florida! ((Well, technically Josh has, but I'll be his right hand man woman.)) 

We are so honored to have such a huge, important calling on our lives, and we're beyond excited about the new journey ahead of us! We know God has huge plans for the church and the kids ministry, and we're so blessed to get to be a part of it!

As some of you know, Joshua and I had pretty much planned to stay in Springfield until at least December of this year. We're both finishing up our last semesters of school, and we both lovelovelove where we're at. The last four years have been incredible and life-changing. Joshua and I have learned so much, and we are so incredibly thankful for the leaders who have taken us under their wings and taught us about ministry, marriage, and all things life! It's truly because of them and the amazing way God works that we are where we are today. I could write ten billion blog posts about how much we love and appreciate the people and this season, but I'll spare you for now.

Anywho, we're so excited! Excited to take what we've learned over the last few years and apply it in new ways. Excited to be used by God to reach the lost. Excited to teach kids about how awesome and BIG and loving God is! Excited to partner with the pastor to help him carry out the vision God has given him for the church and the community. 

We'll be moving down at the beginning of May right after we graduate (woop! woop!). Big days ahead! We're going to miss our Missouri family so so much (I'm definitely dreading the day we have to say our "see ya laters.") We're certainly going to miss our family in Oklahoma terribly, and we're looking forward to lots and lots of visits! But we have peace because we know God has called us to this and He's got such huge plans for our future! We've got some big shoes to fill, but we're thrilled to have the opportunity!

Well, thanks for sharing an exciting moment with us. Your prayers over the next several weeks will be greatly appreciated! Some specifics you can pray for:

• favor with the education department at my university as I apply to do my student teaching out of state
• favor in our long-distance house hunt in florida!
• continued peace as we finish out the last several weeks of school and begin packing!
• wisdom and guidance for the ministry we'll be leading in Florida!

Thanks for reading and praying for us! I'm excited to use my blog as a place to document our upcoming journey! I'll try to keep the beach pictures to a minimum as not to make anyone jealous. ;)

lindsay