Day Date

On Saturday, Bradley wanted to take me to this new place in Little Rock called Altitude. It's a huge building with tons of trampolines in it. Now, when I was a kid I used to love jumping on trampolines and I was quite the little dare devil. Now that I'm older, I'm just not as brave as I used to be. Randall, Jolyn, and Kyler went with us so at least Bradley had someone to play with. I spent most of the time taking pictures with my new camera the hubs got me for Christmas. This place was awesome!! It had different areas; a kid zone, dodge ball zone, free jump zone, a jump pit, and they were in the process of putting in a basketball court. We will definitely go back when they get that in, of course.

After we finished jumping we headed over to the Promenade because Bradley has been wanting to try this hamburger place they have called Big Orange. While we waited we went over to the Nike outlet where we had just been that previous Wednesday, and they had some awesome deals. B got two pairs of shoes finally. He has been complaining about not having any tennis shoes and we have been looking for him some for what seems like a long time now. It's weird how you can go to a store one day and they not have much or any good deals and then you back a few days later and it's like a jackpot. I seriously had one of the best hamburgers I have ever eaten at Big Orange. They had such a wide variety and you could even get a turkey or veggie burger if you are trying to eat healthy.

I just love dates and it seems like we never get to go on many anymore, and that makes me sad. We've almost turned in to an old married couple already because we would rather sit at home and watch TV while cuddling on the couch. Don't get me wrong I love that too, but sometimes I like to go out. I have to write about our wonderful experience we have been having at the Robinson and Center Church of Christ here in Conway. We have been looking for a church where we believe they teach the right things and where we feel comfortable. We have attended the past 2 Sundays and we have met some truly amazing people. It's such a small world because we have met so many people that have connections with some of our good friends and people we know. We have been looking for a congregation to where we feel like we can truly be a part of and start ministering in the community. They have this program called Night Owls that we both really want to participate in. It's where the families of special needs children get a free babysitter at the church so they can go on a date. Of course that sparked my interest, but I never thought B would want to do it. While we were sitting in church on Sunday, they were making an announcement about it and I turned to him and said "I really want to do that" and he said "I'll do it too." He's always been a little skiddish around children with special needs because he never really knows how to act or talk to them. I was so pleased that he said he would do it too. I feel like we are finally learning and growing with our saving grace, Jesus, together. That makes me so happy that I could cry. It is something I have always treasured and wanted in the man I married and I obviously married a great Christian man.

A Whole New Year

I can not believe it is 2014 already. Where did last year go? It's easy to say that marrying my best friend and becoming a wife was the best part of 2013. We've officially been married for 5 months today, I know, that's a really long time. Before we got married we participated in marriage counseling with some of the finest and most experienced Christian husbands and wives that we know. During that process were warned about the troubles that might arise in the first year of marriage and the different responsibilities we would each have. I was still too excited about the fact that we were getting married to actually pay attention at the best of my ability. We have encountered numerous times from random people that ask how long we have been married with this response "Ohhh how's it going? The first year is always the hardest." It might be too soon to say since we still have 7 months to go before we jump over that hurdle of being married for an entire year, but we have been doing great. Better than we ever did while we were dating. Sure we have had the occasional arguments but nothing serious. Hearing this from people who have been married for many years makes us wonder why exactly we're not having a lot of trouble this first year. The only thing I can think of that could be the answer to that, is our Heavenly Father and the comfort we have by knowing that he leads our marriage.

During our dating years, I had a tendency to try to lead our relationship and always make things based on me because 1. I was young, 2. It had always been that way in my previous relationships, and 3. I didn't know what it actually meant to be submissive. We went through some real difficult times while we were dating and I know that we wouldn't be as strong as we are today if it wasn't for those troubled times. The thoughts of those times still pop in both of our minds on different occasions but we both know that it is just the Devil trying to stir up heartache again. In all honesty I am still learning how to be submissive and a good help meet to my hubby. I had a vague idea of what being a help meet actually meant when we said "I do" but with the help of "Created to be His Help Meet" by Debi Pearl and God's Word I feel as if I am finally starting to understand what it means.

I have some big things coming up this year and I don't know what I would do if Bradley wasn't by my side every day, encouraging me to keep pushing. I have been struggling with "contentment" for what seems like a long time now. I constantly think about the future and that's all that consumes my mind. "I can't wait to have babies", "I can't wait to have our own home", "I can't wait to be finished with school so I can help my husband out", "What if I chose the wrong profession? Sure, I love it enough to be content with it every day, but what if I was meant to do something else?" These types of thoughts lurk in my mind and heart. I keep saying to myself "Not my will, but thine be done." I just have to start believing it with every inch of my body and soul.

Now that all of that is out on the table I wanted to announce my verse for the year of 2014. I didn't want to pick just one word to define or strive for this coming year, but a verse to help me live by. My verses I chose are James 1:5-8- If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given unto him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. 

I chose these verses because I am striving for wisdom this year. Wisdom in my marriage, wisdom in school, wisdom in my faith, and wisdom in my Jesus.