Young Life

Montana Adventure

2009-07-15T13:49:00.000-07:00

Family vacations are fun for me. I don't mean it sarcastically either. My family is FUNNY and the vacations are FUN. We left last Wedesday for Missoula, MT and spent the week in Whitefish with my brother, SIL Sara, their unborn child, my mom and her husband. Instead of chronicling our time, I thought I would just post some lessons learned.

Lessons learned while vacationing in Montana:

1. Washington State patrol doesn't care if you don't have cruise control. They don't care about anything really...except bruising my soul with a $175 ticket.

2. I don't know how families road tripped successfully previous to the invention of the DVD player.

3. Jordan and I can be creative when confined in a car for 10 hours. Here are the following terms we created for people that live in Missoula...we don't know or care which one is actually correct. Missoulians, Missoulagorians, Missoulorinthians, Missourangatangs, Missoulippians.

4. You can be instant friends with people before ever actually meeting in real life. Gloria, Chris, Elizabeth, Craig, Noah, Katie and Lolo....thanks for letting us be part of your family. (I remembered all those names without referencing facebook BTW)

5. I am a bona fide mountain biker.

6. My husband is a very very very good mountain biker...and he looks sexy in action.

7. Grizzly bears hide very well in their country. Tree stumps can look like a grizzly bear and scare bona fide mountain bikers.

8. In Glacier National Park, chipmunks think they are actually the same size as the griz. They are fearless and majestic...they also seems to appreciate my singing.

9. My stepdad may actually be part griz due to his deep desire of all things huckleberry.

10. When I say the word "griz" in Montana then I feel like I fit in.

11. Some families talk politics, some entertainment, we however choose to debate biblical and medical ethics for hours. Then we laugh at hot pockets.

12. My mom is my favorite woman in the world. I could just sit in her presense without speaking and feel satisfied.

13. When I hear my brother talk about his love for Christ, I am overwhelmed with every spiritual emotion.

We really loved Montana and can't wait for the next trip! This was the conversation while pulling into our neighborhood last night after 10 fun filled hours in the car:

Austen: "Mom, are you so excited that we are back home now?"

Me: "Yes baby I am very excited."

Austen: "Well, I'm not."

Me: "Why not, sweets?"

Austen: "Because Uncle Matt and Aunt Sara are still in Montana."

Glacier National Park

I blog when I want.

2009-06-01T21:37:00.000-07:00

I am secure enough to know that I am not witty enough to blog on a frequent basis. Mostly it's because I have nothing interesting enough to say. HOWEVER, this weekend was the most interesting/fun/exceptional/awesome/appreciated I have had in a while. Leah and Gracyn came to stay with us for a few days and here is our journey of love. The pictures are totally out of order. I haven't figured out who is dumber...me or blogspot. Beware, your computer may in fact be crashing at this very moment due to the insane quantity of pics I uploaded. Sorry about that.

There is so much joy that it is unbelievable.

Ian. How stinkin cute are you?!

Rachel, Mily and G handed out the bday love.

Ballerina in training.

Landon is in training for something else...professional caloric intake master.

Cute kids eating cupcakes the sizes of small baby's heads.

Seriously...do they not look 16 years old? What is happening?

Ian beware...she is cute but she will attack.

Hiking with the Aunt Tops and Uncle Joels.

Deuce coup.

Oh yeah...that happened. There is no shame in the deuce coup.

This is what NW peeps do when it doesn't rain...play in the fountain. We get confused when dry.

He's on a boat.

A and G on their very first roller coaster ride. They chose front seat b/c they are hard core.

Cheesin it up in front of AGCI.

Not too much longer!

The view from the rooftop of Joel and Sara's crib.

Who needs a car when you have blue Papa?

Reunited BFFs. They never skipped a beat.

There are so many things that I loved about this weekend...I can't even put it into words. Some friendships are so sweet that explanations and adjectives only do a disservice. I have no idea why God would gift such people in my life. I am wholly un-deserving.

Today is the day!

2009-03-05T13:08:00.001-08:00

I can't believe it! I have gone from fear, to sadness, to complete excitement today! A couple last minute things I wanted to share.

Communications: This is going to be a social networking nightmare for some of you, but here are the options...

Twitter: www.twitter.com/haititeam09 --- This is our team's twitter account. It will randomly updated with the Haiti happenings.

Blogs: simplyjy.wordpress.com --- This is Jordan's blog and he will update whatever communications the two of us are able to have

sarahcase.wordpress.com --- This is one our team members who will be blogging while we are there. She has taken multiple trips to this same site and has plenty of valuable insight I'm sure!

I found out from T-mobile that there is chance I may have "some" service with my trusty blackberry. It will cost me $2/minute to make calls. 35 cents to send a text and FREE to receive a text! So I will only call/text Jordan when able but if you want to send me one, then I may actually be able to read it.

Okay...I have one more hour with my family so I am closing this computer and kissing babies.

Haiti FAQ

2009-02-27T15:22:00.000-08:00

I will be leaving on Thursday afternoon for a much anticipated trip to Haiti to work with a medical team. I get a lot of questions about this and I thought I would take the time write out my answers here.

When is your trip?
I leave March 5 and come back March 15.

What will you be doing there?
I'll be working with a team of about 15 people offering medical care to a village of people who otherwise have no access to care. We will be seeing people for whatever issue they may walk in the door with. We treat them the best way possible with the means available. The clinic has a pharmacy full of medications and we try to give each person is given a bag of rice.

Who are you going with?
A team from my church, Mosaic, who is teaming with the Haiti Foundation of Hope. There is good info on the HFH website!

How much does it cost and how did you pay for it?
Total cost is $1700. Our families were very generous this Christmas :)

What if you die/get AIDS/get kidnapped? Isn't Haiti dangerous?
This question may seem kind of funny...but it could be the most common question. What if I do? It is obviously not my goal or plan to become sick, stolen or dead. The leader of the team we are going with has been travelling to Haiti for 25 years. They lived there for 2 of those years. There are a number of precautions we are taking to protect ourselves and I take that very seriously. I work in an area of nursing where bodily fluids flow freely at will. It will not be a new concept to protect myself from that!

Why Haiti anyways?
My answer may not satisfy some people. God placed Haiti on Jordan and I's hearts over a year ago. Since college I have been exposed to mission opportunities, taken mission trips and heard hundreds of missionary stories. While I felt propelled to help in some way with these trips and stories...rarely did my heart break for them. I am saddened by a lot of things, but not moved into action. In summertime of 2007 when I started reading some of the blogs listed on the bottom right of my blogroll...(the Haiti ones and the Ivey's) I literally could not stop myself from being consumed by it. God was molding and shaping my heart for those people for some weird reason. I convinced Jordan to read the stories I was seeing, so we read and we cried and we prayed. We still don't know what that all means, but when we moved back up here and visited a church who had a partership with Haiti and was taking a medical team there in March...it was obvious to us what our first move would be. I honestly believe this is just the first step to what He is doing in us.

What about your kids?
Teaching the kids about this trip has probably been the best part so far. Let's be honest, Noelle is 2 she doesn't know what the crap is going on. Landon is about to turn 4 and he is very much aware of things, but no so great at processing the why's and how's. Austen is 5 and needs to know every detail about everything everywhere all the time. We have been talking casually about Haiti for over a year now, so when the idea came up of me going...they just expected it. We talk about how fortunate we are to have food, housing, medicine, mommies and daddies and school. We talk about how God has given us those things to be His hands and feet. We were not chosen to have these things because of good things we or our parents do. By His grace, we have been provided for and by His grace we will continue to provide for the needs of others. It's simple really.

Are you scared?
Yes, of dumb stuff mostly. Nothing to do with kidnapping or HIV. I am afraid that I will be dysfunctional after not being able to kiss my husband and babies for 10 days.

What can I do to help?
You can pray for us. I have an excellent prayer letter that I would love to send anyone who wants it. It outlines what we will be doing and where we will be day by day. You can also call my husband and be sure he hasn't listed any of the kids (Landon) on craigslist. Maybe even cook him a meal or bless his heart bring him coffee. If you don't live near us then just call him to let him know you love him and be willing to assess his mental status.

How did this happen?

2009-02-15T16:52:00.000-08:00

How did this teeny tiney little 5 pound baby turn in to a crazy pot bellied 2 year old girl? I can't believe it.

Spiritual advising

2009-01-12T11:24:00.000-08:00

I have told a few people about this conversation the boys had the other day in the car, but it just keeps getting funnier.

Setting: My car, me driving, and boys in the back seat. Going to a friends house.

It is mostly quiet and then Austen starts with the questioning...

Austen: Mom, do you know who some people love more than anyone in the world?

Me: Who is that?

A: Jesus.

Me: That's true, some people do love Him more than anything. I do.

A: Me too.

(Enter Landon)

Landon: I don't love Jesus. I don't love boys. I only love girls. I only love one boy and that is McQueen.

A: Landon, yes you do love Jesus. He lives in your heart and He talks to you and you love Him!

L: (voice a bit louder) NO Austen, I don't love Jesus. I can't hear Him with my ears and He does not talk to me! I only love girls!

A: (now screaming a bit) Landon, yes Jesus does talk to you. He talks in your heart and that's why you can't hear Him with your ears. He talks to your heart!

L: (his loudest most irritated voice) I do not love Jesus and I can not hear Him!!!!!!!!

A: (addressing me this time, quietly and soft) Mom, don't worry. Landon does love Jesus in his heart, he just doesn't want to say it, but I know that he does.

L: (screaming at this point) I can NOT hear Jesus with my heart or my ears Austen, stop saying that to me!

A: (Louder than any TBN preacher you've ever imagined) Landon, Jesus does talk to you in your heart and He is talking to you RIGHT NOW. He is saying "Landon, STOP COMPLAINING"

I decided to interject at this pivotal point before Austen demanded that Landon close his eyes and raise his hand.

So that was about a week or 2 ago and then today while at the table coloring Landon proceeded with this conversation:

Landon: Mom, we can never be God.

Me: That's true baby. There is only one God and we are His people. He made us and He loves us.

Landon: Yeah. (short pause then he yells to Austen in the other room) Austen is that true?

Austen: Yeah Landon that's true.

Landon: Oh. Can God turn people in to pieces of paper?

Me: He won't do that to you, sweets.

L: Oh (short pause) Austen is that true?

A: Well, God CAN turn your in to paper, but He won't. God can do anything.

L: Yeah, God can do anything.

So I stand corrected. I thought for sure Austen had lost his effective witness to Landon that brimstone and fire day in the car. But apparently he has gained respect and became Landon's closest spiritual advisor.

We got elfed.

2008-12-22T16:11:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

7 Years

2008-12-22T13:00:00.000-08:00

7 years doesn't seem like much when I am expecting a lifetime, but a lot of has happened in these years! I seem to be in to making lists lately so why stop now?! Here is what we have experienced so far!

Convincing people to come to a wedding 3 days before Christmas...true love right there!
Graduating nursing school one week before our wedding, moving across the country one week after.
Starting a married life in a new time zone with no family around.
Finding lifelong friends that we couldn't imagine living without.
Finding out we are pregnant one week before our first anniversary.
Finding out we are pregnant when Austen is 10 months old.
Moving from WA to NM on Austen's first b-day.
Finding out we are pregnant when Landon is 14 months old.
Breastfeeding 32 out of 84 months of marriage.
Buying/building our first house
Selling (kind of) our first house.
Moving back to WA on Austen's 5th b-day.

Typing all that out seemed a little crazier than it seems in my head! Throughout all of these circumstances we have learned to fully trust God with ALL things. He has molded us, challenged us, tested us, disciplined us, provided for us, blessed us, and loved us. It's overwhelming to think of all we have learned in 7 years and is incomprehensible to imagine what will take place for the next decades to come! I will never understand the mercy and grace He had planned for me when I met Jordan. That man is beyond what I could have ever dreamed! I love you babe! Here to a lifetime of more anniversary's....but hopefully the last one snowed in!

Makeover

2008-12-05T18:35:00.000-08:00

I switched up my layout a little bit...cute?! Yes, I know. Too bad my screen widths changed so the pictures I already have posted were too wide. I can't fix it, but all future pics will fit...don't worry mom!

I am a really bad blogger lately, but want to be more up to date.

Here are some things we are looking forward to:
1. Cutting down our Christmas tree tomorrow from my favorite tree farm ever. Love it
2. Road trip to MONTANA to stay with Matt and Sara for a few days.....YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!
3. Spending time with friends here.
4. Wassail.
5. Getting Noelle a Christmas dress and seeing how cute she looks it it. (vain I know)
6. Mailing New Year's cards instead of Christmas cards because I am ridiculous procrastinator.
7. Haiti trip - SO scared/excited/mortified/elated.

Probably the best weekend ever

2008-10-28T12:17:00.000-07:00

I had to post 2 entries today only because this one deserved it's own. My mom, Matt and Sara came to visit us this weekend and we had SO much fun! It was jam packed with fun and we did a lot in a short amount of time. Too bad they couldn't stay longer because there is so much more I wanted to do!

Here is the run-down in a fun format to show what went down!

My mom came in on Thursday night and we basically kissed kids and laughed until it was time for bed.

FRIDAY

I took my mom here in the afternoon. She had never been (sad). But she thought it was just as awesome as I do! We even had the swedish meatballs for full effect. The kids wore themselves out at the play land so we came home took naps and at leftovers. All around fun relaxing day!

SATURDAY

First thing we did was go here. I love it and I got the most amazing bouquet of fresh flowers for only $8...i wish I had picture evidence, but I don't!

I was really going for the whole "northwest experience" for my mom and basically rejecting anything that can be done or eaten in Albuquerque. So we went here for lunch and it did not disappoint...sweet potato french fries never do.

We picked up Matt and Sara from the airport at 4 then hopped on this (because we are so urban now) and ate dinner here. They thought it was just as cool as we do! This is the first place we ate at in Portland almost 7 years ago and it only gets better.

Matt and Sara representing OTP. I could not possibly say in words how much I love them.

Me and my mom at OTP...photo courtesy of Austen :)

After dinner we walked here (love it) then hopped back on the train to our car. We had to save the best for last and go here for dessert. GOSH...it is the best ice cream ever created...it seriously makes my heart race just thinking of it. It was a hit all the way around and it got brought up at least every other hour for the remainder of the weekend!

The Young family shared this brownie sundae beast. Ice cream flavors included are as follows: chocolate, pumpkin pie, coffee addict's choice and peanut butter blitz. 6 dollups of whipped cream, 1 fresh from the oven walnut brownie, 1 million chocolate chips and drizzles of hot fudge and caramel made it by far the best sundae ever created.

SUNDAY

I didn't think we could possibly top the ice cream experience of love, but Sunday was pretty awesome. Here were the 3 goals of the day: have fun, see the coast, have fun. Mission accomplished. We left the house about 10:15 then stopped here for lunch. YUM. Any place that has makes and sells cheese and ice cream will be a hit with this family. The bonus...who has ever seen "smiley face fries"??

Now we all have. Let's move on.

Next up we saw this and this. We loved it. Tillamook coast is really beautiful...It was really God's creation at best. Here is some proof.

Okay...so that's not scenic, but it's cute.

The lighthouse...we walked all around in the top of it...awesome.

"AAHAHHHHHH the sun is in my eyes mommy!" "Shut it kids, we are taking a family picture"

Pacific ocean via Tillamook.

A loved the octopus tree.

That girl likes to walk :)

We had to pull over on the side of the road on the way to our next stop to take advantage of this unbelievable view.

After Tillamook, we headed here and it was AMAZING. I think everytime I have been to the beach here it has been cold and rainy. This time it was different...so beautiful. It was the first time the kids have seen the beach and the boys loved it...Noelle actually hated it, (not surprising) but she'll like it next year!

A perfect weekend. They left yesterday morning and I have looked at these pictures about 50 times since! We are heading to Seattle on Friday to see Jordan's sister and family. Did I mention that we really are loving it here?

October catch up

2008-10-28T11:44:00.001-07:00

This is my attempt to catch up on blogging after a month. I enjoy reading other people's stuff MUCH more than posting my own...but my family seems to want to see pics a bit more frequently than I am posting!

Me, Austen and Noelle spent some time in the backyard doing "yardwork" a few weeks ago. There are 4 big garden boxes that we are going to attempt to use to grow a vegetable and fruit garden next year. I have NO idea how to grow things, so any tips would be much appreciated! Me and Austen did plant some bulbs yesterday...the bag said they were VERY easy to grow. We'll see come spring!

This will be the veggie garden!

Thankfully Austen is willing to handle the garden wildlife, because I am NOT.

This is where we planted the crocus bulbs! There will be a spring update pic!

Crusin the trike.

Apparently cleaning the feet was just as much fun as dirtying the feet.

Overalls are only approvable for the pumpkin patch...otherwise just don't do it.

I just realized this post is a little Noelle saturated...oh well :)

Austen is very excited to have the biggest pumpkin...too bad he couldn't even pick it up!

Landon...he does exist.

On a side note...the weather has actually been amazing here so far. I keep expecting the rain to come, but it hasn't yet and we have been taking advantage as much as possible. We feel so blessed to be here at this very time!

Downtown P-town

2008-09-20T11:51:00.000-07:00

We have been very "tourist-y" since we have been here so we took the obvious trip to downtown Portland last weekend. Last time we lived here we always drove downtown...driving the wrong way on one way streets, never finding the right bridge, and basically getting lost every time. So this time we parked at the closest Max station to us and rode the train into downtown and it was SO much better! The kids loved it...obviously...what toddler doesn't like train rides. We are trying to do as many fun things outside as possible before it starts raining! Next weekend we will probably be going to the coast...the boys are begging to see "the beach"!

The boys stared out the window during the whole trip. Jordan just...stared.

Quite possibly the best pad thai ever.

Austen LOVED this!

More proof.

This was in Pioneer square. It was a little amphitheater set up and when you stood on the little circle it made a crazy echo that only you could hear.

It was a double piggy day.

He loved it!

She hung in there until about 4:15..then enough was enough.

Every post requires one of these.

The last 8 days

2008-09-07T20:51:00.000-07:00

8 days ago we ate breakfast, said goodbye to my mom and set out on a long LONG journey cross country. It is weird to describe what has happened in 8 days and I won't be able to do it justice. I wanted an amazing photo documentation of our road trip, but I didn't get enough! Oh well...these will have to do!

Jordan had a major truck driving job to do! He was pretty much amazing at it.

Noelle before we even left the driveway...happy girl :)

My view for 3 days.

Cheesy 4 corners picture...Look at the cute chubby hands though!

The Ultimate copilot!

She was pretty excited about 2 adults and 3 toddler in a hotel room. Me....not so much.

"Raise your hand if it's your birthday today!" Austen turned five in Price, Utah.

Wierd forms of entertainment take place on 3 day road trips...don't ask.

In the few days that we have been here we have:

-Felt INCREDIBLY blessed with having multiple people we didn't even know help us unload our rental truck the night we got here. THANK YOU BEN AND TARA!!!
-Reunited with old friends...they made it feel like we never left
-Been to Ikea twice
-Went bowling at a birthday party
-Found a sweet preschool for Austen
-Went to Vancouver Farmer's market
-Cruised past Multnomah and thanked God out loud for condemning that house. (It was slightly frightening...Mom you would NOT have approved)
-Got an overwhelming welcome back at our previous church and spent all afternoon at a church picnic in my favorite park in town.

That's kind of a lot in 8 days. I'll leave with even more pics...it's my blog. I pretty much do what I want.

The boys at Isabella's BIG AL bowling party!

Reunited BFF's Austen and Isabella. Friends since womb.

Sweet toddler bowling apparatus. Why didn't I invent this sweet thing?!

Took this out the window...jealous?

Happy at the church picnic :)

One more for you mom! She LOVES this hat. It's the only one she'll keep on her head!

Despite all the fun...we miss you ABQ.

Portland or BUST

2008-09-01T19:31:00.000-07:00

We are in the midst of our cross country trip from ABQ to Portland (or Vancouver if you want to get technical). We are at a truck stop right now outside of Boise, ID experiencing a little bit of traveling delay due to a fatal accident on the interstate. We are about 3 hours behind where we intended to be, but praise God we are safe and have food in our bellies. The trip has been great and the kids are fantastic travelers! I am the whiny one, but I am trying to be on my best behavior...Jordan helps as he is a cross country machine. We hope to be at our new house by tomorrow afternoon...we'll see! Thanks to all who are praying for us...I can literally feel the hand of God on us every mile of this journey...He is so good.

Food is here!!!! Bye for now!

Mom...the bride

2008-08-25T20:49:00.001-07:00

I can't believe that this week is actually here. All of the talking and preparing and planning and here it is! My mom got married this weekend and both of my brothers, my grandma and uncle were here to celebrate. It was fun and now this means that we have to pack :(

This will be an ode to family of sorts -

My mom, Kim and the boys hanging out at our house.

With my mom and grandma...I'm pretty happy with my genetics

I love my brothers!

He's "special", what can I say?

Noelle loves smelling ALL flowers.

Another photo by Austen the photographer.

4 generations...awwwwwwww

The ONLY pic I got of all 3 kids...of course.

I love the McNutts.

Love from Uncle Matt!

The kids weren't really interested in a family pic.

I love love love love him.

So now the countdown begins...6 days until we go from here to there, dry to wet, ABQ to PDX. We have a lot of packing to do and goodbyes to give out. We are excited and anxious at the same time. I really hate saying goodbye to anyone. It's bittersweet, but there are great adventures that await us in the next time zone.

Landon...the ring bearer.

2008-08-01T00:49:00.001-07:00

This picture was too sweet to leave out. Here are the boys at the dinosaur museum. They loved it for obvious reasons...

JY with A...he was quite the little server that night!

Me and the ring bearer...He was very professional with his ring bearing duties.

And we genuinely had a good ole time together...he's really that funny.

Landon liked the toast. He toasted about 15 times.

This is just one of the videos of Landon's dance moves at the reception...

He clearly inherited his rhythm from his dad.

I think it's really happening.

2008-07-21T15:49:00.000-07:00

Maybe this post is a little premature...but I think it's actually happening. We really are moving. I guess I just keep waiting for something to self-destruct. We started talking and praying about this move last September. I typically don't like to make long, drawn out calculated motion. I think something sounds awesome, and then do it. But God hasn't really allowed any othat sporadic business...

We sold our house...it fell through...sold it again

Moving to Portland...moving to Dallas...moving to Portland

Got on-campus cheap housing...house got condemned...just secured a home (without "major structural damage")

None of these things were really devastating to us...just little bumps in the road. The only thing I really know about the path that God has for us is the final destination...I won't really complain about detours or road quality.

All that to say...we have a place to live, have a place to work, have a place to learn and now we are ready to go! Now I just need to figure out how to sneak my mom on the rental truck without her realizing it.

We do have a lot of fun things happening in the next 6 weeks though to keep me occupied. Landon is in a wedding next weekend. There WILL be hilarious pictures of that. Jordan is officiating 2 weddings...one being my mom's! My family will be meeting my grandma for the first time as she is flying in for my mom's wedding.

I am not quite ready for the trauma of saying goodbye to family, friends and co-workers yet, so I will continue living in denial of that reality until the last possible moment!

No more front yards landscaped with rocks?! What will we do with all of this grass?

Friends and Family

2008-07-11T15:29:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of recent pics of the kids with their little friends and they are too cute! I can't believe that in 6 weeks we will be leaving this place. So this is just a little recap on the haps.

I should really post the pic of them laying side by side at ages 1 month and 4 months so you can all appreciate this the way I do....not a whole lot warms my heart more than watching these two together. This is Austen with his BFF Gracyn.

This is something we like to call "tripod". It occurs when you are least expecting it...it's been happnening for the last 6 months.

My dad drove his Harley from Tyler on his birthday to come see us! He is hardcore.

Noelle likes swinging at the park...you can even push her higher, she will only smile.

I told him "Landon you are too big for the baby swing". He was persistant. And he does not like to be pushed higher.

This is Jacob and Pierce...Noelle's boyfriends. I said "It's picture time babes!". Clearly someone has had some photo-op training.

Summertime!

2008-06-17T22:30:00.000-07:00

Our last month has kept us pretty occupied doing mostly...nothing. We've been in our rental house for almost a month now and it's starting to feel more comfortable. Jordan and I have been talking about how weird it feels to know you will only live somewhere for 3 months...we can't really "get settled" or really unpacked for that matter. I think we are trying to find the balance between our excitement of what's to come and still be productive and meaningful while we are here. Tonight we had dinner with my mom and swam at the pool...it was great. Here are some random pics of the last few weeks! Noelle kind of dominates, but what's new.

For the record, Noelle is NOT a fan of the pool.

I hear that in addition to adding 10 pounds, the camera also can make your face looked jacked up while catching flying children in a pool...weird coincidence.

This is the closest Noelle would come to the pool...no kisses for you Dad.

The girl looks good in orange!

Grandaddy was in town took us out to eat! It was good times!

A brotherly pedicure. Just take my word for it...this did NOT end well.

Me and "the officiant".

I seriously can't stop myself.

Relocation Schizophrenia

2008-05-23T13:42:00.000-07:00

I have really delayed writing a blog on what's been happening with us purely because whenever I say we have a made a decision about something...then the opposite seems to happen. It's like we have bad blog-ma or something. Either way, I feel compelled to share so I must.

Well, we were obviously pretty bummed about our previous house deal bust, however about a couple of weeks later we received a second offer on the house. The same week that we were mulling over this offer, the college in Portland (Multnomah Bible College) called and told us that we have been approved for on campus family housing....a 4 bedroom almost 1500 square foot house! The rent for the house is about half what we are paying in mortgage! So....after about a week, we did decide to accept the house offer and are now planning on moving to Portland at the beginning of September. As excited as I was about Dallas, I think I would have been devastated to hear that we were approved for on-campus housing AFTER having relocated...so these crazy turn of events really happened at exactly the right time and we are truly thankful for it. I wish I could articulate into words how Jordan and I feel about this move for our family, but I really can't. Just know that as hard as it will be to leave our friends and family here, we are equally excited to see just what God has planned for us in Portland.

In other equally exciting news...Austen "graduated" from preschool. We are still undecided whether or not to start him in kindergarten this year. His birthday is September 1st which is THE cutoff day...so we'll see. Landon is still Landon, and Noelle is walking now...so cute! My mom is "offically" engaged and will be getting married in August or September. I am very happy for her!!!

She graduated from the walker recently, but is still just as excited about it!

Watermelon is clearly the summer fruit of choice!

Sometimes they really do love each other!

And of course....the RING. Good one mom.

If Gap sold tricycles...

2008-04-28T14:34:00.001-07:00

Noelle would be a shoe-in for an ad model.

School pics

2008-04-17T15:22:00.000-07:00

I've always thought that school pics were so boring and pretty much un-cute....until I got the boy's preschool pics this year. Seriously...how cute is this?! Due to financial situations we had to pull both of the boys out of their preschool classes in December, but thanks to the generosity and grace of Jordan's parents they were able to continue going this year. We are so thankful to them for that!

Hopefulness in frustrations

2008-04-16T12:19:00.000-07:00

Here are some things that I have said in the last 2 weeks:

"Wow, I can't believe everything is working out so perfectly!"
"This is crazy timing!"
"I can't believe our house sold!"

On Monday morning, my girls at work threw me the most fantastic going away brunch ever! It was fun, laid back and exactly what I had hoped it would be. 5 hours later my travel contract for my job in Plano came in the mail and as I was looking over it all to sign and mail, Bob the realtor called to tell us that the buyer's "pre-approved" loan did not get accepted. He also non-chalantly stated that he would be over in 30 minutes to take our SOLD sign down and replace it with the flyer tube again.

So hmmmm....here we are back at square one. I think we are as disppointed now as we were excited 2 weeks ago. I've heard everything from "This must not be God's timing", "This is God testing your faith", "This is Satan trying to tear you down", to "This is worst case scenario". I can not say that I really agree with any of these. It is what it is. Nothing is guaranteed. We wanted to move in 2 weeks, and we planned on it, but now it's not happening and that is okay. We have everything in the world to be grateful for and one setback is not going to destroy that! It's taken me about 48 hours to get over my initial anger and now we are ready to persevere!

I have a some faith left in the housing market and it is still our hope to be in Dallas by the fall for Jordan to start at Criswell. A good friend of mine shared this verse to me yesterday...it is encouraging and daily I am trying to figure out how to do what is says :)

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4

Goodbye rain, Hello humidity.

2008-04-06T21:38:00.000-07:00

I think I may create the ultimate blog blasphemy and create a post with no pictures...bear with me because I just have a lot to say. Jordan and I have had an incredibly crazy last week or so. I think I can best describe the events in a screenplay format....here we go:

Sometime last week
Stacy: I've been looking at schools online in Dallas, TX and I think you should check them out. Maybe, just give us some more options.

Jordan: Why would we want to go to Dallas...that's dumb. I'll talk to Richard and see what I can find out though.

2 days later
Jordan: I found a sweet school named Criswell College. I wonder if it's legit.

Stacy: Let's just freakin drive to Dallas this weekend and find out.

Sunday morning in Dallas:
Stacy: I like Criswell. And I can give you list of a million reasons why Dallas trumps Portland. But it doesn't really matter because no one is ever going to buy our flippin house in Albuquerque.

Jordan: Yeah...stupid housing market.

Sunday afternoon in Dallas:
Bob the Realtor via phone: Someone just put a sweet offer on your house.

Jordan: Shut up.

Bob: Congrats. You close on April 25th.

So....this was the turn of events in a nutshell. To say we are surprised and overwhelmed would be a massive understatement. We really had no preconcieved ideas of going to Dallas or even considering it before last week, but for some reason it was on my heart and we started talking about it. It made no sense to drive all five of us down there for 4 days to check it out...we were really just searching for clarity because it seemed that we had none. Why would our house out of the other 150+ homes for sale just in Ventana Ranch sell...and for an actual profit!!!! It's truly a miracle and we feel that we are walking right where God has intended all along. We don't have many details finalized as far as where in Dallas we will actually be living in 3 weeks, but we are working on it and we have a number of options.

I am devastated to leave Albuquerque. I can't imagine not living near my mom or our best friends, but in order for Jordan to complete what he dreams to do, then we must. The past 3 1/2 years have created so many memories, that I am liable to break our housing contract if I think about them right now. I'll have to create another blog later filled with all the things I am going to miss here.

I look forward to Dallas and Jordan finishing his degree with excitement. If we have to be anywhere else than here, then Dallas is a perfect fit. I look forward to the plans God has for us. And it is my prayer that our eyes and ears remain open to Him so we can follow Him humbly wherever he may take us.

March Madness

2008-03-13T21:53:00.000-07:00

If I blogged as much as I thought about blogging, then I'm sure this would be a lot more interesting! Instead, I get sidetracked and a month goes by and I have procrastinated to the max. Either way...we've been having a good ole time and here are some pics to prove it!

Noelle thinks her own feet are pretty hilarious...and basically anything my mom does with her :)

Me and Austen just chillaxin...that kid loves the camera.

Um, Landon liked the baby doll a little more than Jordan and were comfortable with.

Noelle LOVES this baby...she cracks up everytime she sees her and insists that she sleep in her bed...by "insist" I mean pointing and grunting.

Classic...I have no idea what he is cracking up about.

Last weekend we went to our friend Braidyn's birthday party at Hootz fun zone. It's basically a warehouse of big inflatable slides and jumpers things. We had such a blast watching the boys play. I was SHOCKED that Landon ended up liking it. I literally drug him on to the first play set while he was screaming bloody murder...I could see all the other mom's shaking their heads. But it ended up being worth it for him. Next year we will conquer the fear of precipitation, in 2008 the battle against slides was officially won.

Probably my favorite picture of Landon so far too date.

It's faster that it looks! Austen went down about 1,852 times.

I have to admit Jordan and I had our fair share of sliding too :)

Here is one party goer who did not slide. I would like to dedicate this picture to the manufacturers of Benadryl...I love you.

"Landon, I promise we will come back to Hoot's again soon" He was not so pleasant on the car ride home.

Just in case you were wondering what Landon looks like at bedtime after a day at Hoot's with no nap...there you have it. (There was no Benadryl involved in the taking of this picture). I do love snuggle time. :)

In other Young-related news...Jordan is doing fantastic in school. He's maintaining all A's so far...even in college algebra! I am so very proud of him. We've also been checking out some other churches in Albuquerque and are so encouraged at what the body of Christ is doing here. I think we are guilty of putting ourselves in a social bubble and not paying attention to basic needs of others...in our city and as far away as Haiti. We have been incredibly challenged spiritually these last few months. We are daily, prayerfully seeking wisdom in our decisions. I truly believe God has something planned with us that is better than anything I can ask or imagine. But asking and imagining is kind of wearing me out, so I've simply resorted to listening and obeying.

I think that's all for now. I'll try to be a more consistent blogger....GOSH!

What happened to February?

2008-02-17T14:55:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure how it is already the middle of February. I have found a new love for February since last year and here are the obvious reasons why. Last year on February 10th in Durango, CO my brother Matt married the most amazing, beautiful, expressive girl I've ever known. That may sound like I'm just saying that because I really love her, but I actually mean it. As a matter of fact, at their rehearsal dinner during the toasts my own mom stood up and told her and all 60-70 guests that she "could not imagine having a better daughter"...of course everyone smiled and then immediately looked back at me with very sad faces. My mom threw in "daughter-in-law" after the laughter...thanks mom. But, she really is that fantastic.

Here they are tearing it up salsa style at their reception. We miss you and love you both more than you can imagine!!!!

And this is my other favorite part of their wedding and ultimately February. Here is Noelle t-5 days. So it seemed fitting that when Jordan was asked to speak at a ski retreat for this weekend in Durango that of course we went. We left on Noelle's bday (Friday) for Durango and came back this afternoon. We spent most of the day on Saturday swimming at the rec center and walking around downtown and the evenings were spent fixated on Lightening McQueen and Mater.

Here is Noelle in the cutest swimsuit given to her by her Granmommie and Grandaddy. She wasn't too excited about the whole swimming situation as you can tell by the expression, but after a little while she lightened up and seemed to actually have fun.

This is the perfect picture to describe Austen in the water...the kid is a fish! He loves it. He ran around, went down all the slides and could not wipe the smile off of his face.

Landon liked the water just about as much as he liked walking on snow. But I managed to get a picture without him crying or clinging on to Jordan for dear life. In his defense, he did go down the crazy wet-n-wild style slide twice...the second time was actually willingly!

On Tuesday night we are going to my mom's house for a real birthday dinner and cake for Noelle since we didn't have the chance for it last week. It was actually a lot easier for me on Friday to get through the day without going through the birthday party motions. Maybe I can survive Tuesday without too many tears...yeah right!

January Madness

2008-01-30T08:48:00.000-08:00

Anyone who knows Landon, knows that he is not a fan of the elements. I thought surely with his snow boots on he would be okay with actually walking on the snow. Not so much. I should add a disclaimer that about 20 minutes after his initial shock of actually having his boots touch the snow, he ran around in a few circles then proceeded to shout for the next hour "I walked in the snow Mommy and I didn't even cry!" Way to go kid.Austen is not afraid of the snow in the least...he had a good ole time launching it around the yard!

I am actually quite a bit scared of this snowman/robot looking thing in our front yard. Our house has been on the market now for 2 weeks without a single glance. SURELY this little guy will be pulling it all kinds of prospects...we may even raise the asking price for this fine upgrade.
Noelle was quite proud of herself for finally figuring out how to pull herself up in her bed...right after this picture I promptly pushed her down and reminded her of my "no more milestones" rule.
Look at this face...I'm sorry to all of you who don't get to kiss it on an hourly basis like I do. We did get the most blessed diagnosis of RSV for Noelle yesterday...she's doing ok...very junky cough and kind of wheezy. I am praying that we are seeing the worst of it now! She has never really been sick before, so she is getting huge amounts of sympathy from us :(

Can this month last forever?

2008-01-15T20:17:00.001-08:00

Today marks the first day of the last month of Noelle's infancy. I am ridiculous I know. When I gave birth to Noelle, Austen was barely 3 1/2. So, even though I remember most of the highlights from the boys first 12 months...I didn't quite hold on to them as tightly as her's. She's, ya know, the grand finale. I am not fully prepared to embark upon the first birthday, so I am going to cherish the 11th month the best I can. I know that each stage gets more and more fun...really I know that, but still can I be a little sad? We are kind of in the "weaning" process now. I am nursing her in the morning and at night and she drinks milk and juice during the day. I thought that for sure after I went back to work full time that I would be exhausted and ready to regain my body back 100%...but yeah, not so much. I look forward to that small 10 minutes that is just her and I in the mornings and at nighttime. I know I am not alone in this feeling! I can't be!

Beloved

2008-01-04T09:44:00.000-08:00

Most of you know by now that Jordan and I got tattoos for our 6th anniversary on 12/22. Here are the pics for your enjoyment :) Jordan's says "I am my beloved's" and mine says "My beloved is mine"...in Hebrew obviously. Song of Solomon 6:3...look it up people.

JY being tough.

"I am my beloved's"

"My beloved is mine"

The finished product...Hebrew reads right to left.

They were done by Dave Martinez at Addictive Ink....he's pretty much amazing...as a person and as a tattooist...check him out if you want some ink!

2007-12-30T21:51:00.000-08:00

Well, I do believe we have almost officially survived 2007. Christmas day was nice and relaxing for us! We went to my mom's and opened gifts, ate food and had some good ole QT. Jordan was pretty surprised with a new macbook from me, his parents, and my mom and her bf! So you can all imagine exactly what he has been doing for the last 6 days. Here are a few pics of course!

Jordan is "everything mac"

My mom helping the boys play with their new cars...disregard the tight PJ pants...nice.

Way too cool for school...stickers and all

Apparently Noelle likes macs too...

What, you don't wear shoes with your pj's?

Have you ever seen anything more beautiful...um, no you haven't.

This weekend was also Jordan's official last weekend at Sagebrush. We've both felt a bit indifferent about it. It's hard to say goodbye to something that you love...even a job. Working at a church will always be the more than just a job...maybe that's why it is so hard to leave. Either way, we will continue to seek the Lord's provision for where our family should be these next months. We are definitely looking forward to a brighter future ahead. Thanks to those of you who have supported Jordan and our family's next step. Your words of affirmation and encouragement in confusing times are coveted. And can I steal a moment just to say that I could not be more proud of my husband. I am proud of the man he is when he is praised and when he is not. I am proud of his unflailing honor and integrity to his ministry and to his family. I am proud of the living example he is of the mercy and humility of Christ. I am proud that my babies call him daddy and proud that he will forever be mine. I really can't think of a way to improve that man.

What it means to be held

2007-12-24T21:58:00.000-08:00

I really am not a scrooge. I tell myself this in kind of a convincing way. I admit that I get a little overwhelmed at the thought of buying gifts and all the things necessary for a "successful" Christmas. Our anniversary is the 22nd of December...which I love! We had a fantastic day and evening to ourselves...thank you mom! But this weekend has set a little different tone of Christmas for me. The presents are still here...the food is prepared...I am wearing my official "Christmas Eve" pajamas as I am writing. My kids are sleeping and my husband (aka Santa) is putting together a train set for the boys. So here is where it gets a little off track...Saturday morning a friend of mine called to tell me that her aunt, who had been diagnosed with cancer only 2 weeks ago, passed away unexpectedly that morning. It was difficult to hear her raw emotion, and I truly hurt for her. This morning another friend called to tell me her grandma was found unconscious and they were spending their Christmas Eve at the hospital....waiting. Tomorrow, Christmas Day, is the same day years ago that my own grandpa lost his battle with lung cancer and my mom and I made an impromptu Christmas flight to Ohio. With all that said, yesterday at church a song was sang that I had never heard. I see it's pretty popular now that I have officially "googled" it, but it was new to me. It is called "Held" by Natalie Grant. It's a raw song about hurt, loss and devastation. Here are the lyrics to the chorus that is so touching to me through this past weekend...

This is what it means to be held

How it feels, when the sacred is torn from your life

And you survive

This is what it is to be loved and to know

That the promise was that when everything fell

We’d be held

The song is a reality check that horrible, devastating things can and probably will happen to us...even to those who "have died to live" as the song says. Our promises aren't that nothing will fall...only that He will be there to hold us when it does. Losing the ones I love is the biggest fear that I have. I refuse to even play out those "what if" emotions in my head, but I am comforted knowing that in all things I will be held. So this Christmas, I am praying for and hurting for my friends that I dearly love. I am also remembering how much I miss my Grandpa...I miss being called his "little pill" and how he and Grandma would come to our house every October and he would spend all day fixing up every broken lawn chair in our backyard. I miss feeling how spikey his hair was against my little hands and feeling so proud to be his "Roseann Rosanna-danna". But above all these things, I am spending this Christmas being "held" in His arms.

This is me and my grandpa about 24 years ago!

Fun family visits!

2007-12-19T10:44:00.000-08:00

This week we were lucky enough to see BOTH Papa (Stacy's dad) and Grandaddy (Jordan's dad). Papa came into town Friday night and Uncle Matt and Aunt Sara were here on Saturday. We had tons of fun...the boys absolutely love when family comes to visit and so do Jordan and I. Noelle was in love with them all...of course. It was the perfect visit for everyone! Papa really took it for the team by sleeping with Landon and getting peed on TWICE...sorry Dad! One day we'll have a spare bedroom!

Noelle and Grandaddy laughing at each other!

More love with Grandaddy!

Papa and the kids!

Noelle and Papa!

We are getting pretty excited about Christmas! We have an awesome christian advent calendar that we got a few years ago and the boys love looking forward to the story every night. They get to hear the Christmas story almost every night in December! If anyone out there wants to know where we got it, let me know!

2007 Year End Review

2007-11-28T13:22:00.000-08:00

What better reason to start a blogsite than doing an eChristmas newsletter? We want to join the ranks of other blogging families so we can update pics and useless information for you all. We'll just pretend like someone actually looks at it other than ourselves!

We have never written a "Christmas newsletter". I always enjoy reading the ones I get, but have never seemed to have the content for my own. Well, 3 kids and 6 years of marriage later, we figure we may have something to offer!

2007 started off as glorious as ever on February 15th with the birth of our beautiful, angelic daughter Noelle! Everything about her from the moment she came to us has been incredible. From the get go, she ate good, slept good and thrives off of watching the rest of her crazy family interact. Now at almost 10 months she is rolling everywhere, crawling, eating finger foods, babbling her baby language and waving bye bye. Her skills change daily and she could not be more perfect! We couldn't imagine our lives without that perfect little thing.

Landon celebrated the big 2 in March of this year, and he is living it up. It's hard to describe Landon in mere words on a blog. He is beefy, he talks incessantly, he likes to suck his thumb, he can't say the word "sausage", and is learning to wake up in the morning without peeing on himself. He started a "Friday Fun Day" program this fall and loves going to "school". He is surprisingly good at remembering the words to songs and I will randomly catch him singing a little Shane and Shane while grocery shopping. I can't imagine what this kid will be like in years to come, but I know that Jordan and I feel blessed knowing God entrusted us to be his parents!

Austen turned 4 in September and has been amazing us daily with what his little brain can retain! He has been doing 2 mornings a week of preschool and he is able to write his name, recognize words, shapes, sings songs...he really amazes us. He is incredibly sensitive like his dad, but sneaky and intuitive like his mom. Recently him and I were at the kitchen table eating lunch talking about Christmas coming up. I asked him if he remembered whose birthday we celebrated on Christmas, and after he got it wrong about 5 times, I reminded him it was Jesus' birthday. "Oh yeah" he said. He sat there quietly for about a minute and a half and then as seriously/innocently as possible asked me "Do people eat the birthday cake on Jesus' birthday, and then it goes right into our hearts?" Sweet baby...his favorite thing about birthdays is the cake, and since he knows that Jesus lives in our hearts, he was trying to figure out how in the world Jesus was able to eat his own cake. Gotta love that.

As for Jordan and I, we will be celebrating our 6 year anniversary on the 22nd of this month :) It has been 6 years of pure adventure and it looks like it is not settling down anytime soon! As most of you may know by now, Jordan's employment with our church will be over at the end of this month. This change in our lives came somewhat unanticipated and has put us through a whirlwind of emotions in the past couple of months. We both are so fortunate for the relationships we have made and the life changes we have witnessed through the ministry of Ignite. It was a bittersweet departure, but we feel confident that God has revealed his next steps for our family. Jordan and I have both felt something of an unsettled feeling or like a rumbling in our hearts for the last few months. God has made it overwhelmingly apparant to us that while we love the people and the mission of our church, it is not where we are best being used by Him vocationally. Jordan and I have a heart for relationships and taking time to pour into people with the intention of drawing closer to Him. In addition to this, we are both at a place where we feel it is absolutely necessary for Jordan to finish his Bachelor's degree to continue on with the work God has for us. Jordan has about 2.5 years left of full time enrollment to finish his degree. So it really came down to all or nothing for our dedication to this! We both turned 28 this year and we know that we aren't getting any younger! The next decision we had to come to was...where in world will JY finish his degree? After some praying, some talking, internet researching and real soul seeking, it was very obvious to the both of us. I could write for literally thousands and thousand of words of why we made this decision, but ultimately it all boils down to one thing...God told us to GO. Starting in January, Jordan will be a full time college student at CNM here in Albuquerque and we got the letter in the mail today that he has been accepted in the Adult Degree Completion program for a Bachelor's of Science degree at Multnomah Bible College in Portland, OR starting Fall 2008. What seemed devastating to me 2 months ago, now seems overwhelmingly liberating. Logistically, financially and practically it really doesn't make sense, but I can't and will never deny the still quiet voice within me saying "Trust me and go". A friend of mine shared this verse with me this morning and I think I will unofficially declare it as the Young family verse of 07....

"See, the former things have taken place,

and new things I declare;

before they spring into being

I announce them to you."

Isaiah 42:9

I will never claim to be deep or super spiritual, but one thing I desire to claim is complete obedience and naively trust that He will work out the details that could easily overwhelm us.

So yeah, you could say that we are little excited about 2008 and extremely thankful for what we have pulled through in 2007. Yay for blogspots so we can all stay connected and we can share our lives together! We really are kind of clueless on posting basics...but I'm sure we'll figure it out along the way. Oh and maybe next time we can keep it a little shorter!...maybe.

Here's a few more pics just for kicks...

How cute are they?!

It repetitive I know, but it's so cute!

Yeah, I see the cord...kind of like a noose...she's alright.

I can't think of a good caption for this...it's just a day in the life of Landon I guess.