I fully believe that God has given us gifts that reflect His glory. Since December, I have been slowly doing my art, but also taking in these moments. This past school year has brought so many changes. Jordan was in the last rotations from August through December, while also trying to apply to positions in Jacksonville and here in Atlanta. There were times of frustration because all we wanted was to settle down and stop the ever “transition period.” After Jordan came off of this extensive program, we knew life would settle down. By September, he had a job waiting for him and they were willing to wait until March for him to start. It was in internal medicine and at Emory. December came around and the excitement of graduation began. Family came to stay and also drove to stay in hotels, just as a way of celebrating this day. My cheeks hurt from smiling that day and we knew that our Australia trip was soon to come.

                            The day after everyone left from graduation, I told Jordan that I thought I was pregnant. Sure enough, we felt this overwhelming joy because we had waited until all the schooling was done and God had blessed us. We shared our good news with our parents first and then waited until the “okay” point to share with everyone else. Soon after, we were on our way to Australia. The first check mark on climbing the Sydney Harbor Bridge was “are you pregnant?,” of which I replied, “nope.” Ha! I couldn’t pass that opportunity up!  

                             From that point, both of us started thinking about a house. Did we really want to live in an apartment on the third story when our baby was born? No. Did we want to put a crib in our already crowded one bedroom? No. We tried waiting until after Jordan started his position, but God had another plan. The house we bought was the first house we saw in person, without a realtor and at an open house. In fact, we walked in and said we loved it. Remember that we found out about the baby in December and this was now March. The owners of our house had to close within 21 days in order for them to buy their new build. 

                         In others words, decisions had to be made fast. The amazing part is that Jordan and I had been looking at houses online in Atlanta (and Jacksonville) for the 3 years he was in the program. We focused in north Atlanta, but anyone who lives here knows that it is a broad spectrum. We went from looking in Marietta, to Cobb, to Dunwoody and Sandy Springs. Amazingly enough, we had never considered or knew about this diamond in Peachtree Corners. From August through  February, we had also been visiting churches north of Atlanta. We knew that the church would become a family if we stayed here and we needed people that would show up for us. The church is also a great reflection of the areas we were considering living in. We visited about 6-7 churches (including the services and Life Groups) within that time frame. 

 

                            Once we went to the open house at our new home, Jordan wanted to go exploring and we drove past Peachtree Corners Baptist. He mentioned going there and we visited. There was a peace about going there that we hadn’t felt with any church we visited. Every church had something to give to the community around them, but they didn’t feel quite like home. Not only did the church bring a peace, but the area was an area we could see us growing our family into. We have said multiple times, “why had we not considered this area sooner?” There wasn’t stress with this decision of buying a house because God had already laid a calmness on our hearts to know we were doing what was best for our family. 

                           This comes with sacrifice, as with anything. This decision meant that we would be here when the baby was born, without family. It has crossed our minds a hundred times wondering if our friends would step in when the trials came or when we needed them to be our family. Would they love our kids like our family would? Would they let us into their lives too? Sometimes people can be so kind and thoughtful, and still be closed off to getting close to those who need it most. Thankfully, God put a handful of friends around us that will show up and I hope to gain more as we get more involved with our new church home. 

                              Once we closed on the house, friends help moved us across town on multiple trips. Family came to stay during spring break, but at their own risk. We had no curtains in the bedrooms or bathrooms. Our neighbors probably got a show for a few days until we hit HomeGoods, Tuesday Morning and TJMax. They came here with boxes on the floor and left our house looking like we have been living here a year, complete with pictures hung and curtains for almost every room. They also were here when we found out we were having a girl! My Pop even bought pink flowers for the kitchen and Jordan and I hit the Cold Stone up to indulge in only pink ice cream for a celebration.

                         Now I am experiencing the beginning stages of being uncomfortable with the pregnancy while also experiencing the best part of feeling our baby girl move. I have moved from one pillow at the beginning to sleeping with three and a memory gel mattress topper. Currently, it is a guessing game of what is going to fit in the mornings. I giggle when something has grown too short in the front or won’t go past my belly. I am taking the stairs like a grandma, slowly and holding onto the rail. My tanks aren’t covering my belly button. Even with all these changes, there is an absolute joy knowing that God created my body to do all that it is, for His glory. 

                         Long story short… we graduated, found out we had a baby coming, went to Australia, found a new church, Jordan started his job, and bought a house, within about six months. I have been doing minimal art related projects because of these life changes, but am excited to gradually move towards the newest projects. I am thankful for people with no timeline of there woodburning requests at this point because life has happened so quickly. In the mean time, my new house has a space that will solely be devoted to doing my art. Currently, Jordan and I are in the process of building a 3 ft x 8 ft desk for that space, complete with stringed lights and shelving for all my current and past pieces on display. This is being built only after building our king sized bed frame from scratch…in our apartment. Ha! More pictures to come. What projects are you doing now?