It is hard for me to believe how long it has been since I've written anything here. The past couple of months we have been going through a life transition. The truth is we are still in the middle of that life transition, it's just that it seems to be getting easier!
For those of you who do not know, Mark has received his Military orders and once he finishes school in South Carolina this summer, we are headed to Ft. Hood, Texas as our first duty station.
The kids and I will be traveling to Ft. Hood about the third week in August and Mark will follow the first week in September. We have to go early to get the kids in school! It should be interesting.
I think we are all kind of anxious, sad, excited, nervous...There is just a ton of emotion surrounding this, but we are making it through.
Mark leaves for South Carolina the first week in June and the kids and I haven't quite decided what we are going to do yet.
I know that our household goods are scheduled to be picked up on July 17th!!! Once that is done I'm not sure where we will end up...A part of me wants to go to South Carolina so that we can spend as much time with Mark as possible and another part of me wants to go and stay with my sister in Wyoming....I miss her so much!!!!!
Well I know this is not much but it's just a quick update...Mark just rolled out of the bed so I'm gonna sign off for now and sit and have some coffee with him....
Blessings to all of you and hopefully I will be on here more often.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
On Standby!
For those of you who read this I like to apologize for not posting in quite some time.
Mark and I are both working different schedules now and it has taken, and will continue to take, quite sometime to adjust. I am now working 12-9 pm and Mark leaves for work at 9pm and arrives home around 5:30 or 6 am. So, needless to say things here are not normal at all. We have heard from the Army and it looks like we are headed for Ft. Hood, Texas this coming fall. Mark will report to Ft. Jackson, SC the first week in June to attend CHOBLC, (Chaplains Officer Basic Leadership Course). It seems that I change my mind daily but as of right now the kids and I will stay in Crete through June and then we will go to Wyoming to spend so much needed time with my beloved sister & brother-in-law as well as my nieces & nephew's. I'm hoping we get to do some fun things this summer to help ease the hurt of moving yet again. I fear this will be the hardest move the kids have ever experienced and my heart hurts for them. There is part of me that would stay so that they can finish school, but family is so important and I don't want us to lose a minute of time together. We have such little time left with them. I don't want them to finish growing up without their daddy! I know that God will work in their young lives and make this okay for them. I would ask that you would all hold us in your prayers as there has been a lot of changes in our family as of late and we could use the extra prayers. Please know that we think of all of you often and give thanks that we have you as prayer warriors for us.
The one huge realization that my husband and I this past week is that we have lived hard and for as young as we are there is not much we have missed. Mark turned the big 40 today and we celebrate that God has led us to have so many wonderful experiences, to meet people near and far, to minister to even more and he has always managed to put people in our lives to lead us through each new situation we face.
Father, I lift my heart in praise to you today for your never failing love and guidance. Thank you for giving us the joy, the strength and the drive to move forward and to continue to serve you in a new and different way. I pray that you would provide, protect and fill us to overflowing so that we may pour ourselves out to be a blessing to another person. Love you so much....
Amen!
I wish you a day that is filled with enough grace, love and hope that you would be able to give of yourself freely!
Tanya
Mark and I are both working different schedules now and it has taken, and will continue to take, quite sometime to adjust. I am now working 12-9 pm and Mark leaves for work at 9pm and arrives home around 5:30 or 6 am. So, needless to say things here are not normal at all. We have heard from the Army and it looks like we are headed for Ft. Hood, Texas this coming fall. Mark will report to Ft. Jackson, SC the first week in June to attend CHOBLC, (Chaplains Officer Basic Leadership Course). It seems that I change my mind daily but as of right now the kids and I will stay in Crete through June and then we will go to Wyoming to spend so much needed time with my beloved sister & brother-in-law as well as my nieces & nephew's. I'm hoping we get to do some fun things this summer to help ease the hurt of moving yet again. I fear this will be the hardest move the kids have ever experienced and my heart hurts for them. There is part of me that would stay so that they can finish school, but family is so important and I don't want us to lose a minute of time together. We have such little time left with them. I don't want them to finish growing up without their daddy! I know that God will work in their young lives and make this okay for them. I would ask that you would all hold us in your prayers as there has been a lot of changes in our family as of late and we could use the extra prayers. Please know that we think of all of you often and give thanks that we have you as prayer warriors for us.
The one huge realization that my husband and I this past week is that we have lived hard and for as young as we are there is not much we have missed. Mark turned the big 40 today and we celebrate that God has led us to have so many wonderful experiences, to meet people near and far, to minister to even more and he has always managed to put people in our lives to lead us through each new situation we face.
Father, I lift my heart in praise to you today for your never failing love and guidance. Thank you for giving us the joy, the strength and the drive to move forward and to continue to serve you in a new and different way. I pray that you would provide, protect and fill us to overflowing so that we may pour ourselves out to be a blessing to another person. Love you so much....
Amen!
I wish you a day that is filled with enough grace, love and hope that you would be able to give of yourself freely!
Tanya
Monday, January 28, 2008
The beauty of it all
For all of us here life has taken on a peaceful kind of routine. During the week we either go to work or school and then we come together for supper, do a little tidy work and then we find our way to the bed for the night. We have spent more time together since Mark and I both started new jobs then we have in a very long time. The kids are responding quite well to new set expectations and for now all is right with the world. The weekends are wonderful! Right now Mark and I both have weekends off, (that's coming to an end very quickly). We are able to sleep in on Saturday and then spend the day taking care of what needs to be done, i.e. bills, cleaning, errands.....This weekend was especially wonderful because Mark and I celebrated our 20th anniversary. It's not officially until Wednesday but we knew we would both be tired and Mark starts third shift soon so we wanted to take the time to spend with each other. 20 years is quite an accomplishment, especially considering that we are only 39 and 36. We didn't have a huge party or exchange extravagant gifts. We went to dinner and then we went to see the Bucket List. Great Movie!. I guess I'm sharing all of this because over this weekend I have felt God pouring into me a new awareness. An awareness of the human experience and how incredibly blessed we are to not only be able to have that experience ourselves but also to be able to learn from others. My heart almost can't take the beauty of what God has done for me. I'm 36 years old (37 is coming fast), I have been loved by a wonderful man for more than half of my life, I have held three new born babies and watched them grow, I have lost two babies that I never got to hold, I have been a wife, mother, daughter, a sister, and a friend. I have known the pain of losing someone I love and I have been blessed with being there and helping others as they have said good-bye to ones that they loved. I have been able to make friends from all over the country. I have been a stay at home mom and I have been a success in business. But above all of these things I have been loved by my heavenly father with a love that goes beyond reason or understanding. For each new day I am granted, for each sunrise and sunset I get to see, I pray that I will never be dulled by it or consider it just another day. I pray that I will always be moved in my soul by the things that God surrounds me with. Whether it is that brilliant colored sky or whether it is the smile of a friend, the warmth and care of my husband I pray that I will always let it take my breath away. I pray for all of you, I pray that you would have a moment today that simply takes your breath away and makes you remember how much God loves each of you....Blessings to you
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Here I am!
It has been quite sometime since I have written here. I guess the holiday season kinda of got hectic and I did not have a lot of time to write. My how things can change! I went back to work recently. I have not worked since early October due to my little friend, the West Nile Virus. It feels good to be back into society and meeting new people.
I must share that these many months I have been trying to overcome much more than just the virus. My heart has been burdened and heavy for many months now. I have been trying to get over leaving a job that I loved, a job that I thought defined who I was. I was an office manager for a chiropractor. I loved my job! Maybe not so much the title or even the profession. I loved what I got to do, each day our Doctor would meet with us for a few moments before we would begin shift and he would read us a passage scripture or educate us about a new amd different way we could reach our patients and then we would pray before we began that shift. On would go the Christian music and we would march out of our meeting like soldiers on a mission! I am not going to go into the details that led me to leave. I will say that it has been 8 months now and I still think about my job there and, I confess, my heart wishes I were still there. I was on my way home from work yesterday and I felt God speak ever so gently to my heart concerning this matter. You see before I worked in that office I had terrible self-esteem issues. It was a problem in the very begining of my time there, but the doctor believed in me and spend a lot of time and effort training me to believe in myself. I felt confident in my postion there and it helped me to feel whole and good about who I was. When I left that place I left all that I had learned about self there as well. What God whispered to my heart yesterday was that my hope is not in that office, my worth is not subject to a title or a job well done. My worth comes from him! He does not love me less or value me less because I no longer hold that position or title. I am his child and he loves me just the same. For those of you who read this I pray you know your value and how much you are loved, not just by God but by me as well. I have been so blessed! Blessed enough to want to pass it on to you. God bless you my friends, may our God pour upon you a fresh understanding of just how much you are of worth to him.
Abiding in Him,
Tanya
I must share that these many months I have been trying to overcome much more than just the virus. My heart has been burdened and heavy for many months now. I have been trying to get over leaving a job that I loved, a job that I thought defined who I was. I was an office manager for a chiropractor. I loved my job! Maybe not so much the title or even the profession. I loved what I got to do, each day our Doctor would meet with us for a few moments before we would begin shift and he would read us a passage scripture or educate us about a new amd different way we could reach our patients and then we would pray before we began that shift. On would go the Christian music and we would march out of our meeting like soldiers on a mission! I am not going to go into the details that led me to leave. I will say that it has been 8 months now and I still think about my job there and, I confess, my heart wishes I were still there. I was on my way home from work yesterday and I felt God speak ever so gently to my heart concerning this matter. You see before I worked in that office I had terrible self-esteem issues. It was a problem in the very begining of my time there, but the doctor believed in me and spend a lot of time and effort training me to believe in myself. I felt confident in my postion there and it helped me to feel whole and good about who I was. When I left that place I left all that I had learned about self there as well. What God whispered to my heart yesterday was that my hope is not in that office, my worth is not subject to a title or a job well done. My worth comes from him! He does not love me less or value me less because I no longer hold that position or title. I am his child and he loves me just the same. For those of you who read this I pray you know your value and how much you are loved, not just by God but by me as well. I have been so blessed! Blessed enough to want to pass it on to you. God bless you my friends, may our God pour upon you a fresh understanding of just how much you are of worth to him.
Abiding in Him,
Tanya
Thursday, December 20, 2007
One of my favorite christian women is Beth Moore. She has got the most amazing heart and I love the spirit she carries with her. I've done three of her bible studies and want to do more. I was on the Living Proof Ministries website yesterday and read a letter by Beth and towards the end she said something that has struck a chord with me. She said that all of these years she has not let worldly struggles or success take her eyes of Jesus! She credits prayer, not only from her, but from the millions of others who pray for her and her ministry. It occurs to me that I don't always take that stance with things in my life, but I want to! I want to always keep my eyes on Jesus and not on the temporary situations and circumstances that surround me daily. So many things can cause me to look away. I am reminded once again,just with those few words, that I am a woman after God's heart! No one else but his. I need to get back into the habit of having that love relationship with my Lord. To remember in the midst of hard times and good times that he is my rock, my redeemer, he is my fortress. I have been blessed to have many friends, old & young, who are the face of God to me and I am so thankful that he gives me examples to inspire me to come home and rest awhile!
If I could take just a moment and pour out my heart
I would say to my Lord, My God, How great thou art.
You walk with me by day and safeguard me through the night
always there beside me no matter what the strife.
So from this humble heart, I just wanted to say
I love you Lord! I'll be pursuing YOU today.
I would say to my Lord, My God, How great thou art.
You walk with me by day and safeguard me through the night
always there beside me no matter what the strife.
So from this humble heart, I just wanted to say
I love you Lord! I'll be pursuing YOU today.
Sunday, December 16, 2007
A Shakesperean Adventure
Our son Matthew is quite the talent on stage and tonight we attended a dinner theater put on by the drama club. It is the school's One Act. This year they did Macbeth. I am always amazed when I see Matthew perform because living from day to day sometimes I forget his talent. After the show Mark asked me, out of the blue, what brings me joy. It took me a couple of minutes to answer and my response was, watching my children succeed and live out some of their dreams. I know that our ultimate joy comes from God and that he is our reason to rejoice. That being said, there is no greater joy so far in this life than being a mother. Father, I thank you so much that you have entrusted these children to me. I pray that you would be my guide and give me the wisdom needed to complete the task of raising them. What a gift you have given to me.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Well we did it! We finally managed to get family pictures taken. It was a bittersweet family portrait as I find myself wondering if it will ever look the same. Our lives are changing so very quickly. We are once again experiencing firsts with our children. This was the first Christmas we decorated our tree without Kristina. It was a hard day for me I admit! It didn't seem complete but I realize that we are on another part of our journey with Kristina. Being there for here as she discovers the pressures that come with being an adult and having to support yourself. I also think toward the future and know that next year will be very different as well. I'm not sure where we will be living but I do know that we will be on a military base somewhere and my heart is happy with that. There is a kinship among the families that serve in the armed forces that can not fully be explained. I'm not sure if Mark will be with us next Christmas or if he will find himself in the desert but one thing I am assured of is that God is with us no matter where we go. So this Christmas as we live out transition and say good-bye to the things we have known I thank God that he always has us in his care and that he always surrounds us with people to love and who love us in return. Thank you Father for your constant love and care.
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