Finally an Update!

I think that Jonathan and I should win an award for being the worst bloggers. We've had so many huge things happen in our lives since we lost blogged... so many in fact that each is worth of its own post. Since, however, we have waited this long to post, I'll hit the majors so that it won't be too much to read.

My Dad's Election

Jonathan and I were blessed to get off work in Oxford for 3 weeks so help my dad with his campaign for US Congress in Georgia's 7th congressional district. We really enjoyed our time helping my dad pursue such a big challenge. My dad is generally the behind the scene person, so it was very nice getting to be his support.

The primary was held July 20th, and I'm sad to say that my dad didn't get elected to run in November. We knew going into the race that the chance was slim, but this has opened other doors for politics. My dad now has a new hobby to pursue.

Some Growing News...

I was extremely exhausted the whole month of June helping out with the campaign. It didn't take long for us to realize that.... We're having a baby! This came as a complete shock, as we weren't hoping for kids for another few years. However, we are extremely excited about this little blessing that God has entrusted to us.

I had several complications in the early months of pregnancy, and we thought twice that we had lost our little one. God actually used this to help us get more excited about this unexpected change in plans. We waited until my second trimester to start telling people because of the complications, but everything is going great now. I had really bad morning sickness up till week 16, but now my appetite is back! I'm finally packing on the necessary pounds and getting a baby bump.

We are expecting our little Hunter February 23rd (I'm at 20 weeks!). This is just three days after our one year anniversary! I hope he/she isn't early so Jonathan and I can celebrate that day for once without having a little one, but I'm sure by then I'll just want the little one in my arms instead of inside me.

We are getting more and more excited about this new addition each day. I can now feel him/her move inside of me! We have an ultrasound on Thursday, and we've decided not to find out the gender. This way we get gender neutral things for our next little one. We'll post pictures when we have them.

Youth Climbing Team

We started directing Miami University's Youth Climbing Team (YCT) in July with practices starting in September. Jonathan and I love this job and love working together. We both do this job after our jobs at Jimmy Johns and Patterson's Cafe. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, we work with elementary aged climbers. This is a lot of fun, and it requires us to be on our toes. They are making great progress in their climbing! On Thursdays, we work with middle and high school students. We love this night because it isn't as programed and we get to enjoy the rock wall with them. We have a total of 31 climbers we work with, so we've been very busy.

Job Changes

We are extremely excited about this new addition to our family. God is so gracious in His provision. The pregnancy doesn't complicate our job with Miami University teaching rock climbing. Currently, I still fit in a harness. When I'm too big for the harness, there is plenty I can do to facilitate the teams.

I've also been able to pick up several more hours working with the team building program. I'm actually meeting with the current director today about taking over some of her responsibilities as she goes on maternity leave.

With all the opportunities at the rec. center, I'm able to quit my job as a waitress. I've only been able to work the 6:30-11am shift because of teaching climbing, and it has made for some long days. I physically and mentally can't handle almost 12 hour work days (with a long break in the middle), so I'm blessed to be able to free up my schedule. This will allow me to get the needed sleep and be able to take care of some responsibilities around the home that I haven't had the energy to do since September. I'm so relieved to have a less stressful day in sight!

So much has happened since we last posted, and we are thankful that we having a loving, Saviour who's seeing us through it all. We couldn't be more excited about the changes that are happening in our lives knowing that God has much bigger and better plans for us then we would have imagined at this point in our lives. Please pray that God continues to show His face and finger prints in all of these changes and that we would be filled with JOY as our plans fade away and His take over.

Let us also know how we can be praying for you!