Psalm 139

God is so good!! Jason and I were just talking about how long we are comfortable with waiting for a house on base in Colorado. We decided that by the middle of July, if we did not have a definitive answer we would start checking out rentals off base... Well, this evening we called the base housing office and she informed us that the two people ahead of us were placed in a house or did not respond to them within seven days to get a house. So, WE GOT A HOUSE!! It won't be ready for us to move into until June 28th or so, which works our perfectly since we are house/dog sitting for two weeks until the end of June! We were so stressed about not having a place of our own and God had this place already lined up for us.

Just this afternoon I was reading in Faith Deployed about how God knows every step we take before we are even born and there is no where that the military can send us that God is not with us. The girl that wrote this passage references back to Psalm 139. This chapter is so encouraging for this time in my life since there is so much unknown. Yeah, we know we are going to Colorado for two years, but then what? Don't get me wrong, I am really excited to be going to Colorado and I am not stressed about the future, but as long as we stay in the Air Force we are only going to see a few years into the future at a time. My favorite verse from this chapter is verse 16... "Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid our before a single day had passed." If that doesn't put my mind at peace, I don't know what will!

This passed weekend we went camping with the amazing Eckhardt's! We canoed into our campsite on Friday night and came back Saturday afternoon. It was an adventure and we had a lot of fun with them! The only downfall was the massive amounts of ticks we had at the campsite. Once we got home we found a total of about 21 ticks between us and the two dogs. Apparently they liked Lacy because she had about 17 on her alone. It was quite the experience, but looking back it was really funny! :) Not a camping trip we will ever forget.

Canoeing!

Love them :)

He loves me.

Misty did such a good job in the canoe. She wanted to

jump into the water the entire time, though.

Still haven't started packing yet. I feel like I have a ton of time, but the movers come in 10 days. Thankfully I don't have a house full that I have to pack, just a few things. I have time... I hope ;)

The Countdown Begins

Well, here we are, a little over two weeks from our second PCS. The movers come in 13 days and we head out four days after that. It still hasn't sunk in. Probably because everything in our house still looks the same, you would never guess we are moving halfway across the country. I'm really excited for the next chapter in our lives but also sad to leave everything we have built here. But that's military life for you.

A couple of weeks ago my parents came for a visit. They were here for five days and it was a time filled with lots of laughs and love. We went to the Kentucky Derby, but ended up leaving early and watched the actual race on TV at home. There were 165,000 people there, it was humid and our claustrophobia was kicking in haha. But overall, it was a great visit :)

Placing our bets!

Grilling with our HUGE grill ;)

Lucas Oil

The Avengers in 3D

Our winning tickets :)

Yesterday was my last day of work here in Indiana. I start my "new" job at Dr. Couchman's on June 11th, so I have a little time to relax/pack/move until I get back into working. I am glad that we are moving, but it was sad to leave, once again, the people I have gotten close to at work. Wendy, the other assistant, gave me a baby blanket yesterday that she had been working on for a while. It has pink and blue in it so whatever we have (and whenever we have a baby) we can use it. It was so sweet of her! I really will miss her. She brought breakfast yesterday and then prayed with me before everyone else got there. 

Later today we are heading out on a little camping trip with the Eckhardt's! We are renting canoes and going out to our campsite for tonight and tomorrow. I am so excited!! We haven't been camping in years. We are taking the dogs in the canoe, so hopefully we will all stay inside the canoe ;)

Even though Jason and I lived in Colorado for four years (five for Jason), I am really excited to make new friends, start a new church and make a life for us... together. When we were there before, we had our own separate lives. We would see each other on the weekends, but that was about all the time we had together. Now that we are married we will be able to get involved in a lot more! Our pastor here at High Rock Church sent us a couple churches in the area that he thinks might be a good fit. The one that stood out to us the most was Discovery Christian Church. They have a small group for military members and their spouses. It is lead by an active duty member and helps you get connected while in a place for a short time. I am really looking forward to checking it out. Here is the link in case you are curious ;) http://www.dccsprings.com/

Finally, Jason is FINISHED with his final project. The documentary that he has been working on since October is finally done and turned in. He still has class for the next two weeks, but the worst of over :) I am so proud of him for getting his Masters in less than a year! Not many people can accomplish that. God has truly blessed us these past months in Indiana. We had no idea what to expect when we got here, but it has been such a growing experience in our love and marriage, our walk with Christ and individually. 

With the future unknowns with military life, I find this verse speaks peace to my heart daily...

Deuteronomy 31:8 "The LORD himself will go before you and will be with you. He will never leave you or forsake you. Do not be afraid; Do not be discouraged"

The Windy City

So many exciting things have gone on in our home these past few weeks. This past weekend we went to Chicago with the School of Journalism at IU. We had such a great time! We had been wanting to go up there for a while, so jumped at the chance when they asked us to go. I've heard that Chicago is a great city, but I had no idea how beautiful is was. The first morning we were there, Jason and I walked down Michigan Ave. to find some breakfast and were in awe at all the amazing skyscrapers and old buildings.

Later that day we took a tour of the Chicago Tribune. I thought I was going to be pretty bored, but it was actually really interesting. We got to sit in on the morning news meeting where they decide what will be in the next days paper. It's crazy how quickly everything comes together. We then met with a couple other people in specific departments about what to expect working for a paper. After we left the Tribune, we went to dinner at Giordano's Pizza. It was delicious! I am so glad we got some Chicago pizza while we were there. We met up with Jason's friend from Travis (who knew me as burrito girl when Jason and I first started dating). He is from Chicago, so he showed us around and gave us some cool history on a lot of the town. We went to the giant silver bean in the middle of Millennium Park then walked down near Lake Michigan. It was a beautiful night with the lights of the city behind us. 

Jason, Joel and Dalton at the Tribune

Weird...

This is where the filmed the car chase scene

in the Dark Knight :)

The day we left, we went to a Cubs game. Jason and I aren't huge sports fans, but it was great to be able to see a game at Wrigley Field. 

Old score board :)

Rode the subway for the first time :)

After the Cubs game we went to the Chicago Air Institute. Jason and I aren't huge art people, but it was great seeing some familiar original paintings from Monet and American Gothic. It is a gorgeous buildings full of so much history.

Monet

American Gothic 

On another note, I got a call yesterday from Dr. Couchman (the dentist I worked for for almost 4 years in Colorado) asking me if I want a job when we get to Colorado :) I am so excited to be working there again! It is one less stress to have in moving. 

Jason is working hard on his Capstone documentary. He finished a trailer for is this week because it is going to be shown in the IU Cinema for anyone to come view. I am so proud of him and really excited to see the finished documentary :) 

Crazy thing called life.

Yesterday we witnessed our first REAL tornado warning. We had a couple in Colorado Springs, but nothing too severe. I was at work when I heard the tornado sirens go off, but had to finish out the day before I could go home. Jason picked me up from work and we stayed in his car in the parking garage until the storm had passed. Nothing actually touched down, but I guess there were some funnel clouds spotted. Here are some pictures from after it had passed (I was too scared during the storm to take pictures haha).

The storm moving away.

Hail at our house.

Hail and the lake that was made in 

about30 minutes.

Jason and I went to a few antique stores today to browse what they had. They have a huge antique mall downtown that has a nice selection and it very well laid out. I found a wooden "G" that I put in our living room and some tiny American flags that match our theme. We had lunch at Darn Good Soup, and outside they had a display of art and the artist did mostly giraffes! I was in love with some of the paintings, but I refrained from spending $200 on one ;)

LOVE this one!

In doggy news, we got Lacy groomed... finally! Jason wanted to grow her hair out for the winter and save money on grooming, so she was really fluffy and shabby looking. Now, she looks like a rat haha. There is no middle ground with that dog. She has to feel better being short, though. 

Before

After :)

In moving news, we got orders!! We are OFFICIALLY going to Schriever AFB, Colorado. We have a departure date of June 1st and a report no later than date of June 30th, but Jason would have to take some leave if we wait until June 30th to get there. We should be rolling out of Indiana in early June sometime. The drive is pretty easy (seems like we just did it 10 months ago.... oh we did) but we plan to take two days and tow my Highlander behind the Jeep. We are planning to get on the waiting list for base housing on Monday. The housing looks gorgeous! I really hope we are able to get one. We won't know until shortly before we get there, but our friend, Laura, has offered her home if we don't have a place to stay :)

Finally, my dad took this amazing picture of a hummingbird feeding her baby in their backyard. I told him he should enter a photo contest! It's one of the best photos I have seen (probably second to the moon picture you took, Dad).