This Year We Will Be In.....

This year we will be living in....

FRANCE!

I did not mean to, but I've abandoned this blog for a few months, and now I'm back! In the meantime, Matt has signed a contract for next year with a team in North France, in the city of Lievin, France. Its a good contract and a step up from last year, so we are excited to see what this year brings! Last year, I said I didn't care if we were in Spain again (because I liked it) or a different country (because I want to see more of Europe). I am really excited about France, though, and especially about the area of Europe we will be in - perfect for traveling! We are really close to England, Belgium and not too far from Germany. Last year we only traveled within Spain, so this year I'm excited to see more of Europe.

Last year was a good experience, but I think this year will be even better, just from an adjusting standpoint. First, we will have a car this year, which will be great! Second, we already have visitors scheduled. Last year, we went all fall with no visitors, and we missed our families a lot! This year we are trying to spread everyone out so we won't be as homesick. Matt's dad is coming in October for his first game, and my sister is coming for Thanksgiving in November! I know it will be so much fun to see both of them not too long after we've been gone. The only way this year will be harder than last year is that neither Matt nor I speak a word of French! (Oui, merci, and that is all....) At least last year Matt could speak Spanish. I've started using a free library program to learn a little bit, so we'll see how that goes. 

I took my (hopefully) last section of the CPA exam yesterday! I saved the most difficult one (FAR - Financial) for the last, and it was a hard test! I'll find out if I passed or not right around the time we leave, so hopefully I passed and I won't have to bring my books with me to France. It would be so unbelievably great to be finished studying. 

Matt's been playing a lot of basketball and training to get ready for France. He played in a Pro-Am tournament in Birmingham last week, and his team won the championship! That was pretty cool, except I didn't get to see him play because I was studying for my test. His family got to see him play though, which they loved. 

Anyway, we are dealing with Visa issues right now, and as soon as we get that figured out we will leave, probably around August 22. That's soon! This summer has flown by, but its been a good one. It's been great to have a summer for the first time in a few years, work some part time jobs, be completely flexible, go on some fun vacations and spend time with our families. We'll be in France until May, and then back to the USA again for another great summer!

Home Again, Home Again

"Home again, home again, jiggity jog" I can't remember who used to always say that, maybe my grandfather? Has anyone else every heard that expression? Anyway, Matt and I are home again! We had a great year in Spain, but we are SO HAPPY to be back in the USA! We've had a pretty busy couple of weeks since we got back, and its just now slowing down. We have gotten to do some really fun things though!

Two days after we got back to Alabama, I hopped in the car with my mom and sister and went to Jacksonville to see my brother's winging ceremony (he's in the Navy, and is now a NFO - Naval Flight Officer). It was great to see my brother and spend the weekend with most of my family. 

Everyone who came to support Blair

My brother Blair, me, my dad and my sister Elizabeth

All the ladies: my mom, me, my Aunt Sallie, my cousin Claire, and my sister Elizabeth

The plane Blair flies/navigates - a P3 - it was so big!

Dressed up for the celebration that night

The day after I got back from Jacksonville, Matt and I got to go to Talladega with some sweet friends of ours who invited us! We were so excited to go (I have never been), and it was a really exciting race and a fun day. Matt dressed for the part:

My sweet friend Heidi

The racetrack

lovely orange earplugs

After Talladega, I came home and did nothing but STUDY for an entire week. I sat for the Audit section of the CPA exam on Friday, May 11, and I'm now waiting to find out my score...I might find out this week, which would be extremely fast. I've passed two of four parts, so I really hope I passed Audit and can take the last section in July and be finished with it forever!

After my exam, I enjoyed not studying for a few days, and then Matt and I went with my family to the beach. It was such an amazing trip! The place we stayed was so nice, we were on the bottom floor with the pool right outside our back door. The pool was HUGE! It was the size of about 5 normal pools with a fountain, lots of stairs, palm trees and umbrellas all over the pool deck, it was really nice. We were about a  3 minute walk from the beach, and the water was so clear while we were there, no jellyfish. We got to stay for 6 days and the weather was perfect the whole time. Thanks Mom for taking us on such a great beach trip!

Me and Matt at dinner

Everyone with my cousin at his restaurant - its on 30a and its called Local Catch - it was delicious!

Our amazing pool

Playing Risk - we played 2 full games of Monopoly (one of which I won!) and 2 full games of Risk during the week - I guess saying my family likes board games is an understatement. 

Now we are back to normal life, Matt is starting a job at Greystone this week and I'm still unemployed - know anyone who needs an accountant for the summer? Hopefully I can find something soon or you might see me bagging groceries at Wal-mart! 

Home is where the Heart is

{I found this on Pinterest}

I remember the first time I accidentally said "I'm going home!" and I was referring to my freshman dorm at Alabama, not to my family's house. I felt so weird saying that. Since then, it doesn't seem as big of a deal...home is Tutwiler, the Alpha Chi house, Matt's house in Birmingham, my family's house in Birmingham, our apartment in Orlando... and now Spain, kind of. But not really. In college, "home" was where ever my stuff was, but now it has become the opposite - where ever my stuff isn't - and where ever Matt is.

Matt loves Florida, and the whole time we lived in Orlando, I liked it, but I really loved Birmingham, and the idea of living in the south (as in, southern culture, which Florida is not really part of). I kept telling him that once we left I would probably love it and miss it. Well....since living in Spain, I always think of my true home as our apartment in Orlando. I guess mostly because it's the only place Matt and I have ever lived together, so it feels like our home. It's hard for me to realize that apartment doesn't exist anymore, someone else is probably living there now, with different furniture and everything. But I still picture it as home.

Matt and I both whole heartedly want to pursue this basketball thing, however long that lasts and wherever it takes us. I realize this will probably leave us "homeless" for awhile. All of our possessions are in storage, except for our clothes that are with us (I am struggling to learn to "pack light"). We will have an apartment in a foreign country from August - May, then come back to Birmingham (at least for this summer) and live with our families or rent somewhere to live. I think there are some amazing positives, but also some negatives, to being "homeless". I think one of the main positives for me personally is trying to realize that stuff doesn't really matter, who you are with matters. I could not do this by myself. I took a one week mission trip to Romania my senior year of high school and got homesick. I hated my freshman year of college and came home all the time. But with Matt, I'm home. In Orlando I never got homesick, and here I miss home, but really I'm great because my best friend is with me.

This summer I went with Matt to one of his shooting (basketball shooting, not gun shooting...obviously, but just in case :)) lessons. I was sitting there watching him work and Ephesians 3:20 came into my mind:

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations...".

I was just thinking that God has given me so much more than I even know to ask for. I always thought I would meet some guy in college who was pretty great, and we would get married a little while after that, he would have an 8-5 office job, I would work until we have kids, then I would be a soccer mom, and we would live in Birmingham, or maybe move away for awhile and then move back. That sounds like a great life.... But instead, I got to marry someone that my family already knew, I already knew his family, we have a few pictures together from when we were younger, and we got to fall in love while we were both still in college. We got to be different and get married while he was still in college. Then he took me to Orlando, Florida. Now he is taking me who knows where all over the world while he plays professional basketball, which is way more fun than an office job. He is so amazing and such a wonderful husband, best friend, everything. I don't know how I ever had fun in life without him. And he loves the Lord so much. God has given me way more than I could ever ask for.

This year, starting with this past summer, when crazy things happen, or when nothing happens and we have to wait, Matt and I both are learning to trust God. When I struggle to trust that His plan is perfect, I only need to look back and see that he has been faithful, and that he has given me more already than I ever would have dreamed on my own. So maybe if my prayers don't get answered the way I planned, maybe I should trust that he has something different, and better, in store.

Merry Christmas! (a little late)

Matt and I had the best time at Christmas being in the US and with our families! We were so grateful that we got to come home this year, we don't know if that will always be the case. Matt could only come home for one week, but I stayed for 3 weeks, partially because I wanted to, and partially because I sat for a section of the CPA exam, which isn't offered in the month of December, so I took it January 4th.

You know how sometimes December rolls around and you just don't feel like it's Christmas time? This year that did not happen to me at all. I really felt like I didn't take anything for granted and really enjoyed the time I was home. We flew into Atlanta and actually went straight from the airport to visit Passion City Church. Matt's mom had heard of this church, where Louie Giglio preaches and Chris Tomlin leads worship, and we haven't been to church in awhile, so we were up for it! It was amazing. David Crowder was actually there too and he sang one song, solo, just him and the guitar, and it was amazing. I don't even remember what song he sang, but it was my favorite part of the service. And it just felt so good to be in church again.

The next day, we had the most amazing Taco Night at Matt's grandparent's house. Matt's grandmother, Gogo, makes these delicious tacos - she makes each one by hand, it takes hours, and she rolls each one up in a paper towel. You keep all your paper towels, and at the end the boys always see who ate the most. It was so much fun because Matt's Dad's side of the family was there, cousins, aunts and uncles, so there were a lot of people. Matt and his cousin Bryan tied at a new record of 15 tacos. (Just to keep that in perspective, the most I've ever eaten is 4!)

Matt and Bryan after eating the tacos

Me, Elizabeth (my sister) and Blair (my brother) at Taco night

Me and Matt

The next night we had Ribs and Wings night at my house, my mom is known for her world-famous (or at least friends and family famous) ribs. She cooks them almost all day and uses Dreamland BBQ sauce, they are so good. We had a pretty big crowd and all the food was delicious and very Southern, not Spanish! haha... We had baked beans, salad, bread, ribs, wings, mashed potatoes, brownies and probably some other delicious things I can't remember now. 

My Dad got us all tickets to the Alabama basketball game that was being played in Birmingham at the BJCC on Wednesday night. It was really fun to watch Alabama kill the other team, and it was great to be around so many Bama fans all in one place! Being at the game reminded me of going to the basketball games in Tuscaloosa while I was in college, it was so much fun. 

The rest of the week we spent time with our families mostly, just hanging out in living rooms watching TV or playing games or just talking. We wish we could have seen more friends, but the time was so short we didn't get to. We are really excited about being in Birmingham May-August this year and getting to see more people then. 

We went to the Christmas Eve Service at Church of the Highlands, our home church in Birmingham, which we love and miss. The service was so good! John Larson opened the service, and again I can't remember what he sang, it was my favorite part though! Or tied for my favorite part with the end of the worship when Sara Evans sang, because of course that was amazing. I always love the candlelight at the end, too. 

Matt and I did a pretty good job this Christmas Day of spreading ourselves between our families. Since he was home for less time (and had to leave the day after Christmas), we worked it out where he could stay at his house all day on Christmas, which he really enjoyed. I went to my house Christmas morning to open presents, then my family came over later in the day and our families ate Christmas dinner together. Later that night, I went over to my Dad's house to open even more presents and just hang out. It was really nice this year, because every year we struggle with going back and forth (our families live 10 min apart) and the two of us feel really rushed. So this year was good. 

In other news, Matt gave me a Mac Book Pro for Christmas! It was totally unexpected! I was so surprised! When we were opening presents, he gave me a pair of purple Taylor Swift gloves. I like purple, and I like Taylor Swift, and I had asked for new gloves, so I liked them, but we kept opening presents, and that was it. So Matt asked me "Did you have a good Christmas?" knowing I was disappointed that he only gave me a pair of gloves. Everyone started getting up and getting coffee and everything, and then Matt said "oh wait, I think there is one more present!" He was standing behind me and slowly lowered it down in front of me, so everyone in the room was excited before I even saw what it was. I was SO surprised! And I love surprises. I had no idea, and I was really really excited and in disbelief. My computer is really old but I didn't know we were in the market for a new one. The newness still hasn't worn off and just about all I do for fun over here is play on my Mac. :)

So overall, it was a really great Christmas. I really felt like I was able to fully appreciate family and friends and Jesus. There were so many times where I just looked around (at taco night, at ribs, on random weeknights at home, at the Christmas Eve service at church) and was just in disbelief at how blessed I am. I am so grateful for all the amazing people in my life...and especially one in particular :)