Stepping Stones

"And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:10

What a blessing it has been to get to experience God's provision. Michael and I have been so blessed this summer. We both have jobs, a great place to live literally 10 minutes from Liberty, and a God who meets needs and answers prayer. It's been so neat to know that He's got our lives literally in His hands and He already knows our future.

I can't believe it's already time for school to start back ... this summer has been the fastest one for me yet! Michael and I are both working at Cracker Barrel in Lynchburg now and it's crazy how the atmosphere has already changed in that store now that all the freshmen are coming in. We are both enjoying the job but it gets very stressful at times. The hours are always late nights and I think we're going to be ready for a change soon.

My search for a new job has begun as I look for something a little more practical with Michael's school schedule! It seems like nothing is opening up for me right now but I'm still looking. It's hard sometimes to rest in the promise that God has our lives in His hands. But I think He's been teaching me that this week. Sometimes I forget that His timing is what's best for me!

We are still church searching so if you think of it, pray for us. We have found a couple of churches that we really like but we're still not sure where it is exactly that God is leading us. Sometimes it's discouraging not having that welcoming church family that we are so used to. It's strange going into a place where you don't know anyone and everything seems foreign to you. But ultimately I know God is in that place and that's worth every visit. I can't wait until we can really get plugged in somewhere and become part of a church family again though. I have really missed that.

Well enough jabbering! Here's some photos of our apartment! We also have an outdoor patio but it's very small and hard to photograph ... plus it's dark outside right now and my camera battery is dead, so needless to say, I have no photos of that! But everything else is here. :)

This is the first thing you see coming in the front door!

Our little dining area...

And yes! There it is again! ... the double doors have the washer and dryer behind them.

ANNNDDD the kitchen ... my favorite place. Although I never cook because we're both working at dinner time. Sigh. Maybe someday. ;)

Btw, I took this photo very soon after we moved in.

The sink pretty much never looks like this. Lol.

The living room.

Walking through the living room, you'll come to the master bedroom.
Yes, I finally got the bed canopy I've been wanting since I was 10. :)

(Special thanks to the Goodwin family!)

And there it is again in case you missed it the first time! :)
Michael just couldn't bear to part with his beanbag chair in the corner... although he never actually sits in it.

                      

ANNNDD ... the bathrooms. The one on the left is our 

bathroom right next to our room.

The one on the right is the guest bathroom which is back through

the living room and next to the office.

Speaking of which, here's the office. It still needs some fixing up

but we've got a desk, futon, and curtains so we're doing good! ;)

And here's Michael showing off the pillows that he fusses at me for buying.

They really are cheap pillows that are already falling apart ...

But, geesh! They match the room so perfectly. How could I not get them??

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And there it is! :) We also have a very large walk-in closet that I'm very excited about but obviously not excited enough to remember to photograph. :(

And now to finish up, let me just emphasize that we are very blessed with a great place and I'm so excited to see what God has planned for us in Lynchburg, VA!

The end. :)

The Beginning

BAMMM. Did it all really happen? Michael and I both just keep reminiscing about how quickly the last few weeks have flown by. It's still strange to think we have finally entered into our lifelong partnership of marriage. What an amazing God we serve.

The wedding seemed to fly by for us but it was such a joyful, exciting night of worship and fun! We loved celebrating our marriage with our friends and family!

Now I'll try to go through the events in between now and then without typing an entire book...

People shouted, there were hugs and laughter, waves and goodbyes. Joy filled our hearts as we drove away in Michael's car covered in sticky hearts! :) What an amazing night of memories. Michael probably thought he had made a mistake when I immediately burst into tears before we hit 460. I was so happy but also fearful when I looked back at all the friends and family we were leaving behind. What a change it has been to leave the small town of Princeton, WV!

We traveled all night that night and arrived in Runaway Bay, Jamaica at 11AM, June 3rd. It was really 10AM West Virginia time but it took us a few days to figure that out. We didn't notice until we excitedly turned on the TV to watch America's Got Talent and MISSED IT! ;) Oh well. The beach was amazing. It was so nice to leave the list of to-do's behind that had traveled with me for the past several weeks and just relax and enjoy God's creation. We loved snorkeling, swimming, boat riding, and laying out in the warm sun. The Jamaicans were so laid back and easy going. It was so nice to plan our day as we went!

    

 Our view from our back patio. :)

   WIPED OUT.

Our favorite hammock!

Next was DISNEY. :) Forget the relaxation! We decided to try and visit all the parks in 2 DAYS! By day 2, we were wiped out. We managed to visit Magic Kingdom, Downtown Disney, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, Blizzard Beach, and Animal Kingdom. By the end, our feet felt like Jelly. On top of it all, it was Disney's busiest week of the year (with school letting out that week) so we never rode the same ride twice! But it was all worth it and we had a great time.

The girl at the check-in counter gave us wedding balloons. :)

After Disney, we were home. It was so amazing to look around and see all the gifts we received for the apartment! We've had to buy some things but we had so much already! God has truly blessed us with amazing friends and family. The apartment is starting to feel like home but it's still an adjustment coming to the realization that we're not still on vacation.

Everything has been so busy for us this last week getting everything set-up here, I haven't had time to get too homesick. But I think we're both starting to get a little lonely for friends. I know it will take some time, but I hope God sends some friendly believers our way soon. :) The church search has begun and we are praying for a close church family. Please keep us in your prayers!

Will post photos of the apartment soon!! :)

Danielle

Next Step Forward

Wow. It really is neat to see God at work in our lives. Michael & I have spent the last 3.5 years getting to know each other and now we feel like it's time to take the next step forward. Our marriage is a leap of faith in the direction we feel God is calling us. I know that God has a plan for us and we cannot wait to see it unfold. We are so excited to see how He will use our marriage to glorify Him in amazing ways. As we tie the knot, please be in prayer for our new life in Lynchburg, our future endeavors for Him, & most importantly, our marriage & relationship with Him. We will do our best to use this blog as a way of sharing our stories & memories along the way. This will truly be an adventure. Praise God.