Road Warriors

Only a week after getting settled in our new city, Brandon, Rev, and I loaded up the Explorer again to head back down 65-South. We were excited to see our friends and family again and marry off some of our best friends Chad and Allison, but I'd be lying if I didn't say that I was kinda bummed to head back to Baton Rouge already and go through the goodbyes all over again. Don't get me wrong, we will always cherish the time with our amazing friends and family, and summer is great time to take advantage of just packing up and going. But Nashville is our home now, and the more time we spend here, the more it will feel like home. It's where we're supposed to be. The Schoonmaker wedding was absolutely beautiful. As they desired, it glorified the Lord rather than them, and that's so rare in weddings today. They definitely understand the "bigger picture." At the reception, we danced like we were back in high school, and Brandon was definitely the hottest, best best man. For some reason, I went to the wedding without my camera, but here are a couple of Allison's beautiful bridals. (Photos by Amber Burger.)

In job news, I still got nothin. I had an interview last week for a middle school math position in Metro Nashville. I was excited just to hear something back, but as I researched the school, I started realizing it would be a whoooole lot different from what I was used to at Oak Grove (read: low income, urban, struggling students, and as one of the administrators described it: "emotionally unsafe"...). The interview went great, and the door was still open for me to decide, but God was clearly telling me no. As desperate as I am for a job, I didn't want to just take the first option and be miserable next year. I needed discernment, and the Lord (our Jehovah-Jireh) gave it to me. I trust Him to continue to provide. I'm exploring other options too. As much as I love teaching and devoted 5 years of my life to train to be a teacher, teaching may not be what the Lord has for me in this season. I'm exploring other options like administrative assistant, etc. This might sound like I'm giving up, but I'm not. I hear that it still is early for hiring teachers, but I'm also just starting to think about Plan B.

I love the visual image that David creates in Psalm 16:8. "I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken."

[Completely unrelated and probably pointless since all 5 of you that read this already voted, but...] Laura Reaux, a Lafayette photographer is giving away a creative photo shoot, and Natalie and Valerie are in the top 5, and I would love to see how their shoot comes out. I'm not sure if you can vote more than once, but check out laurareaux.com and vote now!

Brandon, Rev, and I are getting back on the road tomorrow, but this time heading southeast to Columbia, SC! I'm sooooo excited to catch up with my sister and brother-in-law and spend our afternoons swimming with my niece and nephews until our fingers turn pruny :) I love watching Brandon play with the kids too. He's gonna be such a great dad one day. I know I won't forget my camera this time, so I'll update soon with highlights of our visit!

Until next time...