- In December of 2012 I quit my grant writing job with Children's Hunger Fund. I made the decision to switch to transcription for my part time job, allowing me to continue working from home and choosing my own hours. Also, frankly, I was ready to move on and do something different. Grant writing is a great field and I may return to it at some point, but it was time for a change. It was a wonderful five years of working for CHF and I have so many good memories and friends from my time there. So, the beginning of 2013 started fresh with a new job.
- I ran my second 10k in March, finishing with a chip time of 56:21. It's no Olympic record, but it was an improvement from my first 10k time. I have also managed to exercise pretty regularly this year, (a first!) not going more than a week without running or doing something. It's definitely been necessary just to get my blood pumping since I sit around at home most of the day. Michael and I also tried the P90X2 program and got through two of the three modules - about two months straight of P90X2, four times a week. The beginning was hard, painful, frustrating, etc. but over time it was neat to see that yes, I was getting stronger and can do some of these exercises better and better. Even though we didn't finish the last month-long module it was a good experience. We are so thankful to God for good health!
- Michael and I took two little vacations this year, one to Pedernales Falls State park to go camping for a few days while he was on spring break, and one to Hot Springs, Arkansas, for our fifth wedding anniversary.
- I took a trip out to California in June to see my family and to see a dear friend from college get married. My closest group of friends from college were all able to make it to the wedding, which was at our alma mater of UC Irvine. It was great to see all of them in a familiar place, six years later. I absolutely cherish each trip "home" to California and getting to see family and friends.
- In May, Michael got a job with a company in Pasadena, Texas, and started working part time while he finished his Associate's degree in instrumentation. We were so blessed that he found a job quickly and that they were so gracious to let him work part time and finish school. There have been a few small hiccups over the past six months but Michael is enjoying his job and will probably be there for awhile.
- Speaking of which, this year I had to come to firm grips with the fact that we will most likely be in Texas for the foreseeable future. Through these past three years that we've been in Texas there's always been a chance we'd move away once certain things fell into place and if Michael found a job elsewhere. I didn't realize that I subconsciously wanted this to be the case until I was faced with the reality that we'll probably be staying and I found myself disappointed instead of glad. I can't predict the future and who knows where God will direct us, however, now that Michael has finished school, settled on a career path, and found a good job, it seems that for now, we will be sticking around. This has been hard for me to accept at times for a number of reasons, which I won't get into here, but basically it's been a good trial encouraging me to continue looking to God and trusting Him. I've needed to be reminded of all the times my ideas about "what my life should look like" have been disappointed, yet God's redirection and my prideful plans being humbled has always been good and right, and He has remained faithful through it all.
- August was a month of transitions. Firstly, we moved! Again! For the third time in five years! :( For the past two years we were living on Michael's grandmother's property, helping to keep in eye on her. August marked a transition for Grandma also as she moved to an assisted living complex near Michael's mom. Her move meant our moving back up to Pasadena where we've rented our first house. We've enjoyed coming back to an area we already know well and Michael is less than four miles away from his work!
- Secondly, in August we also made a decision to start attending a different church. We had been thinking and praying about it for some time and there were a number of reasons for the change, but the important things are we left on good terms with the leadership and everyone else and remain thankful for God's working in our lives through that church over the past few years. God was so good and lead us to our new church home rather quickly, and we really love it. It's called Clear Creek Community Church and we attend one of their satellite campuses. It reminds me somewhat of Cornerstone, and we've already been so blessed and encouraged by our time there. We've joined a small group (the first we've been a part of in years) and have really enjoyed the fellowship and study. The church has gone through a lot of changes in its theology and church philosophy of ministry over the 20 years it's been in existence, and it's been great to come in at a time when they've solidified a lot of things for the better, by God's grace, and are doing much for the Kingdom. We look forward to how God will use and encourage us through our time there.
- As I've already mentioned, 2013 marked our fifth wedding anniversary (in October). It's hard to believe we've reached that "5" milestone already. Marriage has been so hard yet so good, but I would say the past two to three years have been especially good. The first couple years were pretty challenging for me, but after I spent that time wrestling it out with God (and sometimes Michael :) God has brought such a sweetness and depth to our marriage as it has progressed. Of course we still have tiffs and continue to grow in putting to death our selfishness and learning to love each other better, but all in all I am just so thankful and happy in our marriage and look forward to whatever God has for us next!
- Also in October, I began volunteering at a food pantry a couple days a week here in Pasadena. They've got a good little operation going and serve 500+ families a month. One of our neighbors has been volunteering there for years and invited me to come along. It's been a good way to get out of the house a few times a week and do some community service. The funny thing is I was and have been looking (not very aggressively, mind you) for a part time job outside the home just to get out for a change and make some new friends. I wasn't wanting to do anything in the non-profit sector because I thought, been there, done that. Lo and behold, God brings this opportunity along and also brings all my job applications thus far to nil. So it's like hm, okay, I guess for now you don't want me to find another job and you want me to do this instead. Proverbs 16:9 again coming into play. Anyway it really has been enjoyable and I'm thankful God provided the opportunity.
Well, that pretty much brings us to the end of the year. Through the whole year I've been reading and movie watching a lot, (those are basically my free time hobbies, I guess) so check out my favorite books and movies post if you haven't yet. We had a good Thanksgiving and Christmas with Michael's family and I get to go back to California next week to see my family, yippee! I don't make New Year's resolutions so I don't have much to say about 2014 other than I can't wait for our trip to the Galapagos Islands with my parents in May along with whatever else God has for us over the next 12 months!
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