Wifely Submission vs. Technology

I hate technology.

I like Instagram, and I like blogging. And I have a love/hate relationship with Facebook.

But I hate technology.

So yesterday, when my husband suggested that we have our tithe directly withdrawn every week, I wasn't happy. You see, I budget our money and make sure everything is getting paid on time. I have a handy little app on my phone that I update literally every day, and I can tell you right now how much we have and where it's going. Jon gets online and pays our tithe and cell phone once a month because those are both done on the computer, and I hate technology, remember?

So when he suggested the "directly withdrawn" thing for our tithe I thought "what?! That's just going to confuse me!" (You may be thinking "umm it's directly withdrawn. That LESS confusing." Well it's confusing to me, people!)

So I was ready to tell him that I'M in charge of budgeting and so I want to keep it the SAME!

But let's back track. Jon has had a rough week...

1) We were staying in a guest house, but it was only for the summer. So this week, we're moving to the church Missions apartment until we find a permanent place to live. A blessing! But oh how we loathe the packing and unpacking and repacking and not having a place to call our own.
2) Jon's car battery went ca-poot. His car wouldn't start, nor take a jump. So we had to deal with that.
3) I got a traffic ticket. I was giving some youth girls a ride home and none of us were wearing our seat belts. I'm ashamed and don't worry, my lesson has been learned.
4) Work is rough for him some days. Being a youth pastor means you're probably the youngest guy on staff, which means you do a good amount of physical work. Like putting up drywall and hanging projectors from 50 foot ceilings. Who'd uh thunk?
5) Once in a blue moon, there's a little issue where the church gets struck by lightening and it messes up the computers so you have no access to the lesson you had planned for the youth group, so you just gotta wing it. Yeah that happened to my hubby this week too.

So it got me thinking. I love my husband more than anything on this earth. I respect him, and I care about his feelings. Does he really need to face ALL THAT in his day and then come home to a wife that argues with him? Does he need a wife that doesn't trust that this "directly withdrawn" thing is a good idea? Wouldn't that make him feel like I don't trust HIM? And it's trusting someone part of respecting them? Is getting my way REALLY more important than just respecting him and adjusting the way I do things?

I decided that he's more important than that.

Now if you know me very well at all (ehem... Mom) you know that I'm pretty strong willed. I get set in my ways and form my opinions and when someone tries to change them, it's HARD for me to relinquish. I knew early on that I was not going to easily "submit" to the man that I'd someday marry. But you know what I'm learning?

Being submissive doesn't mean you don't have a voice. Notice that Jon SUGGESTED this idea. He didn't do it without telling me. He didn't say "this is what's happening, get over it". He wanted to discuss it. A good husband WANTS his wife's input. The submission part comes in when you realize that him feeling respected is more important than your stubborn, prideful ways.

And I'm learning :) I'm NOT perfect at it. I wouldn't even say I'm good at it, so don't get the wrong impression. I'm just saying this was a time when I thought about it and considered the big picture. And I think I'm becoming a bit wiser with each of these little experiences.

So I told Jon "Ok. I'll have to get used to it but I think that's a good idea". So he did it. And guess what, folks. That was good for us. I felt so much love for him, and from him.


Because we're a team. We're in this together. And when he's had a rough day or week or month, I'M his teammate. I'm his cheerleader. I'm always in his corner. I may not be able to change the big things or fix his problems, but I can love him, respect him, and yes... Submit to him... Yuck! ;)

Ephesians 5:21-22
"Submit yourselves to each other out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit to your husband as you do to The Lord."

Submission...It's a good thing people. I never thought it would be! But it is.

And I still hate technology.

Thanks for reading :)

Have a wonderful day.

Camp!

So my husband and I have officially taken over the youth group at Park Street Baptist Church, and this last week we went to our first church camp with the group.

FUN!

It was a great week. We had 2 students from our group accept Jesus into their lives: Dylan and Shannon.

I had about a 20 minute conversation with Shannon before service on Thursday night. She was asking questions, and I was doing my best to answer them. Then it was time to go to service so our conversation was cut short.

The ENTIRE service, I was so anxious. I kept catching myself staring at the back of Shannon's head, pleading with God to soften her heart. My stomach hurt, my face was hot, I felt nauseous. It was like I was getting beat up by the Holy Spirit.

Finally, the speaker (Aaron Cavin) ended his message and asked everyone to stand. As soon as they did, Shannon turned around, made eye contact with me, and started walking towards me. My heart leaped.

Then I got the awesome opportunity to pray with her as she accepted Jesus. Amazing.


So that was definitely the highlight of my week, but the rest of our time at camp was a blast too! I really got to know the girls and I can honestly say I made some sort of connection with almost all of them. Look at these cuties.





We were split up into 4 teams. Our group was part of the green team... Aaannnndd we ended up in 3rd place out of 4. Haha. But it was fun playing all kinds of crazy games.


It's seriously a dream come true to be able to do ministry with my husband. I feel so blessed. God has put us in a great youth ministry, and in tropical, beautiful St Pete, Florida to boot!


Speaking of Florida, we live in an area that is almost completely surrounded by beaches, so we get a nice sea breeze all the time. But our camp was near the middle of Florida.

Florida heat + no ocean breeze = HUMID. And my hair and humidity are best buds. They love to get together and have wild and crazy parties. So... Here's a little gift, from me to you..


Thanks for reading :)

Have a wonderful day.

Rules for Mommyhood

Although Jon and I know it will be a couple more years before we start trying to have little baby Jeffers, we have discussed what kind of parents we'll be.

I have several things that I've said for many years that I will NEVER do as a mom and things I will ALWAYS do as a mom. But as I've gotten a little older and a few of my friends have started having babies, I've learned that things are not going to be as structured and simple as my feeble mind may have thought.

So... I've compiled a list of things that I've said in the past that I, as a mom, or my children will never or always do.

I'll probably look at this one day and laugh at my ignorant self :) and that's the purpose of this post. So I can look back years from now and say "HAHA... Pre-mom Catelyn was such an idiot". It'll be great.

Rule #1- Never a minivan will I drive. I don't care how spacious they are or how convenient it is to have automatic slide-y doors. They're just not cute and I don't want one!

Rule #2- My kids will never throw fits in public. They'll know better! I don't know how they'll know better but they just will, ok?

Rule #3- My kids will only be allowed to watch TV or play video games for one hour a day. The rest the day, they will be outside. Building forts, playing in the mud, and having adventures. And I'll, of course, be out there with them because they need supervision. And the house will automatically clean itself and dinner will make itself. Obviously.

Rule #4- My kids will only have enough toys to fit in their own toy box. If the toy box starts overflowing, it's time to purge. And they'll be ok with that cuz kids can't possibly be attached to EVERY toy they own... Right?

Rule #5- I won't sugar coat it when my kid doesn't make the basketball team. I won't go talk to the coach and complain, I won't tell my kid "Oh it's all just politics! So unfair!" I'll tell him or her that disappointment happens, and you just need to practice more and try again next year. And I'll keep my composure and I won't crumble to the floor like a baby when I see the disappointment in their sweet face... Ok I'm tearing up now. On to the next rule.

Rule #6- Crafts! We will do crafts all the time. I won't dictate how their crafts should turn out because I want their imaginations to run wild... along with the finger paints and glitter glue. And my house will still stay clean, hooray!!

Rule #7- I will have a delicious meal ready for my hard working hubby whenever he gets home from work. How will I do this when I'm playing outside, making crafts, and my kids aren't allowed to watch TV all the live long day, you ask? Well, um... Hmm...... On to the next rule!

Rule #8- I will not force my kid to eat vegetables. I was forced to eat vegetables as a child... And guess what mom! I still hate em! They're gross! And yeah, when my kid goes to a friends house whose mom has made sautéed spinach, he'll probably say "Ew gross, that stuff looks disgusting!" And will I be embarrassed? Yes. Yes I will be.

Rule #9- I will never put my child on one of those backpack leash things. Kids are not animals. So what if I'm on a walk with the dog and all seven of my children and the 2 year old gets away? And he grows up in the wilderness and he's found years later and they make a movie about him. That's a cool story, people!

Rule #10- My kids will know unconditional love. And they'll know they have plenty of it. From me, from their daddy, from our families, and from Jesus. That one I'm sure about :)

Disclaimer: to any moms who might read this, please don't be offended. As you read this, you may think "what a little jerk! She has no idea what it's like!" And you're right! I don't! So a few years down the road, when I'm in a mini-van with little tvs in the back and driving around the block for hours letting my kids watch movie after movie just so I can have some PEACE AND QUIET..... You can make fun of me. I give you full permission to say: "See... Told you so."

Me as a baby... Just for fun :)


Thanks for reading :)

Have a wonderful day.

Focus On The Turtle

My hubbs and I celebrated our one year anniversary by taking a trip to Orlando. We stayed at the Westgate Resort and Spa, it was so nice!












There were mirrors everywhere, that was a little strange...!








Our room had such a pretty view of the water!




That night, we went to a dine-in theater. It was so cool! We had never been to one before. It's just like a movie theater except your row has a table and servers take your order and deliver your meal. Pretty neat :)








The next day, we went paddle boating. Let me just say, it's a lot of leg work and you only go like 1/2 a mile an hour... But hey, it was free at our resort and now we can say we've done it!












We also went to one of my favorite places- Sea World! We rode some rides, saw some shows, and ate some dippin dots :)








We fed some animals, which is always frightening to me haha.








And went to a sea turtle show! I'm a little obsessed with sea turtles. I think they're the cutest things since sliced bread.
In the sea turtle show, you watch a 3D movie about baby sea turtles, then go through an aquarium with sea turtles that have been rescued. The big guy pictured lost his arm to a shark.








Later, we went to a carnival- type place called Fun Spot. We drove... (why does drove not seem like a real word to me right now? Anyway...) ...drove go-carts, rode rides, and ate slushies :)




My FAVORITE part of Fun Spot, and probably my favorite part about the whole trip was the Sky Coaster! It's known as the highest skycoaster in the world, reaching 300 feet at its highest point. It was absolutely terrifying. Jon and I both agreed it was the freakiest thing we've ever done, but SO. MUCH. FUN!








First, they harness you up in these oh-so-flattering ensembles.




Then they hook you up to a cable, lay you on your bellies, and drraaaaggg you up 300 feet in the air. Up. Up. Up...
There were like 3 different times I thought to myself "Surely this is as high as we're going.... Surely were not going any higher than this"... and higher we went.




So, we're going up and I start getting nervous. Like, really nervous. So I tell Jon "I'm kinda freaking out!" And he says "Look! A turtle!" I look down at the lake below us and sure enough, a little turtle swimming around. Jon says "Just focus on the turtle."
So I focused on the turtle until it turned into a teensy little dot.
When you get to the very top of the sky coaster, a voice comes on over the intercom. It says "THREE! TWO! ONE! Pull the cord!!!" And then you're supposed to pull your own ripcord to release yourself into the abyss.
Needless to say, Jon had to pull our ripcord because I knew from the beginning that I was not gonna be able to. I mean, really? You're about to fall to your potential death and they can't just pull the cord for you?? So yeah, he pulled the cord. And down we went.
Apparently the top half of your body is heavier than your bottom half. I discovered that because we started out on our bellies, and as gravity began to take effect, we were falling head first towards the water below. And I'm screaming. And Jon is yelling "Oh My Gosh!" And then the cable catches us, and we swing forward. Then backward, then forward. I finally stop screaming and release my death grip on Jon's arm. I extend my arms out like a bird. Exhilarating.
We slowly float back and forth until we're close enough to the ground that we can grab the pole that the ride operators hold up for us. Then they lower us down to safety.
See the picture below? The tiny dot? Those are people!




I wanted to do it again so bad! But unfortunately Fun Spot only allows you to ride the Sky Coaster one time unless you wanna pay 20 more bucks per person... And let's be honest, we ain't rich ;)
When we got off the ride, I hugged Jon and said "thanks for pointing out the turtle". This isn't the first time he's had to calm me down... I tend to be a worrier. (Worry-er? Eh, whatevs)
You see, this last year has been the best and worst year of my life. I married the man of my life, and a few months later my parents filed for divorce. Jon got an awesome job as a youth pastor in Florida, which meant I was moving very, very far away from my friends and family.
But through everything, Jon encourages me. He comforts me. He prays with me. When I'm mad for a silly reason, he talks me off the ledge. And when I'm mad for a real reason, he's on my side and defends me to no end. He finds the turtle and helps me focus on it. I love him :)


Happy one year, my love. I'm excited for lots lots more.
Have a wonderful day.

My In-Loves

I've heard people occasionally and affectionately replace the term "in-laws" with "in-loves" because it was love that brought the families together, not just law.

Meh.... Kinda cheesy if you ask me.

At least that's how I used to feel. However, before we were even married, I've liked Jon's family. Although this post will be mostly about his parents, I also love his sisters and his niece and nephew. I'm blessed that I get to claim them all now too :)

I have friends whose in-laws are not very nice people. I have friends whose in-laws weren't accepting of them. I have friends whose in-laws are drama drama drama.

Not mine.

On Sunday, June 16th, we celebrated Father's Day (also our First Anniversary :) but more on that later) After church, the family got together at Jon's parents house and Dan (Jon's dad) grilled out some yummy steaks and his mom made baked potatoes, Mac and cheese, and other lunch time yumminess.

Then we let Dan open his presents and cards. He got an Otter Box for his phone (which was already cracked... He's a little clumsy) ;) He also got lots of Whoppers (the candy, not the burger), and a new golf bag!


As he was opening presents and reading cards, I got to thinking. If you know me very well, you probably know that I'm not very comfortable with expressing my feelings vocally. Aca-awkward.

But as I sat there I thought "I should have given him my own card instead of just signing the one from Jon and me. I'd tell him how thankful I am for him. I'd tell him how rare it is to have a father like him and how truly blessed his wife and kids and grand kids are. I'd tell him that if it wasn't for him, Jon wouldn't be the man he is, and if he wasn't the man he is I wouldn't have married him. I'd tell him thank you for raising the perfect man for me. Thank you for spending time with him and showing him how a man acts. Thank you for investing in him and being involved." I still kinda wish I'd written my own card. Maybe next year :)

Anywho....

Back to our First Anniversary... it was also Sunday the 16th. One whole year baby, whoo hoo!!

You know that tradition where you eat the top tier of your wedding cake on your first anniversary? Well we were totally planning on doing that, but we knew we'd be driving for two days during our move to Florida. So we took our little wedding cake tier that was sealed up nice and tight, and we put it in a cooler. We put ice in the cooler so that the icing wouldn't melt and the cake would stay nice and yummy. Once at a gas station about half way through, I checked on the cake and it still looked scrumptious and pretty. We put fresh ice in the cooler and figured it'd be good the rest of the trip.

Well.. We get to St Pete and start unpacking. We open up the cooler to discover that the ice had mostly melted. I didn't think much of it until I pulled out the container that held the cake... And it had water in it. Upon further investigation, we discovered a good portion of the icing had fallen off and the cake had soaked up water like a sponge. Sad sad sad!!!

I was just going to go ahead and forget about the tradition, but two days before our anniversary I got really bummed that we wouldn't have any wedding cake to eat. So I used this handy dandy website called "google" and found a local bakery. I asked them to make us just a Plain-white-top-tier-of-the-wedding-cake Cake and they happily obliged. We picked up the cake the next day and it was so cute! I was happy that we'd at least have some kind of cake to eat.

So the next day, we go over to my in-laws for the steaks and Father's Day fun. Of course it's our anniversary, but I didn't really expect that occasion to get much attention because it was Father's Day. But the next thing I know, Pam (Jon's mom) pulls out this little box, hands it to us, and says "happy anniversary!"

The box was from a little bakery. The top tier of a wedding cake. Decorated with our wedding colors. And it said "Happy 1st Anniversary".

How. Freakin. Sweet.


So we ended up getting to cut our little wedding cake and share it with our family on our First Anniversary. Perfection :) and the other cake? Um we ate that one as well. Can't have too much cake, right?!





I seriously got teary eyed and I don't like people to see me cry... But honestly. How thoughtful is that? How considerate? I hadn't even told her that I wanted a replacement. She seriously just put herself in my shoes, felt the disappointment I felt, and took it upon herself to get us the cake. And on Father's Day! It was not supposed to be our day! But that's honestly the kind of people they are. Selfless. Thoughtful. Considerate.

And now when I use the term "in-laws" it sounds distant, kinda cold and void of emotion or relationship. Yucky.

So... I forever will consider them my in-loves. Because it's true, it's not just a law that binds us together and makes us family. It's not a law that makes Dan a fun, devoted father. It's not a law that makes Pam sweet and thoughtful. It's love. Now.... will I go around calling them my "in-loves" all the live-long day? Ehh... It's still a little cheesetastic. But just so you know, that's how I feel and I'll call them that in my head ;)

Anyone else love their in laws? Anyone have any fun stories of hatred towards their in laws? Just kidding... But if you do, please share ;)

Thanks for reading.

Have a wonderful day.

Half-full Penske Truck

Two weeks ago, Jon and I packed up everything we own and stuffed it into a Penske truck.... Ok maybe it wasn't exactly "stuffed"... Maybe it was only about half full. But we're newlywed/college kids so we're not SUPPOSED to own a lot... right?! All of our property was either given to us, found on ebay, or bought from a flea market. And we have approximately 4 large pieces of furniture. But anyway.





Please excuse my greasy hair and lack of make-up!

Thus began our two day drive to Florida. My mom and two youngest brothers helped us out by driving one of our cars the whole way, and we towed the other car. Jon and I were in the Penske truck passing the time with music, eating, the alphabet game, etc. Oh and selfies. Can't forget about the ever-entertaining selfies :)








We stayed in a motel over night and continued driving the next day. We finally arrived in St Pete, Florida on Wednesday night. It took us a few tries to find the house in which we're staying, but once we did, it was time to unpack.






My mom and brothers were staying for 10 more days, so we turned it into a family vacation of sorts!

We went to the beach. My mom and I may or may not have a strange obsession with palm trees.





We got to meet cutie pie, Grayson Carmichael.





Hung out at WonderWorks in Orlando.








Mom and I got our hair did ;)


She's a hottie.


And we went in-shore fishing! I caught 5 fish, more than anyone else that day. Just sayin ;) 2 trout, a mackerel, a catfish, and a ladyfish.














Then it was time to drop them off at the airport. I cried, mom cried, brothers stoically said "see ya". Hugs. Tears. Good byes.






And then I was alone. Of course I have my amazing husband, for whom I'm incredibly thankful. But the realization that I was 22 hours away from my friends and family was a little overwhelming. I don't have friends here yet. I don't know the streets. I don't even know how to get to church or my gym. I'm not longer able to drive two hours if I decide on a whim that I want to see my mom or friends. Everything is foreign.

But guess what.

I'm so incredibly blessed. If you don't know already, the reason why we moved to Florida is because my husband accepted a full time position as a youth pastor. Anyone who knows me well knows that I have wanted, dreamed about, and prayed since I was 16 years old that God would put me in a ministry position. Now we're here. We're doing it. I'm terrified and excited and anxious and thankful. I hope I connect with the youth girls. I hope I'm a good example. I hope I make good friends. I hope I hope I hope!

Anywho. Those are my thought as of late.

Thanks for reading :)

Have a wonderful day.