97 days!

Well...it's been a while since we have updated, huh? I'd like to say that we lost the password to our Blogspot account or that Reggie ate our last post....but neither of those happened. Between our last post and this post a ton of things have happened. First off, Josh found out that his job assignment will be in Guthrie! God is good!! I think he is planning on starting there a few weeks after graduation. Speaking of graduation...it is 2 months from today! It is just crazy how fast this semester has gone already. Spring Break is next week and a week from this coming Saturday is the three months marker on our wedding countdown! Josh and I have begun looking for a place to call home! It's an exciting and time-consuming process...but very fun! This weekend we will go to our second pre-marital counseling appointment. We are still looking for a person/bakery to make our cake so if you have any suggestions please let us know! Hope everyone is having a great week! :)

Beautiful

Hello Everyone!

The wedding is drawing nearer by the day (duh Josh) and Brooke and I are getting excited about being married in less than 5 months! So far it has flown by, and I'm sure the coming months will not slow down. Brooke is doing a wonderful job with wedding planning and I am contributing as I am needed (I mean made).

Brooke and I have known in our hearts from pretty much the time we started dating that God has put us together and that we are meant to be together for the rest of our lives. As is expected, some people don't understand or see why we would want to get married at such a young age. Brooke and I both have had several people try to talk us out of getting married. Even though it is always people that don't know us very well and haven't been around us, it is something that bothers both of us when it happens. We have both heard, "why don't you just want to hang out after college" or "you are making a decision that affects the rest of your life, why don't you just take some more time to think about it" or "your life is over after you get married"(get that one a lot) etc, etc... pretty much saying that we are stupid for getting married. Although it is in a joking manner most of the time, I can also sense that they truly mean it and given their history it is for good reason. I know they are trying to spare us from the pain that they have experienced with marriage.

I never have doubted whether I want to get married to Brooke, but these "talks" people have had with me have made me think of why I want to spend the rest of my life with Brooke.

• Brooke is more important to me than being "free" and actually she has always made me feel free when I'm around her. I can truly be myself with her.
• She makes me happier than any other person or event could ever come close to.
• She makes me a better man by just being around her. She sharpens me and encourages me every day.
• She is going to be the greatest companion through life that I could ever ask for. I look forward to sharing the ups and downs of life with her. She makes me laugh multiple times a day without trying.
• She meets every need and then some that I have for my future wife. That is what really shocked me when we started dating. I realized needs that I never knew I had because she was able to meet them.
• Brooke loves me with her whole heart. She holds nothing back from me and that is a huge blessings and one of those needs that I had.
• One of the reasons I knew we were right for each other is that it just feels right when we are together. My love for her just flows out of me, I don't really have to try. I don't have to pretend to be anyone else but myself when I'm around her. She loves me for who I am, not for who I could be. (Not that it is easy all the time...which leads to the next reason)
• She doesn't give up. You all probably know that Brooke is pretty hard headed. Although, this sometimes can be frustrating it is actually a huge blessing. She doesn't just quit when things are tough in our relationship, we persevere together. We have had some rough times in our relationship and because we trust in God's will and put our hard heads to work we always make it through.
• Lastly, she is the most beautiful person in the world, inside and out. Why would I want to waste time doing other things when I could start an adventure through life with such an amazing person? I remember when I first started hanging out and "talking" to Brooke the only word I could use to describe her was Beautiful.

Obviously, this is not the complete list of the reasons why I want to marry Brooke, but I thought I would share just some of the reasons she is so special to me. I love her with every single part of my heart and how could I not?

"A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life." - Proverbs 31:10-12

146

For someone who prefers to bottle up their emotions and keep them to herself, I sure have had a lot of them lately. Josh and I have begun our pre-marital counseling and our first assignment before we meet again is to find out what we think the purpose of marriage is. We have been talking about it a lot but it is hard to pinpoint just one main purpose. I don't know if this is a "purpose" of marriage but one thing I have been thankful for lately is Josh's companionship. God has used Josh as an encourager, supporter, listener, and friend in numerous seasons of thanksgiving and trial in my life over the past two years. It is such a blessing to know and believe that God hand-picked Josh for me for the rest of our lives here.

With the recent happenings in Haiti I am quickly reminded that we are so blessed to live in this country. I have clean water...not to mention I can have it cold or hot in a matter of seconds. I have a shelter, a place to sleep and to be safe at night. I have never had to worry about where my next meal would come from. I take these things for granted without even knowing I am doing it. I have found that lately it has been difficult to plan our wedding without being materialistic. How can I get frustrated on which flowers to choose or what kind of chairs our guests will sit in when people across the world have nothing...absolutely nothing. I'm thankful for the reminder that while our wedding will be a very special day it will be because of the convanent we will make with God to keep Him at the center of our marriage and not because of the color or scent of the candles we burn on the reception tables.

"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God". Colossians 3: 1-3