The Road Ahead: General Update

 When I was younger, I loved the American Girl series.  One of the books in each girl's series was about changes, so it was called Changes for Kirsten or Changes for Samantha.  I feel like I'm in Changes for Stephanie.  Or, I am about to be.  Jordan got a job.  He starts in August at a small private university that we believe we are going to love.  I have contacted the English department there about an adjunct position and was told I would hear something when they had their fall enrollment numbers in.  So, this means a move.  We will begin house-hunting in a few weeks, after going to the bank and meeting with real estate agents and all of that.  The area is pretty, but very rural and somewhat isolated.  And it is even further from our families.  But, we believe this is where God has called us to be.  We have learned even more clearly over the last few months and even years, that God has a plan for our lives.  He is at work and He wants us to join Him.  We prayed about the offer from C University, and received exactly what we prayed for: confidence that we were hearing His voice.  We believe that going to C University is God's plan and that He has things for us to do there.  So, we are excited, even though it means that we will have to experience a bit of heart-ache in the process.  Leaving our church is going to be painful.  We have become so rooted and entwined there that transplantation will be somewhat messy.  But that too, I believe, was part of God's plan for us--we grew and learned and served there--it was essential to our development.

I am learning to trust rather than control.  I have always been the girl with the plan.  I like knowing what I will be doing, when and where.  But, now, some things are up in the air--where I will be living, if and where I will be working, so many things.  But, it will be great, no matter what, where, and when it is.

But, I do know that the next few months are going to be a good deal about packing and cleaning and looking at houses and saying goodbye.  And saying hello.

OK, so what else is going on?  Lots of running.  I am keeping up with my New Years Resolution so far, and I am on track to run 366 miles this year.  I am hoping to get my long run distance up to 5 miles in the next month or so.  I am reading lots.  For fun, I have A Game of Thrones--it was a bit off-putting at first, but now I am loving it--a review will surely follow.  I am also reading Academically Adrift, which is a scholarly report on the status of undergraduates.  It is informational, if not the most riveting reading.  There is about a month of the semester left, so a lot of my time is spent reading things for class, grading papers, and planning lessons.  I think I can make it a few more weeks!  Honestly, this is a wonderful job.  We will be seeing the family soon, and, oh also, planning a trip to Disney this summer!  We weren't too sure when my mom first proposed the trip, but now I am getting increasingly excited.  We went once before when I was 10, but Jordan has never been.

The pictures in this post are from the Bog Garden in Greensboro.  There's a funny story there.  About planning this trip during spring break, getting up early to get good light, arriving, taking approximately 5 pictures before my batteries died.  Realizing that the two sets of backup batteries were also dead.  Driving to Harris Teeter to buy more batteries, driving back to the park, then realizing I had bought the wrong size batteries.  Banging head on steering wheel.  Eventually I just gave up and did my exploring without the camera.  The Bog Garden and Bicentennial Park are beautiful, and I also enjoyed Guilford Courthouse Military Park where an important battle of the Revolutionary War took place.

So, that's a bit of a rambly update, but that's what's going on!