2012 highlights

In no particular order, these my 10 moments from the year of 2012

1) cruise to canada

We went with all of Ben's family on a cruise to Canada in June. After the whole thing, I wasn't sure I wanted to go on a another cruise, but I might give it another whirl if the boat I'm on goes south. We had a great time and had lots of fun memories. Ted and Sophie talk about it all the time. It was definitely a great time for everyone in the family. I'm so thankful Terri made this happen.

2) ASC 2012

 The All Staff Celebration for Young Life was a definite highlight and for sure the best one we've attended yet (this was our 4th). I loved spending time with people we usually only spend time with in the summer when everyone is working really hard. The weather was spectacular, we got a lot of pool time and lots of fun and great food. We're ready for 2016!

3) slider family at pipestem

59 members of the Slider Family spent a week together in southern West Virginia. My grandparents had 6 children who had 20 grandchildren and I've lost count of the great-grandchildren. We had 9 (or maybe 10) cabins and had a lot of fun together. It was a really, really special week. I'm beyond grateful I grew up as part of this family.

4) 2 kids in school

 This has been a definite shift in lifestyle for us. Sophie goes 4 full days a week to the same school Ted goes to. I miss her being my sidekick so much. But we still have our Fridays together. I'm glad I'm working because I would be super sad without her. They are in a great school with great teachers and I'm really very thankful for how all that went down.

5, 6 & 7 - prek/house/job

These ones get all wrapped up into one. If you looked at my prayer journal from about mid-February through the end of April, you would see these three things: preK/house/job. I knew we were moving. I didn't know if it would be Morgantown or Fairmont. We wanted to buy a house if it worked for us. But we really didn't know. I knew I needed a job this year - we couldn't do one income anymore. I didn't know when or what that would be. And how could I register Sophie for preschool when I didn't know where we would live or if I would have a job that could help pay for preschool if she didn't get into the public PreK? 

We bought the first house we looked at. Sophie got into the FREE public PreK program at the same school Ted would moving to, and I got a phone call about my job as we were unpacking in our new house. It was all woven together so beautifully and such a reminder that everything is so much bigger than me and my plans (and worries and anxieties). This is a definite marker for me in looking back and recalling God's faithfulness.

8) our house

We bought a house in Morgantown this summer. A house we LOVE. I was shocked when I went to the bank and they actually said they would loan us money after the previous year's income. But it turns out 6 months of reduced/no salary gave us the tax return we needed to be able to pay for everything involved in buying a house without cleaning out our savings. Waiting a year from when we originally started looking allowed us to get a much better loan for us and a house we LOVE. It was the first house we looked at and has been a beautiful fit for us. Here's to paying less for a mortgage than rent!

9) weddings

 All the weddings that marked this year (actually, the past few years) have been such an encouragement to us personally about why we do what we do. It has been the biggest honor and blessing to be part of so many.

10) my kitchen door

The pictures on this door represent so much. There really aren't words to describe how much we love these friends and family, value their friendship and how much our lives are impacted by them. The day we moved in, I was surrounded by boxes when I stopped to put up these pictures. I took them all down the beginning of December and hung up new pictures each day they arrived in the mail. People make fun of Christmas cards, but I LOVE them. I love seeing these beautiful faces each day - family and friends. old and new. far and near. I am so blessed by them.

Welcome 2013!