Year in Review, Part 1

Life:
For obvious reasons this year has been quite memorable for me. Oh, and I had a baby. Well, technically not me but you get the idea. I can vividly recall the March morning that Melissa woke me up with a positive pregnancy test in my face. After making her take 3 more tests (I kid you not) it started to become a reality. We were having a baby! Fast forward 10 months and here he is. To say that Tate has been an incredible blessing would be an understatement. We are both so thankful for the little guy. Each day that he grows, changes, and develops (even when he poops) we are further reminded of God's grace and love. The outpouring of love from friends and family throughout the pregnancy and in the aftermath (a word generally associated with post-disaster jargon) has been overwhelming - in a good way. We are so grateful for everyone that has prayed for us, helped us, fed us, or shown us love. Tate says thank you too.

Melissa is in her 4th year of teaching and 3rd school. If she would stop cussing out her principals she might be able to stay at the same school for more than one year! I'm kidding. She enjoys what she is doing but motherhood seems to be her vocation of choice at this point and it fits her like mom jeans on a mom. She is yet another example of God's grace to me. Her humility and love has never been more evident to me than in the past 10 months or so. Another aspect of her character that has been especially noteworthy this year is her studliness (a word generally associated with men but in said context refers to the gentle grace of a warrior who, though pregnant, is probably far more apt than you or I to endure such conditions as the Arizona Mission Trip and, well, pregnancy). I was so impressed by the fact that she willingly (used loosely in this context) went to the Navajo Reservation while she was 5 months pregnant. I realized on that trip (though I knew this already, which I suppose makes "realized" a poor word choice - my bad) how unique of a woman that she is. Tate grew chest hair on that trip in the womb due to his mother's brazen act of studly femininity. She is a fun person to be married to.

In April I had the opportunity to go to Hungary and Ukraine. This trip was life-changing in many ways. For several years I had wanted to go to Africa because I felt that the need for help was so immense there. I wanted to do something to make a difference. In February Pastor Bodi (a pastor from Hungary that our church supports) came and spoke at our church and something was sparked inside of me. I had to go there. In April, I did. I got to spend time in Ukraine and Hungary alongside Gary Darnell and Chris Cline. It was an amazingly difficult, yet beautiful trip. You can read more about it here. I hope to go back there soon. Melissa and I would love to spend a summer there. Tate said he is in too. Working at the church continues to be rewarding and challenging all at the same time. The ministry has grown a lot and I have been blessed to serve alongside such a great leadership team. It has been a lot of fun and I hope and I can continue to do it for a while. I am almost done with school and after 20 consecutive years of formalized education the end is looking pretty sweet (I want a break but wouldn't mind going back someday). I will have my Master's in Education in May and my English teaching credential for Secondary Education. Less impressive than it sounds I assure you.

Needless to say the year has been been good to so. Moreso, God has been good to us. Thank you for reading this blog and more importantly, thank you for taking part in our lives. It sounds like I am dying. I don't think I am?