Life in Alaska: Our Year in Review

In two days Jackson turns one year old. It is hard to believe that he is already one. This past year has gone by so fast and slow at the same time. So much has changed in our lives. The biggest thing being Jackson of course. I can't even begin to express how thankful Luke and I are to God for blessing our lives with Jackson. He is a wonderful little boy! (I'm tearing up just writing this!) Our family would not be complete without him. I love spending every day with him and watching the little things he learns and does. When I look at him, the only thing I can do is give credit to God. As a parent you want to take credit for the miracle of a child, but in reality it is all God. I couldn't do any of this without His direction everyday. I just hope Luke and I can be the parents God wants us to be!

The other biggest change was our move to Alaska. If you would have told me in May of 2010 when I was finishing my school year of teaching that I would be living in Alaska now, I would have laughed. When we first found out we were moving, I was excited. I mean how could you not be. How often do people even get the chance to visit Alaska, much less move there? Then, I went through a stage of panic, not about how I was going to have a baby and move three weeks later. The panic was about how was I going to move my dogs up to Alaska? (I'm going to blame that one on the pregnancy!) After the panic stage, I was just sad. Luke and I had made a pretty good life in Borger. We loved being close to family and going to OSU football games. We loved our friends and most of all we loved our church. I didn't want to leave all of that behind! We had prayed about it and knew we were in God's will with the move, so I just had to trust God to provide once we got to Alaska.

God has not only provided, He has exceeded my wants and desires from our move! He has provided Luke with a wonderful workplace and with a great schedule. He has provided me with amazing friends! Most importantly, He has given us a church we feel like we can really belong to, serve God in, and where Jackson can learn about God. I also can't forget the amazing scenery I get to see everyday!

When I try to sum up this past year, all I can say is THANK YOU GOD for taking care of your child!!!