*Life*

Wow! Is life really that crazy? It's already almost August (over half the year is over), and I have only taken the time to write on here once this year?! Crazy! Time just keeps on ticking away and the days and weeks go by so quickly! What has happened so far for us in 2012?! A LOT!! Some good and some not so good, but we made it through it! :)

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Back in February, Nathan was experiencing some severe stomach pains that caused him to finally seek some medical advice. The doctor was convinced that it was probably his gallbladder--Gallbladder at the age of barley 22? Really!?! (His birthday was the week prior to all of this).  Well within the next few days, the tests and scans revealed that he needed his gallbladder removed ASAP! The doctor really wanted to schedule his cholecystectomy that same day; however, it was scheduled first thing the next morning. I know that this surgery wasn't as severe as like open heart, but it still stressed me out knowing that my husband was suffering from such severe pain and especially at his age! Well surgery took longer than expected due to such an "ugly" gallbladder! Luckily the doc. could still perform the surgery laparoscopically vs. open so Nate's recovery time was shorter! All went well, and he was discharged from the hospital that same day! One week later, and he was fully recovered and ready to return to work! 

~Thank you, God, for allowing my husband to not have any more suffering and for his speedy recovery! Also, thank you for putting Nathan in the hand's of a wonderful medical team!~

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Well after that bump in the road, Nathan and I have otherwise been blessed with lots over the year! 

From January-March, I had a wonderful opportunity to coach a great group of 7th grade AAU volleyball girls! We had practice usually once (sometimes twice) a week and had a weekly tournament around the surrounding towns. We qualified for state and headed to Ankeny, IA later in March for the state tournaments! Emotions ran high and stress levels seemed to be almost through the roof, but we all truly had an amazing time! My wonderful family came to support and cheer us on! After about 14 hours of volleyball, our girls completed their season as state champions of the silver tournament!! What a wonderful achievement for them! This team truly deserved it! They worked hard during every practice and tournament. It just amazed me to see how much they developed over the short season! As I stated before, our team was a wonderful bunch of young, talented ladies who made us have one amazing season! :)

~Thank you, God, for giving me the opportunity to meet some pretty fun, talented, outgoing young ladies! Thank you for giving us a wonderful season and making every practice and tournament a fun-filled time. Thank you for this overall experience! 

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In May, Nathan and I were blessed with becoming HOMEOWNERS!!! This was a huge step in our lives! We would go online and periodically do some "house hunting" but always thought that our dream of owning a home was a long ways down the road! However, we were really eager to start investing our money into something that we could finally say was OURS!! Well, Nathan and I found a house that we were really, really interested in so we thought "Lets just go look at it!" Why not, right?! Well, after looking at it, it confirmed our feelings toward the house--We wanted to get the process going and make an offer! After finally getting all the paperwork completed through the bank and the realtor, we got to finally take possession May 1st!!! :)

~Thank you, God, for this wonderful blessing of having a place to come to and call Home!! Thank you for this opportunity for Nathan and I to grow even more in our marriage as we took this next huge step in our lives!!  

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Well, a very happy and exciting time in our lives was also a very sad and difficult time in our lives. Nathan and I decided that it was time to place our two kitties (Rascal and Sammy,) in a different home. As we were making this moving transition, we decided that two cats would not work too well in our new home. We had no "good" place for their kitty boxes, and it was beginning to feel like the cat fur was overtaking our house! We asked around and posted them on facebook swaps. Luckily, we found a person who was willing to take them both so we didn't have to separate them! It was very hard for me to say goodbye but knew it was for the best. The move helped me focus on other things than missing the boys.

~Thank you, God, for allowing the time for us to love and raise Rascal and Sammy. We love them and will always miss things about them.

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The summer months have been great! No school for both Nathan and I (which has never happened yet)! Nate's plan is to return to school this fall so we have been enjoying it to the fullest! Our weekends seem to always be busy, but I don't think we would want it any other way! We have enjoyed spending time with the nieces and nephews, other family members, friends, and just each other! 

~Thank you so much, God, for truly blessing us with such wonderful people in our lives! We have a great friends and our families are just terrific!!

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Our newest, exciting news is that we will be welcoming a new puppy to our family! :) We have decided to name her Bella. She is currently only 2 1/2 weeks old so we have to wait 5 1/2 more weeks! We are just super excited! We have always wanted a puppy but never could due to being renters! Now that we have a house, it seems about right to start filling it up!!-- (Puppy for now! ;) ) We started shopping for her already and just can't wait to take her home!! It does make me a little nervous, but our excitement outweighs the nerves! :) So I guess there is just on thing left to say...Bring on the training!! 

~Thank you, God, for allowing this new adventure to take place in our lives! Help the training and transition for Bella to go smooth!

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So, I can truly say that our year has been great to us thus far! We have many more exciting things to look forward to...Our wedding anniversary being one thing--TWO years already!! Wow! I cannot complain with where I am in life right now...I am truly blessed and happy! Life is what you make of it, and I always remember to just take life one day at a time! :)

~Thank you, God, for all the blessings you have blessed my life with! Thank you for my awesome husband, our terrific friends, and our wonderful families! Thank you for watching over all of us and helping us get through this crazy ride called life! We love, honor, and worship You! Please bless all those reading this blog along with everyone else in this world! I pray for everyone in this world suffering from the Colorado shooting and any other traumatic event. Please comfort all of those grieving on this day! Help us all understand that everything happens for a reason and that your plan for us may sometimes seem unclear, but we just need to continue with our faith because you always have something in store for us! This I pray in Jesus' name, AMEN!~