Chapter 7: Berthoud Day

June 4th is Berthoud Day! We only found out the night before so we weren't able to go to all the festivities but we made sure we went to the parade in the morning.

Here are some pictures:  

Haha, I cracked up when I saw this sign. Yep, this is Berthoud!

We can't wait to see what they do next year!

Chapter 6: Berthoud = Home.

We are getting settled in Berthoud. I am already in love with this small town! I have fallen in love with so many houses because they all have brick, porches, picket fences, and huge trees surrounding them!

Here is a picture of a house I have had my eye on since the first day we got here:

I love "fix-it-up" houses and I would LOVE to buy this and paint it a dark red. It has so much character and is on the corner of two beautiful streets that are lined with trees like this:

We haven't decorated the inside of our town home yet so I wanted to wait on taking pictures, but, I did take pictures of the outside. Here is a picture of the front of our town home:

Our back yard consists of a huge green field with a ton of trees- I love it!

We went to our first service at LifeBridge last night and then this morning we went to one of the two satellite campus' in Johnstown, CO. We are meeting a ton of people and have already build some great friendships.

Chapter 5: Colorado.

I am sure you have all heard already but, just in case...we're moving to Colorado! The "Change of Plans?" question was answered very soon after I wrote my last blog. David had gotten an email from one of our old professors from Hope saying that LifeBridge Church in Longmont was looking for a Worship Pastor intern. Now, at the time, we thought: "Intern? Eh...maybe not." David had gotten offered a full-time (and good pay) position as the main Worship Pastor at another church in Colorado so the thought of being an "intern" wasn't exactly what we were thinking. Isn't it funny that the things we think aren't good for us is exactly what God is calling us to? Although there were reservations, David  felt like he needed to ask more about the intern position. Devan (a guy who David had lead worship with at Hope and who was now one of the Music Pastor's at LifeBridge) wrote David back a few days later and as soon as we read the email we were excited. LifeBridge normally doesn't hire anyone without having him do a 3 year process: an intern, an apprentice, and then the official position (for David's case it would be an Associate Worship Pastor).The church is amazing and is very outward focused when it comes to Missions in the Church.  After many conversations with Devan, as well as the main Worship Pastor, they offered David the position and he gladly accepted. It wasn't exactly what we were thinking...it was better! David will be able to get his feet wet in the Music Ministry while being given a lot of responsibility. He will be encouraged and taught by an amazing staff that care about David's talents and how best to enhance them. I am so proud and excited for him and couldn't be happier with the different, yet amazing, plan that God knew all along.

I am not sure what I will be doing yet but am seriously talking to a family who needs a nanny. That would be part-time so that I could also find a job or at least volunteer doing Social Work which is my passion. I have been applying for many Social Work jobs but it seems to be a little tougher to find since I do not have a degree in it. My plan for now is to start volunteering so that I will get experience, build relationships, and hopefully to eventually be offered a job there. I also want to get involved with LifeBridge's Family Ministry.

So, we move in 2 days! We have been packing and cleaning like crazy. We have had many lunches and dinners to say "See you later!" to friends and family. We feel SO blessed by all the support we have gotten and excitement that people have for us. We are nervous, excited, but most of all anxious to serve God in a new (and more mountiny/snowy) way!

Please keep us in your prayers as we make the 12+ hour drive on Wednesday, June 1st!

Chapter 4: Change of Plans

Global missions. David and I have such a heart for global missions. As I had previously mentioned in my last blog, we had been seriously discussing joining my parents in Burma to do ministry there. Yes, you read right, I said the words "we had".

Let me back up to give some background first. Since before David and I started dating I wanted to make it clear to him that I had a heart for global missions. Although I feel like everyone should have a heart for global missions (...a soap box I may decide to dive into in a future blog, but not now), some are not for it and I wanted to make sure I told him before we went any further in the "liking" stage. Why waist time dating when your futures don't line up, right? I can honestly say I knew we'd be together forever when he said he had a heart for global missions as well.

My parents have been missionaries in Thailand for 3 years now and recently moved to Burma. When deciding what, where, and when David and I wanted to do global missions, my parents had always been in the back of my mind. After having a few serious talks with them, we thought we could use our gifts well with the ministry they were doing. Since moving to Burma, my parents have been working with a Christian music department that teaches children and adults instruments while sharing the love of Jesus. A music department...how perfect is that for us?! So, that was it. We'd go to Vegas to raise support, sign an 8 month lease (instead of a year...we were just too anxious to go!), and be doing ministry this summer in Burma. It was perfect, we were excited, and couldn't wait.

Here is where the title of this blog comes into play... (cue the sad music)...change of plans. We've never been more confused in our lives. We prayed, prayed, prayed, and...nothing. God wasn't saying, "no" but He also wasn't saying, "go!". I cried many nights in total wonderment. It seemed like the perfect plan but, for some reason, God had something else up his sleeves. David and I still want to do mission work in another country some day and I know we will. It's in our bones.

Change of plans? Ok, God...we're ready!

Chapter 3: Kickin' it Vegas Style

We've lived in Vegas for almost 8 months now. The decision to move here was a pretty spontaneous one but has turned out to be exactly what we needed. After David and I got married, we were informed by many respectable people to "fly low" for awhile in regards to our careers. With a Bachelor's degree fresh in our pockets, we were eager to start digging into Ministry but decided to take their opinions. So, we lived in La Habra, I was an admin and David worked part-time at a coffee shop and part time teaching piano. In August of 2010 our lease was coming to an end and the "what now" question started slowly creeping up behind us. With David not liking where he was working, he started the strenuos and oh-so-fun (sarcasm) job hunt. One weekend while visiting my brother in Vegas, David had mentioned looking for a job and Rusty, jokingly, said, "You could always come work for me". We laughed at his joke and then that night it hit us...could that be a possibility? We had decided it had potential because we were strongly thinking about going to do some mission work with my parents in Burma but needed the time to pray, discuss, and eventually fund-raise. We were in this "in-between" phase in life and thought what better way to spend it then going back to my roots. So, a few weeks later we found ourselves in an apartment that is 7 minutes from the Strip. Still to this day I will pull out of my apartment complex, see the Luxor right in front of me and laugh thinking, "Haha, I never thought I would be back here".

It really has been a great move. I have been able to finish my internship and classes for my B.A. (yeah, yeah, I know...it took me 5 years to get through college), we have been able to pay off some debt, and have really enjoyed being so close to family again.

Chapter 2: My Box.

So, a few years back I made a box. The box is entitled, "Questions only God can answer" and is full of completely unfair things that have happened to me or someone I love with no explanation as to why. It isn't a physical box, but a metaphorical one that I keep in a small corner of my heart. Tonight, I added to it.

There's a couple in our small group named Mark and Kay. They are great people who love God and love others. Their one wish: to be parents. After trying the "old fashioned" way for six years with no success, they decided to do in vitro fertilization. I was pretty uneducated when it came to the IVF process and, if you are too, let me point some things out that will blow you away. First off, it is anything but cheap. Only about 15 states (Vegas not being one of them, sadly) allow IVF to be covered by insurance, otherwise, you end up spending around $50,000 each round. Secondly, there are HUGE needles filled with hormones that have to be injected into the woman's back; once in the morning and once at night...for months. So, you basically take PMS, times it by a million, and that is how the woman is feeling every day. This doesn't even include the emotional process of waiting to see if the months and months of work even paid off. ...Yeah, I had no idea either. And the craziest thing of all, this will be Mark and Kay's 3^rd round! So, last week the fertilized egg was transferred into Kay and the horrible week of waiting began. As they shared with us the long road they have had, the hurt and disappointment, and the wonder of why it was so hard, I could not help but feel sick to my stomach. David and I have prayed for them all week long knowing that Friday (yesterday) they would hear the news if the transfer had worked or not.

It didn't. The deep sadness in their faces as they told us...well, I can't explain it. Why?! Why did it not work? They are such great people that would make AMAZING parents...why can't they get what they have been earnestly praying for? Why do 3,300 parents daily decide to kill their child with performing abortion while a Godly couple like Mark and Kay wait impatiently by the phone to hear the Dr. call and say the word they desperately want to hear: “pregnant”.

And so, I add another question into "My Box." please don't get me wrong, this box is not one of bitterness, it's a box of confusion. It's a box that reminds me that I am not in control and that all of life's questions can't be answered. So, I pray. I hope. I wonder...in Faith.

Chapter 1: Married Life.

Dear Family and Friends,

I have read the contents of other "bloggers" for years in complete jealousy of the time and commitment they put towards their posts. Excuses like "if only I had the time" or "is my life even interesting enough?" have kept me from creating a blog account. However, I love to write; expressing moments of life with others is good for the soul. So, I'm going to try this. Here goes.

January 28th, 2010 was the best day of my life. I got to marry the handsome, amazingly talented, kind-hearted, and most loving man in the world: David Taylor. We've been married a little over 8 months now and WOW have we learned a lot! I remember about a year ago, when David and I were taking a premarital class, a guest speaker was talking about how marriage shows you ALL sides of your partner: the good, bad, ...and ugly. I thought about it for a few minutes and was convinced that I had already experienced the many sides of my soon-to-be husband. I mean, come on, we had been dating for more than 1 1/2 years before we got engaged and had our share of arguments...what more was there to know? Oh boy, was I wrong.

I learned just how wrong I was 2 days after we had said "I do". We were on our honeymoon in Cancun when I had gone to the sink to brush my teeth and noticed little black specks all over. Now, I wouldn't title myself "OCD" necessarily but, I need my sink to be spotless before I can use it. "Oh well!" I thought, "must be the Cancun weather", took a towel and wiped it off. We left our amazing honeymoon, arrived home, and it wasn't 2 days later that I was haunted by....THE SAME BLACK SPECKS all over our sink. Confused and annoyed, I, yet again, took a rag and cleaned it up. When I noticed the same specks a week later I decided to do what any normal woman would do when trying to solve a cleaning mystery in her home: freak out until I found the answer. David, after hearing me yell, "WHAT THE HECK IS THIS!!" rushed from the living room to see what the matter was with his new, lovely, delightful, and somewhat crazy bride. He looked to see what I was talking about and simply stated, "oh sorry, I shaved my face this morning and sometimes the razor doesn't keep all the hair".

Ahhh, and so began our marriage; full of surprises and yet also FULL of love and fun. We continue to learn more and more about each other daily. It's hard to explain how much I love that man; he's my best friend and greatest joy.

So, that's a little glimpse into "The Many Adventures of the Taylor Family"; more to come.