Shift

When I was 19 or 20, my parents provided me with a car to use while driving to college and my first nursing jobs. The 5-speed cherry red Saturn had no fancy options apart from a radio and air conditioner, so the first thing I had to learn was how to drive using a manual transmission.

In the empty parking lot of a country church, my mom took me around and around in countless circles teaching me the rhythm of clutch-shift-gas-release clutch. With much clunking and jerking, I stalled that little engine the first 1,000 times I tried to shift out of first gear. It wasn't until my mom started talking me though my clutch release by repeating "clutch, clutch, clutch..." in increasing pitch and frequency that I finally began to master the skill of shifting without stalling.

This stage in my life feels a bit like learning how to drive that Saturn. I am changing gears from balancing motherhood with a full-time nursing job to full-time stay-at-home motherhood; from civilian life to a new community as a military wife; and, in a few short months, from being the mommy of one to a mommy of both an active toddler and a newborn. Add an interstate move and temporary living situations for the next couple of months, and I suppose that it is natural to feel a little clumsy in all of these transitions. I am trying to be patient with myself as I clunk around while shifting my life's pace and rhythm.

The past few weeks have been a bit of a blur as Steve and I completed our time at our jobs in Greenville, had our house packed up and our belongings shipped to storage by the military, sold our house, said "see you later" to many dear friends, settled Luke and I at my parents for the next month, and said a very hard "see you later" to Steve as he headed to Alabama for five weeks of Air Force Commissioned Officer Training (aka COT); leadership training/military indoctrination for professionals like physicians, lawyers, and chaplains who join the Air Force.

Steve is doing well in COT. Of course, he is experiencing a lot of pressures, both physical and mental, during this training period. He knows that this is all designed to help mold him into a leader in the world's finest Air Force. Steve was chosen as the lead chaplain for his group of about 100 students, and has received positive feedback about his performance in this leadership role.  I have been pleasantly surprised that I have been able to communicate with him almost every day. We even were able to video chat for a little while over the past weekend.

2 days after Steve graduates from COT, our little family will arrive at Seymour-Johnson AFB in Goldsboro, NC. We have been offered a house on base, which is a huge answer to prayer - we are excited to have the opportunity to live in the midst of the community we will be serving, and look forward to the convenience of base living. The catch is that our new home will not be ready for us to move in until around November 27, which means that we will be in a temporary living facility (TLF) on base for a few weeks until our house is prepared for us. TLF is apparently like a one-bedroom condo, stocked with linens, cooking utensils, etc. It will be challenging to have our light-sleeping wiggle-worm of a toddler in a one bedroom house, but I know that we will all just be happy to be together again as a family.

We have been so blessed to have amazing support from our family and friends as we begin this new adventure. I know that many people are praying for us, and that has helped tremendously.

We are thankful to God for so many details of this transition including:

• The very quick sale of our house in Simpsonville (for greater than our asking price! - If anyone in Greenville needs a realtor, we have a great recommendation for you!)
• A loving new home for our dogs, who could not come with us :(
• The availability of a home on base for us
• Our health and stamina during all of these transitions, including a very smooth pregnancy so far - baby Lydia and mommy are both doing well :)
• Continued strength and harmony in our marriage while we are seperated
• Encouraging feedback for Steve during COT

We value continued prayer for:

• Our marriage - that we will continue to have healthy communication, harmony, and intimacy during this time of huge change and high stress
• Steph's transition to stay-at-home mommyhood, especially while Steve is away at training. Single parenting (even with the support of awesome grandparents and other family) is tough!
• Luke's resilience throughout all of the moving, changes, and temporary housing situations.
• Our entry into military life - that we will be able to make new friends quickly, and will have wisdom as we begin to discover the mission that God has for us at Seymour-Johnson

I will continue to try to write periodic updates for our friends and family. Writing (and pretty much anything else for that matter) is a slow process when you are chasing a 15 month old! 

Off we go!

Off we go, into the wild blue yonder!

Climbing high, into the sun...

Big changes are coming for our little family in the next few months. After about two years of working through a lengthy application process, Steve has received a commission as a Chaplain in the Air Force. This has been his goal for years, since he decided to go back to seminary for his MDiv in Chaplaincy, and we are very excited that it is coming to fruition. Right now, we know that Steve will be attending commissioned officer training (COT) during the month of October, but we do not yet have information about what base we will be stationed at. We are hoping that it will only be a couple of weeks longer before they will be able to let us know where we are going - it is a little crazy to know that you are moving somewhere in November, but have no idea where! I'm told that this hurry-up-and-wait situation is a good introduction to military life. I suppose I will have to continue to develop patience throughout this process.

Yes, I am a little nervous about all of the changes that this will bring, but I am also incredibly proud of Steve and happy that this dream is coming true. As we have talked about this over the years, my heart has also developed a calling and desire to support the men and women of the Air Force and their families. I look forward to seeing what opportunities for service and ministry will be available to me as a chaplain's wife. Also, we both very happy that this career change will allow me to step back from full-time work outside of the home and focus on being a mommy to our babies.

Yep, babies... :) We found out a couple of months ago that Luke will become a big brother sometime around early February 2019. We are very excited about this big change in our lives as well. The first trimester of this pregnancy has gone by extremely fast - having a very busy one year old to chase around definitely has made the weeks fly by!

As we step into this season of huge transitions we appreciate your prayers and support. Here are some specific things you can pray about for us:

1) We plan to sell our house - please pray that this will be a smooth process for us.

2) Pray for Steve during his time at COT - that his health will remain strong and that he will have opportunities for ministry even with his colleagues in training.

3) Pray that God will be preparing a supportive community for us wherever we are moving - I know for past experience that I can trust God to bring the friends I need into my life, but leaving our friends in Greenville is the hardest thing about this change. Joining the military feels a little like stepping into a brand new school where you don't know how to get around, you don't know the culture, and you don't even know the words (or acronyms) for everything.

4) Pray for our marriage during Steve's month of training in October as this will be the first time we have had a longer separation (and it definitely won't be the last)

5) Pray for Stephanie as she lays down her full-time career and transitions into being a stay-at-home mom. I have no delusions that stay-at-home life will be any easier, even though it is what my heart desires right now.

Thank you all for your love and support! I hope to be able to keep you all a little more updated on our life as we head out into this new adventure.

 We were so blessed to have a dear friend come to swear Steve in as an official Air Force member.

.....Nothing can stop the U.S. Air Force!