Our New House

Josh and I will be hoping to close on our very first house September 3rd of this year! This was all very unexpected and sort of fell into our laps, as we were planning to be stuck in our rental lease until December 31st. Now we are moving in less than 60 days (about a mile down the road)!

We will be moving into a brand new home- finishing touches still being added as I write. A builder who grew up in this neighborhood had a vision for turning over 2 streets and building "green"/energy efficient homes. He has done just that on one street already- our house is the first on the smaller (second) street- leaving 4 homes left to be completed.

We are so excited at the likelihood of owning this home :). Some of the features include: 1340 sq feet, 3/2, screened lanai, granite/stainless appliances, irrigation system, 2 car garage, attic, front loading w/d, fenced backyard (to be completed) "greenstar" rated home.

Here are some pictures of the house- we went there today to look at paint colors, as we were thinking about changing the color of the house. The options the builder gave us were all still in the "warm" family, as opposed to cooler colors we prefer. We have decided we really like the idea of just having them paint the garage white to make a minor change for now and we can always repaint the house later on when it is needed- I think the change in garage color will make a big difference as you can see in comparisons of other house pictures on the slideshow below.

Enjoy!

Playtime in the Panhandle

This weekend Josh was entered into a Golf "Qualifier" for the Florida State Open Matchplay near Destin, FL. We have friends who recently moved to Destin, so we were elated to spend time with them while Josh wasn't golfing! Josh's brother and girlfriend even came along for the fun so that he could Caddy for Josh. It was a beautiful weekend with wonderful friends and family. Although Josh did not qualify for the match, he had a great experience playing a very difficult course!

(out at a "gourmet" mexican restaurant- "Cantina Laredo")

Bocce Ball on the beach

A "tar ball collecting" tent- we approached the workers and asked if we could see the tar balls and they responded that it was confidential and they could not talk to us- who knew tar balls could be so confidential! Thankfully, the water was clean when it was tested earlier that day.

Teddy and Belle having a blast

Teddy resting up for his visit

Car ride there

Well, that's all for now! We hope relax at home for a few weekends now!

Desert Days

So far it has been a HOT summer- Florida decided to skip springtime this year!

Edgar has enjoyed his central air conditioned days, while Teddy would like to request an air conditioned track to enjoy his walks and runs on. Teddy frequently lays down during his walks lately due to the heat. In fact, we went for short walk with a friend and her dog the other day and I had to carry Teddy home for a mile because he wouldn't walk in the heat!

Keeping cool under his shelf...

EXHAUSTED after a 1/2 mile walk- it's ruff being a northerner and putting up with the endless Florida heat, Teddy, really rough ;).

Switching Squadrons and God's plans

Josh and I have been learning the "long and hard" way lately about God's timing and plans versus ours.

A few weeks ago, we thought that Josh would probably be a part of his brother's squadron, VP-10. To our surprise we heard he would be in VP-45. While shocked, we agreed, this too was a part of God's plan for us and were delighted to hear that VP-45 would probably be deploying to family friendly sites that I would be able to visit (El Salvador and Italy).

Today, Josh received a call from a LT Commander to tell him that he would no longer be in VP-45, but that he was going to be in VP-10- the LT Commander told him "go hang out with your brother!" Josh hung up the phone and we were shocked! "Why God?!" we asked. We were starting to get excited about Josh being in VP-45. So....Josh will now be in VP-10 with his brother- don't get us wrong- we are excited about this, we are just confused!

On another note, yesterday, Josh found out that he would be able to participate in the Florida State Open (he had been given a spot to play as the "first alternate"). He was so thrilled! Unfortunately, he was not able to get next Friday off in order to participate in the 3 day tournament, so he had to decline the invitation.

There have been a handful of situations like these in our lives lately where we feel we have been playing a game of "red light, green light"- through it all (though admittedly not very willingly or happily) we are slowly learning the level of surrender God calls us to- COMPLETE surrender. It is easy to think we can have our plans (or even parts of our plans) and God's plans as one, but it is not always so!

James 4: 13-15

¹³Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." ¹⁴Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. ¹⁵Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."

Proverbs 19:21

²¹ Many are the plans in a man's heart,
but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails.

Golf Tournament Results

Monday Josh enjoyed playing in his first competitive round of golf as an amateur for the Florida State Open Qualifier! Although I wasn't able to be present, Matt was a great caddy for him. Last week, as Josh was practicing he was shooting scores in the high 60's and low 70's- however, on Thursday, he snapped his driver in half just a few days before his tournament! He continued to have a great attitude about his potential performance and shot a 74 at the tournament using Matt's driver. Out of roughly 50 competitors (many of them professionals) Josh ranked in 7th place and earned a spot as the "first alternate" for the actual Florida State Open!

We are still unsure how the "alternate" system will work (i.e. will he need to show up on the day of the tournament in case someone else does not come or will he have more advanced notice). Regardless, he is thrilled with his performance and I am VERY proud of him!

Josh hopes to play in another qualifier on the weekend of the 18th, which happens to be the weekend the of the Florida State Open, so we will wait and see where he plans to play. More details to come!

Sea World Adventure!

Saturday Josh and I met up with a few friends from Officer's Christian Fellowship at Sea World!

We had a blast, but I am embarassed to say that after only 5 hours I was spent and ready to return home!

The guys enjoyed the two roller coasters, while the girls enjoyed watching the Manta Ray exhibit. One of the roller coasters had the guys on their stomachs (I suppose like a Manta Ray, as the ride was called "Manta")! After all of the excitement, we spent the rest of the day at various live exhibits and shows.

Sara and baby Piper

The Shamu show

I felt like the animals couldn't possibly be real based on what they were doing! It was truly surreal!

John, Sara, and Piper

One of John and Sara's friends from TX was in town visiting as well and came along

The sea lion and otter "Pirate" show was a huge hit!

Scary ;)

...even scarier!

VP-45

Soooo...Josh got "verbal" orders today that he will be staying in Jacksonville and will be assigned to the squadron, VP-45 (the pelicans)!

Although these orders will need to be confirmed in writing (hopefully soon), it is nice to have a better idea of what is to come. We are surprised that Josh will be in this squadron, as he had many people asking for him to be in Matt's (his brother) squadron, VP-10, however, we are certain that God is sovereign over this too and knows what is best for Josh (and I)!

Similar to Matt's squadron, VP-45 will also deploy in June of 2011 (however, Matt will no longer be in that squadron at that point). It is likely that VP-45 will deploy to Japan, whereas, VP-10 will likely deploy to the desert again. (I put a strong emphasis on likely here, as you never know in the Navy!)

We hope to hear soon regarding specific dates in which Josh will attend survival school and begin life at the squadron- more to come :)

Here is a link with information about VP-45:
http://www.vp45association.org/vp45history.htm