Moving Day...

It's really happening. 

An 18-wheeler trailer will be parked in our yard 2 weeks from tomorrow, and we will pack it with our belongings and meet it in Denver, Colorado. 

I know it may be a shock to some of you who haven't heard that we are moving. 

We have accepted the invitation to be the associate pastors and worship leaders at the Connection Church in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. 

We know that God has called us there to be a part of this, and we are so excited to accept that call and invitation. 

We will be working with our good friends Shawn & Amy Reine who were youth pastors in Louisiana for several years and moved to Denver almost 3 years ago. We are sooooo excited to be working with them as our campus pastors!! 

And we are excited that Crossroads Church here in Lafayette will be what is called our "parent -affiliate church" or our "mother church" - so we are not going on our own!! Pastor Jeff & Ms. Donna and the wonderful family of Crossroads will be behind us the whole way!!!!!!! That's a great feeling!

We will be considered staff, but we will not receive a salary from the church until Connection Church is established. We've lived as missionaries for the past 5 years, and our salary has come from our family and friends. 

We have asked our support team members to consider supporting us for 1 more year...

And Lee will be getting a job to supplement our income. 

The cost of living is almost twice as much as it is here for us. That's overwhelming at times, but we know that God is in control. We know that He is going to provide the perfect place for us...and our temporary housing will be an adventure as well! :) 

It's a very bittersweet time for us. 

We had to say goodbye to our students - most of them have already returned home for the summer. We won't be here when they return. That was a hard goodbye. 

We are having to say goodbye to the wonderful staff that we've been with over the 5 years we have been here. They have become like family to us. We love them so dearly. We have grown and have learned so much while we've been here, and we know that we are going to Colorado as a representation of Crossroads as well as UL Chi Alpha. 

We are having to say goodbye to my parents. They don't travel much, and with grandbabies and a newborn on the way, the thought of the distance is killing them. 

But we are excited about the adventure that is before us. 

This Saturday we will have a MASSIVE yard sale to lighten our load. We've already sold most of our furniture...some outdoor stuff...and we are hoping to leave with a lot less than what we have now. 

It's an insane thought at times...and I know it will cost to "start over," but we are looking forward to the fresh start. A new beginning to a new adventure. 

We know that we are taking a risk for God. And it's crazy that not all of the pieces have fallen into place before we move up there. But it's exciting trusting Jesus that He's in control, He's working things out...He's has great things for us!!!!!!!!!!!

Lee and I have been talking about wanting to live a life worth telling. One of my favorite missionaries (he's retired now) is Rodney Tilley. His family has amazing stories of what God did in and through them...they literally had to run to a helicopter to be lifted out of the country they were in...leaving everything behind to save their lives...I cannot even imagine...but they were risking it all for the call of Christ. 

I don't think I'll have to be air-lifted out of Highlands Ranch, but I'm willing to risk it all for the call of Christ on our lives. These are exciting times!!!!!!!

Hearing the Heartbeat

I had my first OB check up today. Once the doctor got in the room with us, it was a short, quick visit. 

The exciting thing was that we got to hear the heartbeat. The nurse warned us that it's still early enough in the game that we may not hear the heart, but if we didn't we would go to the next room to have an ultrasound. 

But there was no need for that...we heard a strong, 150 bpm heartbeat!! 

Dr. Hardey said everything looked great...no issues...which is all very comforting. It's good to know that I'm ok and this baby is ok. 

Brennan was in the room with me & Lee to hear the heartbeat. I wish I could have seen his face when he heard it. For the few minutes after that while we were talking to the doctor, Brennan wanted me to hold him...and then he lifted his shirt a little with one hand, and with the other pointed to the doppler. It was precious. Dr. Hardey said it wouldn't hurt him to do it...but I told Brennan that he didn't have anything in his belly...

For almost 9 years now, we've prayed for happy, healthy babies. This is a huge time of trust for me. I want to believe so badly that God is going to answer our prayers. 

I do not want doubt to get the best of me. 

I'm not really looking forward to going through the labor & delivery again. Mostly the labor. Those are some intense pains. And I know I could have an epidural, but I've had a few friends who have had horrible nerve damage done because of epidurals...and I know that I can do this naturally...it just hurts. 

But, it's worth it. There will be another beautiful Blakney baby added to our family. Bella says that it's a boy. We'll find out the first week of June if she's right or not. :)