New chapter...long post!

It seems our family has ended one chapter and started a new one.
Long story short(ened)...Before Josh & I got married, I went before a judge to request that Reynolds be able to move across state lines into Arkansas. The hearing went well (I thought) and it ended with my attorney telling me that the judge was granting the relocation. Reynolds & I moved to AR to be close to my parents and to my work that I do with my father. After Josh & I got married, the judge entered his final ruling in the relocation & he ended up denying it. I won't go into his reasons why or why I think its absurd that I'm allowed to live 150 away from Ruston in the state of LA, but I can't live 75 miles away because it's in AR because I'd write a novel that nobody wants to hear. It is what it is and at this time I can't change it.
For the past several months (since we moved to AR) I've been having to drive Reynolds to Ruston three times a week for daytime visitations with his dad. It's been grueling for both of us and has prevented Reynolds from being able to attend a regular school program. It has also prevented me from being able to be there for the rest of my family 1/2 of the week.
With that being said, as soon as the relocation was denied we started exploring options to ease the burden that's been on all of us because of this hectic visitation schedule. After countless hours of prayer and late night talks, Josh & I decided that it would be in the best interest of our family for us to move to Ruston. This was an almost impossible decision to make. Josh has loved working in Magnolia and the kids loved going to school there. We have the support of two sets of grandparents and one set of great-grandparents in AR...that is absolutely priceless. But, when it came down to what was best for our family, we chose to be together everyday.
This is where God's funny, perfect timing comes in. Josh started looking for jobs in LA close to the beginning of the year. He had quite a few offers..some fell through, while others just didn't feel right after we prayed over them. He ended up receiving an unofficial job offer from a small school south of Ruston. We started looking at houses and found one that we felt like we couldn't let go. We took a huge leap of faith and made an offer on the house before Josh was given the job. We made an offer on the house towards the beginning of June, we closed on the new house 18 days later on a Friday, Josh was officially offered the job in Jonesboro-Hodge on the following Tuesday, he accepted it Thursday, and we moved this past Friday. YES...it really happened that quickly in that order. You can't tell me that God didn't orchestrate that!
It has been a crazy blur and I can't believe I'm laying in our bed in Ruston under a new roof this quickly. Im having a lot of mixed emotions. I am sad that we've moved away from grandparents. I am sad that Josh has left a job that he loved. I am sad that Payton & Savannah are leaving a school that they love. I am sad that I feel such guilt over all these changes that are out of my control. But, I am happy that my family will spend everyday together. I'm happy that I'll get to be a bigger part of all three kids lives. I'm happy that Ruston has so much to offer. I'm happy that Reynolds gets to live a normal life. And most of all, I'm happy that I've married a man who is willing to walk through the fire for our family. A man who is willing to sacrifice what he wants personally and professionally because he puts us first. A man who listens and trusts God when it's not the easy answer.
So, we will choose to be positive about this move. We are blessed to own a beautiful new home together, we are blessed that we have work, we are blessed that our children have wonderful opportunities being offered to them in the upcoming school year. Most of all, we are blessed that we love each other so much. As long as we are together, we will make it work and we will be happy!



Homeowners!