It seems that I've drug out this q&a series for quite a while, huh? Just wanted to build some suspense. ;)
These questions make me laugh because I know as soon as we got married so many people were dying to know our plans for the next ten years. Haha Duh, I'm a sucker for all things marriage and babies so these questions are just fine with me!
"What are your future plans for your family?"
Before we got married we talked about the future and what it would look like for us. We both are very passionate about having a family, but we wanted to have a clear plan so that we could enjoy our newlywed years without me whining all the time about when we were going to have a baby. I'm really glad that we got these talks out of the way so that we can just enjoy this sweet new marriage without the baby topic coming up all the time.
Our plan for now is to enjoy our first year of marriage and start the baby talk up next March. Once we assess where we are in our relationship and where we are financially we will start to think about when the babies will come. If we are ready next March then we are ready next March! If we feel like we need to wait another six months to a year then we'll wait. We don't want to put a time table on it because we know that the Lord has a plan and that he will prepare us and lead us to that place when we are ready. We are thinking within the next 2 (maybe 3) years we'll have a tiny babe in this house!
"How did you and your hubby meet?"
This question makes me grin. I love thinking about our silly beginning months and how the Lord has transformed our relationship into something that will last forever. Well, we met in high school but we don't have the typical "high school sweethearts" story. Tyler was a couple grades ahead of me and we talked here and there, but we never had the same friends or interests at the time. My mom says she remembers me coming home from baseball games and asking her if she thought he was cute. Ha! I seriously don't remember ever doing that, but I guess I've always had a little crush on him. ;) The Summer before my senior year of high school Tyler started to pursue a friendship with me and we slowly became friends. I went to Ole Miss games in Oxford with him a couple of times and we had game nights at Chad's house when he would come home to Hernando. It wasn't until the Spring that we both decided that we really wanted to be "official". We consider April 4th to be our dating anniversary and we've been going strong ever since!
This question makes me grin. I love thinking about our silly beginning months and how the Lord has transformed our relationship into something that will last forever. Well, we met in high school but we don't have the typical "high school sweethearts" story. Tyler was a couple grades ahead of me and we talked here and there, but we never had the same friends or interests at the time. My mom says she remembers me coming home from baseball games and asking her if she thought he was cute. Ha! I seriously don't remember ever doing that, but I guess I've always had a little crush on him. ;) The Summer before my senior year of high school Tyler started to pursue a friendship with me and we slowly became friends. I went to Ole Miss games in Oxford with him a couple of times and we had game nights at Chad's house when he would come home to Hernando. It wasn't until the Spring that we both decided that we really wanted to be "official". We consider April 4th to be our dating anniversary and we've been going strong ever since!
"What are your favorite kinds of dates (dating and married)"
I know this is going to sound lame, but when we were dating we would hang out with my family A LOT. We were always watching TV together, grilling out, or sitting on the back porch. We spent most of our time with my family and rarely went on "dates". Redbox was always our friend and Mexican is our go to dinner! Aren't we fun?? Ha! We're pretty simple people and don't place a lot of emphasis on "good dates". As long as we are together and focusing on each other, that's all that matters. Now that we are married my favorite dates take place at home. I love when we curl up on the couch and watch a movie, grab take out, or dance in the living room!
I know this is going to sound lame, but when we were dating we would hang out with my family A LOT. We were always watching TV together, grilling out, or sitting on the back porch. We spent most of our time with my family and rarely went on "dates". Redbox was always our friend and Mexican is our go to dinner! Aren't we fun?? Ha! We're pretty simple people and don't place a lot of emphasis on "good dates". As long as we are together and focusing on each other, that's all that matters. Now that we are married my favorite dates take place at home. I love when we curl up on the couch and watch a movie, grab take out, or dance in the living room!
"Would you want to be a stay at home mama one day?"
This is something that the Lord has changed my heart on in the past year. I used to be very passionate about working and couldn't imagine just being at home with my kids all day. How would that fulfill me at all? I found a lot of fulfillment in thinking about my future as an educator and felt that if I wanted to stay home I would be not fulfilling my highest calling. But, over the past year my heart has really changed. I feel that the most important place I'll ever be is in my home. Being a wife and a mother will be the highest calling the Lord will ever give me. I have a husband to support and encourage and I will have sweet babies to love and teach. My family will come first. I would love to be able to be at home while my babies are little and then slowly start working more as they get into pre-school. We are trusting that the Lord would continue to provide for us so this can become a reality some day!
This is something that the Lord has changed my heart on in the past year. I used to be very passionate about working and couldn't imagine just being at home with my kids all day. How would that fulfill me at all? I found a lot of fulfillment in thinking about my future as an educator and felt that if I wanted to stay home I would be not fulfilling my highest calling. But, over the past year my heart has really changed. I feel that the most important place I'll ever be is in my home. Being a wife and a mother will be the highest calling the Lord will ever give me. I have a husband to support and encourage and I will have sweet babies to love and teach. My family will come first. I would love to be able to be at home while my babies are little and then slowly start working more as they get into pre-school. We are trusting that the Lord would continue to provide for us so this can become a reality some day!
"Would you ever want to adopt?"
Yes! While we aren't planning on adoption, we are both open to the idea. If the Lord ever really put it on our hearts to adopt I would certainly love to do it.
Yes! While we aren't planning on adoption, we are both open to the idea. If the Lord ever really put it on our hearts to adopt I would certainly love to do it.
"How did you begin discussing buying your first home? How did you save?"
To be honest, we didn't "plan" for months and months about when we were going to buy a house. When Ty got a job he continued to live with his parents and we didn't know exactly what would be in our future. In August we started to look and by September we lucked up on a GREAT deal on our house. The Lord really just worked everything out for us! We've been very consistent in our budget and we know where every dollar is spent. Being "strict" with our money definitely helps us to stay where we need to be while we live on one income!
To be honest, we didn't "plan" for months and months about when we were going to buy a house. When Ty got a job he continued to live with his parents and we didn't know exactly what would be in our future. In August we started to look and by September we lucked up on a GREAT deal on our house. The Lord really just worked everything out for us! We've been very consistent in our budget and we know where every dollar is spent. Being "strict" with our money definitely helps us to stay where we need to be while we live on one income!
"Do you and your husband do any kind of devotional together? How do you make time?"
As of right now, we aren't doing a devotional together. I'm sure we will sometime in the future, but for now we just discuss what we've talked about at church, small group, personal quiet time, etc. We do read through the same books of the bible from time to time so that gives us something to discuss, too. Since we've gotten married we've spent significantly more time praying together. We have both been seeking the Lord so much as we wait for Him to give us the next step after I graduate. Our prayers together have changed so much since March 8th. My favorite time of day is when we lay in bed and pray together before we fall asleep. Does my heart good.
As of right now, we aren't doing a devotional together. I'm sure we will sometime in the future, but for now we just discuss what we've talked about at church, small group, personal quiet time, etc. We do read through the same books of the bible from time to time so that gives us something to discuss, too. Since we've gotten married we've spent significantly more time praying together. We have both been seeking the Lord so much as we wait for Him to give us the next step after I graduate. Our prayers together have changed so much since March 8th. My favorite time of day is when we lay in bed and pray together before we fall asleep. Does my heart good.
"Do you have any recommendations for books or devotionals for newlyweds?"
Like I said before, we aren't doing any devotionals together right now so I really don't have much to say here. I would definitely recommend reading Love and Respect if you haven't already. I read it while we were engaged and it really changed my attitude towards marriage and allowed me to see that a lot of my actions towards him weren't respectful. This book taught me SO much about my role as a wife and I think our culture could be so different if more marriages were based on love and respect! A GREAT read!
I also have Jesus Calling as an app on my phone and read it every morning once I get to school. Several mornings out of the week I'll send the devotional to Ty because it will really hit home with me as we walk through this season of our lives. It has been a great way for us to connect early in the mornings through text. :)
"I wonder about your time you spend with God and journaling. How does that work being married? I guess sometimes I get really nervous that when I get married, if I am totally honest in my journal, what if my husband picked it up and read it out of curiosity? Would my honesty about frustrations, disappointments, and let downs hurt him?"
I thought this was such an interesting question that a lot of women probably think about! I've always enjoyed journaling even when I went through seasons when I didn't do it quite as frequently. Writing helps me to stay focused and to sort through all that I'm talking to Jesus about. I love that I can look back in past journals and see how the Lord has answered prayers and worked in my life. Tyler knows that I journal and I have even shared some of my entries with him from time to time when it relates to something we are talking about, or when I want to share how I have prayed for him. I don't really use my journal to "vent", but I have genuinely prayed for Ty through the pages of my journal. After receiving this question I asked Ty if he ever felt like reading my journal and he told me that he'd never really thought about it. I feel like most men are this way and they aren't as curious over our "secret words" as other women might be. If you are struggling with this idea I would just talk with your boyfriend/husband about it! Tell him your heart over how you use your journal and just ask him to be respectful of your privacy. I have a feeling most men won't have a problem with that at all!
Thanks for asking me such thought-provoking questions! I like that your questions challenged me to dig deep and really share my heart with you. Your questions about faith are STILL blowing me away and I'm having the hardest time not writing a whole book to answer those. I'm still working on that post, but I promise won't have to wait another whole month for that one. :) I hope that your week is off to a great start! And if it's not, remember that today is a new today. Today can be better. Love you!