Baby Steps

Hello friends and family, I hope this beautiful beginning of winter has been treating everyone well. For us, the cold weather is hardly even noticed between all of our excitement for the journey it has brought with it. Jason and I just can’t seem to sit still.. I think we both like change and adventures a bit too much! So, we are ready to share our next one with you.. the biggest yet.. our journey to have children!

            Jason and I knew each other was “the one” since the very first day, and we began talking about our future kids just a few months into our relationship. We’re lucky enough to have a beautiful marriage that we’ve never doubted, even through the rough times. We have also never doubted that we want kids. (Hopefully lots ;) As many of you know, there has been a big challenge to that dream: we found out that it would take a miracle for us to have children naturally due to the shrapnel throughout Jason’s body. We spent a long time wrestling with that reality, and feeling confused about why God was adding to our already up-hill battle of daily life. As time has gone on, there are some days that are worse than others, of course, but we have grown new hope. If the Lord ever says, “wait,” it is for a reason. We believe that He told us to wait for our dream because He knew all the incredible people we would meet through this.  He knew it would give us time to prepare, and time to love one another without distraction.

THANK YOU to Conceptions Reproductive Associates, Braun Pharmaceuticals,
& the Compassionate Corps Program 

We are thankful to announce that we are beginning our IVF journey because of God’s miraculous direction. The clinic we go to has been wonderful to us since day one. They had no hesitation in accepting the VA’s storage pay when the other clinics refused. Our nurse has worked extremely hard to find ways to make our dream possible. She found a program that pays for expensive IVF medications for Purple Heart recipients. Then, she and the staff donated an additional few thousand dollars worth of medicines on top of that from women who had extra after their rounds. As if that weren’t enough, they reached out to Braun Pharmaceuticals in hopes of helping us even more. Sure enough, we received a personal phone call from the president of the company offering to pay one of our copays, and he personally donated another expensive med. All he asked for in return is a phone call back when our dreams come true so he can know he did something good in the world. If only he knew how good was he did was. If only everyone who has been there for us could know what it means to us.

Church date!

In addition to financial blessings, PBS also filmed a Newshour segment on our story to urge the VA to pay for IVF coverage for service members with combat-related reproductive injuries. That should be airing some time this week!  Right when our hearts were already about to burst from blessings, a sweet young lady reached out to us and chose our story to cover for her college photography class. She is photographing our IVF journey, which will mean that when the time comes, we will have priceless photos of every step it took to have our baby.

My hubby has been the world’s greatest teammate every step of the way. When he heard the news about us not being able to have children naturally, he promised me we would find a way. And I just know that when I am a (hopefully less than)something to get what we have prayed for is worth telling those we care about.

300 lb crazy pregnant lady, he will be the only one who can put up with my ugly crying. If our children are even half of the quality person that he is, all of this emotional process will be worth it. While we are excited to begin this, we know that a million things can go wrong. The process could be paused any minute, it could possibly not work, and it could not work again. However, we feel that just the hope of beginning a family is worth celebrating. Just being able to say we are doing something to get what we have prayed for is worth telling those we care about.

We won’t be posting updates most likely throughout this, because it could take 3+ months or 3+ years. It is already emotional enough between just the two of us, so I can’t imagine how difficult it would be to share any complications or unfortunate news. We’ve noticed that some people react with the same joy and gratefulness we have, and we cling to that. Those are the people we want to surround ourselves with. It means so much that so many of you are able to rejoice with us long before anything has even happened. There are others who doubt us, think we are too young, or just are not thrilled for us. We will respect that, but we won’t invest our time in it. We want our family, even as small as it is now, to be around individuals who believe in dreaming and keeping faith.

Some of our best support <3 

So far, this journey has brought me closer to my husband and to the Lord. I’ve been forced to think about my heart’s priorities, and I’ve been challenged to become the daughter of God I ought to be. I’ve had to trust God’s plan even more than I already did. Jason and I have prayed together, cried together, and we are so looking forward to the joy we will have together when we see our baby’s face one day! Please keep us in your prayers as we enter into this roller coaster of IVF. You are in our thoughts and prayers daily.

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks, 

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18

Honor, Courage, Commitment

Happy 240^th birthday to the few, the proud, the United States Marine Corps! Myself and every other American owe you all of our gratitude for what you have done and continue to do to protect us. You are a group of the bravest men I’ve ever met, and I’m forever grateful to each of you who saved my husband’s life. I’m also thankful for Jason’s service and courage to fight through his injury. What a high standard you Marines have set!

            As we celebrate this special birthday today, and honor our veterans tomorrow for Veterans Day, a lot of thoughts pass through my mind. I realize that although Jason retired from the Corps just a few months after we began dating, we still were very much living in the military world. In a way, we always will, which is an honor. He is no longer serving, but he will always be a Marine. I may have never served, but I will always have a great respect for what “Semper Fi” means.

            Jason was asked to speak tomorrow for Veterans Day at the high school I graduated from. I would like to share with you a section of his speech that moved me deeply. While Jason and any other Marine may be retired, they will forever have the values running through their veins. Although we may not all be Marines, we ought to get to know these values, and do our best to follow them throughout life…

Sonoma Marine Corps Ball 2015
Thank you Wine Country Marines!

            “I am now a civilian. My time in the military has come to an end, but I will always be a Marine. Everything that I was trained to be during my service has stayed with me, and I give great credit to that. There are three values in the Marine Corps, all of which each of us ought to embrace in our daily lives, regardless of our various paths. These values are: honor, courage, commitment. The first, honor, is one which is reserved for those individuals and groups that you respect. Personally, I honor God, my family, the military, and every hard working, respectful American. It is important to keep that which you honor on the front of your mind, because your actions will reflect whatever it is. The next value is courage. Most of you have an understanding to some level of what courage is. We have all faced things that terrified us, and courage is the decision to carry on and overcome. Courage is the driving force every time we choose to move forward instead of give up or slow down. I have had to find courage many times, from when I was a kid just trying to survive in a terrible house, to facing an enemy in Afghanistan that had nothing but evil intentions for my brothers and I. I forced myself to choose courage when I was in the hospital and it would have been easier to close my eyes for good than to wake up and fight every day just to breathe. Now, that courage propels me to do better today than I did yesterday and to take on new challenges. Finally, commitment. This is arguably one of the most difficult of the Marine Corps values to maintain in any area of life. It is easy to sign up for something, but harder to stick it out, especially when unexpected hurdles come up. Today, I am committed to each of the things I honor. Having commitment means that people can count on you, and they expect you to complete the task at hand. Most leaders in the world are known for their commitment. It is what makes an individual stand out above the rest. When someone stays true to what they began and works at it with all their heart, people are likely to notice and to follow. I encourage each of you to follow these Marine Corps values. Think of what you honor, find the courage to stand by it no matter what the cost, and to build the commitment to see it through, no matter what distractions arise.”

“Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”

John 15:15

Never forgotten.

A Career That Cares

I’m writing at the hotel I am staying with Jason at in Denver for the weekend since he is up here on and off all month for training for his new job. As most of you know, he recently accepted a wonderful position as a Financial Advisor. This week, he got to start his dream career. It has been an absolute pleasure to see him feel so fulfilled and productive. It’s crazy how many of us, at one point or another, have taken our jobs for granted. They’re draining, they’re time-consuming, they don’t pay enough, you name it. However, seeing Jason working has made me think twice about that. He was devastated when he had to retire from the Marine Corps at the age of 22. He has spent the last two years feeling bored, and even “useless” as he says (although he is FAR from that). When he was accepted for the job he now has, he was ecstatic.

Told you he's ecstatic! 

            You would think the countless hours he has put in since then would have ruined his excitement, but that is not even close to the case. I’ve barely spent time with him since he got hired. Between studying for insurance tests and the series 7, even Jason’s weekends are spent mostly in the office. He began his training here in Denver on Wednesday, and I feel lucky to spend the weekend up here with him since we’ve actually been able to get some quality time out of it. So far, he has very much enjoyed training. He LOVES what he does.

            If you know Jason, you know that he gives 100% to anything he invests in, and his new position is no different. It is refreshing to see someone enjoy a job so much. There are so many reasons he could find to complain or give up. His career has a 90% dropout rate due to the immense dedication and amount of time required for success. Yet, Jason shines through the high expectations. Of course he loves the investment and insurance part of financial advising, but more than that, he really cares about his future clients. You’ve heard all those stories about scammer advisors, who will say whatever is needed to get their paycheck. I just know that will never be Jason. Every individual he has considered as a possible future client, he has brainstormed out loud to me how he could help them. He wants to help injured guys make sure their injury compensation goes towards benefitting their future. He wants to help military members make wise financial decisions who are about to deploy, so they can focus on their service and know their families are taken care of no matter what. He has thought of plans to help hard workers retire instead of being bound by hopelessness and lack of planning.

            Safe to say, my husband has picked the right career field. I’m just a lucky bystander! I just wanted to share this encouragement with you because I know it will help me appreciate my jobs more and I hope it will help you remember what a blessing a steady income is as well. God bless!

We were in Woman's World Magazine last week!

Dreams & Prayers

After weeks of preparation, this is the week Jason starts his new career as a financial advisor. He has already passed his insurance tests, so this week he will take his big series 7 exam. Then, he will spend a month in training (mostly out of town) with the wonderful company he is so proud to now be part of. While this will hopefully be one of the most rewarding months, it is also going to be one of our most challenging.

Outside of his new office- He's SO excited!

Jason had planned on being in the Marine Corps his entire life, so when he was injured, he could have easily lost hope and found himself in a devastating mindset. However, being the overcomer he is, Jason instead chose to find a new plan for his life. He spent his two years in the hospital teaching himself about the market. He spent days and late nights watching Jim Cramer’s “Mad Money” and read books to learn how to invest. After learning everything he possibly could during that time, he put all of his injury money into the stock market and managed his own investments. All of this led to the great new job he is starting now.

We believe that God led us to the company he will be working for. The team is willing to do anything possible to help Jason be able to have a successful career with them. They’ve offered to help with carpooling when they have business meetings that are out of town, they made sure he had a cubicle his wheelchair could fit into, and they even took the time to meet with me to ask about my concerns and how they could aid me. As if that weren’t enough, they are letting Jason hire me as his administrative assistant. Normally, employees have to wait at least a year before they are allowed to hire personal assistants, but they made an exception for Jason. They also gave me a workspace instead of me having to worry about renting it. Humbled and blessed doesn’t even begin to cover our feelings.

Even with the monumental kindness and help the company has given us, Jason’s career will mean a lot of hard teamwork for us. We have not figured out a solution for Jason to transport himself alone, so I will be dropping him off, picking him up, and helping him get to client meetings every day. I will also be helping him get his prosthetics on some mornings, and helping him get his suits and ties on every morning. I will need to make sure his lunches are packed and his office is set up for him. In addition, since I’m his admin, I’ll be taking care of calls and paperwork.

             

The obstacles in front of us seem monumental, but our faith is even bigger. We have never felt so solid in our walk with each other and with God. It wouldn’t make sense for us to be in this place without the divine intervention of Him, so we have no choice but to believe that he will equip us with the tools needed to excel. Still, we ask for your prayers as we learn how to adjust. We also really need prayers for a solution to the driving situation. Jason can’t do the wheelchair lift by himself, and prosthetics have still not been fitting right, which keeps him from being on them all day. This has made driving solely my responsibility. Things in that area haven't changed in a long time, but that doesn't mean that they can't, so we choose to believe and persevere!

Hope and courage from us to you!

Go Broncos! 

“Consider it joy, brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”

James 1:2-3