Barton Branson Vacation (Part one)

So this trip actually happened in JULY, but oh well! We went on a fabulous week-long respite with the whole Barton gang for some family fun and a celebration of Martha's 50th birthday! (According to Webster.com a respite is "an interval of rest or relief" but I could be using it wrong - it was both, ahhhh!) This getaway was just what the doctor ordered!

Nearly one year -to the date- after moving to San Antonio we were in desperate need of a real vacation and some precious family time. We packed our bags and took a short plane ride, er, tiny horrifying flight, to Branson, Missouri. Seriously, check this airport experience out...

"OK take my picture. We're going to want to document this one!"

Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you...the airport!

And the waiting area - which was not air conditioned. It was July, folks. In Texas.

Hangar: But don't worry, our plane was twice the size of these! Ha.

What we thought might actually be the last photo we ever took! hehe

Boarding the fantastically large aircraft which also did not have a working air conditioner. Or overhead storage. Or seats the width of a normal human. 

You get what you pay for. :)

For the first few days we stayed in some pretty sweet loft style condos over a mall (this was SO Martha's pick!) We spent the first evening just us and the Barton parents.

See how awesome? Above we have condo/lofts, below we have shopping! Heaven? I think so! 

gorgeous scenery

Darrin trying desperately to convince Perch that he "needs" this boat!

dinner by the river

the normal couple

and the goofballs :)

Brandon, Allison, and Princess Avaree joined us on day two and the ladies got to have some girl time while the boys went golfing all morning. We all spent the afternoon/evening checking out the sites, riding the "Ducks", playing in Bass Pro Shop and eating. (Most of the pictures were on Allison's camera because hers is actually good, mine's old and struggling. Check out Barton Blessings for 3 posts from this trip!)

Most likely singing "Deep and Wide" to us.

Little Showoff. She was LOVING the attention!

Yup, posing for the camera with the wind in her face. Precious!

Teaching GiGi and G-Pops Pops (he was officially renamed on this trip) how to use the iPad.

On day three we got to the REAL part of our vacation...

Bass Pro Shop's Big Cedar Lodge!

to be continued...

Busy Life

You know how it goes, life just gets...busy. (And it’s just the two of us!) If you told us two months ago what would transpire in the coming weeks, we probably wouldn't have believed you. Evidently God thought our life was a little bland so He threw some spices in to liven it up!

Since my last post we’ve been on family vacations, had friends come visit and made a few weekend road trips. I'll catch you up some on the "busy" in our life lately, but some of it will have to wait until we make solid decisions. Let's just say, the Lord is blessing us with some wonderful opportunities and we are learning how to "listen" for His guidance. Please be praying that we are good listeners!!

To begin with, we have been looking to build a house (really since May)! Our lease is up at the end of the year so we have to act soon if we are going to have a home completed by then. Fast forward 5+ builders, about 3 months, a realtor, and many many weeks of searching, and we finally made up our minds! Maybe. We are currently under contract building a beautiful home and set to close JUST before Christmas! BUT, we recognize that much can change in 4 months and this is a huge purchase so we are not dead-set on it until it’s final. It’s been a fun and slightly intimidating process; it's not every day you make a 6-figure purchase!!!! (It's also not every day that mortgage rates are as low as they are right now! *Finance major moment*) We have picked the lot, the floor plan, and all the colors and are excited to see how it will all turn out. We'll update in pictures as construction gets started. :)

The other busy thing in our life is that I have a new job as the Associate Financial Controls Analyst at Tesoro, the oil company right next door to our apartment! I was unhappy with my previous job and eager to get into something more in line with my background and education. It was totally God's timing for me to end up in this new position, and I could not be more thrilled! Despite my frustrations where I was before, He had me there for a reason and placed some wonderful people in my life through it. I learned a lot about myself and the “Real World,” and I better appreciate my career now because of it.

Tesoro has already meant a positive change. For starters, I'm under less stress, which makes me a much more pleasant wife. I have some wonderful co-workers (including my friend and neighbor, Sammy, who endured the black-ice ordeal with me back in February), and I'm challenged constantly as I learn something new in the heart of our busy time of year. They've got a gym on site that I've actually utilized probably more than I ever went to the gym at my last job. I'm even going to a spinning class during lunch twice a week and I've lost 2.5 lbs already!

Life has been busy, confusing, and exciting lately. The Lord has blessed us tremendously and we are so thankful for how far we’ve come in these first 20ish months of marriage. We will update more as we make decisions regarding our future. (Stay tuned in the coming weeks for some posts about our summer vacations too!) Thanks for reading this far even though there aren’t pictures! :)