Him...

I'm in love with this guy...

Ya Him.

He makes my heart swell with love.

I'm so thankful we can work together on our marriage.

I'm so thankful we can walk this journey together.

I love being married to him!

Father,
I said till
Death do us part
I want to mean it
With all of my heart
Help me to love you
More than I love him
Then I know I can
Love him more
Than anyone else
And bring him in
Your presence today
Make him what
You want him to be

Celebrate the Differences

Jason and I are very different in many ways. Most of the ways make me smile. Some of the ways I appreciate a lot. And there might be one or two ways that could be frustrating if I let them.

This last week I've been compiling a list of these differences, just for fun!

I always leave the switch on the overhead light in my car in the middle position so that the light turns on when my door is open and off when it shuts. I know when Jason drives my car, because the switch is always moved to the "off" position because he doesn't trust it to actually turn off when the doors shut. This makes me smile.

I rarely turn the air completely "off" in my car. I just adjust the temperature and/or fan settings to get the car comfortable. He turns the air completely off a lot. This makes me smile.

At dinner Jason eats one thing at a time and gets overwhelmed if I say things like, "Hey, are you gonna have some oven fries too??" I like to put a little of everything on my plate and eat a few bites of each thing here and there. This makes me smile.

I season my food while it's cooking and rarely add anything else once it's on the table. Jason needs salt and pepper on every meal and Worcestershire sauce on every piece of meat, no matter what other seasonings are on it. This makes me smile.

I like to plan ahead. Jason likes to be spontaneous and gets stressed if I try to plan too much too far ahead. This can be frustrating at moments, but we are learning to work together.

When Jason does the dishes, he puts them away as he goes. I leave them out on the counter to dry. I really appreciate that he puts them away right away, it makes the kitchen so much cleaner!

Jason is good a driving in the morning without falling asleep. I have a really hard time staying awake unless I get the perfect amount of sleep. I appreciate his ability to be a safe driver!

Jason hardly ever goes above the speed limit. I like to go 5 above most of the time. I appreciate his conviction of obeying the law exactly (and not getting a speeding ticket!)

I know there are more, and maybe I will add to the list later! I have found that our differences usually compliment each other or just give me something to smile about.

Memory Bank #1

{I'm going to create and electronic "memory bank" where I blog about random memories as they come to mind. That way I don't forget!}

In highschool when Jason and I were dating, I would leave notes for him EVERYWHERE! In his locker...on his car... After school his car would typically be parked at Fort Missoula for soccer practice and I would drive by it on my way home from cross-country practice. Usually I stopped and left a note and/or a treat in the car (because it was a junker he never locked it!). One weekend I was going hunting with Meaghan and would have no cell service the whole time. Friday night before we left we'd all been hanging out a friend's house. On my way back home I saw Jason's car parked at Rosaures (cause he had car pooled to the party) and I really wanted to stop and fill it with notes and treats, but it was late at night and I was expected home. When I got home and started to pack, my mom had the idea to take the popcorn you can pop over a campfire. But did we have any at home?? NO. So my mom sends me to...Rosaures. YES!! I was able to fill Jason's car with notes, oatmeal cream pies, laffy taffy, and sweethearts. He would find them the next morning...long after I was out of cell service.

Special Girl

I am marrying the most wonderful man in the world!

On Monday, after being in Oregon all weekend, I wasn't expecting to see Jason until our 4pm pre-marital counseling session. But surpise, surprise! Here I am at work, and in walks my very handsome fiance, and yes, he makes my heart flip. He is carrying these flowers (below) and has brought me lunch! He is such a sweetheart!

Then the very next day, I'm busy in the back at work, and in walks Jason - with flowers!! He brought me the very very pretty bouquet (below) and he brought a different bouquet, "To all the ladies at Missoula Vet Clinic!" Wow. He is a gentlemen and a sweetheart. He sure knows how to make me feel special! By the way, peonies have become my new favorite flower! And they were in my bouquet!! Love love love them.

Not only did Jason give me flowers yesterday, but after work he came to my house and cooked dinner (with a bit of my mom's help) for my whole family!! He made delicous tostadas and homemade salsa! He sure looks good in the kitchen =)

I love him so much!

Quote of the Day

"If everyone was perfect we wouldn't have problems."

- Jason Koemans

99

So, I meant to post this YESTERDAY! But time got away from me!! Anyway. Pretend this is yesterday. Friday, April 22, 2011, is 99 days until our wedding!!! Finally in double digits!! So I had a mini celebration with some of my girl friends last night! We had dinner together, went to a great Good Friday service, then got frozen yogurt and watched Life as We Know It (good movie!) It was fun! To honor Jason, the soon-to-be best husband ever, I wanted to write 99 things I love about him!! (In no particular order, except the first one.) Ok here goes:

1. Definitely first and foremost, I love his relationship with God. He always seeks to know God more and more and to live for God, in everything He does. His relationship with God dictates everything he does. God is first in His life!

2. The way he tells stories.

3. His competitive-ness.

4. When he plays guitar.

5. When he leads worship.

6. The way he sings.

7. His pure, natural athleticism. He's one of those studs that is good at everything he doe

8. The two little scars on his face (above eyebrow and above lip). And especially the story behind the eyebrow one...lol.

9. His hands. Especially when they are holding mine! They are big and strong!

10. That he is left handed...but shoots and golfs right handed!

11. His boldness to evangelize.

12. His ability to remember things, especially scripture and theological things. (He's gonna be a great pastor!)

13. His heart for youth ministry and missions.

14. His laid-back way of planning (it compliments me well!)

15. That he finds joy in his ranch work!

16. His hair color...the perfect shade of brown.

17. His clothing style!

18. His tenderness towards me.

19. They way he relates to my family.

20. His ability to admit to mistakes and even ask for guidance.

21. His complete honesty.

22. His protection of me.

23. His leadership in our relationship.

24. When he wants to pray with me.

25. His support of my gifts and dreams.

26. The way he cares for others.

27. The way he makes friends so easy, and often with the kids who wouldn't normally make lots of friends.

28. His laugh

29. His smile.

30. His silly smiles

31. That look.

32. His desire to learn.

33. The way he treats me.

34. The way he talks to me.

35. The way he talks about me.

36. The silly things he says.

37. His ability to make people laugh.

38. That he is a hard, committed worker.

39. That he is involved in planning our wedding and planning our whole honeymoon!

40. That he is extremely faithful!

41. That he is getting to know me very well.

42. That he makes note of my needs and tries to meet them.

43. That he spoils me!

44. His ability to not let small things become big things.

45. That at the end of a long, kinda "blah" day, he can be super loving to me.

46. That he is patient and understanding of my stress.

47. When he texts me "little" things just so I know he's thinking about me and loves me.

48. His servant heart.

49. His relationship with his mom and dad.

50. His love for his birth dad.

51. The emphasis he puts on his schoolwork and learning.

52. That he builds relationships with his professors.

53. That he wants me to finish school.

54. That he is saving his first kiss for me!

55. His integrity.

56. His testimony.

57. His passion for doing God's will.

58. His enjoyment of outdoors and activities!

59. The way he enjoys life!

60. His desire to go to Poland.

61. That he thinks I'm the most beautiful girl in the world, just the way I am! And he tells me this at least once every day!

62. That he thinks I'm amazing!

63. When he hugs me!

64. When he calls me "Els". (It's because my initials are LC, like the name Elsie, so he calls me that sometimes too, but sometimes shortens it just to "Els")

65. That he first called me "Babe" was on accident. But it was perfect timing!

66. That he gets way more tan than me!!

67. That he values me.

68. That he looks for my opinion, guidance, and advice.

69. That I can encourage him.

70. That he prays for twin girls!

71. That he respects me.

72. That he likes to be clean and organized.

73. That the first time he told me I was beautiful, was on one of those days when I wasn't even trying...

74. That he worked hard and saved all summer just to buy me a gorgeous diamond engagement ring, which is just what I wanted!

75. That he likes to surprise me!

76. That he'll do anything for me!

77. That I told him "I love you" first!

78. The silly things he does with the boys.

79. His promise to eat whatever I cook! (I'll try not to take advantage of that!! *Wink)

80. That he's my best friend.

81. That he's beyond my wildest dreams!

82. His last name, Koemans. It'll soon be mine!!!

83. That he's a teeny bit more emotional and tender-hearted than most guys.

84. His grace and forgiveness.

85. That he's not perfect.

86. That he loves me so much that I can be imperfect.

87. That he will go running with me even though running is not his favorite thing to do.

88. That he is learning how to be a good listener.

89. That he wants our marriage to honor and glorify God and be the absolute best it can be.

90. That in everything he does he seeks to honor God.

91. His integrity with music and movie choices.

92. Our memories!

93. The way he proposed!!

94. When he takes me on dates!

95. How he loves to bless me!

96. His heart for the homeless and broken.

97. That he encourages me.

98. That he is going to be an incredible husband and father.

99. That he is always growing.

I love Jason Paul Koemans so much. He is absolutely perfect for me, and I can't picture spending the rest of my life with anyone else! God is so good, to give me such a treasure!

Now I challenge you to "Join the 99 club" and see if you can write 99 things (or as many as you can!) you love about your significant other, mom/dad, friend, sibling, etc. Then give it to them! Comment here and tell me how it goes!

He Loves Me!

"Thanks for being such a blessing in my life! I love you =) 

- Jason"

Jase had to head back to school before I did, and so the day before he left he surprised me at work at brought me flowers! It was funny because after he dropped them off and left, the receptionists came running back to the office where I was and both agreed that they wanted clones of him! And then another tech came in, and when she saw the flowers was like, "Oh, now what did he do?" I smiled and said, "Nothing! They're just because!" And she was like, "I wish I got flowers for that reason!"

He's so good at loving me! 

Snapshots of Christmas

Almost everything Josie got for Christmas was something that had to do with Toy Story. She'd been begging my mom for a Buzz and a Rex. When she opened Buzz she exclaimed, "Buzz is the best present ever!" Notice the pajamas and Evil Mr. Pork-Chop as well.

Christmas Eve with the Kellers

Umm... Jason wearing my mom's coat... Ya. Just for laughs!

Opportunities. Dilemmas. Riot. Africa.

Sorry this is long, really long!
     Yesterday I went to the youth group (called Riot) at one of the local community churches (Morning Star) to check it out as a potential volunteer. They have a huge need for women to lead small groups for the freshman girls. I enjoyed it. I was also really challenged.
     Growing up I never liked growing to youth group because I couldn't find one that was deep enough to feed me spiritually and allow me to fit in at the same time. One would be too full of cliques and no one would talk to me (Yes it was my fault too, but it's hard when you're shy.) One would have way to many games and not get into the word very much. Etc.
     Well I love how this youth group is structured. The leaders met ahead of time and prayed for the night and prayed for many students/situations by name. They actually knew the kids and spent time investing in their lives! After the leader's meeting, it was time to mingle. The leaders mingled with the kids, catching up and checking in with the ones they knew and meeting the new ones. Hugs all around. Then they split up into grade levels (freshman, sophomore, etc) and within each group introduced all the new people and just talked for a few minutes. Everyone then joined together in the sanctuary for worship (amazing) and a message. After this, they were again split by grade, but this time into small groups of same-gender. There were two big groups of freshman girls so I shadowed the leader for one of them. In the small groups they didn't sit around and talk about "nothing" (aka the latest gossip) like I'd experienced at previous youth groups, they actually talked about specific questions pertaining to the message and how the message could be played out in their individual situations. It was good and got the girls to think. That was the night!
     I really want to be a small group leader for these freshmen girls because the need is great, I would have a lot to offer, and I think God has placed it on my heart for a reason. Yet I was challenged to readily jump into this position. I find several dilemmas holding me back. For one, high-school girls intimidate me. They're dramatic. They dress cute and "in-style." They're loud and excitable. I'm not any of that. I'm not very bubbly or outgoing. I have a hard time initiating conversations and connecting. So that scares me, to try to lead them. It would stretch me and take me out of my comfort zone.
     Also, I rushed straight from practice to the leaders meeting and didn't eat dinner or get back to Corban until 9:30pm. That means from 3:20-9:30pm my time is spent practicing and then at youth group, leaving very  little time for homework. And on Thursdays I have to wake up at 5:50am for morning workout, so I can't stay up super late doing homework. I'm scared to sacrifice that huge of a chunk of my homework time. I'm scared to give up control of that much of my night. But I think God wants me to. And I know, that if this is what He wants, He'll provide the time for my homework. Besides, cross-country will be done soon, I have from 7:30am-10:20am on Thursday mornings to do homework, and next semester my class schedule will be significantly more relaxed. But it still scares me. I like control.
   But this week I've also been challenged in different ways to surrender, live with open hands, and give up my control of things. I'm gonna be praying about this opportunity, but I think I already know the answer. I will step out in faith even when I cannot see. God is good.
     The other opportunity is not for me, but for Jason. He feels a tug on his heart to go to Africa for two weeks this June. I immediately feel two emotions- excitement and worry. Ok three, cause I also start to think about missing those two weeks of spending time together. I'm excited for him, really excited! This would be an amazing opportunity and I never want to say no to the things God calls him to. But I also worry. If Jason went to Africa, it would mean no summer job for him, because 2-3 weeks in May, 2 weeks in June, and 2 weeks in July isn't consistent enough for someone to hire him. So I worry about having money to support our first year of marriage. But I also know that if God really wanted Jason to go to Africa, He would provide for our needs financially and our needs would be met. Yet again, I'm scared to give up control, even though God would do a better job of handling things anyway. Already though we've seen God meeting our needs. Jason met a lady who has a small house in La Grange that she lets Frontier couples stay in rent-free. All they have to do is pay utilities. So that would mean saving $200ish a month and having our own place! We're still looking into it and trying to make sure it's available, but that would definitely help with the money issue! And Jason is going to start donating plasma again (which they raised the pay amount for!) and look for any odd jobs he can find. So it seems God is already at work! But you can pray about that decision too!

Boys Will Be Boys...

It's called "buck-buck." That's all I know. I'm a girl, I don't get these things. But it does make me laugh!

Speaking of...

...brightening my day...when Jason and I were on skype today he was so silly! At one point he rolled his eyes...and I said "Hey don't roll your eyes at me!" He had the best come-back ever: "I'm just doing eye push-ups!"

And on another note...we won our JV game tonight against the VARSITY team from Walla Walla University 76-41! We play them again tomorrow at 2pm.

He brightens my day!

This picture just came up on my screensaver and I had to post it here! It made me miss him too...especially his laughs and his smiles. He is so silly...He brightens my day! Jason you have such a fun, sweet, tender, and steadfast personality. And you are quite handsome too!! =) Thank you for always growing with me! And thank you for loving me! I'm so blessed to by you! Thank you God! I'll see you soon! =) =) =)