Spring is (officially) here

Spring officially arrived yesterday, but in Boston it will probably wait another month or so to actually warm up. It's been sunny though, which is nice, as well as getting darker later since Daylight Savings time. It was actually warm enough for me (Sara) to go running a few days ago wearing shorts and a t-shirt, and while that was such a treat, it will be a while before that's a regular occurrence. This has been the snowiest winter for us so far, so we are incredibly ready for warm weather!

We are winding down one of the busiest seasons of our life so far (I know life will always be busy, but we seem to have a LOT of stuff on our plates right now!) Austin is taking two classes to finish his MDIV at Gordon Conwell this semester, as well as taking a week-long class back in January to continue working towards ordination in the Evangelical Covenant Church. That week was more than slightly hectic for both of us, as I (Sara) was in car accident a few days after Austin left for Chicago for his week-long class. I ended up with a minor concussion and missed a few days of work, but fully recovered. Our trusty old Subaru, however, did not fare so well, and it wasn't worth the money to fix it, as the car was a 1997. We ended up donating it to charity, as that was the easiest thing to do.

We then began the frantic search for a new (used) car since I rely on a car for work daily. Fortunately, since the Outback was old, I had been looking into what we wanted to get in case we needed a replacement. Austin and I liked the hatchback style, and quickly narrowed our search to 2006 Scion Xa. That's what we ended up getting, and I am SO impressed with it! As stressful as it was to have to find a new car, we got a really good deal on it due to the state of the economy, and we're both really happy with the car. I like it more and more every time I drive it, which I feel like is a really good thing considering that it was the biggest purchase we have made in our almost four years of marriage.

This isn't ours, but looks exactly the same-- it's small, but very roomy!


In addition to classes, Austin has been busy with church stuff, and preached at another church a few weeks ago as a guest. As graduation is VERY close (May 9th!) we are in a time of upcoming transition. If you're reading this (and I'm not sure who still does!) we would love your prayers. Austin has submitted his resume to the Evangelical Covenant Church, which opens him up for positions all over the country. Due to our (young) age, and his lack of experience, we are pretty sure a full-time ministry job is not going to happen quite yet, but if it did, that would be exciting! If not, we really hope to stay in Arlington MA and he will continue to work as part-time staff at Highrock, our current church. The tricky thing with that however, is that he would also need to get a full-time job, not in ministry, in Boston. He's been applying to tons of jobs, with no luck so far. Prayers that a full time job with benefits would open up would be greatly appreciated!

Things with me are pretty much the same, as my job is stable and going well. The exciting news is that our office is about to move, and that will cut about 15 minutes off of my commute! I'm still the head nursery teacher at our church, which is a position I love as I get to spend every Sunday morning with the 0-15 month old children at our church! Austin and I also continue to lead a small group for young married couples, which is a huge blessing to us!

Since it's been so long since I've posted, I'll also add a few old pictures. We had a whirlwind holiday season, leaving Boston at the beginning of December, flying to Memphis to visit Austin's grandmother, flying with her to North Carolina for Emily and Davids wedding, then flying to Texas with my parents to spend an early Christmas in Waco with Erin, Ben, Abby and Claire! Unfortunately, because Austin and I were both in the wedding party, I didn't get to take any pictures at the wedding (okay, I'm also just really bad about bringing my camera places and then not taking pictures!) However, Emily was beautiful and the wedding was a blast! In Texas, we got to celebrate Claire's 1st Birthday!

She looks a litte suspicious in this pictures, because she did not like the cake

It was also nice weather, especially compared to Boston in December, so one sunny day we had a photo shoot with the girls outside. They are precious and I wish that we lived a lot closer!

Hopefully I will update again soon, as we have a fun mini-vacation planned for next week :)