Growing Pains!

It seems like every blog entry I have written so far has been lighthearted--  so I feel it’s only fair to warn you that this one is a little heavier. But, its very honest and from the heart, so that has to count for something, right? (Someone once told me that we have our most meaningful conversations late at night... and its so true! It's 4am!)

We serve an awesome God. I know it seems like that’s kind of a no-brainer, but tonight as I sit here in the quiet I am very much aware of His presence in my life. This past week at Small Group, we took prayer requests... and I had nothing to request. Nothing to ask for. Nothing to report but praises! What a long journey these past few years have been... God picked up my broken pieces and built a wonderful life around me.  

My life began its transformation back in 2009, a very dark year for me... I was overwhelmed by the feeling that I hated my life and everything in it. (To say that I was lost is an understatement.) I felt an intense yearning to purge my life of all my “dead weight”-- and, selfishly, I did. Through all these “growing pains”, I learned that -sometimes- friends will stab you in the back... and that family will, too... and nothing in this life is as permanent as the forgiveness and love from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Did I mention that I did a lot of growing? I did a LOT of growing. Just a few months into this transformation of my life, I began to feel whole again, (“Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.” -Isaiah 40:31) and my life had gotten back on track. Everything I owned fit into a few boxes, yet I was completely fulfilled. My savings account began to grow, my credit was right on target, I was surrounded by friends and family who loved and supported me, and my relationship with God deepened.

Looking back, I know that those unsettling feelings in the beginning were of God desperately trying to fight his way back into my life. I learned the hard way that I was a stronger person than I had originally thought I was, I learned that I deserve to be happy, ...AND I learned that just when you think you are strong, something will knock you down and humble you....

That summer, I began to realize that my friendship with Garrett was growing into something deeper... love. I joked that God had a checklist for everything I would love about someone and made sure to include it ALL when he made Garrett. :)

We were playing at the pool when Garrett saw it: The next week, as a young 26-year-old, I was diagnosed with Nodular Malignant Melanoma- a rare form of a dangerous and deadly cancer. Because I was unlucky enough to have the “colorless” kind, it was already almost a stage 3 when we discovered it. Thrown into a whirlwind of oncologist appointments, I was heartbroken and terrified that just as soon as my life had begun, I could lose it. I soon got news that my tumor had clean borders-- which meant no lymph node involvement and no need for chemotherapy! Praise God! (As I get closer to the 2-year mark of that good news, I am reminded of how precious every moment in our lives can be. I have had only one close-call since then and have committed myself to living my life to the fullest every single day!)

(Turns out, God was working on Garrett a little bit, too!) The following spring, we found ourselves spending a quiet afternoon exploring the FW Botanic Gardens... me, reading on a bench in a gazebo while watching him explore his photography... when he asked me to be his wife. We were married 6 months later in the church where I grew up. Since then, we have been blessed with a beautiful home, close relationships with the best friends anyone could hope for, a great church home, an adorable dog, and -most importantly- our love for each other. I am graduating in 3 weeks with my BSN... and will apply for FNP school next month. God has blessed us beyond anything we could have hoped for or imagined for ourselves.

A friend coincidentally wrote a very similar story to this one tonight which she shared... and I’d like to quote her: “I feel like the past few months the Lord has said a lot of YES!! Don’t hear me wrong. Not yes to the things I necessarily want but YES I'm faithful in your financial provision, YES I'm faithful to teach you to know peace in major uncertainty, YES I'm faithful to show you happiness when 90% of what you own is in a 10x30 storage unit, YES I'm faithful to show you my ways are higher (better) than yours... So when he says no he's saying I have better for you!!” --N.G.

I am so thankful for my growing pains. I am so thankful for having to learn the hard way. I am so thankful for the valuable life lessons I have acquired throughout the process. Most of all, I am thankful for an unshakable faith in my God! Above all, I must repeat over and over that we are not done growing! (We are currently praying for God to open up new opportunities for us to serve. Please pray for us that we will be open and willing!) We encourage everyone to look at difficult times as an opportunity to grow. Romans 8:28... “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Although we may not fully understand at this time our purpose in life, or know what is ahead, we know that we can be confident because something bigger is in control! :)

Shenanegans

Have you ever stopped and asked yourself... "Self? I wonder what it would be like to get trampled by a herd of water buffalo in the Mojave Desert..." 

...Probably not, right? ...Then there's always that weird guy in the back that says, "Yeah! Totally! I was JUST wondering ...!"

Well, if you are that guy, I suggest to try loading up and unloading a UHaul truck in 105 degree weather. It most definitely inflicts the same amount of bodily injury, and is much less messy. Which brings up another fun topic: my favorite "SWEATING LIKE A..." jokes:

Sweating like a nun in a banana tree...
Sweating like a one legged man in a butt-kicking contest...
Sweating like Michael J. Fox playing Jenga...
OH I COULD GO ON AND ON...!!!!!!!!

Michelle "supervising" the men...

It's a good thing that we had a minute on July 4th to celebrate with our favorite Air Force captain...

El Capitan

And his beautiful wifey...

Susie Homemaker (AKA Adi)

Meat on an open flame... YUM!

Then it was back to work...

Somebody let Amanda and Heather paint the bathroom...

So... does it count if I photobomb my own pic?

...while Garrett supervised the furniture delivery.

WE FIXED THE LIVING ROOM CEILING FAN!!! NO MORE EGG BEATER! And I have to brag on the amazing work that the guys did on putting up the crown molding!

I know you are all dying to see everything put together.. However, it is still a work in progress. BUT we will post pictures, SOON! Good things come to those who wait. Patience is a virtue. Chill.

Speaking of PATIENCE, I know you are all dying for us to have little Gatlins... WELL, let me introduce to you the newest LITTLE GATLIN!!!

She's already a Daddy's girl...

We adopted our little baby girl from the local animal shelter, and will be able to pick her up Saturday. Our little angel does not have a name yet, but -really- how do you describe perfection?!?

Love y'all!
--The Gatlins

Honeyyyy, I'm home!!!

The past two days have been just about as crazy as Steve Buscemi's eyes. (steve buscemi eyes).

See? There you have it. I've only been typing about 15 seconds and I've already thrown a Steve Buscemi reference at you. And you didn't even see it coming. Aren't you glad it was Steve Buscemi and not Rick Astley. Don't worry readers, I'm "never gonna give you up... never gonna let you down..."  ...nevermind.

OK... the house... AWESOME. There were just a few things that lit up a big question mark over our heads....

Honorable mention goes to the "Spider-Chandelier"...

"That's SOME pig!!!"

Third place goes to the Safety-Cone-Orange faux-finish in the man cave. These people are huge Texas Longhorns (boo.) fans and I think they were shooting for burnt orange... it turned out a little more like OSU orange.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace...

Second runner up is... the surfboard ceiling fan. Unsure of whether we should pop one of the blades off and take it for a spin around the lake, we decided to let it hang in all it's awesomeness for just another day...

Dude I feel so totally amped in the presence of this tubular fan.

FIRST PRIZE... wait for it.... waaaait... goes to the living room ceiling fan. It looks down upon you in all it's chrome glory. Is it an eggbeater? Did an airplane crash into the ceiling? No one really knows.

The dinosaur-sized Phenergan-suppository-fan

ACK.

OK, now on to the good stuff... Here are a few snapshots of our progress on the house. Enjoy!

View from our front doorstep!

Formal Dining

Bedroom #1 (Office)

Bedrooms #2 (Mancave), #3 (Guest Room-- will be getting crown moulding tomorrow!)

Living room (Also getting crown moulding tomorrow!)

Kitchen (NOM!)

...More Kitchen.

Master Bedroom

Master bath

Master bath

CLOSET!!!! (Yes, it wraps around the corner too... and look up! It's double-decker!)

....CHEERS!!!!!!!

Come and visit us soon!!!