11 days!

Jesse came home from his handbell tour on Sunday night around 11:30. I drove to meet him at Concordia to pick him up. What a wonderful reunion! I've missed him so much in the past two weeks.
On Monday, we went to Home Depot and chose all of the paint we will be using in the house. It was so exciting to be able to dream about our house and decide what it will look like! We chose a very soft blue for the master bedroom, a light sage for the dining room/living room, and a cream for the den. The colors are all so light that when the guy at Home Depot put a dab of paint on the lid of each paint can, I worried for a minute that he had actually given us 8 cans of white paint!
We drove back to Concordia on Tuesday for my interview with the supervisor who will be placing me for student teaching. After that was finished, we made a quick visit to Turtle Rock Preschool to see Dalia (my co-teacher in Room 3) and all of my other friends there. The kids were all sound asleep because it was right in the middle of their naptime, but even so, it was so good to see them! I miss them all a lot.
Jesse and I picked up his wedding ring! I was so glad that it was ready to go yesterday and that I didn't have to make a special trip to Irvine just to pick it up. We also ate at Ruby's Diner for old times sake, and then took a trip to the beach.
It was such a perfect day! The ocean was so blue and full of life. We saw a whale, a seal, and a hoard of pelicans. I was so happy to be back at the beach with Jesse. It's one of my favorite places to be with him.
Anyway, just had to share with you that Jesse is home, we have our paint, I will be placed for student teaching, and...we're getting married in 11 days!

Our house

I just realized that the last time I said anything about housing, I said that it was a possibility that we might already have somewhere to live. Well, it's been settled for quite a while that we will be living in the house that Mrs. Yurada currently lives in. Everything worked out so perfectly, we truly are blessed! Jesse and I went to see the house about a month ago, and I just fell in love with it. Granted, it is going to need a lot of work, but that is something that Jesse and I are both happy to put into it. It is so cute!
The Yuradas are original homeowners, and the house was built in the '50s. Apparently, Mr. Yurada was quite the craftsman--the house has so many beautiful touches to it! Handmade wooden bookcases on either side of the fireplace, beautiful woodwork in the cute little kitchen, and neat little curio shelves and closets throughout the house. I am so excited!

It still just amazes me that 2 days after we knew we were going to be in Glendora, a place was already provided for us to live. The Powers family (children of Mrs. Yurada) is being so generous, we can do nothing but praise God for them!

Jesse is on touring Canada right now with the Concordia Concert Handbells, and will be coming home late on Sunday night. I can't wait until he's home!

We're Concordia Graduates!

I only have 3 hours until I have to have this dorm room completely packed up, empty and clean (and believe me, it's going to take the whole three hours!) but I just wanted to share a little bit of yesterday with you!
The graduation was beautiful. It was a day that we had anticipated for so long, and now I can't even believe that it is already past...
Jesse and I were so showered with love, it was such a blessing! My parents and sisters were there (my brother Jon is still traipsing around Europe), Jesse's mom and godparents Jan and Robert, my grandparents, my Uncle David and Mrs. Dinwiddie and Emily. After the graduation, we all went over to my grandparents' home for pizza, cake, and lots of goodies :)
I don't have many pictures right now, but here's one just to prove

We Did It!!!

God is good!

We picked up our caps and gowns yesterday.
It's happening: we're graduating!

Sometimes it's still hard to believe. I was looking around the cafeteria today at brunch (it's Saturday, the only time I can eat brunch in there!) and thought about the community we've been living in for the last few years here in college. Where else can you walk to a public eating area to join your friends for breakfast at noon in your pajamas?
The closer we get though, the more ready Jesse and I realize we are to move on and see what exciting things God has in store for us. And exciting things are certainly in store!
Graduation is three weeks from yesterday. Wedding is seven weeks from tomorrow. I'm so happy!

And God is so good. It looks like we might already have a place to live! Some friends of my mom's have an elderly mother who lives in Rosemead (about 15 minutes from the church) and she is moving in with them next month, which leaves this adorable little three bedroom house in need of residents! As soon as they heard we would be looking for a place around there, they offered to let us live there, and set a monthly rental price that we can't pass up! What a blessing! As soon as I found out that we would be in Glendora, I began looking for places for us to live. Even the smallest one bedroom apartments in the creepiest areas are extremely expensive, and here, we have the opportunity not just to live in an apartment, but a house! I cannot believe how good God is. Rejoice with us!

We are driving out to Glendora tomorrow night to attend the evening service and be introduced to the congregation. I am so excited to meet our future church family!

I realized that this blog functions as a wonderful way to share our praises and prayers, so I will try to add something to the bottom of each one with ways that you can hold us up in prayer:
please pray that Jesse and I will make it through the next few weeks, and that even with all of these exciting things going on in our lives, that we will remember to be diligent in our studies and finish out our college careers strong. Also, pray that if it is God's will for us to live in Rosemead, that details will work out smoothly as far as the little house is concerned.

There are many things we need to do in the next seven weeks, but as my Gramma reminded me in an email today, "you've really got a lot on your plate, but it's all wonderful things. Try to to take one day at a time and deal with what you can. God will take care of the rest. He always does."

beginnings

Ok, so we're not officially "The Brubakers" yet, but we're getting close (8 weeks/55 days/1320 hours...) Anyways, thought that it would be ok to title it that way, because that's what it's going to be the rest of our lives!

We found out on Friday night that we will be living in Glendora! The Celebration of Ministries service was Friday at 7:00, and it was absolutely beautiful. Jesse's mom, Bianca, came and she and I sat next to each other and tried not to cry the whole time, we are both so proud of Jesse! It's at the Celebration of Ministries that all of the DCEs (Director of Christian Education--Jesse's major) find out where they are going for their internship. They walk up on stage and it is announced to them there in front of everyone! Definitely a rush :) Jesse's name was called, he went up on stage, and was told that his internship will be at Hope Lutheran Church, in Glendora, California. We are so excited! We met the pastor that night, Reverend Terhune, who is actually the father of one of our friends here at school. Jesse said that night "that's awesome! I even know their dog!"

Anyway, we are very excited to finally know where we will be living after our wedding. But first things first:
Graduation: May 9th
Marriage: June 8th
First day of Jesse's internship: July 1st

God has really answered our prayers! Because I am working on my California Teaching Credential, we knew we had to stay in California for Jesse's internship. He has provided a church that we are both really excited about that has opportunities for both of us to get involved and use our talents in. He's also kept us relatively near our families! Jesse's mom will be about half an hour away, and my family will be within 2 hours. Pastor Terhune told us that he would start looking for an apartment for us right away. Eee!

I'm so excited about this new chapter in our lives, and can't wait to begin it!