Thanksgiving 2016

As I laid in bed tonight (Thanksgiving Eve) trying to fall asleep, the thought came to me that I needed to set aside some time specifically to express my gratitude for everything I have. And then while I laid there thinking about it I remembered something that has stuck out to me recently as I've been studying The Book of Mormon...

(As a gospel doctrine teacher, this happens more often than it used to. haha *wink*)

I'm currently reading Mormon chapters 1-8 which summarizes the destruction of the great Nephite nation. On numerous occasions, Mormon writes about the Nephites not giving credit to their Lord for their blessings.

"And I did cry unto this people, but it was in vain; and they did not realize that it was the Lord that had spared them, and granted unto them a chance for repentance. And behold they did harden their hearts against the Lord their God." (Mormon 3:3)

"And now, because of this great thing which my people, the Nephites, had done, they began to boast in their own strength" (Mormon 3:9)

"And when the Nephites saw that they had driven the Lamanites they did again boast of their own strength; and they went forth in their own might..." (Mormon 4:8)

It's such an easy trap to get caught in, giving yourself credit for your strengths and accomplishments, but that attitude (pride) is what ultimately led the entire Nephite nation to ruin.

So after all of this ran through my head, I got out of bed and here I am, sharing with you the thankfulness of my heart and recognizing that without God I am nothing. I sure have a long way to go on the path to being like Jesus Christ, but recognizing and listing my blessings is a great place to start. So here it is...

We're The Paces

Welcome to my (I mean) OUR new family blog!!

Jarvis and I have been married for just about three years now and I figured it was time to update our blog address. (I know exactly what Jarvis would say if he knew I had just typed this... "three years into marriage and you update the blog address? How many years until you update your last name?" *insert loving eye rolling emoji here*) Everything in their proper order, am I right?

Anyway... so this is us! We are a crazy, normal family with crazy, normal interests... and a little bit of weird and quirky mixed in there, too. So let's get to it and I'll just introduce us.

This is Jarvis

Jarvis is an Ag (agriculture) Science teacher and spends his time teaching high school kids about animal science, veterinary medicine, equine (horse) science, and floriculture and spends a lot of class time with animals in the classroom, hence the snakes. He's also the FFA Advisor and has another class specifically designed for his FFA leadership team. He's one of those lucky individuals that has his hobby for a job and he loves every second of it. When he's not at school, he likes to run, watch anything Marvel related, and play with our little boy. He's an amazing husband and father, which I'm sure you'll hear all about, and he's my favorite part of every day. Love this man.

This is Luke

Oh man... how do you describe a perfect little handsome piece of your heart? *heart eyes* Luke is a year and a half and is all about what HE wants right now. He's smart, curious, and independent which can sometimes drive us crazy, but he's adorable while he does it so it's all good. He loves buses and trains and runs everywhere he goes. He's started repeating a lot of what we say, especially new words, which has taught mommy to use more child-appropriate words when she's scared and angry. (I'm sure I'll get the hang of this parenting thing by the time he graduates.) Luke is our favorite part of life and keeps us running all over the place. We absolutely love it, too.

And this is me (Lauren)

It's always a little weirder/harder describing yourself, am I right? If we spent a day together, the first few things you'd learn about me is that I'm definitely religious, I'm passionate about A LOT of random stuff, and I'm actually pretty serious. I'm a listener and an introvert so it takes a little bit to open me up (unlike my outgoing, extroverted hubby), but I'm very open with those close to me and I love to connect with people. I love learning about anything and (most) everything and would be a professional student if it wasn't so damn expensive. 

I'm the wild & crazy dreamer to Jarvis' 15-20 year plan. I'm the rebel and he's responsible. We're opposite in all the good ways, but we're so much the same in all the ways that matter. I'd say we're pretty lucky to have each other and I know I'm sure blessed to have this amazing man as my partner in life.

Welcome to our blog, our family, and our life.

I'm excited to share our journey with you.