It's hard to believe that little Zachary has been in our family for almost a year. I remember when we first saw his picture; those huge eyes shining out of that tiny face. Now he's so big and starting to talk and walk. God has so richly blessed our family with this little life and I'm so thankful I get to watch him grow up, even from a distance. I'm so glad you're part of my life baby and I miss you! Love Aunti Lauren!
Look at how you've grown Zachy :-)
I love to be held!
Here I am with my new mommy!
I'm such a handsom boy!
I love teeth and lips!
I love to lay on my back and have my head and tummy rubbed!
Isn't she cute!
Most of you already know this, but I'll tell you anyway. Praise be to God, He has given me a new job, and not just any job, a job that I love. For the past few months God has been taking Aaron and I through a very hard time of trial, financially. I was working lots of hours and not making enough money to sustain us. Adding to my frustration was the fact that I was a commission only employee and the stores have been so, incredibly slow. On an average day each sales person should see around 7-10 people. If you averages $1000-$1500 a day in sales, then you can usually eat. However, it has been so slow, and business has been so bad that most of us only see 2-5 customers at a time and most of them we weren't able to sell to. To add to the stress the owner of the company continued to hire more and more people. He also decided to put the managers on the sales floor and take away half of their pay. As a result the stress was more than I could handle. But, God in his infinite wisdom always knows exactly when to pull us out of the mire, and he did.
Back in June, when Sara and Stu were visiting us, I had an interview with a flooring company. Many of you know I had previously worked at a flooring store in Flagstaff for a year and a half while I was finishing undergrad. I swore up and down I would never work in flooring again. It was, in my mind, way too stressful and too hard. Well, God is funny that way. It seems whenever we make an ultimatum God says "wait and see, I might just put you back there." This time He did.
My first interview went very, very well and I seemed to click with the owner and the VP. The only down fall was the store I would be working at is in Tigard. They do, however, have a second location a mile from our house, but there were no positions open at that store. So there would be a bit of a commute everday. Anyway, I was so depressed at La-z-Boy that I didn't want to give myself hope for fear of being let down and disappointed. Sara, Stu, and Aaron all felt like this job was it, even though I was sceptical. I refused to see myself in the position becuase I felt vunerable and I couldn't see past the muck I was in. It's always amazes me when I go through trials. I feel the same way after the trial is over, "wow! God new exactly what I needed and He provided." Yet when I am in the midst of tribulation I know in my mind that God is in control, but there are times when my heart forgets.
Anyway, the Fourth of July came and went and I was expecting a call that week from the flooring store to set up a second interview. I was on tenterhooks, trying so hard not to think about it, not to feel anxious, and to trust in God. Well, Thursday came around and I still had not heard from them. My heart sank and I was sure they weren't interested. But, as my wonderful husband reminded me, the squeaky wheel gets the greese. So I got on the phone that morning and called the VP. I was shocked! He told me we wanted to do a second interview with me that coming Wednesday and than he was very impressed with me. I was shaking and felt like it might be it, but I still tried to ignore my excitement.
Time seemed to stand still for the next few days. Going to work was harder and harder each day, and I wasn't selling a thing; neither was anyone else. I felt exhausted and broken down, but I was just getting through till that next interview. Finally, Wednesday came. The interview lasted 3 hours and it was a "getting to know you" session with the owner and the VP. During the interview I learned there were now two positions opening. One was at the Tigard location and the second was at the Foster store, a mile from our house. I couldn't believe it, but again I tried not to get excited. After the interview, the VP told me he would be calling me the next Monday to let me know their decision.
The long weekend at La-Z-Boy pasted as usual, slow and with little revenue. I kept praying that God would get me out of that place and bring me to a new job. Finally, Monday rolled around. I was off that day, due to a large sale occuring later in the week, so I was able to have my phone on all day. Around 10 a.m. the phone rang. It was the VP of the company telling me they wanted to offer me a position. God is so awesome! They also were going to pay me a salary plus a bonus and the benifits were excellent. I remeber shaking with excitement and relief. In the haze of the moment I gladly excepted and we said our goodbyes. I immediatly called everyone, Aaron, family, ect. to tell them the news. In the confusion and excitement I forgot to ask which location I would be working at. I was planning on giving the VP a call later that day to let them know when I could start. The next task at hand was giving my notice at LA-Z-Boy.
This was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I love the people I worked with at La-Z-Boy, I just wasn't making enough money and I had to work Sundays. Aaron and I were praying that I could just finish out the week and start my new job that next Monday. Praise be to God! My manager let me leave that Saturday and I was able to start Monday July 23rd.
I love my new job. I haven't felt this stress free in such a long time. We are able to pay our bills and we have extra for savings. God has provided for everthing and so much more! God Bless!
~Lauren
So finally, after three months of procrastination I have pictures of my new dress for you. This is the dress that caused that loverly infection in my finger. Here they are. Yes I'm a dork and I have to have my hair accurately styled :-) What can I say, I'm a history nut!
It's absolutely amazing to me how far our doggies have come. When they first met Aaron's parents they weren't too thrilled and poor Leila was terrified of Stu. Well, now that more than a year of training and socialization has passed both dogs were quite welcoming and cuddly. However, Leila surprised us all last Thursday night by climbing onto the couch to snuggle with her Grandpa. It was too cute!
Ahh, Honeyman State Park. I think this was one of my favorite excursians. We walked around the lake and then rented a canoe. Aaron and Stu rowed us around the lake and towards the outlet to the sea for about 45 minutes. We still had 10 minutes left after we finished so Sara and I took a kyak out and paddle around. It was a blast!
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