In what can only be described as the best love story I've heard of in a long time Elizabeth and Jordan were married on Friday, November 11th at a winery/Greek Cafe in Athens, TN.
It was beautiful and tender and blessed by the Father. What a journey to find each other. What a blessing to watch the relationship sprout at Sukkot and be confirmed by multiple witnesses and then for the wedding to happen while Jordan's family was here for Thanksgiving. And what a joy to see my daughter find true love in a Godly man. What I saw of him at Sukkot confirmed to me that he had the character, conviction, faith and substance of the man I've always dreamed my daughter would one day find.
So imagine this ... we are camping...and he falls in love with her while she was in her camping "looks homeless" clothes, with no makeup, with a son and two parents in tow in a trailer. Yup. That's exactly how it happened. No pretenses at all on either side. Raw and real, just the way it should be.
They are currently on their honeymoon close by and we have Aidan. He keeps counting down the days until they will come and get him. For this week, they are getting their home established and enjoying some 'no kid' time.
What does this mean for us now? Well, since our driver went and got married we can't drive the trailer back to Canada. Not that we were wanting that though. We have found our 'tribe' down here in Tennessee and love it. We are secure in our campsite over the winter. And at some point in the future they will have more children and we'll want to be here for them. So, we are looking into staying here permanently. That will require something other than a tourist visa so that is in the works. We are praying and waiting on the Father for further direction. We are at a crossroads. We didn't anticipate this when we set out on our adventure of a lifetime roadtrip. But here we are and we are thrilled with where the Lord has led us.
This week I find myself missing those outdoor evening chats with my daughter over a glass of wine as we watched the Tennessee sunsets. We lived in very close quarters for eight months. While we got on each other's nerves as anyone would, it was a special time filled with wonderful memories. I'm very happy for Liz and Jordan and Aidan. This is the best outcome for them. And we rejoice with them. As with all big life changes, this is bittersweet. I'm so happy for them, but I'm missing my best buddy.
Winter has now set in and there are no evening campfires. It's getting down to below freezing at night but warms up to about 50 degrees with beautiful clear skies and sunshine in the daytime. Sounds like quilting time to me. How about you? I decided that it wouldn't be a terrible idea if I started the Bonnie Hunter winter mystery. So I found some fabric at the local quilt shops here and am ready for the first clue to drop on Black Friday. Over the years, it has always come at the busiest time of year for me, but this year is different. This year I'm in transition and I need some machine work while I process stuff. This is my best time to hear from the Father, while my hands are busy. So I shall sew!
It's been a big year of change, adjustment, adventure, and challenge. Now I need some processing time to adjust to our new life and the road from here. And I shall do just that while making something beautiful with a bunch of other quilters around the world.
That's the latest update. We've been recuperating from a whirlwind of a time planning and enjoying the wedding. Just catching my breath and getting my bearings.
Next you will probably see some mystery quilt pictures and less about family. This is a quilting blog of course, so that won't be unexpected. But so many have shared with me that they wanted to follow our adventure. Little did we know where it would lead. Thank you for following along with our family.
Blessings on you!