Full of Joy

Here we are bringing our baby tree home.  It's definitely real!  It's the cutest thing ever. My man stringing the lights.  I believe it was a box of 50. Ornaments!  My job.  I loved going through them this year.  Each one really means something special to me. Such a pretty, happy tree. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

My Dad has a check-up with his heart surgeon every year around November.  The nerves always kick in with full-fledged anxiety in the mix.  There's always that chance that the reports will come back with Dad needing another heart surgery.  Last year I shed tears and didn't handle the pending appointment so well.  This year God really put His peace in my heart as we anticipated what the results would show.  Last year I was shopping in the cheese aisle in Harris Teeter when Dad called with the good news, and this year I was driving home from Kohls with the GREAT news that his heart is doing well.  Whew.  I just have to praise God for another healthy heart year for my Dad.  It.  Is.  Such.  A.  Relief.  =) I love you, Father!

Today is one of those days.  It actually started last night.  Got some disturbing (to say the least) news over the phone about someone I really, really care about.  About someone I love.  As I tossed and turned in the night, my prayers for this person were my waking thoughts.  I'm glad God can make perfect sense out of those twisted, half-awake prayers.  But before I even went to sleep I received another disturbing text from a friend whose Granddad was dying.  He may or may not have a personal relationship with God.  News like that seems to sprinkle my heart like black dust that you wish you could just wipe away with an old rag. So today began with a heavy heart, which caused me to lay (or lie?  I never know.) under the covers longer then normal.  There's nothing like a sweet husband to crawl BACK in bed with me in those moments, though.  As the day has progressed, the weight of the world looms like a cloud over my head. ...

It had been a year and five months since the whole side of my immediate family had been together until last weekend.  Our previous gathering was Chuck and I's wedding, and since then another family member has been added.  Meet Rocky, or rather Rockford Glenn.  He is just the sweetest, chubbiest little guy you will ever meet.  Much bigger then his brother was at seven months.  Our destination was a house in Western VA that belongs to Chuck's side of the family.  It's pretty much the ideal vacating spot because it's warm the majority of the year, yet surrounded by beautiful farm land AND mountains.  Literally surrounded.  The view there is breathtaking.  I even contemplated getting married on "Granddad's" land. So there we landed, all 9 of us in one big happy house.  We were able to exchange Christmas gifts (for those who won't be together for Christmas), and celebrate November birthdays. Much of our time was spent sitting around...

Several years ago Chuck began quite a search.  He had already graduated from college, and was working a job in his field.  He began to feel restless and knew that God was leading him to something else, but he just didn't know what.  The story that I'm about to tell came about because of this very search. Early last week, my sweet husband surprised me by saying we were going OUT on Friday night, on a date.  Normally we like to consider Fridays or Saturdays our date nights anyway, but I knew this one was going to be special.  He informed me that it was a surprise.  But in the end, the surprise only last about 2 minutes as I am not a fan of anticipated surprises.  Because I knew where we were going and what we were doing, I was able to revel in the complete form of excitement.  Unfortunately, Friday turned out to be very windy which put a damper on our date, so we rescheduled for Saturday. Now, as I was saying earlier, back in the day when Chuck ...

There are just times when I know God is subtly speaking to my heart.  I can't pinpoint the exact moment this started, but I know when the realization of God's prompting came alive recently. A leadership group of teens from our youth group meet twice a month on Sunday nights.  On this particular night, the teens were instructed to pick anyone in the room and ask that person a question from one of four areas of spiritual growth. Prayer Life Bible Reading Evangelism Christian Fellowship  As soon as our Youth Pastor mentioned to the teens, "You know you can ask leaders, too." I got a sinking feeling inside.  I knew I would be the next to be called on.  And so it was.  The guy sitting beside me said, "Abby Dubbe" (he only ever calls me by my first and last name because he finds it amusing).  At that point my heart started pounding because I KNEW he would ask me to share about "evangelism" in my life.  If you haven't guessed it already, that...

has a blog.  I am ecstatic!  =) http://blog.lproof.org/

I wrote in my personal journal this morning how grateful I am that I'm NOT going back to school today.  It's true.  I feel anxiety just imagining the thought of going back to school again.  If you're reading this, you probably already know that I have hated school for my whole entire life.  It must have started in Kindergarten when my oldest brother left me in the hallway all alone, scared, and having no idea where to go or what to do.  Apparently I really liked my first Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Bird.  When my family moved in the middle of my Kindergarten year, I even called her from all the way across the country.  Like I said, I'm just beyond grateful that today I do not have to go back to school.  Yes I've been out of school for over six years now, but the relief has never worn off.  When walking through Target, seeing all those pencils, folders, erasers, folders, notebooks, and binders I STILL get this sick feeling in my stomach....

Amber sent us a gift card to Friday's for our anniversary earlier this summer. We went back to thee very Friday's where we met for the very first time less then two years ago. Who knew we'd be married, living just a few miles away, only a few months later in life? I still have a hard time believing it's true. Thank you God! Happy and blessed. Where it all began. Not our original table, but it worked.  We try to embrace change. ;)

Summer time brings life to my soul. Especially in the state I live in. According to Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon, I am officially a resident of the South. And the South brings amazing heat. This week it's been in the cooler lower 80's, but before that we were averaging high 90's into the low 100's. I could be found with a huge smile on my face any and every time I stepped outside as the heat washed over me from blond, sun-kissed head to flip-flopped toe. Though I absolutely love where we live, and I absolutely love my husband, it has been a bit of a tough summer for my heart. Chuck started working on staff with the Sr. High from our church at the end of May. It's his dream job, and my dream job for my husband. Since I was a little girl, I wanted to be a Youth Pastor's wife. I can't say exactly why I had that dream but I suspect it's because I wanted to marry a man just like my Daddy. And in many ways, Chuck is much like my Dad. Being i...

It's been a whirlwind the past 7 weeks. Seriously. I feel like Dorothy in the scene where she looks out her bedroom window in the midst of the tornado and see's bits and pieces of her life (cows, fences, people, pigs) whizzing around her. Thankfully there are not many cows, fences, and pigs in NOVA, but there are PLENTY of people in need of God's love. And those people are whizzing around us daily. Chuck and I are very honored to be apart of Reston Bible Church's Sr. High staff as we strive to love on and serve teens full-time. (I say "we" but really only Chuck is on staff. I am still processing and finding my role. You can pray for me in that area.) Chuck is very happy in his new role, but spends of lot of time battling stress, being overwhelmed, and finding his way in this totally new ministry. He has an awesome mentor and leader (his "boss"- the head youth Pastor, Bob) and that is a big answer to prayer. I think we are battling those a...

We celebrated our ONE YEAR Anniversary at the Jersey Shore! Wonderful family friends gave us a wedding gift of their beach house, right on the shore. It was awesome to be able to show Chuck my family's all-time favorite vacation spot. Life is good at the beach. =)

An incredible date we went on recently.  The marvelous GREAT FALLS.  I really do think they should be called "Marvelous Falls", Great doesn't do any justice.   

All of the sudden life has gone from easy-going, laid back, and chill to full speed ahead, faster than the speed of light, and plain old BUSY.  I anticipate life to remain at this speed as we continue to move forward in youth ministry.  With all the craziness going on, I just had to stop in and say PRAISE THE LORD for the privilege of serving him full-time and getting paid for it!  Could there be a better job on the planet (For Chuck that is, I'm just the faithful side-kick.)?!

My friend, Laura, was sharing with our ladies prayer group last night and her thoughts really spoke to my heart.  She was almost exclaiming how tired she is of suburbia.  Laura has such a longing for God to use her mightily alongside of her husband.  She longs to be out in nature, even on the top of a mountain and be able to open her arms wide and proclaim....everything....to God.  Though she struggled to make sense of the deep longing in her heart, those of us women in the room felt it, too.  I was particularly convicted because God has been stirring my heart about how I spend my time.  My days are a joy to my soul.  I am living in the freedom of doing what I love each and every day.  I have the privilege of watching my husband begin a new job that he finds so much passion, purpose, and meaning in.  Together, we are honored to serve God and teens.  Yet there are times when I know in my heart I haven't made the most of my day.  ...

As Chuck and I's one year anniversary approaches (20 days!) this month there have been some significant changes going on.  Before our wedding, we chose to take a year off from full-time youth ministry.  As we sought wisdom and counsel from others we were really excited to spend our first year focusing on our marriage and each other.  Chuck agreed to a verbal contract with IBM for one year.  We joined a church just a couple miles down the road from our apartment ( Reston Bible Church ) and began volunteering with the youth group there. We desired to serve God in our church for the year and believed He would lead us to full-time ministry come summer time.  We began the process of searching for churches in need of a youth Pastor.  It was incredibly encouraging to be in contact with several wonderful church bodies.  Deep down inside though, Chuck and I both truly desired to stay at our current church that we know and love.  As we talked...

God has flung the doors of writing opportunity wide open for me in the last several months. Baptist Bible College (my Alma Mater, yay class of 2004!) has recently developed a teen E-magazine that just came out yesterday. I had the privilege of writing an article for them.  I guess they liked me because I am now going to be published monthly by iMPACT.   If interested, you can check out the magazine here: http://digital.turn-page.com/issue/10983 iMPACT is looking for feedback on their first edition.  There is a "comment" button that you can click on at the top right corner of each page.  Please feel free to share any insight, helpful suggestions, or positive feedback that you have.  It would be extra great if any TEENS out there could check it out! I'm super excited!

It's been mentioned before, but now I can finally post the real, live version of my first published article in a magazine since being a Dubbe. I praise God for absolutely amazing opportunities! (Published in the May/June 2010 issue of The Baptist Bulletin) Click on link below to view article in new window. View article in new window

~ Hearing my Grandma tell me she's proud of me ~ Chuck and I attending our first ever marriage conference ~ Watching "Chocolat" and both enjoying it ~ Having a sister-in-law who is a nurse practitioner ~ Chuck confiding in his sister ~ Talking to my Mama on Mother's Day ~ Talking to both of my Grandmother's on Mother's Day ~ Receiving a gerbera  daisy after our church service ~ An unexpected steak cook-out with new friends ~ Awesome leftovers! ~ Responding to God's leading ~ Hearing about the new SOY 1/2 price Frappuccino's ~ Receiving a surprise $10 in the mail ~ Roomie and Craig visiting from England ~ A wonderful Shepherd Group ~ Being published! ~ Being contacted to write an article for June, and being able to interview one of my best friends in the process ~ Going out to eat at Cafesano's with my hubs ~ Getting my first sunburn of the season

My Beloved has started a new blog!  He's actually had the address for awhile, but hadn't kept up with it. He spent the majority of his blog time working on the youth blog from his last church.  Now Chuck's own personal blog is up and running.  http://chuckdubbe.blogspot.com/   Pay him a visit, leave a comment, and make his day!  =)

Meet Annapolis. Ben and Jess. Man painting right next to the water. Tony, Jennifer, and nephew. Happy day. Enough said. Chuck's friend started a church in Annapolis a couple years ago.  He invited us up to check it out, and 4 of us couples went to Buddy's Crabs and Ribs for their famous Sunday Brunch. http://www.buddysannap.com/   YUM-O!  Leisurely strolling up and down the cobblestone-like streets was just what the Doctor ordered for a perfect afternoon with friends.  We started and ended our time right next to the water.  What could be better?  See you again soon, Annapolis! 

Translation:  I speak a LITTLE German!  I have completed my first two weeks of German class and am really excited about the next 18 weeks.  But, backing up the truck a wee bit... One of the most fascinating aspects about my husband, Chuck is that he was raised as an American-German.  When I first met him I wanted to ask a billion questions about Germany and I couldn't wait to hear him speak the language.  Luckily I refrained from going over board, and it's a good thing because I found out later how irritating it is to him when someone says, "Say something in German!"  It's now hilarious to me when I watch it happen to him.  ;) While we were engaged, Chuck went back to Germany for 10 days.  It didn't work out for me to be able to go and I was devastated.  I dreaded the day he flew over there without me.  I wanted so badly to experience the only home he had known.  I wanted to learn about the culture he grew up in and watch him in...

I've had several blog posts swirling around in my head for awhile now.  I even have some new pictures to post to add to the excitement of the posts on the bench.  BUT in lieu of those pending stories I must share some pressing news. Just about 10 months ago Chuck and I tied the knot and officially became husband and wife, with a free pass to finally live together!  Glorious!  The Sunday after we married, we drove 5 hours to our new home.  We had found an apartment pre-wedding, but I went to my parent's house before it was officially ours to move into.  Therefore Chuck did the laborious task of moving in all of my stuff and his stuff without me.  Once we arrived at OUR new home, I was hooked. Chuck had organized the boxes, set up his twin bed in our living room (it became our couch for several months!), set up our bed, and even bought us a cactus to add some life to the new place.  (Woops!  He quickly found out I had a major aversion to ca...