For those of you who may not know our "career" history, Al and I both started with Enterprise in North Carolina. In fact, for those of you who don't know our marriage history, we also met at ERAC (Enterprise Rent-A-Car).
Here is a flash-back for you:
Summer of 1995: I spent the summer in the field. I was working on my masters at NC State University studying Zoology. In fact, I was working on a project with the red-cockaded woodpecker (an endangered species) and I was living in Southern Pines and working on Fort Bragg. I took a couple days off to drive up to Raleigh to look for a place to live during the school year. On the highway, in the middle of a small town called Apex, my car broke down. A nice woman stopped and picked me up and took me in to a garage that she used on a regular basis. I was so rattled by my car breaking down that I didn't even get my shoes out of my car ... so I had to walk into the garage barefoot!
What to do! I had the garage tow my car in. The shop owner's wife suggested that I rent a car from ERAC. I told her I was only 24 and didn't you have to be 25 to rent a car? She said not with ERAC. So, we called the office ... they had one car left and agreed to hold it for me. The owner's wife took me into the ERAC office.
When I walked in the door (yes, by this time, I had my shoes on!), there was a very cute boy working there! That cute boy ... Al .... and I just celebrated our 10 year anniversary this past October.
About 5 months after we started dating, Al got a promotion with ERAC and moved to Charlotte. The next summer (1996), I went to work for ERAC in Raleigh. After 9 months of dating long distance, I quit graduate school and moved to Charlotte to be closer to Al. The following September (1997) we were married.
Al and I enjoyed Charlotte and were both working for ERAC. In fact, for about 1 1/2 of those years we were literally working in the same office. Then, in Nobember of 1999 Al got a promotion to Seattle.
So, we made our first move together with ERAC. In Feb of 2000, I moved to one of the most beautiful places in the United States, a place that also just happened to be one of the most dreary, gray places for 9 1/2 months out of the year!!!! But we had fun in Seattle. We joined a wonderful church -- Federal Way Church of Christ -- and both started to really build our relationships with God. I still miss our family there. In fact, last month, one week, I wrote our weekly giving out to Federal Way instead of our church here ... Richardson East C of C!!!
We bought motorcycles and rode almost every weekend. We went hiking and camping and out to nice dinners. It was a fun, carefree time in our lives and although it gets dark at 4:30pm during the winter and the sun doesn't come up until after 8am, we had fun ... well, we survived at first and then we had fun!
Then in October of 2003, I received a promotion to Dallas. What a change the last 4 years have brought. We don't ride motorcycles any more! Our definition of eating out is Denny's now! We have found another church that we really like and we have made a lot of friends.
And most importantly, we have a family of our own ... Jackson, Addison and William. They are teaching me so much about what is really important in life.
- God--everything that I have I owe to God. I am thankful for all that He has given us and all that He has done for me/us
- Al--I have a husband that is kind, generous, loving, fun, sexy, humble, a wonderful father, self-sacrificing and our family's spiritual leader
- Jackson, Addison and William--they truly are my salvation. Because of my children, I have grown closer to God. I talk to Him every day ... multiple times a day. Not just the prayers I used to pray when I wanted something really bad or had a sin that I was ashamed of. Really more like converations that always start off with me thanking Him for all of the blessings He has given me and ending with the same request each day ... help me to do all of the things I can to help my children grow up to love the Lord and praise Him and worship Him and some day be with Him in heaven.
Funny how family really puts your life in perspective. No need to worry about my new job or selling our house or finding a new one. I have put that all in God's hands and I know that He will guide us through it.
So, we are on the move! I will be starting in Birmingham (still with ERAC) in mid-March. We are very up in the air about when Al and the kiddos will join me ... much of it will depending on the timing of selling this house and getting into a new one in Birmingham. We have decided we can be apart for a month ... but no longer ... and that will require me fying back to Dallas every weekend.
So, pray for us. Let your voices join ours in our request that our house will sell relatively quickly, that we will find a new house in our price range that we love, that Kelly will be able to find a new job that she loves ... and that most of all, our family continues to draw closer to God, that we teach our children how to pray and that they have a love for the Lord that will lead them to eternal salvation.
We will keep you posted on our even-more-crazy-than-normal-life!
Quenta
Miss Addison with her ball
