July

I guess it's time for another update! It's the middle of July and we are finally settling into our new home and just got internet today! We moved the first weekend in July and boy, was it eventful! We drove down late one friday after loading the truck for 6 hours and still didnt get all our stuff (we had to leave a queen bed we were going to get from JR's mom and some things at my parents house that were too fragile to pack in the big truck). We unloaded the truck Saturday morning (with the help of family and friends) in 1 1/2 hours! Fast! As we were moving things Momma decided to move a couch, and fell and hit a chair on the way down and hurt her back badly. So much so, she went by ambulance to the local ER. She came back with medicine and was told to do nothing. :( She was hurting so much she layed on the couch the rest of the weekend while we worked around her. She did get to catch up on some rest though! :)

We started unpacking and organizing and by the end of the day on Saturday I had the kitchen all unpacked! It took us until now working around the clock (with a few trips back home) to get the house looking like home. There are still some things I am trying to figure out as far as decorating and I need to get pictures of Tenley printed to fill up my collage frames! So many ideas and not enough time and resources it seems! whew!

I am so glad things are finally shaping up to where I don't feel like I have a huge to do list and when JR starts school I will be able to focus totally on taking care of daily things and Tenley and Bella. :) I have loved having JR full time the past little bit to help with Tenley and to help with the house stuff! He is so amazing! There are so many little things I learn about him each day that make me fall even more in love with the man I married :). Tomorrow we have a friends and family event at PCOM and my parents and sister are here to go with us and see his new school and then enjoy the weekend! :) I can't believe he starts school in 2 weeks and will be on this road to becoming a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine! Never in a million years did I ever think I'd be a Dr's wife one day. Funny how God has a way of surprising you with new and exciting things! haha!

Tenley is growing like crazy and learning new things everyday. She loves to laugh and smile at her daddy when he talks in a high voice to her and dances with her. She also laughs when I sit her on my lap and bounce her up and down! Bath time still is her favorite thing ever though. This girl is going to be a fish! She loves to float and kick in the water and getting water in her face doesnt phase her one bit!

We even put her little foot prints and hand prints on her closet door in pink paint and dated it. We decided to do this and keep it up so we will see her growth through the years. :)

We also have decided to try and be more intentional about having our time with the Lord individually and together and to pray together with Tenley every night. It's been crazy with the move, but now that we are more settled its time to put things more into practice. We are also visiting different churches, hoping to find a few to narrow down our search in becoming our home church. We have met several families here that will be in JR's class as well with young children who have similar values as we do and we are really looking forward to building on those friendships.

Ways you can pray with us:
1. Med School studies and finances
2. That we will raise Tenley to love the Lord
3. That we will grow as a family in Christ.
4. That we will build our life and our home on Godly values here
5. That we will make friends and find a home church here.
6. That things will go smoothly with me at home with our girls (Tenley and Bella)
7. That we will learn how to balance school and family time.

Thanks for reading and we pray things are well with you!

The Byrds

Great and Much Needed DATE!

So....after a long time, we finally had a much needed DATE! We spread it out over 2 days :) We went to see a movie and did dinner one night and they the next day we went out and did a "picture date!" All of the photos are on facebook, but here are a few!!! This was so fun! We went to historic downtown Dandridge, TN and just goofed off!! :) then I came home and edited them! YAY!

workin on our house....tenley's room is going dark green to white and installing ceiling fans! whew lots to do!

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tenley's 4th wedding this summer. a hot outdoors wedding and she did great! danced with daddy and mommy too!

our newest addition to the family. Bella Mae Byrd. born march 14 2011. a cockapoo (cockerspaniel and poodle mix)

So long for now Carson-Newman College

Well today I turned in my keys to Carson-Newman and cleaned out my office. :( My official last day won't be until June 10th, but I'm still on ML til then. It was a bittersweet process and once I packed and loaded everything into my car, I went and chatted with everyone in the office. My boss said she doesn't do well with goodbye's so we said "see you later." I spent the last 2 years of my life working there and traveling and meeting new people through my travels. Truly a wonderful experience. As I drove away, I cried. Yes, I cried. Tears were streaming down my face as a song that said something like have faith knowing God has a greater plan for you that what you've seen and where you've been.

Leaving this job was one of the toughest things I have had to do yet but I know He has greater plans for our family and He is in control and will continue to bless our family as we seek Him.

2 Years of Life!

Yep! 2 years ago we gave "birth" to our family of JR and Michelle Byrd! hehe! (I have to use this analogy because of the recent birth of our Tenley! It's been 2 years since our wedding day and there are so many things that have happened that have made the past two years pretty stinkin amazing! I will first re-cap our wonderful weekend of our Anniversary! Saturday my parents (MiMi and Poppa) decided to keep Tenley for us so we could go out all day and night on a date to celebrate our anniversary! I was able to pump and leave enough milk for her so she was set! We decided to go to DollyWood because 1. It was our first date alone. 2. We have passes. 3. We just wanted to do something fun like riding rides and seeing shows etc! So we spent the day riding roller coasters and laughing and watching shows and eating ice cream! haha! I was so excited to ride the new rides because the past few times I'd gone to DollyWood I was preggo so no rides for me! After DollyWood, we went and shopped really fast for tennis shoes for JR...with no luck. boo. Then we went to eat at Logan's...we had never been there before so we wanted to try it! It was delish!! JR got steak and I got fish and then we split a Chocolate Stampede dessert (well, got it to go b/c we were too stuffed to eat it then!) I really want to learn how to make the stuffed fish I had, because it was wonderful! After that we drove home and went to sleep. We slept til 11am the next morning with no interruptions! wonderful! Probably the last time that will happen in a while but it was seriously amazing!

Sunday::: JR and I had "bring a friend free tickets" so we took my family and Tenley back to DollyWood! Some people may think it's lame but I love this park! It's so family oriented and just fun! I enjoyed walking around pushing the stroller and being with my little family and my original family. :) We rode rides and took pictures and Tenley was in such a fantastic mood too so we got lots of smiling pictures of her. She has been such a happy baby, I just love it! I never thought our family could feel so much more complete as it does now that we have Tenley!

Monday::: Our "actual" anniversary! 2 years ago....I did a lot of reminiscing of our wedding day. A LOT! We even laid in bed Monday night and picked through every detail of the day...things that made us laugh, cry, and even the drama we want to "omit or change" haha! We decided to not to gifts for each other but rather, did a gift to share...well 2 to share. :) We got a puppy! Crazy I know right? A 7 week old daughter and a 10 week old puppy! We got a Cockapoo named Bella Mae (Mae after my mamaw that passed away May 17, 2010). Bella is such a spunky and adorable little puppy! She is tan/cream colored and has the cutest little face. She already loves Tenley and has a blast playing with Riley (momma's dog). We also closed on our very first home on our anniversary!!!! It's so exciting! 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, with a kitchen, 2 car garage, living room, dining room and eat in kitchen and a large fenced in backyard! Perfect for our little family! I am so excited to begin painting and decorating our home and making it ours. We have plans to work on it with family and friends and I am pumped about it!! I am using my colors of red, brown, tan, white and black in the main parts of the house. Hot pink, white and black for Tenley's room and I am thinking teal and brown for the guest room! I am so excited!! I never would have thought 2 years ago, we would be getting a house on the day we got married, have had a baby girl and a puppy all in the same year! God is Good!

Ways you can pray for us:
1. JR's med school loans and living expenses loans to go through as they are supposed to.
2. Scholarships to work out.
3. Moving and getting all set up to go smoothly.
4. Tenley to continue to grow and develop and learn new things!
5. Bella to housetrain well!
6. Our marriage to strengthen and grow even more.
7. That we are able to tie up loose ends and make sure we get all things smoothed out in this transition.
8. That we grow closer to the Lord during all of this as well.

We love y'all!

~JR, Michelle, Tenley, and Bella Byrd
*Written a day after our anniversary for obvious reasons*

Loads of Excitement!!!

A lot has happened in the Byrd household since I last blogged! As I type (at 4am with one hand), I am holding and rocking our sweet baby girl Tenley Joy. :) She was born at 37 weeks and 1 day, making her birthday fall in March (not April as expected). She was 6 lbs 10 oz, 19 inches long with a head full of dark brown hair, blue eyes, long fingers and toes and absolutely stunning! I really had a great labor when I think about it too. Yes, I was on bedrest for about 2 weeks prior and when I arrived at the hospital I was 6 cm dialated so thiings went pretty quickly from there. We are still in the recovery stage and I am learning lots about infant sleep cycles (she was awake in the womb from 1-6am and so she is still on that schedule right now). I am also learning that my own recovery takes more energy, time, and patience than I ever knew. (Im also learning to take my pain meds before they wear off and not try and tough it out lol!!)
We are still waiting on a few things to be for sure, but things are looking up in several areas for our future. Here is a list of current prayer needs:

1. Daddy, Mommy and Tenley to figure out her needs and better incorporate them into our lives.
2.Med school loans, paperwork, financial aid, and all it entails.
3. Finances regarding future needs and current with hospital bills coming our way.
4. My healing and recovery.
5. Wisdom in how to deal with various situations right now.

This was just a short update... hope to update more later, but no promises!

HUGE REQUEST

OK, Can't say specifics right now but we have 2 HUGE prayer requests that we ask you to pray with us about. God knows the details and that is all that matters.

Thanks a bunch!

Preparing for the rest of our lives

Ok, so 2011 is going to be a whirlwind! First of all, I'm so thankful for this past year in our marriage and I am looking forward to many more wonderful and adventurous years to come. God has blessed me with a husband that desires to seek Him and move forward in our family regardless of outside situations or extended family curcumstances. Praise Him! We had been blessed with a great home to live in for the first year and a half of our marriage and the ability to save and replace our 2 older cars with newer (still used) cars that are more dependable. Every marriage has trials and tribulations that make you want to give in and give up but I am so thankful that both of us have the mind set that marriage is for life, that its not a game and everything can be worked through by the power of the Holy Spirit living within us. True love never ends, expecially when backed up by a commitment before our amazing Savior!

Ok, so this year....
1. We work and save money for the expenses later in the year.
2. We travel and pray and God will show us where He wants us to live during med school.
3. We experience the birth of our daughter Tenley Joy Byrd sometime this spring!
4. We enjoy our time with family and friends and prepare to embark on the next journey in our lives.
5. We move to GA, get settled in our new home there and JR begins his education to become the best flippin DR ever!
6. We find a new church family and become involved.
7. Michelle begins her online job again once we are all settled.

That is kind of our goal list for this year. Of course there are lots of things that will lead up to each of these steps and Lord willing things will go smoothly.

Those are the ways you can pray for us.
We love you,
JR, Michelle and Tenley Byrd

New Year/New Life/Same Great God!

For starters, the house we were living in SOLD! So we now moved out and living with my parents! This really is a huge blessing and JR and I are so thankful for their offer and them wanting us to live with them for the next little while. My momma is thrilled to say the least! We have only been there a couple of days and she gets so excited when we are all home. :) We really are blessed by family and the love and support we have received with this move. JR's brother Josh and a few friends came to help us move the big stuff and honestly I do not know what we would have done without their help. God Send! I am so thankful that we have a close relationship with Josh and Chasity (JR's closest in age siblings), it is such a heart warming thing.
His youngest brother and sister Ben and Abby are so sweet too and we love seeing them and hearing all about their latest adventures and discoveries. They are so excited to be Uncle and Aunt!
So, with that being said, I am super duper excited about Christmas this year! (I'm always super excited, I LOVE this time of year!) We are going to have so much fun decorating and cooking and spending time with family and friends! It will be a bit bittersweet since Mamaw Esta won't be here with us to celebrate, but I know she is rejoicing with the angels and is so joyous to celebrate with the Lord.

We have officially accepted the med school offer in GA! Yay JR! So we are in the process of searching for apartments there for July/Aug when JR starts school. It is so exciting to finally be able to move on in life and I know JR is feeling much much much better about the future!

Little Tenley Joy Byrd is growing like a weed! Besides the few issues we have had, things are going well and she is right on track (her long legs and all!) We are starting to get some baby showers scheduled as well from my work, and sweet friend! Can't wait!

Well, I suppose that is all for now!

~The Byrds

My Own Little Family

Lots of things have happened in the last little bit! Exciting things and things that have allowed us as our own family, to grow. :)

As most of you know, we are expecting our first child in April of 2011 and we could not be happier about it! Everything about this baby has been an absolute miracle! Things are going well, the baby is growing the way it should be and I am feeling the signs and symptoms of pregnancy for sure! Nausea has calmed down a bit, not totally gone, but I'm learning to cope. :) An update from the Doctor was :::::
Weight-lost some, but ok at this point.
Blood Pressure- Perfect!
Signs and Symptoms- Perfectly Normal.
How far along- 15 weeks 5 days.
Next appointment- Ultrasound to reveal the gender and to take a closer look and measurments of all the bones and organs!

On another very exciting front.....

JR has been accepted to all 3 medical schools he applied to!!
Now comes the difficult decisions of where to move our little family. We have prayed and eliminated one of the schools so now we are down to SC and GA. There is a lot to think about in this situation as both schools are great and offer different advantages as far as area demographically. We also have to consider cost of living and the amount of loans we will be able to take out. (I will be at home with the baby, so we will be dependant on his loans completely).
Very exciting and encouraging to JR that 3 schools have alreay accepted him this soon into the application process! Now, we pray and wait :)

As I mentioned before, the house is on the market. While there have been no offers yet, we have felt the need to try and pack up a little in anticipation. We have made arrangements on where to live when the house does sell, until we move in June/July but the actual moving process itself will be hectic.

We are so excited to get going with everything, after feeling like we have been on hold for 2 years things are really looking up!! We ask for lots of prayers during this time and of course, thank each and every one of you for your friendship to us. Love ya!

I'm so excited to be in this phase of life with my own little family :)

Update

Lots to update about in a very short amount of time:

Here goes...

1. Interview in FL went fabulously! We got accepted!!
2. Interviews in both SC and GA ....results pending (at the moment)
3. Baby Byrd is growing rapidly and I am learning how to deal with everything that comes with pregnancy. :)
4. Our house that we are renting is officially on the market...which is scary considering when it sells we must move. :/
5. We met our goal of selling and buying 2 newer cars to replace our old old old ones. (we got a really fabulous deal on 2 Honda's! Afordable and reliable! love it!)
6. Have had some great quality time with family and friends lately...God is so good!
7. Travel season is up and running for me with work!
8. Christmas is around the corner and I cannot wait to start decorating!!

Well thats the quick update!

Our Family

Well, everyone! I wanted to update you on something we have kept to ourselves (and a few close family and friends).

WE ARE PREGNANT! Yes, we found out a while ago but wanted to wait until we had our first appointment!!! You can read all about it here :::::: http://ourbabybyrd.blogspot.com/

~The Byrds

Celebration!

This past weekend was my birthday weekend!! :) I was able to take off Friday so I had a nice long weekend to do NOTHING!!! That's right...nothing better than relaxation!!!

We did do a little celebration stuff like...

Went to the Melting Pot with family and some friends. If you have never been, you need to experience it! It is such a unique little place. One word...FONDUE...

The restaurant is down in the basement of an old building in downtown. It is painted dark and has very romantic lighting. The booths are even round for big parties like we had. Such a fun, classy little place.

First, you get this cheese fondue with chunks of bread, veggies, and green apples to dip. yum!

Second, a salad...which is really good.

Third, your main course, the meat and veggies. We got chicken, filet, steak, shrimp, and anothe type of steak. Then broc, mushrooms and potatoes. You cook each piece the way you like it in the fondue broth.

Fourth, (my favorite) the dessert part. You pick what typeof chocolate you want. We got turtle. It was milk choc with caramel and pecans..yummo! Then they bring out things to dip in it like...pund cake, rice krispies, cheesecake, strawberries, bananna, marshmallow, brownies, etc. It is heavenly and so fun to share food like this with friends and family!

After dinner we went to see the movie Inception! It was long, but good :)

Then, back to my parents house for the home made cake JR made!!! It was delish!

Well, that was my day...then I got a massage and mani/pedi from my hubs! So sweet :) He painted my nails and toenails and even did designs on them :) Love him and loved my birthday!

As of yesterday...

It is exactly 6 months until Christmas! Just thought I would let you all know :).

On other news:

Prayers have been answered!!! The owners of our home have allowed us to stay here without raising rent! They are putting the house on the market in about a month, so we have to work with the realtor in showing it. I'm praying it doesn't sell until next summer (once we are hopefully in medical school).

JR has an interview at one of the medical schools coming up, and we are really excited about that!

All 5 schools have requested more info from us as well, so that is GOOD news! Potential 5 interviews!

We are excited about the future, and have some things in the works, but are still praying about a lot. God can do miraculous things. Just sayin'.

I know this is short and sweet, but that's really the only update I have. We work all the time, and when we are not working we work on the house/med school stuff/time together!

Thanks Daddy

As many of you know, my job allows me to travel, meet lots and lots of new people, and really gives me some great opportunities! Today I was blessed to meet a family from South Carolina! They live close to where we have applied to med school and we were talking about the area, schools, jobs, apartments, etc. The mom is a school teacher and informed me that they are desperately needing FACS teachers...which is my degree! The conversation went on and on, and when I got back to my office I sat back and was just wowed at how God works. On a regular Thursday, doing the norm, I meet someone who could have a part in encouraging our future. It may seem insignificant to you, but to me, it was just the "God thing" I needed for today! Thanks Daddy!

Hot, Hot, Hot

It seems as though the past little bit has been sweltering here! I don't remember our summers here being so hot...seriously. Other than the heat, and soaring electric bills, our summer has been good. God has shown up as only He could have and now comes the difficult part, trusting Him with the rest. He changed hearts and minds, allowed a huge calamity to be avoided, blessed us financially with the things we needed, and gave us a desire to renew ourselves in Him. Things still are not great, by any means, but not on the verge of destruction at the moment.

There are still some huge prayer needs:
1. Our current rental home. We are meeting with the owners soon to discuss future renting and we really need the rent to stay the same or lower for us to be able to afford it.
2. Med School. Applications/Fee's are being sent out and we are hopeful.
3. Family issues with both sides of our families. God is the only One who can resolve this, so we are leaving it in His hands as best as we can.
4. Future housing/job/income/etc. Everything for the future is still very up in the air and we are praying that God will provide and direct us as He see's fit.

Praises!!!!!
1. We rafted the Ocoee River and had a blast! (without falling out!) This was an amazing trip and a great memory we now have together. Swimming down the icy river after we braved te rapids where the 1996 Olympics were held!
2. Reliable vehicles without going into debt or having monthly payments. Praise Him for that!!!
3. Getting back in the Word on a daily basis together...this excited me, to grow with him in the Lord!

Well, that is all for now.

~The Byrds~

Prayer

For those of you who keep up with us, I have a small update, but a large request!
My family is going through a very difficult time now. Satan is using people to destroy (which he is good at, and those people are letting him do this full force). Lies and deception are flying left and right, disrespect, dishonesty, and flat out disobedience to the Lord without a second thought has been the majority of what we have been dealing with. I know people can say they are Christians, but actions speak louder than words. I do not feel that I should go into the details, all I ask is that you pray. Specifically for my sister to have her eyes opened to the lies satan is feeding her. For satan to stop and be silent. For the people involved to be stopped. For peace to rule and reign. For my parents to have wisdom and strength to protect their baby girl as GOD ordained and for those trying to undermine God's authority to be punished. Also, for JR and I, that we will have strength and know what to say, when to say it, and be supportive of my parents. I do not know why this is happening, only God does, but I do know that prayer and its power and the power of Christ in us as believers is stronger than any of satan's snares.

John 10:10-18
¹⁰The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

¹¹"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ¹²The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. ¹³The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

¹⁴"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— ¹⁵just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. ¹⁶I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. ¹⁷The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. ¹⁸No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father."

Just as God gives authority to our earthly fathers to protect their children from the thief, our earthly father will also lay down his life to protect this daughter and I pray that never has to happen.

Thank you for your prayers....if you would, please post a prayer as a comment, I know it would comfort my family to see the prayer being lifted up. If you want to post one privately, email it to me on facebook or mrs.mbyrd@yahoo.com. Thanks.

Things to come...

As I reflect on our life this past year, I realize that things have not happened the way I thought or even dreamed they would. Life is not the idea I had in my head when I began college, or even when I graduated college. The idealistic world of people getting along and behaving as adults has long become a dream. I allowed this to get the best of me the other day until I realized, Christ dealt with the same thing. He was shunned by his own people and yet, He still died fror them. He still remained calm when they stoned Him, beat Him, and cursed Him.

"10 Then He continued by saying to them, "Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom,
11 and there will be great earthquakes, and in various places plagues and famines; and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.
12"But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My name's sake.
13"It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony.
14"So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves;
15 for I will give you utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute.
16"But you will be betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death,
17 and you will be hated by all because of My name.
18"Yet not a hair of your head will perish.
19"By your endurance you will gain your lives.
20"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is near.
21"Then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those who are in the midst of the city must leave, and those who are in the country must not enter the city;
22because these are days of vengeance, so that all things which are written will be fulfilled. "

Just as we have no idea the actual events that will come to pass, we can be sure that as long as we are standing firm in His word and His path, we will be triumphant over all evil through He who created all.

There is no big update on our life, as far as where we are going, what we will be doing, or anything like that as of yet. I do know that God has a plan and His plan will prevail over all.

~The Byrds~