This Post is For You

This post is for you if Mothers' Day is...well...not what it should be. Not what it could be. Not what it was before.

Maybe you don't have a Mom to celebrate with here on Earth. To you, I say you are loved. And I am sorry. It's okay to not be okay. Each year will feel different as you grow and heal. But your family is by your side, growing and healing with you. You are not alone.

Maybe you would like to be a Mom, but for whatever reason, life has not begun inside you. To you, I say you are loved and I pray that God surrounds you with an extra measure of grace this weekend. Do not lose heart, dear one. Do not lose heart.

Maybe you are a Mom, a mom to angel babies that you never held in your arms, but will forever hold in your heart. To you, I say you are loved and are still a mom, even though you may not be changing diapers or struggling to load your brood into the car. Your babies experienced so much love in the short time they were here on earth.

Maybe you are a Mom in the waiting to a precious treasure. A little one is coming to you, a little one that someone else brought into the world, but can't walk with anymore. To you I say you are loved, and I pray endurance for you for the road ahead and that your home will be blessed with love and laughter in the years to come.

Maybe you are a Mom and have a Mom, but there are hurts. Hurts that sometimes feel too deep to overcome. To you,  I say you are loved, and I pray time and mercy would do their work in your life.

To all Moms, you are loved. You are appreciated. You are treasured and valued. We are what we are today because of you. In whatever way you need, I pray your day is beautiful.

Beautiful like you.

A New Season

A new year brings some chapters to an end and new chapters to start. One of those closing chapters has been leaving TriCorps and pursuing some writing projects God has laid on my heart.

It's been a big step of faith as I love working with my husband, but God has shown me it's time to move on to new adventures.

Last day as a TriCorps employee 2.13.15

Not sure exactly what lies ahead and what it will look like. It's tempting to call this a transition phase and get mired down in all those feelings of "transition," but in the words of one of my favorite authors, all of life is basically a transition. (Shauna Niequist-Paraphrased)

So we press on!

But most of all, there are words to be written and I must go and type.

Little Brother Got Hitched

My big little brother got married on January 16 to his love Hilary. Our family has been friends with their family going on five years now and I am in awe of how God brought Taylor and Hilary together. It's an amazing story.

Much love, Mr. and Mrs. Maloy. Your day was perfect :)

The gents

LifeChurch Edmond (formerly MetroChurch) My parents were married here 29 years ago.
Special to be back here for another family marriage!

Mr. and Mrs. J. Taylor Maloy!

Grandma Mitsu enjoying the sparklers!

Hello 2015!

We started off 2015 with a bang with a trip to Hawaii! We were surrounded by God's breathtaking creation for 8 days and I am forever grateful for that time in paradise.

I've heard it said how sometimes visiting a place spoils your ideal version of it; with Hawaii that's not true. It's everything you think it should be. Here are some of my favorite pics from the trip.

Aloha!

We are very glad to be off the plane :)

The Manta Ray Swim...an eventful night.

Coffee plantation in Kona

Black Sand Beach in the Waipio Valley

The Waipio Valley- secluded, beautiful and a little dangerous

Helicopter Tour of the Big Island

That's a volcano, ladies and gentlemen.

Sunset on Mona Kea

Above the cloud line...incredible.

On Oahu...the water is that blue in real life!

Brunch at Koko Head...most amazing pancakes of my life.

Pearl Harbor

At the North Shore on our last day...thanks for the memories Hawaii!

Year 2

I started drafting a few posts like last year to share some of the lessons Kurtis and I have learned over our second year of marriage. There were some clever lines, a few cute pictures, but it wasn't gelling.

I've even read back through last year's posts and thought "Wow, I thought I was being so cute and original..." But really, it feels like I know nothing at times!

A lot of events have transpired this year (as I know they have for many families), even more so in the last couple of weeks. And while there were some incredibly painful moments, they have helped to crystallize who we are in the Lord and who we want to be as a couple.

Everybody, I would hope, has that moment. Not unsimilar to the moment when you make your faith your own, you have to OWN your marriage at some point.

2004 was the year I really made my walk with the Lord MY walk. I was a freshman in high school, and in that school year, my dad lost his job, my great-grandfather died and both my grandmas moved. That year indeed marked the end of a chapter in our family, but the beginning to so many others. I learned to sink my roots deep into God that year.

Via Google

So here I am 10 years later learning in a new way how to sink my roots even deeper into God, deeper into marriage with the most amazing man.

At a concert at church a couple of weeks ago, the lead singer made this comment in regards to his walk with the Lord, "I haven't arrived yet, but I've certainly left."

Amen to that.

Arrived? No. Further on the journey from where we started? Yes.

I could type up lots of words about random stories from this past year, but frankly, that's not what's on my heart and mind.

What I do want to say is that heading into year 3, I am more excited than ever to roll up my sleeves and dig into life with Kurtis W. Hanni. I am more than excited to focus on being, than doing.

And as our heart has been from the beginning of our relationship, to the song at our wedding, to today: may we daily choose to put Christ at the center of our lives.

Via Google

Love, 

The Hannis

Click here for more pics from our trip!

The Last Time

>>>>the thing about the last time is that we don't know it's the last time<<<<

I will see you again one day, Grammy. Last time on earth isn't the last time forever.

A Year in Photos

Our first year of marriage in photos!

Year 1, Lesson 5

Lesson #5: It takes more effort to stay mad, than to actually resolve the issue. 

This one is easier said than done because sometimes you feel like you have a such darn good tootin' reason to be fired up. Maybe so, but it takes a lot of effort to be offended and  to stay offended. With everything else life has to offer, I'm learning that maybe I don't want to waste time on being offended. That mindset doesn't help anyone and it sure doesn't benefit you.

It is a choice, but make the choice to not stay angry and offended. Life's too short for that.

Love,

The Hannis

Year 1, Lesson 4

Lesson #4: Don't speak ill of your spouse, especially in front of other people. 

This was one of the most surprising things I discovered in our first year of marriage. It saddens me to see spouses bash each other in front of their friends. Not only is it more common than I would've thought, it is accepted...no almost expected to bash the "stupid" husbands or demean the "ball-and-chain" wives.

Frankly, that is dumb.
Maybe I'm still a starry-eyed newlywed, but that's not a healthy pattern, nor is it biblical. If you keep complaining about your spouse, that makes you part of the problem. C'mon peeps! Words have consequences and we know the Bible spares no expense on instructing us on the power of our words...
One of Clark Whitten's podcasts I heard even before we got engaged talked about the danger of "uncovering" your spouse in public, that is tearing them down in front of other people.

Choose to not do that. Choose to paint a different picture of marriage to a painfully confused society.

Linking this back to yesterday's lesson, maybe better words about your spouse have to start with better thoughts about your spouse.

Year 1, Lesson 3

Lesson #3: Assume the best about each other. 

I read this in one of our marriage books shortly before the wedding and it's a powerful guideline to live by. This seems to solve the other five percent of problems! Truly, in the majority of circumstances, your spouse isn't out to "get you." It's a subtle knee-jerk reaction to assume the worst when there has been a misunderstanding, but isn't it tiring to live like that? 

Especially for Christian couples: if you married your spouse in good conscience that this was who God had for you, why would you assume the worst about them?
We are still flawed human beings. That isn't going to change this side of heaven. But our life follows our words (and thoughts!), so what if our first reaction when something negative happens is to tell ourselves "Well, this wasn't what I was expecting to happen, but I trust their heart toward me," how might our relationships improve?

Communication (ahhhh there it is again!) and working through a misunderstanding may still need to happen, but how much healthier would our attitudes be toward our spouses?



Miss Lesson 1? Click here!
Didn't catch Lesson 2? Click here!

Year 1, Lesson 2

Lesson #2: "The greatest barrier to communication is assuming that it took place." 

What?! He can't read my mind?! 

Earth-shattering, right? But so true. This isn't late-breaking news or anything, but sometimes we make things so complicated! 

Keeping healthy communication lines open truly helps to solve a majority of problems. Just because you love someone and live under the same roof doesn't mean you can read each other's minds. 

I have to constantly remind myself that if something bothers me, I have to be a grown-up and use appropriate words to communicate that. 

If I appreciate something that someone has done, I also have to use appropriate words to communicate that. 

It's a constant process...a constant refining of how we communicate with each other and those around us- nothing wrong with that! 

Guess what...I can't read his mind either...

Year 1, Lesson 1

Nearly 365 days have passed since we became Mr. and Mrs. Hanni.

The year has flown by, and yet it feels like we've been married for years already (in a good way!)

This week, I thought I would share some favorite moments and lessons learned over our first year of marriage.

Lesson #1: A dish is not a "meal" unless it has meat. Unless the dish is being served past 9:00 p.m., lighter fares are then accepted as a "meal." This may not seem like a big deal to you, but it is BIG DEAL to someone-ahem Kurtis-who shall remain nameless.

First grocery list!

Grocery shopping and dishwashing can get old, so I try to not focus too much on the "un-fun" aspects of the job, but instead on the giddy grin of my husband when he and I try a new dish or sit down to a favorite.

That never gets old!