God's Ways Are Always Best

The last six months Lee and I have been planning, counting down, and excited about our upcoming wedding. We were engaged this past June. Life has taken a hard, but positive turn for us. We are still planning on getting married, but we have to move our date a whole year than we originally planned. I have to admit, this is hard for us. We both wept over the phone. What we wanted seemed so within our grasp, but not the right timing. I have spent all day in bed today sulking, praying, and doctoring a bad headache. I took a deep breath and the passage from the Bible in Isaiah 55:9 came to mind. This passage says.

"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts your thoughts."

This passage has so much truth in it. We can go along life and make plans. Plans for a wedding, plans for marriage, plans for a job, plans for a family. God can ultimately change and alter these plans. God has changed Lee and my plans for the beginning of our future. I admit it is not easy, but I look and meditate on this passage and am reminded that God's ways are always best--not always easy, but always best. Lee and I are excited about our future and the way God is going to work. He is already working, I [we] just have to wait on him. The waiting is not always easy, nor painless, but at the end worth it all.

I can't wait for my forever with Lee. Our forever is already beginning. So remember
 God's ways are always best.

I hope you were encouraged by this blog. I am hoping to write more blog posts like these--inspirational and encouraging. God bless you.

-Rebecca

Remembering What Is True

This verse has been on my heart this evening. I admit I struggle trusting God. I struggle to have the faith I need. I look at and listen to the opinions of people, and let them "get in my head." This makes me question God. This makes question His promises. This even makes me even question God's Will for my life. Tonight Lee and I sat down to remember things that are true about God. We sat down and reflected that it was God that brought us together. We reflected that God is writing our story, and isn't finished with it. We wanted to share what we remembered about God. If you have anything to add please feel free to share in the comments. Share how God has been good to you. Share something that is true about God.

1. God always directs our paths.
2. God is love. Love is tough. God allows us to go through hard times because He loves us.
3. God always keeps His Promises. He gave us the rainbow in the sky to remind us how faithful He is.
4. God always has a reason behind what He does.
5. God will make a way when there seems to be no way, He works is ways we cannot see. He will make a way for me.
6. God always has our best interest at heart. He always knows what is best for is. (Heb. 12:10)
7. God makes no mistakes.
8. God is all-powerful
9. God is always with us.
10. God is my counselor.
11. God always provides my needs. He is concerned with my daily needs.
12. God is writing the most amazing story for our lives.
13. God is kind.
14. God brings peace.
15. God uses the most unlikely people to do His will. He can use anyone as long as they are willing.

I hope you were encouraged by this post. My desire for this blog is not only to share the adventures of life on the road, but about God and His love for you and for me.

Raleigh, NC

So since this a travel and adventure blog I thought I would start with the first adventure that Lee and I went on together. This was definitely an adventure for both of us, and it started at the airport. Lee flew into the Raleigh-Durham International Airport. This was the first time we saw each other in 10 years! I have to admit I was very nervous. On the way to the terminal, I said my parking spot over and over again in my head (pro-tip use google maps or another map app program to pin where your car is....or do it the old fashioned way and write it down). During the excitement of seeing Lee I forgot where I had parked my car. We shared our first kiss and held hands for the first time. My shoes also broke so I had to walk through the parking deck barefoot. Thankfully I had an extra pair of shoes in the car.

There is so much to see and do in Raleigh. Lee and I only had a day to spend in this interesting city. I will share with you where we went and what we were able to see. Since we only had a few hours we couldn't see everything. Thanks to Pinterest we found many family-friendly ideas, which were also free or inexpensive. I want to share these hidden gems with you as well.

After breakfast at Denny's (this was our first official meal together) we headed towards the North Carolina Museum of Art (https://ncartmuseum.org/) This museum is free of charge, but donations are encouraged. This museum holds classic and contemporary art and even has some interesting outdoor exhibits. As we walked inside it was a wide opened space. One side held the classic artwork, while the other side held contemporary art. It was interesting to see the difference in artwork throughout the years. My favorite part was the classic religious artwork. Lee enjoyed the Greek, Roman, and Egyptian pottery. The inside part was small, but there was, even more, to see outside.

We meandered along a pathway through the trees. We saw a fascinating whirlygig that spun and turned in the wind. This was made out of some kind of recyclable material. https://ncartmuseum.org/blog/view/return_of_the_whirligig

As we walked along the path we observed a lot of natural things. Along the trail, there were park benches to sit and rest along the way. You would see many people cycling or walking their dogs. We enjoyed looking at the plants and trees along the way.

The most interesting part of the outdoor exhibits was the Cloud Chamber for the Trees and Sky. This was a hut-like building that was very dark on the inside. There was a hole cut in the roof. When you closed the door the light shone threw the hole casting shadows of the surrounding trees all over the walls and floor of the chamber. This was very fascinating, and probably my favorite thing at the Museum.

After the museum, we ventured to The Prairie Ridge Eco-Station. It was an outshoot of the NC Museum of Natural Sciences. There were a nature trail and a small garden with different types of grass and plants. We saw some beautiful butterflies. They had swallowtail houses set up, as well as a bird-watching trail. https://naturalsciences.org/prairie-ridge

Before we headed back to my house we drove to the Sarah P. Duke Gardens. This was by far my favorite part of our day trip. We walked along the sidewalk observing the many different types of plants. We even found an adorable duck pond, with a park bench nestled under some trees. My favorite thing about the gardens was the fact it was a quiet place. You can hear the trees rustle, the ducks quack, and even a turtle splashing. There were several bridges. There was also a gazebo where Lee and I enjoyed some fresh fruit popsicle.

There is so much to see and do in North Carolina's State Capitol. Below are some ideas and links.