"a more excellent way"

oh, hey.

Name's Kacee.

Been a while.

Let's catch up, yeah?

First and foremost, I should mention Nate's doctor appointment back in May. He had his baseline scan for his cancer. I am EXTREMELY happy to report that everything looks good! No signs of the cancer coming back and things were still healing well! He still has to get surgery on his eye, nose, jaw, and get teeth back in...but all of those surgeries can wait until Nate is fully healed and ready for more surgeries. Nate felt like he just wanted to wait for a while. He said that he really doesn't mind having a 1/4 of his teeth missing...haha. We'll see if he ever gets more teeth. Dr. Hunt told us that it was time to "get on with life."

And on with life we did...

As many know, we have had some massive ch, ch, changes around here! A few days after my last post Nate was offered the Head Cross Country & Track Coach at Idaho State University. This is something Nate has been waiting for ever since he started his Masters degree back in 2010. His whole intention of pursuing a degree in Exercise Physiology was to coach. He has spent HOURS (some of which I have been grumpy about because he needs to focus on me allllll da time, right?! ;) ) learning, thinking, and practicing coaching. I know I am his wife, but if I honestly try and be neutral, I really think he has worked harder than most to get to this point. Especially if you throw in the past year of fighting for his life. Needless to say, we just might have been the happiest lil' family that has ever moved to lil' Pocatello 3 weeks ago.

If imma be real though, when Nate first applied for the job, I wasn't all that thrilled. I am an adventurer at heart and I felt like the world (okay, the U S of A) was our oyster. I was all sorts of prepared for Nate to get a job in like, the furthest most point of New Hampshire or something. I mean, who even lives in New Hampshire? I was just ready for a big and wild change. So when things started getting more real with Idaho State I was honestly a little disappointed. Not only is Pocatello very similar to Utah in lots of ways...it was somewhere I had been a few times and never had a great opinion of.

However, after these past couple of years, my testimony of divine guidance and timing has grown exponentially. I feel like we have seriously have had the Lord holding our hand and leading us to the exact situations, exact places, and the exact timing we needed. I feel very strongly that the Lord has a very specific role for us and, if we let him guide us and work hard, we will accomplish great things.

Nate actually had a job offered to him back in early April. It was really good money, in Utah county, and really, would have been a very safe, and financially wise move to take it... it wasn't coaching though. After going through all he did, Nate had a greater appreciation and desire to be passionate about what he does for a career. He prayed about it and, while in the temple, got a distinct answer that this wasn't the job to take. So as crazy as it seemed to some people, he turned it down.

A month later we found ourselves flying in from Puerto Vallarta to SLC at 11 pm and driving through the rain to Pocatello that same night just so Nate could be at an interview the next morning at 7:30 am. Nate was super excited about the job from the get go. As mentioned above, I just couldn't quite muster up the same excitement. But, as I also mentioned above, I felt very strongly that we had a very specific place the Lord wanted us. So, I prayed about it. I prayed specifically that if this Idaho State job was the job for us, that I could be excited about it. I also prayed that no matter what job he got, it would be a good situation for all of us.

To be completely honest, I have actually been nervous for Nate to go back into coaching. Mostly just because it is a BIG time commitment from August to June and he travels a LOT. After I had Ames, that was seriously one thing that made my PPD so bad - I was alone, in a little house, with a newborn almost every weekend. Weekends were my lowest times. So knowing that we want to have more kids, I was scared I couldn't handle him being gone so much.

But the more I prayed, the more excited I got. The more peace I felt that I would be okay and be able to handle his coaching schedule. The more I realized that Idaho State was the place for us to be. This sounds a little cocky, but a couple weeks before he even got the job I was already looking for houses just because I felt excited and sure about it.

And boom. He got it. And the more time that goes on & especially after living here for 3 weeks, I am more sure than ever that this is the place for us. I'm still not sure exactly why Pocatello is our place, (leaving my adventurous heart slightly crushed) but I do know that we are in the right place, at the right time.

I also know that the Lord is not only looking out for our little family. He is looking out and, if we let Him, will guide each and every one of us down our individual paths. He will lead us to a life that is more fulfilling and rewarding than we could ever imagine.

"... and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way." - 1 Corinthians 12:31

So, let the Pocatello adventures begin!

We are ready to domiNATE our next adventure in life.

#teamdomiNATE

P.S. here are a some pictures of our new adventure thus far:

first night in our apartment (as we look for a house) guy is just the best.

exploring some trails in Pokey.

already took a weekend trip to Yellowstone!

I have my father-in-law to thank for this great picture...hahha.

so...we kinda signed the lease without realizing there was no A/C in our apartment! And that heat wave hit right after we moved in! Needless to say...we all were as naked as possible most of the time.

4th of July!

typical bedtime routine for these two...note: how well Ames PJs match...#godad

it might not be spectacular....but Pocatello does have a Zoo!