Both of our stories start back in high school. For as long as I can remember, I had always planned to go to school at UW-Eau Claire. It was a great school for studying Elementary Education and it wasn't too far from my small town wisconsin hometown. Then my cousin, Danielle, convinced me that I should go with her to UW-River Falls. Also a great school for Elementary Education, but a bit farther from home. Danielle, however, did not end up going to River Falls right away but I decided to go it alone. It was at this school that I met some of my best friends and started on my journey of what it really means to have a relationship with God and follow Him in all I do.
My first group of friends Freshman year.
As graduation day rolled around, 3.5 years later, I found myself not wanting to leave the area where my friends would be - Minnesota. At the same time, I felt God calling me to go to Bethel Seminary in St. Paul, MN to study Marriage and Family Therapy. Luckily, since I don't like to do big things like that alone, my friend Amy was also planning to go. Again, this friend decided not to go after all and away I went by myself. Because I graduated early, in December 2009 instead of May 2010, I decided to start to make my journey to MN early. In January 2010, I moved to Stillwater, MN (a little farther west). This was a BIG adjustment for me and, honestly, I almost moved home the day I moved there! The move was made with a single part time job as a nanny that would only pay the first month's rent. But God provided and within a month I was also working as the Director of Children's Ministry at a church. Not only was this God's provision, but it was a dream come true! I was loving life!
August 2010 then rolled around and I made the move again (even farther west) to St. Paul, MN to start my journey at Bethel Seminary. Another adjustment for me. It had taken me awhile in Stillwater to get used to the sound of cars at night, but now there was a highway right out my bedroom window! Moving to St. Paul put me a little farther from the group of friends I had just started to develop while in Stillwater and also gave me the need to find a new church. I started attending Substance Church in Fridley and slowly but surely found a group of girls to get connected with. However, I would attend the weekly small groups and then go home and not talk to them until the next week and sometimes conversation each week was hard for me. I never felt like I had anything to contribute. It was a group of mainly single girls and the majority of them would talk each week about their dating lives and match.com profiles. So I decided, what the heck, if these girls are doing it, I'll give it a try and then I'll at least have something to talk with them about. (For most this may have been a sign to find a different group, but God had me there for a reason.)
I was on match.com for less than a month before deciding to end my subscription. Some creepy, much older men would try to talk to me and I just wasn't thinking it was worth it. Then "Jim Foote" winked at me. My first thought was "this guy looks like a player", but I winked back at him. Now I wasn't too good at this new technology and later decided maybe I wasn't interested in this guy after all and sent him a "not interested" message. But Jim never got that. Instead, he sent me his one and only VIP message (Very Interested Person). My "player" thoughts left my mind and we started messaging back and forth. But then I decided to be done on match.com and explained this to Jim who told me to add him on Facebook. So I did. And messaging continued. Next thing I knew, he gave me his phone number and told me to text him...so I did. Eventually he asked me out, but I was busy. Don't worry, he asked again. This time I said yes, but asked to not go to dinner (this was too formal for me). After messaging for about 6 weeks, we finally met up on June 11, 2011. We went to Canterbury Park and had a great time betting against each other on who would win the races. But after our first date, I didn't see Jim again until July! In July we went to the Fireworks and then he also came to Country Jam with me and we took our first picture together. In August I watched his cute little puppy, Baxter, and started to think he was just using me as his "puppy sitter".
Country Jam 2011
Baby Baxter
Isn't he just too cute!?
So what's the deal with this Jim guy?? Jim grew up in Upstate NY, so the fact that he ever even came to Minnesota is a complete act of God. In high school, Jim started to work for Best Buy as a seasonal employee. Due to a major storm, he actually almost didn't even make it to his first day of work! But luckily he did, and things only progressed from there. Eventually he moved up to be a Store Manager which led him on trips to the Corporate Office in Minnesota. After a few of these visits, Jim got to thinking that he might really like to work for Corporate and make the move to Minnesota. When a position opened up that interested him, he applied and landed the job! Next thing he knew, he was moving to MN and starting a new life for himself.
Part of Jim starting a new life involved working a Monday-Friday 9-5 type job, which freed up hi Sundays. Since he would be free, he wanted to find a church and decided to do some church shopping. However, it was a "one stop shop" because Jim attended Hosanna! in Lakeville and decided that the Lord had led him there. While Jim did go to church from time to time while he was growing up, it was here at Hosanna! that his faith journey really started to take off. Another part of God's plan. God knew I would have some serious faith questions for my future husband and without God working in Jim through Hosanna! and speaking to me about him, I probably would have ended things before Jim had much of a chance.
At the time I had met Jim on match.com, he had been doing online dating for some time and was giving it one last shot. He was looking for his wife and while I was looking to connect with my small group, I really wanted to find my husband someday too. Neither of us were just looking to "date around".
In August 2011, when Jim made a trip home to New York for work and to visit his family, he told his grandma that he was going to marry me! I, on the other hand, was still in the dark to the fact that we were even dating! We hadn't seen each other much. However, we did live kinda far apart. By the end of August, though, God had opened a door for me to leave Seminary at Bethel and move to Burnsville (much closer to Jim) and take a full time job as an Employment Counselor. I applied, got the job, moved and started a new life within a matter of 2 weeks! Sounds like God's hand to me!
Once I was living in Burnsville, Jim started to really pursue me. We were hanging out nearly every night the first week I was there. Then came Labor Day Weekend 2011. My family was in town and we all went to the Minnesota State Fair. My family was in love with Jim at this point and I sure was liking him too!
Jim and I at the state fair.
That day, when Jim dropped me off at my apartment, he asked to kiss me on the cheek. Me, being clueless, was a little unsure because I didn't want him kissing me when we weren't even dating! But I let him :) Later that day, though, we ended up having a DTR conversation (Defining The Relationship). It was official. He was my boyfriend! And boy did that sound/feel weird! But I loved it!
Come October of that year, Jim made the trip home with me to visit my family and make a trip to Mellen, WI and visit Copper Falls with my cousin, Danielle and her husband and new baby Blake.
Jim and I at the beautiful Copper Falls State Park.
It was this trip that really sealed the deal for us both and we knew that this was it! After we got back to Minnesota, Jim started talking to his mom on the phone A LOT and I was thinking "this just isn't okay" ha ha. But come to find out later, he was talking to her about proposing to me! Eventually we had the conversation with each other and Jim asked my parents for permission! On my timeline, we had only really been "dating" for just over a month, but we had known each other for 5 months. But we knew and there was no denying that.
Jim started his over the top planning making sure the proposal would be extra special for me. And boy was it ever! In November I went home with Jim to New York to meet his family...and get engaged! Jim and I also had made a special trip to New York City where he proposed to me at the Rockefeller Center Ice Rink! Little did he know, this was how I had always DREAMED of being proposed to but never thought it would even be a possibility!
Proposal on the ice.
Dinner by the Ice Rink later that night.
So the wedding planning began and 9 months later we were married! It was a perfect day and I could barely keep myself from bawling as I walked down the aisle knowing that my dreams had come true in this man. We were so blessed to also be able to take a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas for our honeymoon and returned only to find out a month later that we were pregnant!
Our first baby, Christian James, arrived a week late on May 29, 2013. Being a mama is everything I dreamed and imagined and so much more! I still can't believe this sweet baby boy grew in my belly for 9 months and now he is here and he is ours! I love him so much!
Christian James Foote at 2 days old
Christian James Foote at 3 weeks old
To me, this is my fairytale. It definitely isn't always easy, but I know it's God best for me and He will be with me through it all and I feel so blessed every day, in the good times and the bad. We are so excited for all that this life will bring!
i just found you via ruthie hart on the merlin sleep suit reviews -- i am living in MN too! i also got married in august of '12 and just had our first baby (a boy!) LATE in august '13! loved reading about your adorable family! congrats!
ReplyDeleteHi Sarah! Thanks so much for stopping by and checking out my blog! So glad to have you here! :) Small world!!! Crazy how similar our stories are! Congrats to you on your little one too! Isn't being a mommy the best hardest thing ever!?! :)
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