2025 .
IT HAS BEEN A WHILE.
I honestly can’t remember the last time I sat to write something personal, type something other than a generic google search, or seriously took the time to just sit and do something dealing with technology for myself. So—here. we. go.
It is currently June 1, 2025. The beginning of nearly the middle of 2025 and I am sitting in the guest room of what will soon be our ‘not so new house.’ Exactly one year ago today (June 1, 2024), my family of 6 (Myer, Tiana, Azai, Avery, Noah and Noel) had just landed in Jacksonville, Florida heading on a vacation after packing up our home, shipping our two vehicles and moving out of our Norfolk home.
We’d spent the last weeks of May 2024, saying goodbye to friends, emptying our 4-bedroom home and shipped our cars to Georgia, where we were taking a BOLD step of faith and moving to. While moving was something we’d sadly grown used to by then, this one was different. We’d moved 7 times already in our short 8 years of marriage—twice by personal choice, the other times following military orders and “going where the Navy sent us.” This time, we’d chosen the destination, but for the first time did not have a place to officially call home.
Myer and I took such a WILD leap following his decision to leave the military. We didn’t like the thought of having to move again, however, we were finally free enough to make a decision for our family and we were bold enough to take it. My family members were gracious enough to rally beside us in prayer, lent hands when needed, and provided a home and safe place for us and our boys; honestly supporting us more than we could have ever imagined.
Sitting here thinking of just how much we’ve been able to accomplish in this year alone has me grateful for three things:
1. God’s eternal love for us. I’m still sadly able to hear the echoes of individuals who questioned our decision to leave the “safety of the military,” those who thought we were insane to move into my sister’s basement and those long nights wondering if we’d ever find a place that felt like home to us. In and through it all, we never questioned God’s love for us. We held strong to Proverbs 10:22 and knew that God’s blessings make rich and adds no sorrow. I was constantly reminded that God gives favor and divine provisions for those who abide in Him. While we were still searching for answers in the physical, trusting God to provide a job for Myer and a place of our own; God’s blessings were clearly shown in the love and lives of our boys during this transition.
2. The importance of being in unity with your spouse. Moving is arguably one of the WORST times we’ve ever experienced in our marriage. It’s something about moving that just shakes up and attempts to crumble every ounce of peace we have. But man, once we started forcing healthy communication, pushed aside our feelings and stopped pointing fingers at each other, we were able to truly support one another and get through the transitions. 1 Peter 4:8 became a constant message for us both—we were called to love each other deeply because love covers all of the sins and conflicts we were bound to have. Regardless of how upset I was or how hard it was for me to communicate peacefully with Myer, loving him deeply meant I had to love him through the conflicts, no matter how difficult. In maintaining unity, we were able to control the temperament of our family and remain as a unit.
3. The blessing and support from family and community. In our short year of being in Georgia, we have re-established crucial family bonds and gained such an amazing community. Almost DAILY, I’m reminded why it was so important for us to move closer to my sisters. It has helped heal the massive holes created from countless tough days solo-parenting because of Myer’s military jobs. I’m learning to lean into the help that God has provided to us and the true treasure we have in having such a LARGE family. Many days we can simply open our garage and instantly have nearly a dozen friends to play with. Azai can ride his bike throughout the neighborhood without me stressing (too much), Avery has space to build endless monster truck challenges and the twins love how leisurely they can roam to and from our front and backyards looking for things to play with. Their is blessing in community (1 Cor. 12:27).
Our willingness to ‘say yes’ to God’s asking us if we trusted Him has lead us to such an incredible level of faith. He constantly shows His love for us and we are always reminded of how He blesses us when we simply trust Him with our ‘little.’ He always has, and I’m confident that He always will turn our little into much. Moving has opened so many doors for us and has reaffirmed our reasons for making the hard decisions that we’ve made—they’ve all been worth it and have yielded such good fruit.
As Myer’s Fatherhood work (I’ll write on that soon enough) continues to expand and grow, I’m grateful to know we have the chance to continue pointing others to Christ in their marriage, their parenting, and in their individual lives. We DO NOT have all the answers, but we’re confident in where to find them <3
~ Tiana
