1 Graduation + 4 Christmases

I know it has been forever since I have posted, but I was busy finishing my undergrad!! :)  Yes, yes I had opportunities to post. I was just never in the mood when I did have the chance.

Well school has been up and down and all around, but as of Friday the 10th I was done with classes and as of Friday the 17th I will be gradumacated!!!  

This Christmas season Korey and I will be all over the place celebrating the birth of Jesus with our families.  As soon as Korey got off work this past Friday, we headed to Arkansas with my parents for Christmas #1. We spent time with family, played Dirty Santa and Loaded Questions. It was a fast paced weekend to say the least, as it is Sunday night and we are home. 

Tomorrow I get to sub again for my friend Mary Rachel and her beautiful children at Roosevelt Elementary. I have loved having the opportunity to sub for her this semester and get more experience with students with disabilities. The rest of the week for me is relaxed and hopefully full of cleaning, organizing, and resting before graduating on Friday night!!! :) 

I have had some nightmares in my life about not showing up to things, or showing up and just being completely unprepared. Example: Korey and I's wedding... nightmare= I didn't show up. Not because I didn't want to be there, but as nightmares go, I just couldn't get there. I have had one nightmare about graduation and not making it there on time and then getting there eventually dressed in sweatpants with out my cap and gown. Let's just say, I will be early and already have my outfit picked out!

As soon as graduation is over, Korey and I will head to Kansas with his brother Richard and his fiance for Christmas #2. We will most likely have a weekend of catch phrase and maybe some snow! But we will head back Sunday because AT&T must have Korey on Monday. 

Christmas Eve and Day will be spent at Korey's Mom's house - Christmas #3 and the day after at my parent's house - Christmas #4. 

I am thankful that we have so many family members that love us and are close enough to spend the holidays with. Unlike the movie, Four Christmases, we are not trying to do go to 4 different houses in one day, but we have it spread out over the weeks leading up to Christmas and appreciate our families helping us out with that coordination. 

We are truly thankful for our Father sending his Son to be a lowly human upon this earth. We hope to share that love from our Father with our family and others this Christmas season as we try to every other time of the year. 

So the rest of the break, I will be awaiting an email with my student teaching placements and hopefully reorganizing/cleaning the house. Korey will be working like crazy till Christmas and then hopefully taking some vacation in January before I start student teaching. 

I will be trying to stay more caught up with the blog. I appreciate my friends that stay caught up, so I should do the same!!

This graduation, my chief end is to glorify Christ.
This Christmas Season... chief end... glorifying the Christ of Christmas!

We're Staying in OK

Over the last 6 or 7 months, Korey had been battling the idea of moving to Louisville to go to Southern Seminary and if that's what we were suppose to be doing. I didn't know he had been battling this or that it was up for question until the beginning of September. Since I had known it was an option that we could stay, my mind started racing the possibilities for our lives, our church family, and my teaching career here in Oklahoma. Then I was confronted by Korey with the idea that I just needed to stay in prayer about it. I needed to stop focusing on OK and keep my heart open to the possibility of both. We decided to stop discussing either option for a few weeks and both stay in prayer and then we'd revisit the ideas later.
Ten days went by and we hadn't spoken about anything really farther than 2 months out and kept the topic of moving completely silenced. Those 10 days included a lot of prayer and only by God's grace did I have the ability to be patient. Then Korey mentions on that 10th day that he has something he wants to tell me, but didn't want me to be too happy. Then he said, "You can start planning on staying in Oklahoma." I tried my best to not show my "too much happiness" but I was excited!! To test the realness of the situation, I asked if I could tell my Mom (who didn't know we'd been battling the idea for a month or so). When Korey said I could, I knew this was a decision he did feel strongly about.

I am trying to contain my joy. However, the possibilities and relationships that get to grow because we are staying are almost uncountable. Here are a few in no particular order:

• Our Church Family at University Fellowship is amazing and we have been growing closer to couples and members so much lately.
• Korey has been building strong relationships with some great men and as iron sharpens iron, one man sharpens another. They have truly been learning from each other in their search for Christ's truth and understanding. 
• There are many girls in my life that I had started to distance myself from this summer with the idea that we'd be moving the next year. However, since August, many of those relationships have blossomed and grown into things that God has created and made so precious and helpful in my life.
• Capitol Hill Elementary - this school and it's hurting community has relit a desire in my heart to work with the unloved, unwanted, hurting, and broken. (Watching the documentary on America's failing school system "Waiting for Superman" last night only fired up my heart and encouraged me to work in those districts that need the good teachers. It also made me HATE the idea of tenure more than ever before! My reflection statement after the movie was: No child should ever hear "Not Accepted" or "Wait-listed"when it comes to their Primary Education. That was heart-breaking.
• I will be applying to work at Capitol Hill and other "inner city" schools of OKC. 
• Staying close to family is just very comforting to me. It may allow us to have children sooner than we thought, but we're still a couple years away from that. 

Well, just wanted to make that announcement and explain some of it to you all!

We will glorify Christ in our plans to stay here. 

so we're Henrys...

Welcome to the Blog of The Henrys (or the Henries)! :)  As you know from the end of the old blog, we are now Korey and Crystal Henry.  The name change process has got to be one of the most tedious tasks known to any bride, however, I'm doing it for the 2nd time in less than 15 months. So far I have a new license, changed it with my insurance provider, our savings account bank, the University of Oklahoma, OG&E, ONG, and Korey's insurance provider. Sounds like we have a lot covered so far, but the list continues. Next will be sending proof off to Missouri to get Korey's birth certificate changed. He needs to go get his new license. Then we need new passports, social security cards, car titles, bank cards, and car insurance. There are still a few more that we need to do as well. But all in all... it's not bothering me much because I know that it's for a good reason.

On another note, Korey and I have prayed and prayed about going to China this summer. We have such a time of transition this summer with me finishing school and Korey quitting AT&T in May, so we have felt God showing us how perfect it is for us to go to China this summer to serve Him. So we have decided, we are going to China. Exact dates and length have yet to be determined, but that is our summer mission. Please be praying for us as we continue to seek God's guidance in this trip.

Our church, University Fellowship Church, is moving buildings in a few weeks. It's kind of exciting that we'll be in an actual church building for the first time since we've been a church, but kind of sad that we'll be losing our modern collegey feel.

I've got a Zumbathon tomorrow in the city with a friend and we're pretty excited for a few hours of Zumbaing!! Then on Monday I am heading to Tulsa to see my sister Jade!!! :)  I haven't seen her since sometime this summer and I miss her dearly. She's been living in Cali, but is home for a bit and I'm so glad I get to see her! Korey has midterms at Seminary on Monday so be praying that God can grant him the peace to convey what he knows on those tests. Sometimes tests just make you forget things you really do know!

Glorifying Christ as Henrys!...