We are Moving

I snagged this picture from a Lysa Terkeurst  Instagram post but I think it best shows how I am feeling at the moment. There is beauty and excitement with pain and sadness.  David has been selected to relocate to Fayette Mall Chick-fil-A in Lexington, KY.  I am thrilled to be moving back to Kentucky, to a city that I love, and closer to family.  This move will be a great opportunity for David in his operator journey.

However, the thought of saying goodbye to our friends in the Quad Cities leaves me in tears.  YOU ALL are making this move very difficult.

After living on the road for two years where it got lonely and friends were scarce, we knew when we settled in Moline we wanted to get connected with new friends and community.  FYI - we were not created to do life alone! The Quad Cities was never a place I imaged living but God has extremely blessed our time here and given us the friendships we desired.  I see His hand in the house we lived in and in our neighbors, in our jobs, in our church and in extracurricular activities.  These past few years have not always been easy so THANK YOU for walking along side us and praying for us.  I can't even get though this post without tearing up.  We will miss you all dearly!

We are so grateful for our time in Moline, and grateful for the new opportunity in Lexington and the adventure ahead! GO CATS!!!

David is warming up to becoming a UK fan 😃

Update from the Halls

Hey Friends and Family,

I'm reviving the blog to update everyone a little bit about what's been going on in our lives.  I have been waiting to write this post when I could wrap it all up with a little cute bow.  When I could share the bad news with the good.  I wanted to write this post when I could announce at the end David and I are growing our family.  But here we are right smack in the middle of our story of infertility with no baby in sight.

Our story began in the fall of 2014 when we thought it was a good time to start a family.  We were living the dream in an ocean front hotel room and David was working at a Chick-fil-A in St. Petersburg, Fl.  I was beyond excited.  It was a really good season of life.  Fast forward a year - still not pregnant but friends were starting to tell us they were pregnant.  At this point I'm kinda bummed but it's only been a year - our time had not yet come.  In 2016 we moved to Moline, IL and for the first time in two years we were ready to settle down.  I thought - Bring on the babies!!  However, 2016 turned out to be the hardest year emotionally.  Part of me thinks it was a blessing we were so far away from friends and family because 2016 was the year every friend - high school, college, Raleigh-Durham area, CFA - was having a baby.  In all seriousness, I can think of 2 friends that did not give birth in 2016.  Next year was a whirlwind.  We were licensed foster parents in 2017 and we had a 6 week placement of a 3 year girl and 4 year old boy.  For two inexperienced parents, that was tough! We learned a lot including 2 kids was a little much for us.  

So here we are in 2018.  Friends and family are on baby #2 and I'm an emotional mess.  All the questions arise - why is that girl pregnant and not me, why does God think I'm not ready to be mom or not worthy to be a mom, why does this have to be so hard? And the toughest part of all was feeling so broken, left behind, and alone.  

To be really honest, it was a struggle to stay happy.  Which was SO frustrating because my life was and still is great!!  I could not understand why I had to fight so hard to be happy.  And I'm not a fighter.  I like to just run away.  There were plenty of days when I was ready to throw in the towel on God, the Bible, and christianity.  I was furious at God and the world.  There have been a lot of tears! A Lot!  

Then after some time (over night to weeks later), God in his gentle way would bring me back to him. What does that mean or look like? Well I really started to believe that if Jesus loved me enough to die on the cross for my salvation, he loved me enough to care for my daily life too.  I would have peace that mine and David's life was great and perfect just the way it was. I can't explain the peace but it's real.   

It has definitely been a roller coaster of emotion - crying in my pillow to I'm really doing well.  At this moment I have hit a high peak, and I have finally reached a point in the journey where I'm ready to talk about it.  Now I see this struggle with infertility as MY privilege to shout the name of Jesus even when life is hard and broken and messy.  By no means has this thought been easy.  It has taken me 4 years to get here.    

So for those of you dealing with hard and messy stuff, I'm here for you.  I'll do my best to help in any way I can.  If you want to talk about comparing your life to others - I've been there.  We must remind ourselves to run the race God gave us with our eyes on him. We've got to quit looking around.   If you want to talk about disappointment - yep been there too.  Want to talk about humbling yourself to God's plan and realize the world does not revolve around you - that is my daily challenge.  What I know is we have to keep looking at Jesus.  He is good.  God's plan is good.  Humility to the plan is hard (I like to be in control) but the fight is worth it.  If you want to ask about our journey with infertility, I'm ready (I think).  I will likely cry.  Not because I'm necessarily sad but it is just emotional and that's what I do.  You have been warned.  

Thanks to the few who have walked with us over the years and prayed for us! We appreciate your prayers as we continue to pursue a family.  We hope for the day when we can make that big announcement but until then we will continue to praise the name of Jesus and all he has done for us!

With Love,
Kaylee

The Day after Jesus's Crucifixion

Can you imagine living over 2000 years ago and seeing Jesus crucified on the cross?  All his friends, family and disciples thought he was the savior of the world.  Now he is dead.  For those early Christians the day after the crucifixion must have been awful.  I'm sure they were sad.  Hurt.  Disappointed.  Confused.  Wondering why it happened.  Wondering what was going to happen next.  Questioning God.

Have you ever been there? I have.  Sometimes life is hard and disappoints come.  Sometimes our plans in life do not turn out like we thought they would.  Just like those disciples did not see or understand the whole story, we do not always get to see or understand our whole story either.  But there IS HOPE! The disciples did not know the resurrection was coming but God knew.  He knew all along.  The grave was not going to hold Jesus down.  The death of Jesus on the cross was not the end of the story.  These difficult times in our lives are not the end of the story for us either.  

I'm not going to lie... some days it is hard for me to cling to that hope when all you want is a problem fixed or pain to go away.  But I'm learning we have to hold firm to Jesus.  Look to the cross.  Yes it was heartbreaking for his friends and family to see Jesus die.  It was disappointing and confusing.  So is life! But the resurrection is coming.  Joy is coming.  Sunday is coming.  It may not come tomorrow for us or next week or next year.  We may not see the good in our pain right now but God can see it.   God loves us and he has a perfect and good plan for our lives.  

So when life gets hard and confusing, always remember Jesus's tomb is empty!  He is seated on his throne!  The story of Jesus does not end at the cross in despair!  Sunday is coming! 

On The Road Like Never Before

On January 2nd David and I said goodbye to the team at the Tulsa Promenade Mall and sayonara to the Interim Manager Program.  On January 3rd we packed up and headed to Moline, IL... our soon-to-be new home!  We had two days to find a place to live before we headed to North Carolina with a quick stop in Kentucky on the way.  Thankfully we found a cute little house to rent just 5 minutes from David's restaurant.  We signed the lease and hit the road again.



After a few days in North Carolina spending time with David's family and friends in RDU, we boarded a plane to St. Croix.  We spent three wonderful days just laying on the beach.  It had been over 2 years since we were able to get away, and we enjoyed every minute listening to the waves and eating good food.  We left feeling rejuvenated and realized this vacation thing needed to happen every January.  Any friends or family are welcome to join next year.


Once we returned from vacation, we had just a few more days in Raleigh before we packed up the moving truck for Moline.  Wednesday January 20th, we loaded up the truck from the storage unit and then drove to Greensboro where we picked up more stuff from David's dad's house.  Thursday we made the long drive to my parent's house in Kentucky where again we had more stuff to pick up.  (Thanks to our parents for allowing us to store some things over the past 2 years!)  About a foot of snow and ice was predicted for Friday morning at my parent's in Franklin so at 7pm Thursday night we decided we needed to leave town now to get out of the way of the storm.  We drove almost to St. Louis where we stopped for the night.  It was definitely a good decision as Franklin was hit with 12 inches of snow on Friday.  We finished the drive to Moline Friday morning and then proceeded to unload the truck that evening.  We were all so thankful to make it to Moline without any trouble and no snow to slow us down.  Let me just say it felt so good to have our stuff out of storage and all in one place again! And nothing was broken or destroyed after 2 years in a non-climate controlled storage unit! YAY!  

We had one week to unpack before David left for training in Atlanta and I drove to Kentucky.  I spent a little time in Lexington catching up with friends and checking out all the changes at the University of Kentucky.  My old dorm is torn down :-( So much has changed in six years.

David spent two weeks in Atlanta, then three days in Houston, TX for operator coaching, and then both traveled to Orlando for Chick-fil-A Seminar.  I couldn't come to Orlando and not go to Disney, so we spent Saturday walking around Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Hollywood Studios.  I loved every minute!      

After Disney we spent the next four days with Chick-fil-A operators and corporate staff.  We heard inspiring speakers on leadership, the future of Chick-fil-A and lots of other interesting topics.    Lysa Terkeurst was one of the speakers and I loved hearing her talk! She is one of my favorite authors! (Maybe next year I will meet her)  The amazing Need To Breathe performance was quite a surprise!   We tasted some of the new products coming out this year...they are going to awesome!! Y'all just wait!! Some are coming next week!!  What made this trip even more spectacular was my birthday on the 23rd.  That night we sat front row at the Blue Man Group show and ate dinner at Universal City Walk.  It was a wonderful way to spend my birthday!

We arrived back in Moline on February 24th and started preparing for our next big adventure...operator and operator spouse.  On March 1st David took over as the Owner/Operator at Chick-fil-A at SouthPark Mall.  Here is the only picture I got that day so hopefully we can look back in 50 or so years at his career with Chick-fil-A and rememberer where it all started.  We are so humbled and blessed to be here and excited to support and love the community in Moline.

So after living out of a car for 2 years and living out of a suitcase for 2 month, we are done traveling....kinda.  I'll be going home again soon to meet my friend Sarah's little one, Anderson and my niece Aubrey when she finally graces us with her presence.

Overflowing with Abundance

Looking back on 2015, it has been a blur of awesomeness and excitement with some disappointments and challenges thrown in.  All year long God has blessed us with new friends and with seeing new parts of the United States (and Europe for me).  We have been on 3 assignments, traveled over 3000 miles and lived in one apartment and two hotels.









Some of the top highlights of the year

• Test driving a Ferrari
• Going to Harry Potter World for the first time
• Running in my 2nd half marathon at Disney
• Seeing the St. Petersburg Grand Prix
• Traveling to Berlin and Prague for sure
• Being the cow at Chick-fil-A for the first time
• And the biggest excitement of all is David being selected as an operator

In the fall, I was really struggling with wanting control of our future and wanting answers for what the future would hold.  My prayers to God were fix this situation and make this happen and make that happen.  One day I was reading through Psalms 95 and 96 and the Holy Spirit opened my eyes.  I was missing so much from my prayers.  God wants to work in my life and make things happen but it may be different from how I want it.  And how could I praise God like those two psalms when all my thoughts were on me.  Because of the Holy Spirit, my thoughts and prayers are changing.  I'm learning to lay down my plans, my dreams, my desires and trusting God with our future.  His plans, his ways, and his thoughts are higher than mine, and I'm trusting they are better than anything I could hope or dream.  

While the year has not been an easy one, it absolutely as overflowed with abundance.  God has been so gracious and taught he is good, he is always with us, and he has not forgotten us.  He has lavishly loved us and generously blessed us. Hard and uncertain times are never easy or fun, but they are pointing us to Jesus and making us more like him.  And for that I can be thankful.

The Day David Rang the Bell

On Sunday December 13th, David and I flew to Atlanta for David's final interview.  When we arrived at Chick-fil-A's Corporate Office the next day, I was a nervous wreck.  It must have shown because everyone I talked to told me to relax.   The road to this moment has been pretty crazy and challenging at times.  There have been several potential opportunities, many interviews in Atlanta and Tulsa, and lots of prayer for guidance, wisdom and peace.  All of David's hard work has been leading up to this day.  

I quickly and quietly snagged this picture of David waiting on the blue couch.  I must say...that's one good lookin' operator right there in the suit.

At the end of all the interviews, the selection consultant asked me pin David's new name tag to his jacket.  My hands were shaking and my eyes were watering at this point.  All of David's hard work, long hours, and determination were paid off at that moment.  The big moment we have been waiting for.... David was selected to be the owner/operator at the Chick-fil-A at South Park Mall in Moline, IL.  

Then it was time for David to ring the bell! All newly selected operators ring this bell and staff from home office come around to congratulate him/her.  David's powerful bell ringing was too much for me so I backed off and let him have the pleasure.  

The last stop was signing this board.  These are all the signatures of selected operators in 2015. David was one of the last ones of the year.  

Overall it was an awesome day, full of nerves for me mixed with lots of excitement.  This means the Interim Manager program and traveling chapter of our lives is coming to an end and an entire new operator chapter is beginning.  We are thrilled to be moving to the Quad Cities, and look forward to serving delicious Chick-fil-A sandwiches to the people in Moline.    

Assignment #6

We have been living in Tulsa, OK for three month now.  If I had one word to describe Tulsa it would be...HOT!!!  One night it was still 100 degrees at 7pm.  We are experiencing a current cold front right now where its only in the upper 70s in the day.  I love the warm sunshine but even I am hot here!

David's assignment is at the Tulsa Promenade Mall.  The awesome team is rockin' and rollin' serving guest delicious chicken sandwiches!  It has been a joy getting to know and working with   everyone here.

On August 5th, a brand spankin' new Chick-fil-A opened across the street from the mall.  With the new restaurant, there were five Grand Opening Supervisors (GOS) in town for about eight weeks.  Their role is similar to David's in that they also travel all over the US.  However, they work with grand openings and David works at established restaurants.  David and I have enjoyed spending time with the GOSs, their wives and the operator of the new restaurant and his family.  It was so nice to have new CFA friends in the area! Sadly they have all moved on to new assignments.

I'm a little behind on updates, so here are some fun things we have done since coming to Tulsa.

Our hotel is located on top of a hill that over looks Tulsa in a town called Broken Arrow.  It's a beautiful view from the front of the hotel, and we have seen some amazing sunsets.  On the Fourth of July we saw the whole town of Tulsa light up with fireworks.  While they weren't high, it was a spectacular sight.  Our room actually faces the back of the hotel and we could see the local fireworks in Broken Arrow from our couch!  We watched two great shows in our PJs! Happy Birthday America!

We have found a church to attend while in Tulsa, and one hot Sunday afternoon we watched Big Hero 6 on the church lawn.  Dinner at some local food trucks, friends, and a movie is great night even in the heat!