Skimming the Surface

     Hello eager readers, my name is Kara. Oops, hold on for a moment please I have to solve a MAJOR problem in the house right now. “Yes, kids, it’s okay to use the skim milk in your cereal. I’ll run to the store later and pick up 2% for you all. No, it’s not made up of 99% water. Your big brother is just joking.” Okay, I’m back and welcome to my blessed life.

     This adventure is going to be so exciting for all of us. In my heart I believe this to be a pivotal moment in my life and I hope in yours. As a newbie to blogging there may be days I’m confused with what to say so I will call on God to speak through me. I pray that in those conversations with Him, God will give me the words to impact someone’s life somewhere. I am confident you all will support me in finding my voice while I begin this exciting journey. Allowing readers into my daily life, opinions and beliefs excites me almost as much as my favorite football team winning the Super Bowl.

     Meeting Tara and CC one year ago has been nothing short of a miracle in my eyes. God’s perfect plan has brought me to two of the most inspiring people I have ever been blessed to know. It is an honor to be part of something special with these remarkably talented women of faith. Starting this blog, I believe, is just the beginning of an exciting roller coaster ride for the three of us and hopefully for all of you. Make sure to punch your ticket and jump in with us as we go through twists, turns and maybe upside down once in a while. My hope is that you will enjoy the ride so much you’ll never want to get off the roller coaster. I must leave you now because one of my children decided to decorate the floor with Honey Nut Cheerios and skim milk. Remember there is a reason for you to be here just as much as there is a reason for me to be here. Please enjoy and share in this journey with Tara, CC and me.

The first time we meet...

"What was your name? My name is CC."

Strange way to begin my first blog post, right? But, if I saw you at the gym, at the pool, or any other places I frequent often, that's probably how I would introduce myself to you. And to say that I'm very nervous about contributing to this blog, what with Tara's way with words, and Kara's wit, and both of their extremely engaging personalities, is to put it very, very, mildly.

So I'll start with what I'm familiar with. If I met you, I'd ask you a lot of questions about yourself, hopefully without making you feel like I was interrogating you. I just like people. For real. But since I can't see you face to face, I'll have to let you into my life first. My prayer is that you grow to love me, my crazy life, and my thoughts, as much as I already love you. Even when you disagree with me or think I've gone off the deep end.  (I'm going to totally depend on you to speak up at that point!)

I had a very exciting childhood growing up in Lima, Peru. We moved back to the States the year I turned 14. I was a freshman in high school. Yes. I was devastated. But I know now that God had a plan and all my past trials have helped me become the woman I am today.

I graduated from Don Bosco High School in 1994, and graduated from UNI in 1998 with a degree in accounting, and with my first life goal in check... Passing the CPA exam (CPA stands for Certified Public Accountant or Can't Pass Again... Either one in my case!)

I met my second life goal by landing a job in Minneapolis, MN, at a firm formerly known as Arthur Andersen, LLP, the firm where my dad began and ended his career as a retired partner so he could take up farming in Iowa. Yup. I followed in my dad's footsteps. I've always been a daddy's girl, even when I may not have wanted to admit it.

I met my third life goal by marrying Tyler, my best friend. The first time we met was at Sharky's on the Hill in Cedar Falls. But he'll tell you that the first time we met was at a hockey game, not at a bar (I preferred to call it a dance club). I spent all of college dating him, and marrying him was the second best decision I ever made!

So fast forward to the present. We have two incredible kids. Isabella is 9 and Cooper is 4. We added a maltipoo named Cotton and a basketball hoop to our driveway in the last month. So I guess we are now a complete bunch, your typical all-American family. And life is a little crazy around our home. But this former career-loving woman wouldn't have it any other way. We're a happy bunch, not a perfect one, but I wouldn't trade us for anything else in this world!

Now that you know the "facts" about my life, I hope you'll join me as I join this new conversation with Tara and Kara. Pray for me please! Pray for me that I may find my "voice" like Tara mentioned. And that the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart may be pleasing to God. I think of this blog that Tara asked me to be a part of as a gift, and I don't take it lightly, knowing that every good and perfect gift comes from above.

Love, C.

A New Chapter

After five years of Baby Steps blogging, I can't step away... entirely. So two of my neighborhood friends, Bible study chicks like me, are joining forces with this former news anchor to keep the conversation going.

Kara, a 30-something mother of 4, is a stay-at-home mom who moved here from Kansas last year for her husband's job.

CC, another 30-something who has 2 kids, also stays home but handles accounting for the properties she manages with her husband. 

They will find their distinct blogging voices, as I did. Hope you'll continue to check in and follow our journeys.  More pictures and videos to come!