Thursday, January 6, 2011

Family Photos

This Christmas has been our busiest yet.  With Travis being in ministry... Christmas is busy, but being that he is in music ministry the season tends to be even busier with all the rehearsals, performances and extra concerts.  He was in a musical at church and he played/sang for several Christmas concerts.  In addition to that, we had a ton of photo shoots scheduled, some of which even got rescheduled into the new year due to the rain.  All this to say, we actually got rained out from our own family photo shoot with my brother-in-law, Trever and so we took what Jen and I call "new year's" pictures ;)  

Thanks to Trever for doing an amazing job!  He always amazes us with his talent and his artist ability.  Trever was a painter before he ever became a photographer and thus, he has an edge that is just phenomenal!  And thanks to my sister, Summer for helping to style our wardrobe.  All my sisters have great style and I love shopping with them.  Sometimes it is just nice to have a second pair of eyes to see things even in your own closest differently.  This year all I knew was that I wanted to wear the boots Travis gave me for Christmas, a dress and red lipstick :)  haha... and I wanted Hudson to wear his Christmas bow tie.  I had ordered his bow tie a few months ago from the same girl on etsy that I ordered his Easter bow tie.  She is great, because I sent her a picture of the fabric I was looking for in a bow tie and she made one for me.  I am a sucker for a good etsy shop :) 

Summer helped picked out my dress (which only cost $22) and the rest of my outfit and then we pulled together Hudson's outfit from things we already had (minus the shoes that were originally $60 on sale for $24... side note: who would ever buy a pair of shoes for a toddler for $60!).  Travis and I found his shirt, cardigan and bow tie and the best part was that all the items were on sale, then on sale again, and then marked down another 30%.   We texted a picture to Summer for the final approval :)  I don't normally blog about our clothes, but I wanted to give credit to my awesome sister :)  If you ever need help styling for an event, a photo shoot or you want to update your house... you should give her a call

So, here are a few of our favorites of our "new year" pictures:

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Big Announcements!!!

We have TWO REALLY BIG ANNOUNCEMENTS.

First off... Travis' new Hymns Record is finally available for purchase and will be on itunes next week!!!  This could not have been possible without the amazing group of guys who have poured their talent, resources and energy into recording this album.  If you want to order a hard copy email Travis at Travis@TravisRyanMusic.com.  For those of you who are local, you can come get your copy of the new album at the Night Of Worship service this Wednesday, January 5th at 7:00 at Saddleback, Lake Forest.  Otherwise, the album will be up next week for you to download off itunes!


Secondly, after several months of praying, discussing, negotiating, praying, seeking counsel and praying... Travis finally signed with the music label Integrity!!!  He is officially signed as an artist and as a writer.  It really has been quite the journey just getting here and we are thrilled to be on the edge of this new beginning.  Travis' heart has always been to write music for the church that is theologically sound and engages people to connect with God.  He has been doing this for years, but now he will have the support of the team at Integrity.

No, this does not mean Travis will be a rock star and that is actually far from what he wants to be.  What this does mean is that God has clearly opened doors to use some of these gifts he has been developing in Travis. When Travis and I first met in college there was a different label looking at signing him and there have been other conversations with different labels along the way, however, it never felt like doors God was opening... until now.

I do realize this means my husband will be traveling more, but I trust that God is first in his life and Hudson and I are definitely second.  I know that he loves us immensely and that no opportunity is worth the sacrifice of family.  So, with that said we know this means there will be a tight line that we walk.  There is great sacrifice that is involved and a lot of unanswered questions, but we trust that God will guide us along the way.

No, this does not mean that our lives have drastically changed... well at least not immediately.  Right now, we are just taking a leap of faith.  Sometimes you just have to trust the direction God is leading even when you don't have all the answers.

No, this does not mean that he is leaving Saddleback Church.  As we have been processing this whole opportunity the last 10 months or so, we have been so blessed to have the wonderful love and support from several key people in Travis' life at Saddleback.  Travis' heart and my heart is to always stay connected with the local church.  So, being at Saddleback is instrumental for us.

What this does mean... is that we are honored, thankful and blessed to be given such a wonderful opportunity.  We covet your prayers that God would give Travis wisdom as he leads our family on this new journey.  And most importantly that God would be glorified and honored as Travis uses his gifts in hope of building up the church.


And a post isn't fun without a few pictures, so here are a few pictures from the State Youth Conference that was held at the Long Beach Convention Center where Travis and his band led worship.  This is the second year he has been blessed with the opportunity to lead for this conference and it has been such an amazing experience.


It feels so good to finally be able to openly share what God has been doing in our lives this past year and we are excited to see how it begins to unfold in this new year of 2011!