#SpeedsDoKorea

"Go from your country, your people, and your father's household to the land I will show you." (Genesis 12:1)

It's hard to believe that the last time I sat down to write a post, was when we agreed to move to South Korea. Now 8 months later, after many delays, and stressful conversations we are here and "settled". It's been 5 weeks since we hopped on a plane and moved half way across the world and boy has it been an adventure already. 

As many of you know, the emotional journey I was on preparing myself to move so far from home was a frustrating one. I cried a little. I prayed a lot. I stressed about things I had no reason to stress about and I got frustrated with things that were out of my control. Looking back now I laugh because I realize that my move to Texas was an adjustment that would prepare me for this and I had no reason to worry at all. 

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.... Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?" 

(Matthew 6:25-27)

These were the words of our bible study last week as we discussed the story of Abram and Sarai. As clearly as it is written I see that there is nothing we have been handed that we aren't prepared for, or able to handle. This is the outlook I have had while we are on this amazing journey and it is the reason I am happy to be so far from home. Not to say we don't miss home, but we are grateful to be where we are. Garrett and I have been given an incredible opportunity to see the world, and travel to places we would have never imagined. We have been able to share quality time with each other in incredible ways. We have explored together, we have adapted together, and we have learned together. It's been an amazing experience and it has only begun. 

So what have we been up to!?!?!?!

After 24+ hours of travel we made it to Ulsan on July 9th! We have been in exploration mode every day since. Garrett had a few days off before he started work so we immediately hit the streets to figure out our new home away from home.

 

Ulsan has a lot of trails for hiking, mountain biking, etc. The local community is very active and spends a lot of time outside- which has been great for us. I've seen 70 year old women in better shape than me- which is really funny when we hike uphill and they pass me without breaking a sweat. There are workout stations randomly placed along the trails along with parks and views of the city. Since the city is right on the coast there are lots of beaches too. 

 As much as we enjoy hiking and having a run through the trails, we thought we would get around a lot better with some wheels- so we both have bikes as our primary mode of transportation. We are the coolest kids on the road with our matching his and hers helmets. 

 If you know anything about us it's that we love to eat! I was a little hesitant to some things at first but it should be no surprise that we have been adventurous in trying all of the delicious cuisine of the city. We have even started to pack some of our favorite local goodies for park picnics as a break during our long bike rides. 

There are coffee shops EVERYWHERE- which is a perfect treat after a long cardio outing. 

Korean BBQ, Ramen, Gimbap, and Indian cuisine are just a few of our favorites. 

While we aren't taking bike journeys and stuffing our faces we are adapting to the every day life. Grocery store trips are a bit more challenging without a vehicle.... 

..but I am a professional now :) 

Cooking has been a learning process without some of my normal "American" ingredients & spices but I'm adjusting to use the different options I can pick up at the local stores and street markets. I've learned to make homemade curry (for my new obsession of Indian food), as well as some dishes using popular Korean ingredients :) We eats lots of cabbage now. Garrett didn't realize how much he loved cabbage until now so I incorporate it in a lot of dishes. It's been a great alternative to rice and pasta. 

There are so many dishes we haven't tried yet. We haven't missed food from home too bad yet (except for Tex mEX), so we have done our best to try new things while we can. 

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Aside from all of the fun we have been having in our free time we are also enjoying the business side of all of Garrett's hard work, appreciating the reason we have been given the opportunity to be here. This week was the Naming Ceremony for his rig. It was an awesome celebration for he and fellow workers and an honor to have been here by his side. 

The day was filled with appreciation to all of the parties involved in this project. It was great to be able to meet so many people that Garrett works with. We were both so amazed with all of the detail that went along with the planning, and how incredible the tradition of it all was. 

 To be able to share these work milestones with Garrett is amazing. There are no words to express how proud I am of him. He is an amazing man that leads our household by faith, love, and joy. There is no other place I'd rather be than by his side. He is my home and our home is wherever we are together. 

To say that we are enjoying Korea so far would be an understatement. We are feeling more and more comfortable every day in our new environment and we are ready for the many adventures to come. We are looking forward to keeping you all updated on what's going on in our part of the world :)

Until next time....

Love, Becca & Garrett

2015 will be BiG for the Speeds!

As 2015 begins to kick off I have spent some time this week reflecting on how thankful I am for the many, many blessings of 2014. It was quite a year for Garrett and I and I still can't believe how truly blessed we are. Looking back on it,  I'm overwhelmed with how much happened in just ONE year. The Lord has been so good, and that makes me so hopeful for next year, and all of the years to come!

 

Here's a look at our year and what's next!

 

2014- Our Wedding Year! January kicked off with an amazing Engagement Party hosted by Garrett's parents and our dearest friends, the Tabrizi's. It was extra special for me because my parents & closest friends traveled the miles from Lousiana to Texas and got to meet Garrett's crew. It was the start of our two worlds coming together.

 

 

 

 

In February I was a wedding planning goo-roo and had spreadsheets galore made for EVERYTHING you can think of wedding related. Invitation lists, Budget, Showers,  even to-do lists for the week of the wedding (Yes- I'm OCD when it comes to organization and spreadsheets :) **Side note- If you are in need of a wedding planner- I'm up for hire! Planning my wedding had to be the greatest "job" of my life. I enjoyed every tiny detail and would do it all over again if I could**

 

March through May we were showered with love and presents :) My best gals through me a beautiful shower in Ruston to kick things off. I can't imagine life without these girls- they make life so joyful. Our couples shower followed in April, hosted by the sweetest ladies in Baton Rouge. Another shower, hosted by another group of great ladies, was soon to follow and again, I was showered with more love than I ever expected. Garrett and I are so honored and so thankful for all that everyone did to make this time so special for us.

 

The traveling every weekend became a bit tiresome but in the end it was all worth it- You only get married once, right!?

 

May was a whirlwind but the entire month was over loaded with FUN. I got to get all dressed up and have a camera follow me around, spend 5 days on the beach with my closest gal pals, and spend a weekend celebrating a dear friend welcoming her first baby in to the world. Bridal Portraits- Check. Best Bachelorette Beach Bash Ever- Check. Hosting a Baby Shower for Caty & the cutest baby Simmons in the world- CHECK,  CHECK!

 

 

Before I knew it June was here- with one more outstanding wedding shower in Shreveport, followed by my 29th birthday & New Orleans Wedding festivities with friends. In the blink of an eye OUR wedding was here! Then it was over, we were married and off to Jamaica for 7 days of complete laziness! Our wedding day was perfection (in my opinion that is) and everything I hoped it would be. I made the greatest man on earth my husband and I would do it 100 times again if I could- to him of course. The 9 months of travel, and planning, and sleepless weekends was totally worth it and we are beyond grateful for every person that made it so memorable.

 

 

 

Then we began our life as married people! In July we joined the Newly Wed Bible study class we had been talking about for months and met some incredible people within our COR group in the class.. I also started taking golf lessons!

 

August was a big month for my dear friend Lindsay who had also been planning her BIG DAY! We threw her shower in Ruston, then weeks later went on Bachelorette Beach Bash # 2 and made many more memories :) Then in September we celebrated the greatest day of her life- her wedding day! Her wedding was perfect,  she was absolutely beautiful, and I couldn't have been happier to have been a part of it.

 

October brought on cooler weather and a NEW CAR! No better way to test her out but on a road trip to Ruston spending a weekend with some of our favorites.

 

 

November was another especially special month for Garrett and I. After many months of prayer I made the decision to be baptized (not to take away from my baptism as a child). This was such a great time for Garrett and I as our families came together, once again, to celebrate a milestone in our life together. Not to mention the family we have gained through our COR group and church have been such a gift. My walk with God has not been a perfect one, as no ones is, but it's my walk and it has been such an amazing journey to grow closer to Him on my own, as well as with my husband. Putting God first in our marriage has been one of the greatest promises we could have ever made.
 
                           

 

 

  

We finished off the month spending the holidays with family & starting our 1st Traditions as The Speeds. Finishing off the year, December was a month for parties, toasting, and marshmallow roasting!

 

To say that we had a good year is an understatement! There are no words to describe how blessed we are to have so many wonderful people in our lives that support and celebrate all that life throws at us. I without a doubt know that 2015 will be an even better year for us, with greater adventures, and more new beginnings. And boy oh boy are things really kicking in to gear.....

 

The Speed's first adventure of the new year is a BIG one. We are moving to SOUTH KOREA!!! Garrett's job has given us the chance of a lifetime-  to move , temporarily of course, to another country!! The idea has been talked about for several months and for those of you that know me can imagine my dramatic reaction to the first conversation about even the slightest possibility of this happening. So after many long talks, deep thought, and heavy prayer I had to let it go and give it to God. What is His plan for us? Where does He want us to be?

 

You guessed it- He said South Korea and we are both certain that He has great plans for us- far greater than I can imagine. Although being so far away from our family and friends will be tough, and being in an unfamiliar place will have it's challenges, God has provided us both with the greatest gift of all to get through it- each other. We have one another to lean on for support and encouragement every day, as well as the love, support, and encouragement from our friends and family here at home.

  

A door is opening for us and I look forward to seeing what else is to come in this new year. With all of the free time I will have I definitely see a lot more blogging in my future :)

 

Until next time,

Happy New Year :)

 

Handcrafted by B & G

Hi everyone!

It's been a while since our last post- we have been busy bee's. Garrett was traveling for work quite a bit and since his return we have been super busy with lots going on in our world! The holidays are coming up and we are thrilled to be hosting the Speed family Christmas this year so I am in the mode to get everything ready for our Christmas dinner! This might be our best project yet, not to mention the start of a very hopeful furniture making business idea :)

 

After replacing our iron baker's rack with our beautiful handcrafted buffet table (previous post) , we had to finish the room and replace the table that matched the old baker's rack. I wanted a statement table that was big enough to host 6 or more so DIY FARM TABLE here we come!

 

 

As always our trusted source for the plans to start with were compliments of our two favorite blogs: Shanty-2-chic & Ana White :) You can find word for word, step by step instructions & pictures on each of their sites. We tweaked the plans a little to better fit our taste and here is how it turned out.....

 

First we put the legs together to build from the base up...

 

 

Once we put the legs together and  matched them perfectly we attached them using two middle beams. It's hard to balance the boards and drill them together on your own so this is definately a two man project.

Then we attached the crossboards....

This is the structure before we put the top on, with two more support beams added on the side of the top middle beam.

 

Now it's time for the table top! **This is what we did different from Shanty-2-chic & Ana White. We decided not to do breadboards on the ends

We built the table top on top of the base, measuring how much hangover we wanted on each end, before actually attaching it. We lined them up on the base to make sure each was even and layed flesh with the table bottom. Once the top was one solid piece we flipped it over, lined it up on each side, then connected it to the base, drilling up from the bottom.

 

We painted the buffet table with chalk paint so we wanted to stain this and bring all of the colors together in our kitchen & dining area

 Since I was going to handle the staining, my wonderful husband did all of the sanding.....

We only used 1 coat of stain & put 3 coats of Poly over the stain to give it a little shine and to seal and protect the color. The wood soaked up the 1st coat and the 2nd coat was a little uneven in some places but 3 coats was perfect!

 

 

From start to finish the table took about 16 hours. That's including the wood cutting, putting it together, then staining and sealing it. This thing was incredibly heavy but we have some amazing friends that helped Garrett get it in the house :) 

 

 

 

Garrett built a matching bench for one side and we have added 4 chairs that tie everything together just perfectly. The plans for the bench had to be altared just like the table since we left of the breadboards on the bench as well.   (You can find the original plans here) . Our finished product is just BEAUTIFUL! Now I am ready to host a big family dinner :)

 

We have some small projects going on around the house right now, in addition to some projects we have been asked to do for friends and family :) The holidays are just around the corner so we are excited to be spending some time with family over the next couple of weeks.

Talk soon :)

-B & G