I was born in the mid 80's to a young mother from a family of eight, and a runaway, rocker, hippy dad. I had a less than conventional childhood and my form of rebellion was to be as traditional, preppy, straight edged as I could manage. I was/am strong willed (read bossy) from very early on. My goal was to be the first woman president, my idol was Martin Luther King Jr. (mostly because we shared the same birthday), and my first CD was a four disc set of classical sonata's. I always excelled in school, almost to a fault. I cried at my first "C". I wanted to be a "baby doctor" for as long as I can remember. Fast forward to '98 I entered the Math and Science Magnet Academy at Ocean Lakes High School, leaving all familiarity and friends, to pursue my dreams of becoming a doctor. The temporary state of teenage psychosis quickly took over my brain and boys, popularity, cheerleading, dance, and fun eclipsed my focused, buttoned up previous self. Things began to quickly decline and looking back now I see it as a necessary preparation for my path home.
I reluctantly went to Old Dominion University with a half-hearted attempt to stay on my previous path. My very long first romance ended with heart break, I had a terrible cooking accident, and a personal identity crisis. All this ended in failing out of not one but two semesters of college. I'll never forget the counselor looking at me and saying, "Maybe college just isn't for you."
With all parts of my identity stripped I began to question the purpose of life. Long story short Jesus began to speak to my soul and I was quickly a zealot. I packed up and moved to the Great Down Under, where I knew no one, and had no idea what to expect. I spent the next four years with Youth With a Mission working out my faith. I came home changed, and possibly with more questions than when I had left.
Shortly after arriving home, I rekindled a unique friendship with a shy, fly under the radar, kind of guy. He showed up on my doorstep the day I got back with a tub of cookie dough (boy did he know the way to my heart). Things quickly heated up and cooled down as he left for his own mission trip with YWAM. As they say, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder," and I had a change of heart as I saw him transform into a man of God. Shortly after he got back we were engaged on a metro train in D.C., which got mixed reviews.
After over a year long engagement and much prayer, we married in May of 2009 in the old Cavalier Hotel. It was a vintage dream filled with family, friends, and God. 
In October of 2009 we got the biggest surprise of our life, with the arrival of two pink lines. God saw fit to make us parents. On June 29,2010 (birth story to come soon) we became happier than ever before as we met the most amazing, Simone Charis Beasley, our gift from God.
I am still a woman on a journey of faith. Trying to balance my role as wife, woman, and mother. This space is a way for me to process, share, connect, and remember. I pray that God can use me in some small way to impact your life and that I can connect with all of you I don't have the pleasure of calling my physical neighbor.
