My sista Julie

This is Julie. She and I just became sisters a few months ago. She is married to J.P. who is Wayne's brother. We got married only about a month apart. I first met Julie at the Stender family Thanksgiving in Waconia, MN at one of the extended families home. Wayne and I were barely dating then and Julie and J.P. had been together through high school. Right from the beginning, Jules and I have been friends. She's always ready to talk and listen and be a shoulder to cry on. Within the few months before she and J.P. and Wayne and I were married, we spent many hours planning and preparing and talking and gabbing about our big days and all that comes along with weddings. It was so much fun and she definately kept me on track with when I needed to have this or that done. I have learned a lot from Julie in the time that I've known her and I look forward to holidays spent together and many more memories made as we get to know eachother better. I love ya Jules.

Hillcrest's annual Christmas banquet

Wayne and I all dolled up!

Emily, me, Diane and Stacy at the banquet... aka the Fab Four...aka girls dorm resident life staff!

Some of the beeeeautiful norwegian girls!

Proudly introducing...

Kalle Elisse Danielson

Heather and baby are doing great. Very healthy and beautiful!

My dad with Siri, Nate, Jemma and Kalle

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

Goddy and Matt, Em, Wayne and me... we would go for coffee seriously everyday. I think we could've almost lived in the Starbucks because we were there everyday. Ahh!

Matt, Michelle(Niki's sister), Goddy, Wayne, me, Niki and Em outside of the Pancake Pantry. It's this famous pancake house in Nashville where lots of people go for some sweet pancakes. We had to wait in line and the line went all the way outside. Crazy.

This is Emily and her best friend Niki. Niki has a sister that lives in Nashville and when she heard that Em was going to be there, she got on a plane and came to visit both of them. She has a sweet New York accent. It was so fun to meet her and to see her and Em together. Made me miss my Erin.

Goddy, Matt, Wayne, me and Emily in front of the Gaylord Entertainment Center. This is where we had all our general sessions with great speakers and some sweet praise and worship with The David Crowder band and Chris Tomlin

Florida days

Wayne and I on the beach...it was so beautiful everday we were there!

Goddy (Chris Godshalk), me and Wayne

Here's Em and I on the balcony of the condo in Boca Raton, FL

The time in Florida was so wonderful! I probably could've stayed there for a few more days soaking up the sun. We were in Florida over Thanksgiving and we ended up taking Emily to the airport in Miami so she could fly to North Carolina to watch Messiah College girls and boys soccer teams play in the final four and WIN! It's the first time in history that both teams have won the championship. Messiah is where she went to college and played soccer! After we dropped her off at the airport, we drove back to Boca Raton and had McDonalds for our sweet Thanksgiving dinner. Yipee.

Just some random Revolve Tour photos

We stayed at Mirae's house in St.Paul and her fam was so hospitable to us. They even built us a cozy fire outside!

This is Em and I at Revolve Tour

This is Ashley Chrisman and me at the Revolve Tour being models in a department store window!

Waaaaayyy tooo long, I know.

Hey friends... well, you already know by this point that this blogging thing hasn't really been the easiest thing for me to do. Partly because I'm a procrastinator and partly because I've been busy busy busy. But that shouldn't be an excuse. I guess I could say that I'm sorta waiting until we get a digital camera because I love the picture blogs. I'll keep trying though!
I want to tell you all about our trip to Nashville, Tennessee and Boca Raton, Florida. And I want to show some pictures but I don't have them yet...so I'll give a few details and then post the pics when I get them.
Wayne and I and some other friends attended the National Youth Workers Conference in Nashville from Nov 17-21. It was amazing. We had praise and worship led by the David Crowder Band and Chris Tomlin. We attended seminars and heard speakers like Doug Fields (author of 'Purpose driven youth ministry' and Youth Pastor at Saddleback church), Louie Giglio and many others. We were able to hear the talented artists Jars of Clay, Third Day, Tobymac and Starfield (whom we got to meet and they were super cool because they are totally Canadian and it made my heart smile)... we were able to get some sweet resources for Campus Ministries here at school. It was just awesome. THEN... us and our totally sweet friends, Emily, Matt and Goddy rented a car and drove down to Boca Raton, FL...which is really close to Fort Lauderdale which is also close to Miami. We stayed at Matt's gramma's condo right on the ocean and soaked up the sun for 4 amazingly beautiful days. We layed on the beach and took it all in. Oh wow! It was gorgeous. Everyday was perfect weather and it was just a relaxing and refreshing break.

Sidenote: My friend Emily is so fun. She came out here from New Jersey, not knowing anyone that well and jumped right into deaning here at Hillcrest. She also coached girls soccer this year and she teaches jr high phys.ed. It's been a blessing and a half to have another sista living right here at school. This is a crazy pic of her!

Like I said before... I'll make sure to post those pictures from TN and FL as soon as I get them. Peace out homes!

When I was beleaguered and bitter,
totally consumed by envy,

I was totally ignorant, a dumb ox
in your very presence.
I'm still in your presence,
but you've taken my hand.
You wisely and tenderly lead me,
and then you bless me.

~Psalms 73:21-24 the message

I love this passage of scripture because its so true how everyday we get distracted by our selfishness and our bitterness, yet God just tenderly calls our name and leads us down the path of righteousness... and not only that... He then goes beyond what we could imagine and BLESSES us. It's unbelievable the kind of love He has for us. Thank you Lord for another day to walk with you. May I be delightful in your sight.

Women of Faith Conference

Here's a group of us that went to Women of Faith. There were a few more that didn't get in the picture for some reason. Fun weekend!

Been a while...

Well, I'm not that great at blogging and I'm sorry for not updating you all for a while. I just got back yesterday from a weekend of fun girl time, shopping, good talks and a great reminder of how God is in control of everything and how He longs for us to come to Him with everything. I took off to Minneapolis with a bunch of girlfriends and we attended the Women of Faith conference. It was awesome. Spent an extra day with two friends and we shopped and relaxed and did some catching up. It was much needed and something I've been looking forward to for a whole year. Now its Monday and its back to work and life in Fergus Falls! Until next year...

HIM

What a guy! Ever since we became friends, he has made me smile. And he will do whatever he can to make me smile. About the time that we started dating, I came home from Thanksgiving break and when I walked into my apartment, he had set up a little Christmas tree and the song... "Feels like home" by Chantal Kreviazuk was playing. As I walked in further, I saw two little candles burning and the words..."to c u smile" were written out in mini reese's peanut butter cups on the table. There was a cute little note that said he missed me. I think I was brought to tears! He is a romantic. He cares for me deeply and will do anything to protect me. He is going to be a fantastic father when the day comes. He's truly a man constantly seeking God's heart. What a blessed day when he walked into my life. Thank you Lord for him.

I love hockey!

The time has finally come for all of us good ol' hockey fans. NHL is back in season! And my wonderful husband got us two tickets to the season opener tomorrow night. Minnesota Wild vs. Calgary Flames. We are both so excited to see some sweet hockey skills! I'm proud to be canadian... especially when it comes to hockey. Over half of the Minnesota players are canadian and that just makes me smile. And then there's Jerome Iginla and he makes me smile too. I'm looking forward to cheering on the Flames even though I'm in Wild country. I'll be wearing red with pride. Go Flames Go!!

"Your thoughts--how rare, how beautiful!
God, I'll never comprehend them!
I couldn't even begin to count them--
any more than I could count the sand of the sea.

Oh, let me rise in the morning and live always with you!"

~Psalm 139:17,18

beautiful

wedding wedding wedding

Some more pictures from our wedding. The middle one is my sisters Heather and Susanne. They are so beautiful aren't they? They are my best friends. Heather is 10 years older than me and Susanne is 8 years older. But to me, there is no age gap. I can talk to them about anything and they have mentored me, comforted me, laughed with me, cried with me (a lot, cuz I'm a crier!), shared scripture with me, supported me, they've always kept in contact with me wherever I've been around the world. Most of all they've loved me unconditionally! And I'm so thankful that God blessed me with them as my closest friends. There is a special bond as sisters and I don't know what I'd do without them!
The bottom picture is Wayne and I with our wedding party. We have such great friends and it was awesome to have them as witness' to our committment. Wayne has two younger brothers and he has so much respect and love for them. There is also a cool bond between brothers and its awesome that he's blessed with J.P. and Andrew!

THE KIDS!

Wow huh? Ten children in our wedding. What a fun day we had and they all look so great don't they? My nieces nephews and our good friend Diane's two boys. I'll name them... in the front row from l-r... Logan, Mikenna (holding flowers), Laci, Siri, Kaia, Noah. Back row from l-r... Samuel, Jemma, I'm holding Nate, Wayne is holding Zeke. It was a riot! My sister Heather is due in November to have her 4th child and my other sister Susanne has 5 children with no more on the way!!

MY HEROS

My mom and dad. Jim and Sharon. Jimmy and Shari-babe! Many names but what it comes down to is the most loving, patient, caring, generous, forgiving and gracious parents anyone could ever ask for. What a blessing it is to be raised by these two beautiful people and to be able to call them my parents.

"Children, do what your parents tell you. This is only right. 'Honor your father and mother' is the first commandment that has a promise attached to it, namely, 'so you will live well and have a long life.' " ~Ephesians 6:1-3 ~the Message

I know at times I haven't always kept that commandment of honoring thy father and mother... but I know that God has surrounded me with loving Christian friends and two fantastic sisters who have influenced me to desire what God wants for my life. God commands me to honor my parents and do what they say and my prayer is that I have been honorable to them. As I think about having my own children, I hope and pray that Wayne and I can be even half the parents that Jim and Sharon have been to me! Thank you mom and dad for praying for me! For loving me and protecting me and for sacrificing so much for your daughters. I love you so much.

"Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn't love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that." ~Ephesians 5:2

What a verse to live by! Learn a life of love. If everyone in the world gave a little more love, and not loving just to get something, but truly selfless love.... can you even imagine what this place would look like. Hard to picture. But what a blessing we have in God's word. His true and faithful promises to LOVE us even though we sin against Him everyday. He is so good!

A DAY IN MAY!

Here's one of many fun wedding pics! My brother-in-law Eric, took some totally awesome pictures for us. We had such a fun day. I couldn't have asked for anything different. (Except for the fact that I would've loved having everyone I know there to celebrate with us.) We got married on a Sunday in the Hillcrest Chapel. My awesome friends from Canada came down for 2 days to be a part of the day and they worked so hard and did such a beautiful job decorating and making the atmosphere just how I wanted it! How blessed I am!! GOD IS GOOD.

These are our good friends Erin and Derek Field. Erin and I (Nancy) have been best friends since 7th grade.... which is a loooooooooong time!! We've done youth group, confirmation, high school, jr high school together, we've been through bad hair cuts, boyfriends, basketball, rugby, midnapore lake, housesitting, dog-sitting, babysitting... any other kind of sitting you can think of... we've graduated together, travelled europe together, gotten tattoos together, been camping together, got engaged within a few months of eachother, both got married in the spring of this year... Erin and Der in April, Wayne and I in May. The list goes on and on but for lack of space, I'll end with that. Although, looking to the future, I'm sure we'll be having our children around the same time too!! (Well, at least they'll be within a year or so of eachother!!) Even though we live hours and hours away from eachother, I'm blessed to have her as my best friend. And I'm so thankful for the man that God has brought into her life as her companion! We love you both so much!

Wayne and Nancy Stender

Married May 29, 2005. We are living in Fergus Falls and working at Hillcrest Lutheran Academy. We both have a passion to do mission work and to work with teenagers. Right now we are working as coordinators in the Campus Ministries office at school. It is the first year for the office and we are privileged to be a part of it. We will be making contacts and providing opportunities for the students to get involved in mission trips and ministry outreaches in the community and beyond the borders of the US.
Wayne and I met here at Hillcrest a few years ago and became great friends right off the bat. Things progressed and now we're married! He is my best friend and I am blessed to know that he will be by my side from now till forever. He loves Jesus with his whole heart and that makes me smile.