Well, folks! The long-anticipated time has come upon us again: blogging time!

It’s funny how life works. I was born in North Carolina and haven’t lived in the state since we moved from it to Virginia when I was in 2nd grade. Now, I’m back, though on a temporary basis!

Week One is in the books! Those who have followed the blog probably have a suspicion for what the first couple of weeks entail: the struggle of transitions, creating and developing relationships, establishing a schedule, etc. I’ll try to spare you as much as I can.

There are some aspects that make this assignment stand out among the others though! For one thing, I am staying with a houseful of people who were, as of a month ago, absolute strangers.

A group of us from Rio came to the Fort Bragg area for a weekend conference in the beginning of April and the Allen’s (Matt and Lauren) opened up their home to me during the stint of the conference. Once they found out that I got an Airbnb in the area with the hopes of connecting with their community over the summer, they immediately asked if I’d consider staying with them instead. Let me tell you, I’ve never cancelled anything so fast!

Early Sunday morning, I began my eight hour trek (with stops) to the Allen’s home. Let me just say that there are few things more refreshing than arriving at your destination and barely stepping out of the car before having a houseful of people come out of the house to greet you with hugs on their front lawn and carry in your luggage without a second thought. I felt so loved and welcomed within the first minute of stepping foot where my home will be for the next three months.

In true Lauren fashion, I jumped in full-body first. After luggage was set down, I sat on the couch and joined in on the weekly house meeting to sync up schedules (with now 6 adults in the house, not to mention four kiddos, it’s not a bad idea!), followed by the weekly dinner the Allen’s host at their home! That was my chance to meet a lot of soldiers and their families that live either on base or in its vicinity! It was a full day, but a really rich one.

Monday and Wednesday, thankfully, were virtual orientation days, so I was able to sleep in comparatively to the rest of the week.

Another distinctive part of this contract is my commute. While I am living in the Fort Bragg area, I am working in the Chapel Hill area. That’s 65 miles, 1 hour and 45 minutes…one way.

In my eyes, it’s worth it. While NC has a lot to offer, the people I’m staying with and the work they’re doing in ministering to soldiers is my main draw for coming to NC in the first place. There’s a lot I can endure for 13 weeks and a lengthy commute is one of them.

Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday were all work days! It was great to meet my fellow sonographers and some of the perinatologists I will be working alongside for the next 13 weeks! These people know their stuff and were willing to help me adjust to how their department runs; a great combo in the makeup of a team!

I also discovered that there is a CrossFit box LITERALLY across the street, so I started working out there before my shift started each day! I absolutely loved getting back into it. Between the community and intensity, CrossFit continues to be an attractive avenue for exercise for me!

There’s also a coffee shop next door. Ya girl was NOT mad about that.

Saturday was a really neat experience! Two of my roommates, Natalee and Anna, and I joined up with a group of Fort Bragg leadership for the tail end of prayer walks that they had been doing throughout the week at different bases/locations in the region!

We walked around the University of South Carolina’s campus, Fort Jackson, and an Air Force base, praying offensively and defensively for those in those communities. I really enjoyed the time with my roommates, meeting more military/ministry peeps, and getting some reps in for my prayer muscles!

Prayer has always been (and remains to be) a discipline that has ample room for growth in my life, so to come alongside others who desire to be used for the Gospel to be heard and lives to be transformed by Jesus was a huge encouragement and “spurring on” for me!

On Sunday, the prayer theme was continued! We all got together to share about the trips and to pray together once again!

Afterwards, I met a soldier who not only was a fellow Ohioan, but also that we GRADUATED FROM THE SAME HIGH SCHOOL (albeit, me seven years before him). It was so sweet to talk about familiar stomping grounds and get a little taste of home through reminiscing!

Looking forward to the weeks that lie ahead! Thanks for reading and tagging along on the adventure!