Lately 3.31.14

Hello! I thought I’d give a little update on the Bartletts since we announced our big move to Kansas City!

For those of you who didn’t know, Brad was in a hit-and-run accident at the beginning of February and our car was totaled. Since then we have been sharing our Jeep. This last month and a half of sharing a vehicle has definitely been challenging, but the Lord has taught us a lot through it and our LifeGroup has been awesome to help us out and give me countless rides. We’ve been so thankful for their servant hearts! Now, we are super excited to say that we finally got a new (to us) car this week! We were able to buy Brad’s great-uncle’s car at a great price. It’s in perfect condition and we love it so far! Here is a pic of Brad with his new ride! (And I’m soooooo happy to have my Jeep back!)

Brad has been at his new job at Midwestern for one week and he loves it! (We send each other regular selfies these days.)

I definitely missed him this week, but he brought me back this Harry Potter coffee cup and made it all better :)

This little one really missed her Brad-dad this week! She kept wandering around the house looking for him. Libby was so excited when he got here on Friday night!!

It’s crazy that April is already here! It’s going to be such a busy month, but we are excited! Most of my time is going to be consumed by preparing for my thesis defense and taking my comprehensive exams. If you live in the area and would like to come to my thesis presentation, you are totally invited! It is going to be Thursday, April 10th at 3:00 pm on MSU’s campus. I’m starting to get a little nervous, but I’m also really looking forward to it! So close to graduation!

My first scientific publication

I am super excited to share that an article that I wrote has been published in a scientific journal! I am elated that all of my hard work over the last year and a half is coming to fruition in these last couple of months of grad school.

First, let me tell you a little about how publishing works in the science world for those of you who are unfamiliar with the process. There are many scientific journals of all types of disciplines that accept and publish articles in print (they are called journals, although they look more like magazines) and also online. You are probably familiar with the scientific journals Nature and Science, but there are hundreds of others! Many journals are very general and accept a wide variety of topics, while other are more specific, like the journal Traffic publishes articles about trafficking in the cell.

In these journals you can find two types of articles: primary research articles and review articles. A primary research article contains results from a scientific study. There is an introduction section, a results section with figures and tables, and a discussion section. Primary research articles are most of what you will find in a journal. A review is a little different. A review is exactly what it sounds like. A review gives a summary or overview of the primary research of a particular topic. Reviews are extremely helpful to read because they compile all the research done on a topic, simplify it, summarize it, put together the big picture, discuss what this could mean, and propose new ideas.

I have written a review article on my area of research. I am also in the process of putting together a primary research article that will be submitted for publication within the next couple of weeks. (I’ll let you know when it’s officially published!)

Writing a review has been extremely challenging, time consuming, helpful, fun, and rewarding. It has required reading about 100 journal articles, hours of editing with my adviser, and drawing about a million diagrams trying to put together all of the pathways involving my subject. It has helped me become an expert on my topic and I truly understand the big picture of my project. Also, my technical writing skills have improved ten fold.

I would LOVE it if you read my article! It is called “Insight into Tor2, a budding yeast microdomain protein” and it is published in the European Journal of Cell Biology. You can read it by clicking here and downloading the PDF. Unfortunately, most people will not be able to access it at this time, but if you are using the wifi of any university you should be able to download it because that university probably pays for access to the journal. (If you’re familiar with PubMed, you can find it there by searching for Tor2) If you can’t get to the PDF and you want to read it, just let me know and I’ll email it to you!!

I’m now in the process of writing my next publication and my thesis. I have a lot of work to do before May, but I am also so close to being done! Graduation here I come!

Grey cowl scarf

I’m just as excited as anyone else for spring to finally arrive here in Missouri, but I’m also a little sad to stop wearing scarves! I just finished this cowl scarf and I thought I’d share it here:

I know it’s a black and white picture, but the scarf is grey, so you get the idea.

I whipped it up over the course of a few days and I didn’t use a pattern. I crocheted a variety of stitches to my heart’s desire! If I got tired of single crocheting, I switched to something else. In all I think I used single crochets, double crochets, triple crochets, puff stitches, and half double crochets. It was nice to make something easy that I didn’t have to focus on a pattern.

I made it to be about a square foot when it is laid out, so I guess it is a foot wide and two feet around. I like it so much I’m making another version in brown! But I think I am going to save it to use as a Christmas present. (I like to plan ahead.)

Part of me hopes that I can get some more use out of this scarf, but I also don’t want it to get cold enough to need it!

We’re moving to Kansas City!

I’m suuuuuuper happy to share some really exciting news for Brad and me (and I guess our dog Libby, too)! After about a year of praying, talking, debating, researching, and doing some more praying, we are officially leaving Springfield and moving to Kansas City!!

Let me share our journey with you- because the Lord is good, friends.

A while back, Brad felt the call to go to seminary. After some researching, we landed on two seminaries: Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, MO, and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY. There were so many pros (and some cons) to both. When it came down to it, we knew that neither place was the wrong choice. So we really began devoting the decision to prayer. And time went on and we still had no idea what to do. Then more time went on and we were still completely stuck in the middle of the two.

Once my final semester of grad school began, we really started to feel the pressure. The last couple of months have been really challenging for our faith as we’ve been earnestly seeking the Lord’s will. God, please open a door for us.

About two weeks ago Brad got a call out of the blue from the Director of Admissions at Midwestern requesting that he apply for the admission counselor opening. So he sent in his resume the next day, and long story short, he was offered the job barely over a week later. It was such a quick process we barely knew how to process it all.

Our plan was for me to get a job and support the two of us while Brad goes to seminary and possibly works a part time job to help pay for his tuition since we didn’t want to take out more loans. But you know what God does with our plans.

Now we will both have jobs in a place that we love and Brad will be able to pursue his degree.

The Lord has provided more for us than we ever even imagined to ask from Him. Our dreams can’t even begin to reach His plans for us.

We are so excited for this new phase in our lives. Leaving Springfield and all the people that have become precious to us is going to be so difficult, but we are equally ready to begin forming new relationships in Kansas City and at Midwestern.

There are still many things heavy on our hearts and minds. I would so appreciate if you joined us in prayer as we head into this transitional time. Please pray that the Lord would provide a job for me in Kansas City. Pray that Freshwater Church will find someone that will be able to replace Brad as their worship leader. Pray for Brad and me as he will have to move to Kansas City while I finish up my degree at MSU and will have to live apart for a short time. Pray that we will find a place to live and a church home in Kansas City.

Thank you, friends. Stay tuned for more details!

Memories in the Kitchen

I was browsing Pinterest today and stumbled across this pin:

I was at my parents’ house for a quick trip to KC yesterday, so feelings of home are fresh in my mind. This pin got me thinking about growing up and spending time in the kitchen with family.

I love my mom’s kitchen. There’s plenty of counter space to sit on no matter how many times she tells me to get off. (She probably thought I’d eventually grow out of the compulsion to sit on the countertop.) I probably have more memories in the kitchen than any other room in my parents’ house. My mom taught me how to cook in the kitchen. In high school we’d sit at the bar while I told her my adolescent woes. College breaks had me sitting on the counter while I watched her make my favorite meals while I was home. Lately my visits consist of Brad, my parents and me sipping coffee in the kitchen while we chat about the future.

Brad and I aren’t planning on having kiddos any time soon, but we are thinking and praying about what we desire for our family. I treasure these memories and I’m looking forward to making new ones with our future family!