Where in the world is the Williams family?---New season

Hello everybody! I figured I would write a post so that I didn't have to respond to 100 messages about where we will be this season! :) So here goes...

WE ARE BACK!!!! We are heading back to our previous team. We spent this past season with Lietkabelis in Lithuania. If you have followed along with the blog this year you would know that it was an amazing season for Zo, his team, and the organization. Prior to this past season we were in Germany and when we made that transition to Lithuania it was about heading to a higher level of competition for Zo. This happened. Good happened. Basketball was FIERCE this past year.

Also, if you have been following along you will remember the struggles. I struggled as a wife and mom because of our location. The country does not have much diversity in culture and people, and Logan did not have a school (we were used to this in Germany and in the states). I felt like I wasn't at my best, I wasn't giving Logan my best, and I was feeling secluded. These thoughts haven't changed going into next season...but God is funny like that, and my ATTITUDE has.

So here is the deal...

1. Basketball is #1 right now. It will only be this way for a few more years and it is extremely important for Zo to continue to grow, thrive, and showcase what he loves (and is pretty darn good at).

2. We are going back to an organization that TRULY wants Zo there. We turned down lots of teams this summer, we knew with a distinct NO God was saying this isn't for you. Several offers were great! They were in large cities, they had great schools, they had great weather, and one of my favorite offers was on a beach in France! :) But with each offer, there were also big basketball setbacks that could potentially put Zo in a position to not do well.

3. If it ain't broke don't fix it! Ever heard that saying? Zo's team was successful, they played well together and got along, the chemistry was good, and they had many triumphs as a team. There is not much of a reason to change that or to think that it won't be just as good as last year. The team is playing in the same international competition (Euro Cup) and the Lithuanian league.

So we decided to go back.

When the end of last season came, I was SURE there was not a possibility to return. It's a business and we just weren't confident in all the logistics. I also thought for sure there was no way that I could handle another winter in Lithuania and that poor Logan couldn't either. We thought things wouldn't go back to the same because the coach left as well as some other players. We just didn't see this team as an option again. But we were wrong.

I was wrong.

It will be difficult to return to the cold winters, the loneliness and busy travel with Zo's schedule, the lack of Americans on the team and in the area, Logan not having his school or social interaction like we want for him, and for the lack of items in the grocery stores :).

But you know what we ARE returning to?

A WINNING team, a crazy fan base that was amazing last year, families that took us into their homes, friends that break all the language barriers with smiles, a financial gain, a spot and chance at Euro Cup competition again, friends that are just an hour or two away, a great homeschool program for Logan I will be using (I mean...sometimes I forget I was a teacher before I was a mama bear), time with my family, and lots of trips away--Spain & Germany are already planned.

Our lives are basketball. I knew this the day I saw my handsome husband at Rice University. Our life revolves around basketball. I knew this in 2014 when life was tough and he was set on not giving up the game after injury and set back.

Ephesians 5:22-33
22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. 24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her; 26 that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she should be holy and blameless. 28 So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; 29 for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, 30 because we are members of His body. 31 For this cause a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh. 32 This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless let each individual among you also love his own wife even as himself; and let the wife see to it that she respect her husband.

The bottom line is that basketball is Zo's job and he works incredibly hard to be the best, the strongest, and by gosh the most humble. He does EVERYTHING for his family. He works so hard to give Logan and I everything we need and want. HE WORKS HARD. He doesn't ask for anything, he doesn't spend money on himself, and he would give anything to help a friend. 

Zo asked me what I wanted, logistics or comfortability and I chose logistics. 

So I submit. More than I ever have in our marraige. I submit to the will of our Savior and the decision that we prayed for. I submit to the uncomfortable, the unknown, the scary. Because God makes no mistakes, He leads every single step, and if we ask for exceedingly, abundantly, and above our imagination, He will do. And HE has, and we are grateful. Another incredible opportunity and season for Zo to shine when the lights are on, another opportunity for Logan and I to bond, to create memories, and to grow together. Another year to travel this incredible world God has created and create more moments with my little tribe. Another year for me to grow individually and spiritually and for me to have more time for my health and fitness business to bloom. 

So cheers to another great season! and we can't wait to return to Panevezys! Let's go Lietkabelis!!

xo,
Morgan 

Our Testimony--Part 3--The Finale

How much have we enjoyed sharing our testimony with you all? Sharing God's undeserving grace, goodness, and blessings? SO MUCH. We knew sharing our testimony was part of God's calling. As much as we thought "who cares" "no one cares to read or know" "mind your business"--we knew sharing was apart of the journey and hearing feedback from others about how it encouraged or helped them has made every word, minute, and memories that we have shared worth it. 

This is the last part of our testimony but not the end. God continues to work on us as a couple, as parents, and with Zo's career. We will continue to share what God lays on our hearts and I will continue to share my blog with health, life, and fitness with you all. So cheers to part 3 and the future ahead. Thanks for reading and being part of our process these past weeks of sharing. 

Part 3…the finale…the praise report is here. So lets get to it.

So what happened this season in Lithuania?

-The team hit 2^nd place in the Lithuanian league---1^st time ever in the history of the team.

-The team received the silver medal (2^nd place) in the Lithuanian cup for the first time in the team’s history.

-Zo broke the league record for assist/turnover ratio.

-Zo made top 10 in 3 different categories in Eurocup.

-The team went to the top 16 in Eurocup. This was a first for Zo and the team.

-Zo had some of the highest shooting percentages of his career.

-The team SWEPT the first round of play offs for the first time in team history.

-The team WON 2^nd place in the league finals for the FIRST time in history.

-The team won the series of semi-final games 3-1, for the FIRST time in history.

Good happened this season. Coming off of an injury no one really wanted to take a risk on Zo. “They weren’t sure if I was having a serious injury, if I was just getting “old”, if I wasn’t ready to play. Teams wondered why I only played ½ of the season last year, it was really hard.” (Zo). This team took a risk on Zo and definitely reaped the reward. It was a win/win. They needed Zo and we really needed that chance. 10 years…it took TEN years and Zo was able to showcase the best numbers and highest competition of his career!! ----Let me repeat that real quickly in case you missed it. Zo, in his TENTH year of his job competed and was given the chance to showcase his highest numbers and highest competition of his career. All this occurred after 2 seasons of losses, of no one taking a chance on him, of low numbers and low playing time.

God is good y’all! That’s the bottom line.

When God tested our FAITH---We remembered all the times before that He never let us down and we continued to be in fast and prayer trusting He would never fail us. We kept coming back to that verse: “If you will have faith the size of a mustard seed…” That was it. God just needed us to have faith that He would make a way, even when it seems there wasn’t one.

When God tested our MARRIAGE—When we wanted to argue, be upset, point the finger…we didn’t. We just didn’t. We stayed on each other’s team. When the going gets tough you have to have your team. You are each other’s best asset and you have to stick together. We didn’t go to bed angry. Some days were hard, some phone calls were sad, depressing, frustrating, but we had to work that out before bedtime. We didn’t let feelings stay inside; we let them out every time we felt them. Not only is our marriage sacred and number 1, but we have a sweet little boy that’s watching how we treat each other, and that’s motivation in itself! We want to give Logan great examples; we want him to always say, “Dada loves mama so much.” We want Logan to see me give dada hugs and kisses and tell dada I love him…because I do, we do…forever.

When God tested our FINANCES---Who likes to talk about money? I don’t. God really broke us in this area and tested our faith a lot. Zo was without a job for almost 12 months total, that’s 12 months without an income. This isn’t easy, its stressful, its tough. So what did we do? We adjusted. We didn’t take any cool vacations, we didn’t spend any extra money for a while, we didn’t really do too much extra, and we couldn’t. We wanted to make sure that things were going to sustain if Zo didn’t work for another 12, 18, or 24 months. What we DID do is continue giving God His tithes. No matter what you are going through, no matter how much you think you don’t have…give it to HIM. It is all His anyways.

When God tested our CIRCLE ---Can I tell you about real friends and family? Where are they when you’re down, where are they when you are hurting? Are they still there? Are they behind your back gossiping about your life? Are they happy to see you failing? Are they wishing for your setback and not hoping for your comeback?

I strongly believe we have some of the best people in the world in our circle. Seriously. These 2 years just would not have been possible without our friends and families help. There is just no way. From anything and everything they held us together, they helped, they loved, they prayed, they gave; it’s just incredible. We truly know that God made their hearts extra big these past two years (even though they already were big hearted). From helping us with house things—our neighbors know my mom by her first name! To late night dinners—that are especially good when they are with the Traubers AND a bonus guest room that fits all 3 of us! (Thankfully!!).  Everyone that was praying without ceasing, loving on us, helping us with Logan, TIME, you name it!

And our friends? Oh man, we’ve got some good ones. Surprise parties, helping with Logan, inviting us over, praying for us, coming to visit us and hang out, our church friends that laid hands on us, it was just special. Those that couldn’t physically be with us still reached out, called, checked on us, sent us mail, just so much love in our circle we are so grateful. We have had so much love these past two years I cant even put into words or think about what we would have done without them all!

When God tested our HEARTS/COMMITMENT ----On the days we felt like giving up, we remembered to stay committed. It is so easy to praise Him in the good, but praising in the storm is tough. You have no umbrella, you’re cold, you’re wet, you’re tired, and you want to just give up. But you can’t. God prepared us for the storms and He wont let us sink. And even though at times we thought we were sinking, we really weren’t.

WE ARE HUMBLED

WE ARE GRATEFUL

WE ARE BLESSED

WE ARE HIGHLY FAVORED

WE ARE LOVED

chat soon with updates on next season :) 

--Zo & Mo


Testimony part 1: Part 1
Testimony part 2: Part 2

Mommy Monday's: Disciplining Toddlers

Good morning & happy Monday friends! Today I wanted to talk about a new book that I had the privilege to read last week. 

Disciplining toddlers: How to handle challenging behaviors by Amy Lu was such an amazing read. I absolutely loved the book and wanted to share it with you all for Mommy Monday's. 

I am very open in discussing my challenges with my strong-willed child, Logan. He's vibrant, outgoing, active, rough, energetic, kind, caring, and smart. He knows exactly what makes mama tick and doesn't have a problem ticking away! :) 

But, I am always looking for help when it comes to boundaries and re-directing his behaviors. I found this book from a fellow writer and absolutely loved the information. If you are a parent of a toddler I can guaranteed there is something in this book for you! 

What did I take away the most from this book? 

1. Proper consequences---how to properly discipline the behavior for what "fits". I think sometimes I find myself upset or so frustrated that the consequences do not match my toddlers behavior, I've got to work on that. 
2. Offer choices---oh this is so helpful. Logan is so strong, OCD, and loves getting his way {wonder where he gets that from}. This was so helpful in reminding me and also giving some examples of how I can still put him in control AND discipline at the same time. 
3. Reinforcing the good. I am going to use the free charts that come with the book to give Logan some really good positive reinforcement, not bribes, which we learn the difference in the book. 
4. Our role as parents. ---Included in the book are several worksheets that I can go over with my husband to help us navigate the behavior we see, figure out why he's doing those behaviors, and then decide how to correct them. 

I am so glad I found Amy and this wonderful read. I know that by incorporating these tools in our everyday routine Logan will have better toddler behavior and that I can help minimize tantrums and frustrations for both of us. 

If you are interested in this book, which is available on kindle, iPhone, iPad, etc. you can head over to 

www.makingmotherhoodmatter.com 

You can also find Amy on social media at:

Facebook: Messy Mama Happy Kids

Instagram: MessyMamaHappyKids

Twitter: Amylumotherhood

After you read it let me know how it works for you! What did you learn? How did it go with your toddler?

Chat soon

Xo

Morgan 

Our Testimony--Part 2

Hello friends~ We are back!!! Sorry we kept you all waiting a little longer than a week. Zo & I spent some time away from Logan & enjoyed "us" time. It was wonderful & much needed. We unplugged for a bit & we are just now getting back settled into routine. Here are a few pictures from our time away.

























I also turned 30 while the blog was on hold! :) So the goal setting & focusing was happening when I put pen to paper. But we are BACK and ready to share part 2 with you all...

If you haven't checked out PART 1 of our testimony, here is the link:
PART 1

PART 2, here goes...

The sellers didn’t get us down too much and we ended up closing and getting what we wanted…our new home! (Thanks to LOTS of hard work on our brokers end, our realtors end, and my mama’s end).

We were excited, we were grateful, and mostly we were thankful for all the support from so many people in our lives (friends and family) the year prior where we were so disheartened by life in general.

God doesn’t make mistakes; He knows what He is doing. More on that in a bit.

So we spent summer in our beautiful new home. We had lots of visitors and my sweet sister even moved in for the summer break from college. We even welcomed our best friends to the suburbs (they live 5 minutes from us now!!!). We enjoyed nights out on the deck, Logan enjoyed his new backyard, and mama got her decorating fix (well, the beginning, I have so much more to do!!!).

And then end of July came.

Offers were coming in but they weren’t what we really wanted. The prior season didn’t go that great for Zo and for circumstances he couldn’t control his playing time wasn’t that great and the numbers weren’t either. Zo was working camps all summer (like usual), working out everyday and waiting for the next call. July passed; August came & almost went when we got the call for Lithuania.

First off, for those that don’t know my past so well, I was living in Lithuania 9 years ago under some very different and hurtful circumstances. My life was different but it was revolved around basketball even then. I was a broken mess at that time so at first thought hearing “Lithuania” I went into a slight panic. I would go back to that place? Back to those memories?

Zo told his agent we needed time to figure it all out. For the next few days we prayed continually without ceasing, we called upon others to pray for us, we prayed separate and we prayed together. This decision was going to be difficult. We truly felt God was saying GO this IS it. But we also were looking at the contract thinking no we can’t go.

We had our faith tested, our marriage tested, and now…FINANCES.

In the past 9 years Zo has done well on teams. “I was fortunate to come out of college when overseas basketball wasn’t an overly saturated industry. I did well to get on good teams, the Euro had always been high and experience proved to land me in the right spots. Over the past few years, teams have started to accept more Americans, more people are coming overseas for less money, and the Euro and the dollar are now almost equal.” (Zo).

So when we saw the contract for Lithuania we were a little uneasy. Selfishly, I thought that my amazingly talented husband was worth way more, that this was year 10 and he deserved the best contract to date.

This contract wasn’t the highest he’s ever had, and he really wasn’t 100% sold on the numbers, but GOD was saying yes. We wrestled with God for 48 long hours; we wrestled with ourselves, with each other. I wrestled with my flesh a ton! I just thought…”this isn’t fair God, after the past 2 seasons, we just want a break.”

But when the time came and we had to make a decision, we 100% went into it with a YES. God was saying YES and He had carried us through so much that His voice was so clear we couldn’t say no, we just couldn’t. God clearly was sending us to Lithuania and we were ready.

**Some of you might think, “well that’s way more than plenty”, “those numbers aren’t bad at all.” “I would take that”. But you also have to understand that this industry is temporary, we build our lifestyle upon a 15-year gig. Those 15 years will have to carry us through a tough transition called retirement that happens before Zo is even 40 years old. It isn’t a regular job; 1-year salary really needs to feel like 3-4 years salary for sustaining life after this game. **

THIS WAS NOT EASY. The year was not easy, it was frustrating, and it was hard on our marriage. We had NO other Americans on the team

& date nights were zero. (We did have some super sweet Australian teammates, thankfully because they were the best. I think we all saved each other!). We didn’t have our sweet nanny, no babysitter, and not much time off. The weather in Lithuania isn’t the best either. Its snowy, gloomy, freezing cold, and windy! Our city was so small and there wasn’t much to do so we (our family of 3) was separated for stretches of time because we had to get Logan back to the USA to play, be around other kids, be around friends and family, to have some normalcy, but separated from dad. IT WAS HARD.

Oh but our God...He knows what He is doing.

So I went home with Logan in January. We went home for the bulk of the winter season. Logan was really down, his sweet and vibrant personality just wasn’t the same when we were in Lithuania as it was at home. As soon as we were home our boy went back to himself, and although this transition away from Zo was extremely difficult it really was the best thing for our sweet boy. Logan had his friends back, his extended family, his room, his playroom, all his special toys, his backyard, he just remembered and loved home so much. Sometimes with this lifestyle comes hard decisions, and if we are fortunate, those decisions are worth it; this one was.

I also had to leave early at the end of the season. We made ANOTHER tough decision that after going back to Lithuania in March, that we would return again in May to the USA and leave Zo to finish the season until June.

Mama had a good thing too. I truly believe that God had His whole hand in our first trip home. The week after I got home our church started a 6 weeks series on faith and believing in a miracle. Really God? C’mon man!!!! You are just too good. The very first lesson was something I will never forget… “Stop telling the RESOURCE there aren’t enough RESOURCES.” That stung my heart and mind. For the past 2 years we had struggled with this. The evening after the first service I just broke down. I told Zo that I absolutely needed to be home in the USA for these 6 weeks. And let me also mention that for the FIRST time, that first Sunday, Logan stayed in the church nursery without crying and had a huge smile when I picked him up. God you just rock!

Part 3 next week…

Xo,

Zo & Mo

Our Testimony--PART 1

I HAVE to give fair warning on this post because you guys…it’s a long one…and its in 3 parts…we probably should have just wrote a book instead. WE, yes, WE. My amazing husband will be speaking to you guys too on this one. What is this blog post? It is our testimony. It is our story of love, faith, obedience, pain, frustration, brokenness, forgiveness, and FREEDOM!! So lets get right to it.

2 years. It has been a full 2 years since our (what felt like) horror began. 2 years ago our sweet baby boy was just born and we were enjoying our time in Germany while Zo was playing basketball. He was playing well and my fitness business was partially on hold while I enjoyed full time motherhood. It was around the New Year when things started to get crazy basketball wise.

Our favorite coach and the guy that brought us to Germany and helped out so much was fired. Now this wasn’t a shock to many, this happens ALL the time in the basketball world but we were crushed. He really listened to Zo, let him play his game; let him showcase what he was best at, all while incorporating a team mentality. This was tough to say the least. Then a new coach came and changed things up.

“Off the court we had, and still have a good relationship. It was the situation that was rough and I think we both can look back now and just accept that.” (Zo).

So, after a while of losing games the organization fired him & we got yet another coach. It didn’t work out with him either and the season came to an end. Zo had a small ankle injury towards the end of the season and we had just switched agencies. The new agency urged Zo not to play the final games and to just finish the season on the bench rehabbing.

For those not familiar with how it works I will explain a little bit. You (the player) work with a licensed agent to get jobs and contracts every year. The agent is extremely important, they are licensed attorneys and they work for you on your behalf. They draw up the contracts and they negotiate with the teams, they also make a good commission off your contract deal.

Zo made the really hard decision to switch to a VERY large agency. They have a lot of NBA players and a lot of really good overseas players and he just decided he would try it out and see what different market offers we would get. And I guess this really was the starting test of our FAITH.

Zo had a hard time playing the waiting game that summer, we tried to be patient and understanding but just felt so uneasy. We would hear from the agent, he would tell us offers, and Zo would say, “Yes, awesome lets take this.” The agent would come back saying “I don’t think its enough, I don’t think we should take it, you need more money, just wait, no rush.” We listened, agreed, prayed, waited…waited…waited…waited. And then it just had to stop. One night, around 1 am Zo couldn’t go to sleep.

“I don’t know what it was, I was just up. I was feeling really uneasy and a job offer was on the table that I had to make a decision about.”

The next morning, I woke up before Zo and Logan and was drinking coffee watching the news. CNN had reported that around 1AM our time there was a bombing that killed 150 people. A bomb? Where? In the exact city, 2 miles from the gym of the team that Zo was to sign to play at. (The decision had to be made in 2 hours). I didn’t even know Zo had been awake that night but when he woke up I told him about the bombing and we both looked at each other and decided no, we wouldn’t go. Zo didn’t know that in the exact moments he was feeling uneasy, nauseous, nervous, etc. that a bomb was going off where he was planning to go in the next 72 hours. This was an extremely difficult decision for Zo as it was almost October and we hadn’t signed a contract. (Usually we are signed in June or July).

Not only did he turn the job down but he turned the agent down as well. That day we ended our contract with them and knew that God had something else in store for us, and this wasn’t it. You see the agent wasn’t the problem…it just wasn’t for Zo. My sweet husband has ALWAYS taken the humble route; he has always taken the quiet congrats when he deserves big praises. That’s just my sweet husband. He wanted to try the big leagues out. So we did. But it wasn’t for us. The agency is a big one, Zo wasn’t “Lorenzo Williams, 9 year veteran, father of Logan, husband to Morgan, lives in Houston Texas, loves the Dallas Cowboys, loves Jesus and seafood.” Zo was “player B on list 6 for sometime next month, and maybe moving to slot R.” That’s not why Zo plays. It is a job, and of course we are so very grateful, but it’s not JUST a job. It is where our family spends 9 months out of the year, it’s where we raise our son, and its where we have to ensure our safety & well being; and at this time the agency wasn’t concerned with the same things we were.

Back to square 1 and ½ way into season 9 without a job. So here, our FAITH was being tested so much and our MARRIAGE was too. We had to stay strong and make hard decisions; we had to pour our hearts to Jesus more than we ever had in our entire relationship. I had to trust Zo to lead our home in the right direction and I had to trust his decisions moving forward. In November, we headed back to Germany to our old team. The fans greeted our return incredibly well and our sweet nanny Nina came back to us too. If you do not have kids, I will put it like this. It is extremely difficult to find great people besides family to care for your children; we were blessed with our sweet Nina for 2 seasons. Not only was she amazing but Logan’s school was even more incredible. Logan was so loved by the people of Bremerhaven, we all 3 were, I will never forget that. The tears when we left will always be stained on my heart, a piece of our life and Logan’s first moments of life were there and will always be special to us.

God is good. He brought us back to the familiar, He brought us back to that same team for ½ the season to show us “look son and daughter, I have not left you.” It was not easy. Zo’s abilities and game were tested more than they ever had been in 9 years. It was frustrating, tough, scary, confusing, and stressful to say the least. At moments we cried out to God asking if we made the right decision, was it just out of desperation we said yes, what is our purpose here? Was this the right move?

But Zo and his agent agreed, this was it. For whatever the reason there was always a little voice saying YES. So we listened.

And then April happened…. our NEW HOUSE happened. We knew that the condo life was no longer an option but with the past 2 seasons of Zo’s career, we weren’t sure a new house was the right answer either. But we prayed, and we were introduced to an incredible financial/mortgage broker that just really surpassed our expectations and when a roadblock hit he was there to move it out of the way. I mean really---he worked miracles.

Then with the help of my amazing mom (the real estate guru) and my best friend Kelli (the real estate agent guru) we found the perfect house. Now let me tell you this story…

We were searching our local real estate guide for houses daily. Every day, 9AM I was on the Internet searching. Every day we prayed that God would lead us to the perfect house for our little family. One day while Zo was napping I woke him out of his sleep and said, “This is it.” He took a look and said he liked it and I was just completely in love. So I called Kelli and she went to take a look and took videos and pictures. I was SOLD…still. She suggested we put in an offer, it was Easter weekend and many people wouldn’t be looking at houses so we could snag it. So we did, we put in an offer (lower than asking price) and they immediately accepted! WHAT? Yes!! They did. My mom immediately headed to the house for inspections and a million other things that a “real estate eye” would know that we wouldn’t. I booked my flight home and knew we had 10 days to decide on this house. I arrived home and then everything went wrong!

The sellers tried their BEST to get out of our offer and even came to us saying they wanted to cancel the contract and no longer sell the home. We started to question day after day (on a time schedule) if this was the right house. I ensured Zo that this was it. The prayers and answers were crystal clear. This was OUR home.

And now we wait for Part 2 next week….

-Zo and Mo