Chistmas in August

Lately I’ve had Christmas on my brain. J I’m not entirely sure why, but it’s there anyway! Christmas has always been one of my favorite times of year for many reasons. One thing I love about living in Michigan is the abundance of fun, Christmas-themed places to visit.

On one of my dates with Mommy, we went to a place called the Santa House. The decorations were amazing, and they even made it snow inside the building somehow!

Mommy sitting in the Santa chair at the Santa House.

Another fun place to visit in Michigan is Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland. It is the largest Christmas store in the world! We visited it last year with my Mom’s family during one of their visits.

One thing I love about Bronner’s is that the founder was a strong Christian, and the store has continued to keep that as a central theme to the business. They have an entire room dedicated to nativity scenes from around the world! I loved “The Gospel in a Nut Shell” which was made in Germany.

Am I the only one thinking about Christmas a little bit? I can’t help but daydream of cozy mornings by the fireplace with a good book and a cup of hot chocolate. How I love the changing of the seasons!

An Evening with Friends

Earlier this month we had the privilege of enjoying an evening with our best friends. Our three families have truly become family over the past several years. Despite the fact that we all live far apart, we do our best to get together a couple of times a year.

This year our get together came just one week before one of the families returned to Japan for the next 9 months. We were very thankful that it worked out as it can be a bit difficult coordinating between the 2 or 3 months they are in Michigan, my Dad’s work schedule, and our other friend’s work schedule (he’s a pilot.) But when we get together, boy do we have a good time! J

The adults enjoyed talking in the living room while eating Texas Caviar and chips. We girls listened in for awhile and played outside for a bit.

The boys had lots of fun playing outside as well. They had a very violent game of lacrosse going on out there.

Photo Credit: Roma.

We had a delicious dinner of grilled chicken, corn on the cob, watermelon, salad, and homemade bread.

We all had a good time socializing over dinner. When our three families get together, things can get kind of loud. J We were eventually told to go downstairs because the adults couldn’t hear each other!

Photo Credit: Roma.

Downstairs we talked and played a few games before deciding to watch the highlight video from our trip to Haiti.

Photo Credit: Roma.

Part-way through the video, we were told to come upstairs quietly and inconspicuously to the kitchen (how are 10 children supposed to quietly come upstairs without arousing suspicions?) We did our best. The reason for coming up? We were going to sing congratulations to Mr. M for completing his training to become a Captain. We were able to surprise him, and the cake and cookies were enjoyed by everyone.

After dessert, we looked at some more pictures from Haiti as well as some pictures from our friend’s missions trip to Thailand.

Photo Credit: Roma.

The adults wanted to watch the Haiti highlight video, so we kids went outside to play tag.

Funny expressions from the boys.

Photo Credit: Roma.

Saying goodbye took about half-an-hour! It’s always hard to part ways. But we know that it’s not really “goodbye” but “see you later!” No matter how far away we live from each other, we are always able to pick up right where we left off. That’s the blessing of such close friends!

August Nature Pictures

This month we have a guest nature photographer: Roma! I was thinking that I should go out and get some August pictures, when I looked at her camera and the photos on it. She had lots of great nature pictures! Since it has been raining for the past several days, I thought now would be a good time to use her pictures.

So all the pictures you see in this post were taken by her, although the commentary will be my own.

Our impatiens have been doing quite well this year. They’re nice bright flowers!

How I adore sunbursts! J

The zinnias in my garden have been doing great as well. I love having a pop of color out there, and they make excellent cutting flowers.

I love the lighting in this photo!

Thanks Roma for these great pictures! We have another budding photographer in the family! J

Haiti Epilogue

Here is the final part of the story on our missions trip to Haiti. . .

(July 30, 2012)

This morning I woke up around 11:00 a.m. to say goodbye to my Abuela and Abuelo (Josiah had spent the week with them during our trip.) I went back to bed, but had to get up again because of an upset stomach.

I finally stayed up because I kept feeling sick. Around noon, Mom took Roma to the ER because she had thrown up 12 times already. She stayed there for 5 hours while they gave her an IV. She saw several doctors and nurses before she was finally released. She was diagnosed with acute gastroenteritis; basically stomach flu. After talking with Dad and Mr. B (our team leader), we think we had food poisoning from the pizza we ate in the Miami airport. How ironic is that? We go all week in Haiti without getting sick and then get sick on “safe” American food!

Tonight with dinner we looked at pictures from the trip together. It was good being all together again!

(August 1, 2012)

Getting up to run this morning was difficult because I was so tired. During our run, I could feel a cry coming on. I lost it when I got home. I just felt so depressed. Everything felt so shallow, empty, and meaningless. I feel like I don’t belong here. I want to be back in Haiti so badly. I cried and talked with Mom for awhile.

She reminded me that God has me here for a reason. I need to get over the hump of missing Haiti, and start working to HELP the people there.

I feel really burdened to see an orphanage built in Haiti on the mountain. But I’m so afraid. So many doubts and fears have been going through my mind. What if it costs too much? What if it’s too big of a project for me? What if everyone gets their hopes up and I fail?

As I was mulling over these thoughts, I read a post on a friend’s blog. She hadn’t posted in almost 6 months. Her post was about fear. It hit me right between the eyes. I can’t fear man. I can’t fear failure. If God has placed this burden on my heart, and it is truly His will, then He will make it happen. I need to choose to be a willing vessel for His use.

This trip to Haiti has radically changed my life. I will never be the same; I would never want to go back to the way I lived before this trip.

God has blessed me in many ways. As much as I want to be in Haiti, He has placed me here for a reason. I need to seek out that reason and His will for my life. I need to trust in His plans and know that they are the best.

I can’t wait to see what God has in store for my future! Praise God for all He does!

(August 11, 2012)

Hopefully you’ve had the opportunity to “experience” our trip to Haiti through these posts. Although our trip has come to an end, it’s really only the beginning. Our entire team really feels burdened for the people of La Montagne. We had a team get-together this past week to talk about our ideas and how we can put them in motion.

One of the ladies on our team really wants to help several of the children we met get medical attention. The baby with hydrocephalus needs treatment soon or she will eventually die from the disease. So she is working on the necessary procedures to bring a couple of the children to the states to receive treatment.

Our team leader really feels burdened to provide food for the children on a regular basis. He will be approaching other churches and youth groups to start a regular feeding program.

Several other members of our team want to send a sea crate of clothes, toys, and especially shoes to Haiti. I think that everyone on our team would love to return to Haiti. I have already talked with Mr. A about Ben and I coming back next summer. God willing, that will happen!

And as I already mentioned, God has laid this burden on my heart to see an orphanage built on the mountain. Right now I’m swimming in the deep waters of logistics, planning, fundraising, etc. I know that if this is truly God’s will, He will be the One to make it happen. I’m choosing not to go into detail on the project right now because there are so many unknowns. But I know I will need the help of scores of people to make this happen, and I know I’ll be sharing more about this in the future. There may even be another blog created just to tell that story!

We are all so thankful to have had the opportunity to go on this trip! God has really used it to change our lives. To God alone be the glory, for He is doing great things in Haiti!

Haiti Day 1: Monday

Haiti Day 2: Tuesday

Haiti Day 3: Wednesday

Haiti Day 4: Thursday

Haiti Day 5: Friday

Haiti Day 6: Saturday

Haiti Day 7: Sunday

Haiti Day 7: Sunday

Here is the continued story on our missions trip to Haiti. . .

(July 29, 2012)

This morning I woke up quite sore. I can feel all the bruises I got from sleeping/bouncing on the tap-tap yesterday.

We met downstairs for breakfast at 7:00 a.m. I talked with Mr. A and Mr. L for awhile before my breakfast was ready (I had a cooked-to-order omelet and a banana.) We discussed homeschooling quite a bit. Once we finished our breakfast, we girls went upstairs to brush our teeth and grab our bags. We piled into the tap-tap and the van for the ride back to Port-Au-Prince. This ride was much bumpier. I think they took a different route to avoid traffic due to a festival in Port-Au-Prince.

During our drive, a couple of men jumped up onto the back of the van and the tap-tap. Thankfully they didn’t bother us and eventually jumped off. We also saw a truck that went partially over a cliff side. Yikes!

I don’t recommend doing this. J

We arrived at the airport and began unloading our bags. Before we went in, we said goodbye to Mr. L. L I’m going to miss him so much!

Going through the Port-Au-Prince airport was a bit stressful. We went through 3 different security checkpoints! We bought burgers and fries for lunch and sat together and visited for awhile.

I talked with Mr. A awhile before his flight. I told him that even if our church doesn’t come back, I would still love to come back to Haiti next summer. He seemed very excited about the idea and I hope it works out.

Saying goodbye to Mr. A made everyone quite sad. L He has truly become family to us this past week. I’m going to miss him!

I chatted and napped a bit while we waited for our flight.

Waiting in the Port-Au-Prince airport.

Photo Credit: Roma.

Finally our flight was called. We waited in line to board for a long time. They checked our tickets and passports 3 times!

The flight to Miami went well. I had a snack and did some journaling. When we landed we went through passport control, collected our bags, and went through customs. After losing a few people along the way, we reunited at security. We all made it through and went to our gate.

We had a bit of a layover, so everyone scattered to buy dinner and call home. Our family bought pizza. Part way through the meal we got a text from Mr. A! He had made it home safely and wanted to thank us and tell us how much he enjoyed getting to know us. We all miss him a lot.

Hanging out at the Miami airport.

Photo Credit: Roma.

As we boarded our flight to Detroit, my stomach started feeling upset. There was an empty seat between Ben and I, so I borrowed someone’s backpack and used it as a pillow. I slept for almost the entire flight.

When we landed, we all prayed together at the gate one last time. I have grown to love everyone on this team so much! I’m going to miss seeing everyone daily.

We had a happy reunion with several church members at the baggage area. Once again, we collected our luggage and went to the parking lot via a shuttle. Our van was full on the way home. We stopped at a Speedway to buy Slurpees. On the way home we had good conversation together, even though it was well after midnight.

We arrived back at the church around 2:30 a.m., the same time we had left one week prior. There were lots of goodbye hugs before we left. We made it home, showered and went to bed. I’m exhausted and know that I’ll sleep well tonight!

To be continued. . .

Haiti Day 1: Monday

Haiti Day 2: Tuesday

Haiti Day 3: Wednesday

Haiti Day 4: Thursday

Haiti Day 5: Friday

Haiti Day 6: Saturday

Mountaintop

“Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people both now and forevermore.” Psalm 125:1-2

The valley low that's where we'll make our homes

But this I know that's what He saved us from

Cause we've seen the glory of our King

On the mountaintop

We've been to the mountaintop

We've seen the glory of our God

He is here in the valley low

He's here I feel it in my bones

Our God here and now

We are the body of our God

Oh I don’t mind, what happens to me now

I know for sure that we've been changed somehow

And we'll be the glory of our King

In His kingdom come

We've been to the mountaintop

We've seen the glory of our God

He is here in the valley low

He's here I feel it in my bones

Our God here and now

We are the body of our God

We build our temples

We build our walls

But they can't hold Him in

We are the temple of our God

But we can't hold Him in

We've been to the mountaintop

We've seen the glory of our God

He is here in the valley low

He's here I feel it in my bones

Our God here and now

We are the body of our God

--Mountaintop by The City Harmonic

Recipe--Texas Caviar

Our family loves all kinds of foods, as I’m sure could be concluded by the wide variety of recipes we post on our blog. But one of our favorite types of food is Mexican/Tex-Mex foods. We LOVE salsa, cilantro, beans, and all of that other good stuff.

This recipe is one of our favorites because it combines all of those good elements. This chunky salsa/dip is great for serving a crowd.

Texas Caviar

Photo Credit: Roma.

1 15-oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 15-oz can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained

1 15-oz can corn, drained

1 16-oz jar salsa

Stir ingredients together; pour into an airtight container. Refrigerate several hours before serving with chips. (We like to use different colors of chips, for eye appeal.) Serves 10.

First Birthday and First Haircut for Josiah

No matter how many children come into our family, there are certain “firsts” that are always celebrated with much pomp and circumstance. First birthdays are one of these special moments.

Josiah’s first birthday was celebrated with some dear family friends. I think more of Josiah’s cake ended up smooshed onto the floor than into his mouth. He really had fun with his very first piece of cake!

His first haircut was also a memorable experience. I don’t know if this is true for every child, but first haircuts were always slightly traumatic experiences for us kids. There were almost always tears shed even though Mommy was right there to hold us.

There were some tears for Josiah even though the stylist was very gentle.

But he looked oh-so-handsome when he was finished! J Thankfully we have all gotten used to haircuts and enjoy them now. But it’s always fun looking back at our “firsts” and our reactions to things then versus now!