Waiting . . . . . . And Then An Email From Haley!!!!!

Yesterday we FINALLY had a few updates on the GE South Africa A 2010 page on Facebook, and one of them was even a video of Haley sitting in the airport in Paris and being interviewed!!! I've been trying to get some of these things shared on my own Facebook page but with no success, so I would highly recommend getting on that page periodically and see things for yourself if you're interested. There are some pictures, a couple videos, and just some verbal updates that you can read. Probably the most amazing thing that I read was that they witnessed a miracle of someone going from paralysis to being able to walk! Praise the Lord!

Today they are going to be in a mall where they were hoping to have internet and/or phone access. Beth actually popped online and saw that I was on too, so she asked me to call her mom and ask her to get on. Evidently the phones they were hoping to access must not be available. She said that Haley was in a different group, so I could expect to hear from her later on. I'm feeling a little compelled to stay glued to my computer until I hear from her, but there are certain things that must be done around here, so I'm not sure how to handle that. We haven't heard anything from her since last Thursday, so the thought of missing out on my one shot of communication is not fun. I'm praying that she calls or "chats" soon! Tomorrow they are supposedly going to a typical African church and then heading to a lion park, so I'm thankful that they are allowing them a little down time.

Val shared with me that Beth has asked for prayers for strength. There has been some strep throat and flu, the food has been a little interesting, the shack-to-shack evangelizing efforts feel a little weird, and the lack of communication has been difficult. Beth was in Uganda last summer, so her expectations for this trip were a little different than what she's experiencing this time, so it's been a little bit more challenging. Haley went into this without really knowing what to expect, and she's in a different group than Beth, so it will be interesting to hear Haley's perspective. Please keep praying for ALL of them as they continue to adjust.

For us back here, it's been a fun and full week. We spent three days in the Pella area showing Charlene all kinds of things and introducing her to some of our family. My nieces happily gave up their beds for her and Kelsey and even greeted them with signs. You can't read it in the picture, but in addition to the greeting, it says, "You can sleep with this." They each gave up a stuffed poodle for the night! Charlene has three new little friends who adore her!

We visited our dear neighbors who live just half a mile from where we used to live, and they graciously let the girls tour their farm on four-wheelers. Charlene had never been on a farm or on a four-wheeler, so they had a great time exploring!


The afternoon was spent "swimming" in a farm pond complete with paddleboat, a floating thing in the middle, and fish, and then we went to my niece's softball game in the evening, which was also a first for Charlene. We got back to my sister's house, and my folks joined us for a yummy meal and a nice night of fellowship.

Wednesday was designated as the day to visit Des Moines! When is the last time you've been to the capitol building? May I urge you to go if you haven't been in 30 years like me? It's a gorgeous building and so much more meaningful to visit as an adult, and yet I think the girls thoroughly enjoyed the beauty of it too.




We even got to climb the 92 steps to the "top" of the building!


Once the tour was over, we decided to hop on the downtown trolley for a free ride to the State Historical Museum.

We enjoyed a nice girly lunch at a little cafe in there and then took in the sights of the city from its balcony. It was there that we discovered that all of us were either low on memory or battery, but it didn't stop us from taking just a few more pictures.



When Kelsey and I learned early on that our French guest was a gymnast, we knew it would be really cool for her to be able to tell her friends back home that she visited the studio where Olympian Shawn Johnson trains. We attempted to keep it a surprise, but her eyes lit up when she overheard a conversation Harris was having with a clerk last weekend. In his defense, he didn't know it was supposed to be a big secret! Photography was prohibited at the studio, but they were very gracious about letting us sit in their balcony and watch all the training that was happening for as long as we wanted. What fun it was for all of us! Unfortunately, Shawn was not there at the time, but we did get to see her instructor.

We traveled back to Pella and had another delicious meal at Smokey Row. The girls enjoyed their own booth while I was able to meet up with Beth's mom. It was so good for both of us to just talk about our daughters' passions for Africa and missions and work through some of our thoughts and emotions together.

Before heading back home on Thursday, we made a visit to Harris's folks' farm where Harris had been working on a tractor. He LOVES, LOVES, LOVES John Deere green!

His dad's cancer has been really debilitating, and prayer is appreciated. It was good to have lunch and some time with his parents and his brother. The girls explored this farm too, but this time Charlene was at the wheel for the first time in her life!


The girls are serving with the youth group at the air show this morning, and Keaton comes back home this afternoon! We've missed him! My guys are at the office, and I'm still patiently waiting by the computer for some communication from Haley. Pray with me, would you, that somehow we'll be able to chat today? Your prayers are so appreciated! Thanks!

UPDATE!!! UPDATE!!! UPDATE!!!

Just as I was editing this, my mom called, and I went into my email to send something to her, and I noticed an email from Haley that she sent a while ago already!!! Praise the Lord -- I can now get in the shower and move on with my day! It's not quite the same as hearing her voice, but it's written in true Haley style, and I can "hear" her voice loud and clear when I'm reading it. I'm just so thankful to hear from her at this point that I'll take anything!!! I can assure you that she's really very good at grammar, spelling, and punctuation, but she tends to like to type emails this way, probably just to get on my nerves a bit because she knows how I hate it, but in this case, I'll take it! If she weren't writing like this, I'd probably be worrying what's wrong!

After just a tad bit of editing, here it is:

Well hello there! So excuse any punctuation stuff because my keyboard here is whacked... im kinda mad at the moment bc my fb isn't working here and this could be the only chance to catch you up... another reason im mad is cuz there is absolutely nowhere we can call home and i have screamo blasting in my ears. grrrrr... other than that what's up? so im in africa... crazy stuff! it's been awesome and crazy and amazing and heartbreaking all at once... the emotions in my head are overwhelming but i'm doing alright! i am hearing from people that home it's warm and 95 degress! well we are here freezing our butts off! leg warmers, two pairs of socks, pants, underarmor, two or three long sleeve shirts and both jackets and we still freeze in the morning! in the middle of the day though it's hot hot hot... the children here are freakishly adorable and i almost packed phelli with me... don't ever let me forget to tell you about phelli and justice! they are the loves of my life and i miss them dearly. we have spent most of our time in diepsloot! crazy poverty... this is the first day we aren't out on a full day of ministry. we are at a "big mall" and doing our first bit of shopping. it's all kinda expensive so im waiting to do most of my shopping at the market. tmw we go to african church and then to lions park! excited for down time. i have showered i think three times! we could shower every day but psh that's lame... we are in africa! and only the girly girls are bc they are brave enough to get all their clothes off and actually hop in the shower. dude it's cold and there is nowhere to actually go to be warm... missing those meals too! we have had some kind of hot dog concoction for breakfast about three times and let me tell you... i don't stomach that meal very well! at least we are eating though and im still at the point where i am enjoying pbandj. the guys here are amazing and such gents and the girls are only now starting to be a bit annoying! lol it's all good though.. .considering we are together all the time i think it's going alright! i ahve made soo many new friends and am loving it here! my soccer skills are improving but this trip is absolutely not like i thought at all! yesterday i led four women to the lord but they were laughing at me the entire time but come to find out that they were just overwhelmed and overjoyed that we would come and share with them this kind of news! if i only had a picture for you guys of these peoples faces when we ask if we can do their laundry and dishes! lol well im journaling as much as i can! ill try and write again but i gots to go for now. i love you all so incredibly much and miss you more! hope you are enjoying your peace and quiet dad bc its not very long before im back full force! im loving the notes so keep em coming! and plz tell me more/anything about gpa... love love love... tell everyone hi!

byes!
haley

A Little Bit of News!

Haley's project director posted a little bit of info for us this morning! It's so good to hear SOMETHING!! They are in their first full day of ministry, and things are going very well. They have three teams, and they are rotating doing Vacation Bible School and shack-to-shack ministry. The public telephone lines were cut and burned down so the copper could be retrieved from them, so they are using a team leader's computer for Skype, Facebook, and email. Everyone is very healthy and really enjoying the trip. They have seen some salvations, and the students have been praying for people with various diseases ranging from AIDS to tuberculosis. The weather is cold, but they seem to be staying warm. He thanked us for our prayers.

People have asked me periodically how many are on the same trip as Haley, so I made a phone call to the parent communication hotline this morning to inquire as I've been curious myself. There are 18 on the African Excursion C, the two-month trip that Haley is on. In addition to that, there are 26 on the South Africa trip for the first month and 60 on the Zambia trip the second month.

For every 6 to 7 students, there is one person among them appointed as a leader. That person is 18 or older and serves kind of as a "camp counselor." For every 30 students, there is a male and female team leader, and they are at least 21 years of age. For each trip there are 2 project directors, one male and one female. Then there are also global partners who live over in the different countries. They are responsible for scoping out the conditions before the teams from here go over there.

As always, thank you for your prayers!

Life Here At Home

Communication from Africa has been slim to none. Supposedly there are no phones available, but one mom posted an update on Facebook that she had received an email from her daughter who said that they were in the biggest squatter camp of Diepsloot, which is north of Johannesburg, and that things were going well and that the Lord was present and moving! How they can randomly get online is beyond me, but I'll take it! I so wish I could give you more than that, but since I can't, I will post a few pictures of life back here at home.

First of all, we welcomed our French student, Charlene, into our home on Tuesday evening, and she has been a delightful addition to our family.



The kids went to Splash Landing on Wednesday afternoon, and then Kelsey took Charlene to youth group while Keaton and I went to his first piano recital on Wednesday night.



The idea behind Charlene's visit is that she's just supposed to live life with us as an American family. Kelsey introduced her to making chocolate chip cookies on Thursday, and she has accompanied Kelsey to dance recital rehearsals on Thursday and Friday nights. We had a big Primerica weekend, so we took her with us to a big party on Friday night, and then Saturday was the big dance recital day for both Kelsey and Heath's girlfriend, Jenny, who happened to be in one of Kelsey's classes this year.







Once the recital was over, we took Charlene for a major grocery shopping trip, and we were excited to find sweet corn worth buying for the first time this summer! This was a whole new experience for our guest, and it was so much fun to see them interact outside on the deck as they cleaned the corn for a little family cookout.







Keaton left for church camp in Michigan early this morning for a week. This picture makes him look really short, but he just happened to position himself right underneath the hatch, and the angle is just all wrong. He really seems to be getting a lot taller lately!



After church this morning, we had a nice Father's Day lunch complete with the children who are here, and then Harris took the girls for a drive. I hear they have lots of cool new pictures from a visit to LeClaire, but they're all more interested in cooling down and relaxing in front of a movie right now than handing over the goodies to me.

Happy Father's Day to my husband, who's the best dad in the whole wide world and who our kids adore, and to our dads back home in Pella! We come from a long line of God-fearing, Christian parents and grandparents, and my heart is full of love and appreciation for them today!

YouTube Videos from Texas!!

Technology is my friend! When I got on Facebook this morning, there was a status update from the Zambia page telling us that there are videos posted on YouTube that feature the registration process and some of the C trippers. Haley and Beth are even in one of them!

A Whole Lot of Emotions

It's amazing to me how one minute I can think I'm just fine with all of this, and within a matter of minutes, a whole lot of emotions have a way of flooding over me.

Harris and I had just said good-bye after a lunch with some business associates today, and before my van was even out on the street, I found myself calling home to have the kids put the flower pots inside the porch because a big nasty storm was brewing and coming on quickly. They didn't answer the home phone, but Kelsey answered her cell phone and quickly told me that they were on a walk and that I needed to pick them up right away. Before I could even get to them, she called and said that someone offered to give them a ride, and they had to make a hasty decision on whether or not to take it, knowing full well that that is against our rules. Thankfully God provided a nice honest person, and they all arrived home safely. Our French student just encountered a typical Iowa thunderstorm!

While they were tucked safely away in the basement, I was up here monitoring the storm and discovered an email from a missionary from our church who must have read my last blog entry and who wrote to encourage me with regard to the lack of communication we've been receiving. Before I could even read through it all, my Facebook messenger alerted me that Haley had just posted a status update!! I was so excited and quickly opened up my chat box so we could visit a little bit, and just that fast she had to go again. My heart had leapt for joy and then took a big nose dive all within about one minute. She wrote just enough to let me know that they are safe and have all their bags (praise God!!) and that she's seen one snake and they have no phones. That's it! I am thankful for the report and the fact that she's alive and well, but after much anticipation and thinking we MIGHT get a chance to have a real conversation, even if just for five minutes, my hopes were devastated just that fast. I went back to reading Jennifer's email and have just been trying to sort through it all in my mind ever since.

Am I worried about her? No, she's in God's hands, and my heart is at peace, and I know I can trust Him with her. Am I missing her? Yep, I guess so! I just wish we could communicate long enough for me to ask a few questions and hear her heart and know how she's really doing. Is that too much to ask? Maybe.

I think it boils down to the fact that I need to not have so many expectations and just be thankful for the little tiny snippets of info that we get. I think God's just teaching us a little more about letting go and trusting Him.

Thanks for walking with me on this journey. Somehow it just feels better to pound it out on a keyboard.

It's A Small World

When we went to bed last night, we were anticipating a phone call from Haley in the middle of the night because that's when she was due to arrive in Paris, France, but the phone call never came, which kind of surprised (and disappointed) me. I was just as surprised by the fact that I woke up to a couple Facebook greetings from her instead! I was one of those nervous moms who bucked the Facebook concept for a long time but finally gave in when Heath was in college and some fellow moms talked me into it, and my kids have never let me live it down. The chat feature on it is one I rarely use, but for whatever reason this morning, I decided to see who else was on, and it was fun to strike up a conversation with my sister. We could have covered way more ground in way less time if we had just picked up the phone, which is what drives me crazy about "chatting," but it was fun nevertheless.

Then all of a sudden, Haley's friend Beth, who is traveling with her, popped on!! We were able to have a quick conversation in which I learned that plans had changed AGAIN, and now instead of going to the Eiffel Tower, which would involve too many risks (time? safety?), they were hanging out for the 15-hour layover in the airport instead. They were all dead tired because they hadn't slept on their flight to Paris, and yet they were encouraged to not sleep in the airport either because now they're on Africa time, which is 7 hours ahead of us, and they need to get used to that schedule. The idea is that they will sleep tonight while they're making their 10-hour flight to South Africa and then be ready for the day when they arrive there in the morning. Somehow the leaders must have caved a little bit because when I asked what Haley was doing, Beth said that she was passed out on the airport floor for their allotted 45-minute nap. I doubt the leaders had a clue how hard it would be to wake her up!

I was kind of surprised that they wouldn't let them sleep more of their layover time away, but when I asked Beth if everyone was okay with that or if there was grumbling amongst them, she said that they were not allowed to complain and that they were there to serve. They were supposed to keep each other in check. As a mom who's been grumbling a little over all the packing issues we've had, that was kind of hard to swallow, but what I quickly came to realize was how much training they are really putting these kids through already. I had already learned too that the reason the kids aren't calling home more is because they are being discouraged not to do so. They want to focus them on the Lord and not let them get sidetracked with relationships back home. Many lessons are being learned both ways.

Anyway, it was a really bizarre feeling for me this morning when I thought about the fact that Haley was sleeping in the airport in Paris, and our foreign exchange student from France, Charlene (pronounced Shar-LEN), was sleeping in our basement! She came Tuesday evening, and as we've been introducing her to the American culture, I keep thinking about her parents and how they must be wondering about their daughter. I'll have to post a picture later because I don't have any on my camera yet, but she's just the sweetest, cutest, and soft-spoken girl you could ever meet. When she speaks English, it's very identifiable, but when we speak to her, you can see the blank look in her eyes at times. Because Kelsey has taken some French, they get along a little better with their communication skills, but once again, I have to give kudos to Facebook because through it they connected for a few weeks before she ever even came. They spent as much time as they could chatting with each other, so they formed a bond before she even arrived, which is pretty cool when you think about it.

Right after Beth and I chatted this morning, then Haley's small group leader who just moved to Texas popped on too and told me that she had prayed for Haley this morning. What a blessing that was for me to hear! Her college-aged daughter is in Thailand all summer, and that was news to me. We're definitely raising a generation of kids who go far more places than we ever did!

And then to top it all off, I just have to share one more piece of trivia. I have a cousin who has lived in Des Moines most of her life, but she has been dating a guy originally from right here in Bettendorf for the last 10 years. Just in the last month or two, they announced they were getting married. You can imagine my surprise when she announced that they were getting married in ... drum roll, please ... South Africa!!! And guess when? Tomorrow -- the same day that Haley arrives in South Africa!!! How wild is that?

I guess I'll just get on with my life tonight in Bettendorf and figure out what to next feed our French girl. Wonder what Haley will eat tomorrow morning in Africa?

Update!

Haley arrived safely in Texas on Monday, and our conversations have been pretty limited. She just called me a few minutes ago from the Houston airport and was a little too unraveled to suit me in the two minutes we got to speak. Evidently her carry-on bag was too big, which contained a lot of her clothing, and somehow they shuffled a lot of her clothing into another bag. I'm not really sure of the details other than she did assure me that her stuff is on the plane, not setting in Texas, but she wants us to pray that it all makes it. She knows of one gal whose luggage was stolen on a trip, and she had nothing the whole time and had to borrow from anyone willing to loan her anything, and the thought of that is making her nervous. Please pray for not only her bags but the whole team's worth of bags to arrive safely in Africa on Friday!

She is flying out now (Wednesday, June 16) from Houston and will arrive in Paris nine hours later, which will be Thursday morning in Paris. Their layover appears to be longer than originally planned, so now they do get to leave the airport and see the Eiffel Tower, which is pretty cool. They'll leave Paris Thursday night and have a ten-hour flight to South Africa and will arrive there on Friday morning.

She's supposed to be able to call when she arrives in the different countries, so we'll be anxiously anticipating the phone call that will assure us that all her luggage is there with her! Thanks for your prayers!

Haley's Farewell Party

This is my first attempt at posting a slideshow on here that I actually made. I would love some music to go along with it, but the choices of songs weren't great, and I couldn't figure out how to get it to not play over and over and over again. Crank up your own tunes and enjoy the pictures! If someone can enlighten me on a better way to do this, I'd be grateful!

(Edited later to include all the pics from the slideshow!)

One Wild Weekend and Now She's Gone!

Thankfully Haley's been feeling pretty much back to normal the last few days, so Thursday morning we made a plan for me to spend a full day at the office so she could do a few things of her own. One of her goals was to have a date with each one in our family before she left, so Keaton was excited that this day was finally his turn. She had lunch plans with a friend as well, and then she also worked a few hours in the evening. Keaton has informed me that he is absolutely sure that he will miss Haley the most of anyone while she's gone. They have such a special and unique bond with each other, full of teasing and inside jokes. This picture depicts just a little bit of their silliness.

When Friday morning came, one of the first things I did was sit down and make a massive list of all things left to do. It was downright scary! In retrospect, I should have prayed for our days to pass by slowly because it seemed as though the time on the clock just moved at a much faster rate than normal from that point forward. In talking with the nurse from Passport Health and trying to figure out the final prescription list, it came up that we had bought 100% Deet, and that nurse gave me a loud and resounding, "NO, that's toxic!" I guess that stuff is meant to be sprayed on the tent and clothing but shouldn't touch the skin.

We set out to do a few more errands, and before we knew it, our day was gone, and it was time for our date. It's a really good thing we had made this commitment long ago, or I'm not sure we would have had the wisdom to just stop and enjoy the evening together. Haley's friend Abbey was competing in the Miss Iowa Outstanding Teen pageant, so we spent the evening watching her take 5th place and were invited along with all her supporters to a pizza and pop party afterwards. Abbey has been such a tremendous support to Haley in the last few months, and we knew we didn't want to miss out on the event she has been working hard for for so long.

On the way to the pageant, I called Harris and tearfully explained my list, and he so lovingly agreed to rally the troops (a/k/a Heath and Keaton) and make me proud. The three of them spent their evening together accomplishing some yard and household tasks and just fended for themselves in a kitchen that needed some groceries. My sister-in-law Stephanie also always has my back, so the next phone call was to ask her if she would be willing to provide a couple of salads for Sunday's lunch, and in true Steph style, she served up three delicious ones PLUS some freshly baked cookies right out of the oven. I am so thankful for such a great support system!

By the time Haley and I got home and got started packing, it was 11:30 p.m., but we knew we had no choice but to start going through all the stuff that had been accumulating in her room. This is just some of it and doesn't include any of the clothes that still needed to be pulled out and packed!



We were shuffling about five different lists and started the process of putting together all the toiletry kind of stuff in as organized and compact version as possible. I can assure you -- much easier said than done. By the time we headed to bed a few hours later, we didn't feel as though we had accomplished much, but we had at least made a dent in the packing process.

Saturday morning came all too soon. Haley left for her last shift at the Y, and thankfully I sat down first thing to just get in the Word a bit and pray. Right after that I picked up the phone and called my mom, who had been asking what she could do to help, and she willingly agreed to help make some cookies for Sunday's party. My brother Jerry called to explain that their family couldn't come on Sunday but wondered if it was possible for them to come up that day for lunch instead. It about killed me to say no because I knew how much the visit would have meant to all of us, especially Haley, but Harris and Haley already had lunch plans, and I knew that we already had way more planned into our day than we could possibly get done. By the time we were finished talking, tears were falling, and I explained that the best thing they could do was just pray a lot for us.

My sister Sheila and then Steph both called, and with both of them I was able to share my frustrations and desperation, and I know they moved into serious prayer mode on my behalf. My emotions were overtaking me, and at one point I think Satan was just trying to convince me that Haley was not supposed to go. I had been looking at Haley's account and knew that she still needed $49 left to raise, which wasn't a huge deal, but it was just one more thing hanging over my head and one more expense that I figured we'd need to come up with if necessary. God has taught me many times over the years that He always provides. It may not always be as much as what we think we need or in our preferred timing, but when we choose to follow Him as our Lord and Savior, He promises to us His faithfulness, so I finally just had to stop myself and pray, "Lord, we have trusted you in this process for months, and we don't intend to stop now, but if you really want Haley to go, I could use a little extra dose of confirmation. If you could just take care of that little $49 detail, that would do it for me."

Probably 15 minutes later, my phone rang again, and it was a relative of mine who just wanted to call and find out who she could make a check out to because she still wanted to donate. When she told me that she wanted to give $50, I was totally speechless because I knew that would put us $1 over what we needed. One dollar! WOW!!! God proved His faithfulness one more time in a huge way for me, and through my tears I was able to share with her what a blessing that donation was. Not only that but a little more has trickled in since then which will help cover some of the out-of-pocket expenses that we've incurred as part of this adventure. God is so incredibly good!!! Stop and praise Him with me right now as you read this, please! Praise God from whom ALL blessings flow!!!

The day moved on way too fast, and by 3 p.m. a choice had to be made. Harris and I were supposed to attend a wedding with Vance and Steph that evening, so either we needed to forego our plans, or else I needed to do some more delegating. Haley quickly stepped up to the plate and offered to tackle the grocery list, and Heath agreed to make a couple batches of cookies for the party. Keaton got in on helping wherever needed, and they all knew that they were on their own for supper and that Kelsey needed to be picked up after being gone to church camp for the last few days. God has blessed us with such great kids, and I am so thankful!

After we got home, Haley and I headed downstairs again for round two of packing, and Harris supervised from the bed for a while. My first task was to organize the prescriptions and all the different over-the-counter medications that we were advised to send along with her. Haley started by picking out all of her oldest but decent clothes and tried to figure out how we were going to make everything fit.



By 2:30 a.m. we knew we had to shut it down for the night and just get some sleep. We prayed over the situation and really had no idea how it was all going to come together, but we just knew it had to be done. She drifted off to sleep, and I came upstairs to double-check all the baggage restrictions that the airline imposes. Another prayer was answered when I discovered that her sleeping bag was just one inch short enough to be allowed as a "personal item" on the plane, which meant we could fill up her duffel bag/backpack as her carry-on. Praise the Lord again!

We had been debating over the decision to go to church that morning because we felt as though we had so much left to do and we were tired, but knowing that little detail put me a little more at ease, and four hours later I was awake and knew that no matter how tired we all were, we were going to church. Some tired and emotional tears were shed during the service, but afterwards Haley had a chance to grab a few hugs and well wishes, and then our senior pastor and his wife gathered a bunch of us and prayed over Haley before we left the building.

Some of our family members from Pella were coming for Haley's farewell party, so we had invited them to make their trip a little more worthwhile and join us for lunch. It was a nice opportunity for Haley to share some details of her trip with them, and we were able to just enjoy a couple hours before the real chaos began! Starting about 2:30, friends and family members started pouring through our doors, and for three solid hours, people came and loved on Haley. It was all fun and happy until the good-byes started occurring, and then a whole bunch of us gathered around her at one point to pray for her, and many tears were shed.

By 6:20 all our guests were gone, and we headed out for one last-minute errand. It's winter in Africa right now, and I wasn't 100% comfortable with the "winter coat" we were sending, but according to the salesperson, what we had already purchased in another store will be great. Feel free to pray that she stays warm because it doesn't look to me like it will be warm enough! Trusting, yet again . . .

{{Side note: We have so many fun pictures that I'd love to include right here, but I'm still trying to figure out how to make that happen!}}

While we were out, Harris and the kids did a miraculous job of cleaning up the house, and there were a few moments for us to enjoy just a little peace and quiet while Haley went to say more good-byes to a couple of friends. We had a little bit of extra excitement thrown into our day when Heath opened up the trash can in our garage and was a little unnerved when he saw this opossum looking at him! Yuck! We have no idea when or how that got in there!

For months I had envisioned all of us going out for a nice dinner together and having a nice final relaxing evening together as a family, but with everything going on, I decided instead to make one final meal that I knew Haley would enjoy here at home. Just as it was coming out of the oven a little before 10 p.m., Vance and Steph's family came over, per Haley's request, because she just needed one more round of hugs from them. One of her teachers stopped by with a hug and a little gift for her.

Finally at 11 o'clock, we made our final trek downstairs to pack. We didn't think it would take too terribly long because we knew we had everything pretty well organized and thought through at that point, but when we finally had everything assembled and put that bag on the scale, it weighed 73.6 pounds! Fear and panic set in, and the act of sacrificing really began! A 50-pound limit seemed like an unattainable goal, but we knew it had to be done.

Kelsey, bless her heart, was busy upstairs writing letters and putting together the 53+ letters that we had collected for Haley. We had secretly sent out a request to friends and family because we wanted Haley to have one thing to open each day while she was gone. This little collection was a bittersweet sight for Haley's eyes when we presented it to her, but we managed to squeeze it in. She's thinking she'll appreciate the love more than the rain poncho! We packed and repacked countless times, and finally at about 4 a.m., we got the suitcase to weigh in at like 49.6 pounds. Talk about really, really trusting now! We are taking comfort in the fact that she is going with a large group, and maybe what she has left at home and deemed not as important will be shared by someone else and vice versa. The little amount of clothing she took with no real promise of laundering capabilities is very scary, but I guess they will all just be smelly and dirty together.

We needed to leave for the airport at 5 a.m., so any hope of sleep for the three of us was gone. Haley took one last really nice shower complete with hot running water, soap, and shampoo, and the rest of us just left the house looking like we'd either had no sleep or had just rolled out of bed into the nearest available clothes. We carried a few things into the airport with us just in case our scale was off and we could add them back in, but when we put that suitcase on the scale at the airport, it was 50.5 pounds! One ounce more and we would have been forced to pay extra baggage fees every leg of her trip. She's been informed that she can't add a single ounce before she leaves Texas!

Three of her friends surprised her there with a big sign!

After giving final instructions and saying our final good-byes, they hung with us as we all watched her disappear into the line of people needing to get through security. Even though there was a look about her that was screaming, "What on earth am I doing here," there was a sense of peace about me because I KNOW that God has called her to this, and I KNOW that He will get us all through it. My heart is full of anticipation and wonder of what God will do in and through her in the next two months of her life. To God be the glory!

When we made her flight reservation back in January, we had chosen one with about a two-hour layover in Atlanta. That airport is huge, and with this being the first time of her flying solo, I felt really good about that choice. Shortly afterwards we received an email indicating that her flight had been changed. She was to leave an hour later in the morning, which was a cool surprise, but that cut her layover time to less than an hour. My prayer has been that her flight would change back to its original time frame or that she would not have to take the train to a different concourse to make her connecting flight. God must have known all along that we would need that extra hour for packing, and I'm thankful to report that not only did He provide a nice local frequent flyer gentleman to sit beside her who was able to give her some tips, but then the icing on the cake was her next flight was just three gates down from where she got off! Praise the Lord again!!!

She has arrived safely in Texas, and we've heard from her a handful of times, mostly through texting. Right before lights were to go out last night, she left us with the knowledge of how hot, buggy, and cramped it was where they are staying, but in her words, "But the Lord is here! Let's do this!!!"

Thank you so incredibly much to every single one of you who has supported her with your monetary gifts, kind words, hugs, time -- EVERYTHING!! She appreciates you ALL more than you know, and so do we! God bless you!

Our contact with her will be very limited once she leaves Texas on Wednesday afternoon. She'll have a 9-hour flight to Paris and then will be sitting in the Paris airport for 12 hours while her body will be telling her it's time to sleep. Then she'll get back on a plane for a 10-hour flight to South Africa where she will arrive at 5:30 a.m. on Friday morning. Talk about jet lag! We'll be posting as many updates to this blog as we can throughout the next two months. There are also a couple of Facebook groups (GE South Africa A 2010 and GE Zambia B 2010) that you are welcome to join and look at for pictures and updates. Her reps will be posting as much information as they possibly can.

You can also send her little messages of encouragement through www.globalexpeditions.com by clicking through these tabs: Trips ~ Summer Trips ~ Africa ~ South Africa. You'll then be prompted to enter a password, which I will happily give to anyone who asks for it. I just don't feel comfortable posting it on here. Once you've entered the password, you will see a place to send messages to a missionary. She won't be able to respond back to you, but it will mean so much to her to hear from you! She'll be in South Africa for the first half of her trip, and then once she moves on to Zambia, I'm sure the directions and password will change, so just contact me for a new one at that time.

God took a big chunk of our hearts away yesterday, but he's giving us someone new to love today! We'll be welcoming our French student, Charlene, who is due to arrive tonight at 5:30, so for the next month we'll be sharing those experiences with you as well! We are looking forward to sharing our family and the American culture with her.

The Lord is here too! Let's do this!!

Shopping ~ In God We Trust

Thank you all so much for your prayers!!! Haley and I were able to put in a very full day of shopping yesterday, and she seemed much more herself than she had been in days! She's not a natural shopper and gets sick of it very quickly, so for her to spend several hours at the activity is noteworthy in and of itself! It was a good day. Praise the Lord!

We spent longer than we'll admit at our first store, and most of the time we probably looked a lot like this:



This was not exactly a typical shopping trip where you can just go, pick up what you need based on what you've always bought before, and then be done with it! This time every single decision seemed monumental, and thankfully Beth (her friend who's been to Africa and who is going with her this time) was on the other end of the phone the countless times we called to ask her questions.

"Just how many baby wipes do you think we'll need to take? Flushable or just regular? Really, you're taking 4 80-count packages?"

After picking up what we thought would be a good amount of soap and shampoo, Beth said, "Just how often do you think we'll be showering? In Zambia our showers consist of dipping our head in a bucket -- and we all use the same bucket."

"What rating on the sunscreen do you think we should get?"

"Bug spray . . . you mean you really found one with 100% Deet? Where?"

"Backpack or duffel bag for my carry-on. I really need to know."

"How many calling cards do you think we'll need? Should we pick some up for you too? They're on sale!"

"How many snacks should we pack? We can't possibly pack enough for two months!" Beth's response: "As much as you can!"

"Where did you find your traveler's pillow?"

"Do you really think we need a mosquito net? I was told we didn't because it's winter down there." Beth's response: "Yeah, but you'll still want one. Last time we saw lizards and cockroaches in our tent."

"How many pairs of shoes are you taking? What kinds?"

"Do you think we'll be able to launder our clothes much? Should we take powder or liquid detergent?"

The questions went on and on and on. Every time we'd pick something up, I'd be looking at the weight on the bottle and wonder how many more times we could possibly do that and still meet the 50-pound limit. It just seems totally impossible and overwhelming!

Towards the end of the day as we were heading into another store, this old beat-up dime laying in the parking lot happened to catch my eye, so I bent down and picked it up. A few years ago, I read a story about a wealthy man who would stop to pick up a penny, and his poor companion couldn't figure out why he'd bother to do such a thing. He said that every time he sees a coin on the ground, he picks it up, pauses, and marvels at the words, "In God We Trust." He takes it as a reminder sent from Heaven above to just trust in God for his every need. That story has really impacted me, and yesterday's occurrence was no exception. Just take a look at this thing:



At a time when we felt pretty spent mentally, physically, and financially, God threw that battered coin in our path as the perfect reminder that He is in control, that He will take care of us, and that He will provide. All He asks us to do is trust and obey!

Easier said than done . . . I know. I'm CHOOSING to do that today.

Keep On Praying!

Time is ticking away all too fast!

Haley had still not been feeling well since her episode last Thursday morning. She's just had no appetite, no energy, nausea, and an overall feeling of something not being right. That's not exactly a good place to be right now! Yesterday I slipped away to the office after being out a few days, and not too long after I was there, she texted me with a plea of "Mom, what is wrong with me? I just don't feel right." I'll be honest. My panic button was hit, and the severity of the situation really sunk in. I had already called the doctor's office before that, but the nurse hadn't called me back yet, so I called them again and explained the situation to that receptionist while holding back the tears. They were still trying to find her chart! After being on hold for a while, I was finally able to set an appointment with a new doctor since ours is out all this week. I also sent out a couple pleas for prayer and am so thankful to all those who responded on our behalf so quickly!

Basically we had a consultation and found out that Haley was anemic and starting to get dehydrated. She advised us to take her off the medication for five days that she's been on to prevent future ovarian cysts and see if the nauseous feeling goes away. If so, she can resume that medication again, but Haley's not so sure it's worth it. The doctor said she wished she could hold Haley's hand while she's in Africa and help walk her through every question and decision that comes up but told her that this would be part of the growing-up experience, and she'll have to make these decisions on her own. My motherly instinct right there told me we'd better go get a couple more calling cards -- just in case. We can't be there to hold her hand, but the least I can do is give her the peace of mind of being able to call her mama when she needs to!

With all the immunizations she's been getting and her hormones being jerked around, the doctor said it's no wonder her body is reacting a little weird to everything. My motherly intuition thinks there might be a slight case of nerves thrown into the mix too, and it doesn't help that we're looking at a huge shopping/packing list that must get conquered!

When we came home, she immediately went to the couch, and I promptly gathered up a plate of ibuprofen, a multipurpose vitamin, an iron supplement, some whole-wheat crackers spread with peanut butter, and some grapes and gave her a big glass of ice water and told her I wasn't leaving until all of that was consumed. I hadn't been able to get her to eat or drink hardly anything the last few days because she's just been so nauseous. We joked around a little as she was eating, and she even asked for a few more crackers! Her aunt Steph and two girls showed up at the house at just the right time, and by the time they left, Haley was up and around and laughing, and her overall spirit was much better. I was so delighted to see such quick progress! Harris had been gone since Thursday night to help his dad again, so when he called and said he'd be home for supper at 7, she was so excited that she even helped me whip up a meal which included some fresh greens out of the garden -- and she ate them!!! She loves her daddy so much, and his presence was probably some of the best medicine she could have had last night.

Oftentimes she's been feeling a little better in the evenings as opposed to during the day, but we're really hoping and praying for the best today all day. The two of us are planning on spending the day together by doing some shopping. I think both of us will feel better if all her supplies are purchased and she can start the packing process. If you're reading this and would be willing to say a prayer for us today and for her continued progress, that would be so awesome! Thank you so very much for all your support!!

"And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19

Just A Little Update

Life has been very full and busy around here, but before I head into another day of crazyness, I just thought a quick update would be in order. My sister and her three girls came last weekend for a visit, so we thoroughly enjoyed some fun girl times together while my guys worked in the yard to get a little landscaping project completed from last year. Harris had passed his test on Friday, Haley was done with finals, Kelsey was finishing middle school, Keaton was happy to have 4th grade nearing the end, Heath's girlfriend graduated, and Monday was Memorial Day, so it was a great celebratory weekend full of family memories. After our guests left on Tuesday morning, there were about 45 minutes that I had to myself before the kids arrived home from school for summer break, so I used that time to just bathe them and our summer in prayer. It was the perfect little niche of time, and oh, how good it was to quiet my spirit before the Lord.

Wednesday brought on the first of several final appointments that we're making sure happen before Haley leaves. First stop was another round of shots for both girls, and then Haley got her hair cut after lunch. We squeezed in a little bit of shopping in between and finally found a sleeping bag that we hope and pray will be adequate for her trip. Our youth group welcomed the new freshmen in by hosting a picnic that night, so off went my new freshman and my new senior with their plate of brownies and smiles on their faces. Haley was spontaneously invited to a friend's house afterwards for a sleepover with some friends, and she was thankful for the opportunity to connect with a few of the ones who are all wanting a little piece of her time before she leaves.

While she was there, they were up late playing cards, and about five minutes after they decided to quit for the night, she felt the same intense pain that she felt that memorable day in April when she experienced a large ruptured ovarian cyst. Her friends gathered around and prayed for her, and she texted me at 3:42 a.m. what had happened and that she was going to try and sleep it off. By the time I got the text the next morning, I knew that she must have been sleeping, so I waited patiently for her call, which finally came around 10:30. She came home feeling very nauseous, so we made work of calling our OB/GYN's office to figure out what to do next. She was supposed to go in on Friday anyway for a follow-up ultrasound to the episode in April, but they worked us in for a couple ultrasounds and a pretty thorough exam on Thursday afternoon. The last two days she's experienced some pain, slept a lot, had no energy or appetite, and had a mild fever. We've had several conversations with the doctor and nurses, and a white blood cell count was done yesterday just to rule out appendicitis. We've basically come to the conclusion that she probably had another ruptured cyst, although this time it must have been small enough that all the testing could show was a little bit of fluid on the ovary. Evidently the fluid just gets absorbed into her system on its own, but it's a painful process nonetheless.

Of course, we've been very concerned about the possibility of this happening in Africa. She's been on medication to help prevent these, but it was explained to me that sometimes the medication takes a couple months to reset the hormones, so hopefully she'll get along better from now on. At least now she knows and recognizes the distinct pain that occurs. We finally resorted to the use of a painkiller last night, and then she finally started to perk up again. The doctor has signed a medical release and didn't feel it was necessary for her to cancel her trip because of it, so we'll just be intensely praying for her health while she's gone and sending a few painkillers along just in case she needs them.

Kelsey and I have been talking for months about sprucing up our family room in the basement, and it's something we really want to have done before our French guest arrives. It's one of the few rooms that we never painted since we moved here seven years ago, and because it's the teenage hangout spot, it's taken some abuse over the years. While Haley was sleeping yesterday, Kelsey and I snuck away to pick up some paint, and then the entire night was devoted to the project. The kids immediately pitched in and started moving things out and prepping the walls for me, and I poured myself a little bowl of paint, grabbed my favorite brush, and started trimming. My "control freak" nature usually doesn't allow me to share the painting responsibility, but a pretty strong desire within me to just get this project tackled won over. After a little instruction Kelsey became a pro at rolling on the paint, and she even started out with the ceiling! I was really dreading that part myself, but she did a fabulous job! Keaton was available all night as our gopher, cleaner-upper guy, and then he even offered to make supper for us. He laid a blanket out on the floor for us and served up a delicious and highly nutritious meal of corn dogs, potato chips, and Kool-Aid . . . and we were thankful!

Haley's up and thinking she's ready to tackle the first of her two work shifts today. My helpers are still sleeping, but as soon as I get back from the paint store, day two of the project begins. Our goal is to get the room all put back together tonight so that next week we can really focus on getting the rest of what Haley needs and get her packed. We have only one week left to finalize a whole lot of details!

So thankful that tomorrow is a day of rest!!