NEW

NEW-normally a word I accept with excitement!  NEW clothes, NEW anything for my house, NEW shoes, NEW jewelry, NEW friends, NEW adventures… You get the picture!  This word has been on my mind a lot lately.  Not because I have gotten NEW things but because it is an adjective that describes our family now. 

Some of the most fitting definitions of new are:  not of long duration, of a kind not seen before (my favorite!), lacking training or experience, unaffected by use or exposure (like that one too!), unfamiliar (AMEN!!!). 

The first few months we were here didn’t feel so new.  Obviously we knew everyone in the church (so thankful!) and this summer we were here more and not in town as much.  Of course everyone looked at us trying to figure out who these people were.  The church put our picture in the paper several times SO we get a lot of “I saw yall in the paper” and “you’re the new preacher”  Since school started we really feel NEW. 

Thursday nt we had meet the teacher at the middle school.  As we made our way to the school I felt so nervous.  Just the whole walking in being NEW, not knowing what to do or where to go, and the list goes on.  I told A that this was just not fun!  Then it hit me, poor Elleigh!  Not that I had not thought about what it must feel like for her, especially in the beginning but it was just very real.  Some people have such a hard time understanding why this transition has been so difficult for Elleigh.  Of course, if you have never moved or moved your children it would be more difficult to understand but a 13 yr old (such a hard age without rocking the boat at all, especially as a girl) in a brand new place, making a transition from homeschool to traditional school, being the NEW girl among girls who have known each other their entire life and being in a small town is just not an easy transition period!  Bless her she tries so hard to be a positive person and to be one who adjusts easily so she has really beaten herself up a lot over not adjusting as easily as she thought she would, especially not easy when people ask, “so why is she having such a hard time adjusting?”  NEW just is isn’t always a fun thing!

This is a pic of the NEW girls headed to the JV game on Thursday night.  They LOVE going to the ballgames.  Sallie is a celebrity.  Seriously!  All the kids are like “there’s Sallie” (and not in a bad way).  They love her!  She just waves and keeps going till she greets the next adoring fan!  It is funny!  Elleigh likes hanging out despite being NEW!  The little girls don’t know they are NEW!  A is just there for the ballgame and well it is strange for me.  The way they do things is different and of course everyone is staring because we are NEW! 

Homecoming was Friday night and these are pics before the game.  Homecoming was different for the NEW people too!  I already knew about the MUMS because A had told me since he had gone to school in TX as a kid.  I can not believe I did not get a picture of someone wearing a mum!  Yall I just CAN’T explain them!!!  I think it used to be tradition that the girl’s date gave them one but now everyone wears them from little bitty girls through teenage girls.   Elleigh did not want one.  She said she would wear one when a boy gave it to her, like it was supposed to be!  That’s Ell!  I found this pic online but it “ain’t” got nothing on the mums I saw last night!  They had a lot more stuff on them.  Some of them even lit up!  It’s a Texas tradition!  Those sure are some pretty NEW girls!  I have to say I don’t mind hearing that! We for sure looked more like Southern Belles than Texas Queens!  Yet another thing that was NEW for us.  They do Homecoming Queen very different.  They have 3 nominees all from the Senior class and at halftime they crown the queen from the 3.  There are no attendants from the other classes.  The little girls did love seeing the girls in their formals.  Lots of people were telling Elleigh that she would be the Homecoming Queen when they are seniors.  Hmmm… will all this be our way of life by then or will we be NEW somewhere else.  Only the Lord knows and I am glad for that!The NEW preacher, NEW preacher’s wife, those NEW people, and mom and dad to the NEW kids!

Not So “Wordless”

Our last 2 posts have been very word heavy.  Thank you A for your post!  I love your heart and I love YOU and I love that I get the honor of “doing life” with YOU!  This post is not word heavy but picture heavy!  However, the saying a picture is worth a thousand words is very true in these pictures!

Art work by Lizzie!  NOT such a proud mama…  This is how I found it.  Guess she was trying to wash off the nail polish! A VERY PROUD MAMA!!!  To help you understand, she was wearing a shirt with her name on it. As you can see, the little girls are very eager to learn as well! NEVER underestimate prissy girls and their ability to get DIRTY!!!  Yes, they have on good clothes! Yes, Lizzie is wearing a white dress shoe and a black dress shoe! Yes, they are proud of themselves! Yes, they had a blast and Yes they had to be stripped before coming in the house!

I LOVE MY LIFE!!!

Sallie, School, and Daddy

From our special guest blogger: DADDY!

First of all I want to say that Sallie is loving school and that is such a blessing for us to see. She is learning and enjoying her days. She loves to go to school. I know that Cameron has already told you all that, so why am I writing this? Well, I have a perspective that is a little different. I am usually the one who takes the girls to school and then picks them up in the afternoon. I have always been scared of what would happen with Sallie in school. The first day I walked into the school in Fort Worth I knew I would never be able to leave her in something like that. Here it has been good from the start and though it was and still is hard I feel good about leaving her.

MORNINGS

In Sallie’s school they are able to go to their class at 7:50. I wait until that time to take her to her class so she does not have to go sit in the lunchroom. Her teacher wants to work toward her getting out of the car and then going to her class like most of the other students in her grade. At first I thought that would be great as well, but I am beginning to change my mind. It is not because Sallie is unable, I know she is. The first days I walked her into her class. After this I began to walk her to her door, and after this I began to walk her to the hallway and let her go. I cried the whole way home the first day I stopped at the corner and she did not look back until she got to her door. She turned, saw me watching, smiled, waved, and went into her class just like everyone else. The reason Sallie will not walk from the car to her class is because though she is able to handle it, I am NOT. I could stop at the door now and she would smile and wave goodbye, but that is not about to happen. I know she is safe, but I am not about to stop watching her all the way down her hallway as long as she will allow me to. Pray for me that she will continue to let me because I am not sure how Daddy would do if she did not.

AFTERNOONS

Since Sallie was born we have wanted her to be like and to be treated like other people. The fact is that she is different and we must realize how special she is. She acts different but that is who she is and we love her for it. On the first day of school when we picked her up she came out of the building, screamed, and ran out to me and gave me a big hug. Needless to say it did not look like any other kid coming out of school that day. She was so excited to see me and she let me know. At first I was scared that she would be looked at differently and she was, but it seems it is not in a bad way. Sallie has become a celebrity and everyone wants to tell her bye and to play with her. We have always said you could not meet Sallie and not fall in love with her wonderful attitude and spirit. The other day as she went through her daily routine of running to her daddy and giving me a great big hug where she picks up her feet off the ground and then kisses me I was thrilled.( It took me only a couple of times before I looked forward to that hug and seeing her run to me.) As I looked around I saw parents looking at us and instead of talking about it being strange or making fun I realized they were jealous. You do not know how many times I have prayed for Sallie to be “normal”. God thank you for ignoring me and doing what was best for you and my family. If she was “normal” then I would not be getting those hugs that I look so forward to, and I would not see other parents looking at me wishing they could have those hugs from their kids.

I am sorry for not being satisfied with what God has blessed me with. She is mine and I would not change her. She may be different and I may hold on more than she even wants sometimes, but she will always be her daddy’s little girl. So if they are looking because they are jealous or because they are being mean as I know will come I will proudly stand there and take my hug from may Sal.

R&R

NOT Rest and Relaxation BUT:

REFLECTIONS & RADICAL

Reflections:

I know, I know I do a lot of reflecting and I did a lot of reflecting in each of my Africa post but there are just a few more things I have reflected on and want to record. If you are bored with my reflections then skip this post. I like to record these thoughts for me to reflect back on and hopefully to touch someone else’s life along the way.

Many have asked if I would go back to Africa. The answer is YES, YES, and YES! Not sure when, but I am ready! A and Elleigh will both be going next June and part of the team is going for a shorter period of time and part for a longer period of time so not sure how that is all going to pan out. There is a possibility A might go on another trip there next yr too but not sure about that yet. I would never have any hesitations again. In fact, looking back at all the excuses I tried to make before I went and the anxiety over going I keep thinking wow, ye of little faith!

God’s timing really is perfect. I know we say that all the time, but REALLY it is! Full time ministry is hard work. Rewarding, but hard. As much as Seminary prepared us for so many things in ministry, it just couldn’t prepare us for everything. Do not misunderstand me, we are in a wonderful church and I thank God for putting us here but adjusting to this life is not easy and it affects every one of us. It sheds a little more light on those that run far far away from this. I think back to all the negativity I have heard from others concerning pastors and their families and although we are far from perfect and sometimes there is reason for ridicule it is often just not necessary and a life you can’t simply understand until you have been there. Bottom line we have to remember to do what God has called us to do no matter how difficult or what we encounter along the way. All of that to get to my point. A and I needed the trip to Africa together (both for us as a couple and individually) and we needed it just at that time. I have dreamed of MANY places I would like for us to go together and Africa was not one of them BUT I would not have rather been ANYWHERE else together. ANYWHERE! I can’t imagine us going any of those places together and the Lord drawing us as close as he did through that trip. I urged our church members when I shared with them, go on a mission trip with your spouse. There really is nothing like it. Our God knew we needed that time to be more effective in our ministry, to be more effective as husband and wife, and to be more effective as parents in times only He knew we were about to face. We serve a God whose timing is perfect! Doesn’t mean we have been or will be perfect in handling any of these situations but he equipped us to handle them through Him. I am SO ready for us to take a mission trip as a family (both national and international).

Radical:

The book. When we were on our way to Africa I was reading on fb a post by Josh Hunt in which he had asked what was your favorite book right now. “Radical” was #1 for sure. I pointed this out to A and told him I wanted to get it when we got back. A had the opportunity to spend a little time with David Platt (the author). When he worked at the Seminary part of his job was handling transportation to and from the airport so if he could work it in his schedule and there were people coming through that he really wanted insight from he would try and do the airport run. David Platt was one of those he wanted to talk to, so he did and he was very impressed. Sometimes, all the people we thing are impressive aren’t so impressive sadly but he truly felt he was the man he claims to be. So, of course A wanted to read the book as well and through their conversation he knew a good bit about what the things he had led his church to do and that he had done personally. A had shared those things with me back when he met him and I remember thinking, wow, that’s neat but unfortunately never thought that much past that. A got the book as soon as we got back and read it quickly and passed it to me. I sat down to begin reading it and the cover of the book says, “Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream” Remember, that from my previous Africa posts I talked about how I was not so sure we as Americans have it all together and I how I felt we had too many things in our lives to truly have a right relationship with the Lord, and how I felt our kids in America are so unappreciative because of all we give them. So, I sat down and in 2 short settings I had read through that book and I was more convicted than EVER and I( cried A LOT! Everything that had run through my mind while I was in Africa and the time following was highlighted throughout this book and once again HIS timing is perfect!!! There were MANY things that spoke to me through this book but one of the greatest sections for me is entitled “I am not called” I hear so many people say (and I have said it!) “well, not everyone is called to foreign missions” or “well, that is for some people, and not everyone” REALLY??? God has COMMANDED us to “go into all nations”. This is not a calling! It is a command to us as Christians. Now, I know this is easier for me to say since I just got back from foreign mission trip but I pray I never feel the same about missions again. I pray I never think we can leave that to everyone else while people all over this world die and go to hell every day. Platt points out how we are quick to all draw on the privileges (abundant life, etc) but we are quick to assign the obligations (going into all nations) to “other people”. It along with the trip to Africa makes me think so much more about the daily lives of people all over this world and the struggles and their eternity… I will not give away any more of the book but I do think it is something that ALL Christians should read. Not just read and say, “well that’s great for him and his church” but read and really think about what God has called us ALL to do. Parts of the book are not any new concepts BUT they are concepts that most of us are NOT living out.

A is teaching the study that goes along with the book on Sunday nights in our small groups and I am excited about going through and thinking through the every day choices we make. There is SO MUCH to be done and we simply aren’t doing it! It has caused us to evaluate everything we do. We have some deep conversations around here! Doesn’t mean we don’t have fun but we want to change. We want to be radically different. Not sure why radical is term which reminds us of freaks but it does and that’s OK, I will be a Jesus freak! He calls us to be radically different from the world and we are not! We blend right in with the world and we fail to do what he has commanded of us. I was reading a blog post recently from Beth Moore’s daughter, Amanda who recently took a trip with Compassion International and she was describing her re-entry into her “regular life” and she said “I don’t want my regular life back” That sums it all up! I prayed and I asked others to pray that I would never be the same after Africa and I meant it!

I want my children to grow up to serve Him (whatever or WHEREVER that means) but not only to serve Him but to serve others because He has told us to. I want them to be aware of the world around us and the disease and the poverty and the lost world who doesn’t know Him. I don’t just want them to know these things but I want them to want to do something about it and to do whatever it takes to do something about it. I don’t want them to think that life is about having everything or the best of everything or what else we can gain. I want them to use everything He has given them to further His kingdom not for our own pleasure. We have to model this for them. We have to live this for them. I don’t want my kids to grow up and say “yes, my parents gave me everything I ever wanted” I want them to say “yes, my parents taught us how to GIVE and how to GO.”

The question this week in our study of the book was "Is HE worth giving up everything?" I came to the conclusion that I can say yes when it comes to my husband and my children (all of whom HE gave to me). There is NOTHING I would not give up for them. There is NOTHING I would not do without for them. There is NOWHERE I would not go for them BUT can I say the same when it comes to my Savior who gave me life and saved me from an eternity in hell... I am ashamed to say the answer is no... Not because He is not worth it, because I don't live like He is.

Another First

The little girls had their 1st dance class today.  I have to say they were adorable!    

Their thoughts:

Millie before we left:  “I’m so exciting! (her word for excited) I’m so exciting, I’m so exciting! 

Lizzie:  “This is going to be the best day EVER!”

Millie when we dropped Lizzie off:  “I am going to miss MY Lizzie”  I just can’t begin to imagine how lost she is going to be next yr without her Lizzie…

I told Millie to stop picking her tights and her response:  “I don’t know whose fault that is.  I guess they just got that way.”  I guess there was no one else to blame since she was by herself!

I asked Lizzie when I picked her up what she learned and she said “Mama it’s not like I learned a dance or something!”  Oh, excuse me!

One of our main objectives is to get them both a little more used to being without us and to adjust to new settings.  They both can be really shy in a new environment but neither of them cried and the teacher said Lizzie talked to her a lot and asked a lot of questions.  I don’t think Millie talked much but she did not cry or stand there and suck her thumb!  They loved it and want to go back so that’s a good thing!  Not sure if that is because of the class or the fact that they loved wearing that leotard and the shoes! 

The Status

   The Status on School:

Elleigh is adjusting.  Things are better than they were for her.  Once again, just a lot of adjustments and a much different atmosphere.  It does not help that girls are SO mean!  I pray NONE of my girls ever act like some of these girls.  Surely parents know when their kids are just down right mean.  I told A one night after a long time of talking through girl issues that I just could not imagine why the Lord thought I could do this 4 times!!! 

Decked out in their panther gear on Friday!

Sallie is doing wonderful!  HUGE PRAISE!!!  The Lord knew with it being not an easy adjustment for Ell that we needed it to be for Sall.  We had our ARD meeting last week and it went really well.  It is one of those things I really can not explain to you but as I sat there waiting to begin my emotions about got the best of me.  8 people surrounding you all about to tell you what your child can’t do.  Just one of those things that you just wish you never had to do.  It went really well though.  She spends part of her day in special ed and part in general ed.  They all say she is doing well and her special ed teacher has really high expectations for her.  Of course they have all fallen in love with her.  I know she is mine but something would have to be wrong with you to not fall in love with Sallie.  Most often it is because she is not given a chance.  Her special ed teacher teared up as she told us she knew Sallie would succeed on the first day when she walked in the classroom and looked around like “I got this”  That is Sallie!  Hopefully she will continue to do well and our meetings will all be as pleasant as they possibly can be under the circumstances.  One of my greatest fears was that she would be mistreated (and she may be at times) and I know she will face that her whole life.  I have avoided so many situations with her because I can’t stand to see her left out or treated differently.  We have been in situations where other children have said, “she’s weird and doesn’t talk” and many other things that are hard for me to take.  Most often she is just ignored.  However, her teachers tell us that the kids in her general ed class love her and play really well with her.  I can’t tell you how happy that makes me!  Someone at church told me on Sunday that they heard she was the class celebrity and that the girls argued over who got to play with Sallie!  WONDERFUL WORDS to this mama’s ears!!!  Thank you Lord!

One thing is for sure-she sleeps very good at night!  She is wiped out!

This is what we see from her these days-walking away!  She gets her back pack on and she is ready to go!Ell was brave enough to deck out in her BAMA attire for school!

The little girls are getting used to their new life.  They get closer every day.  I love to hear them playing together and using their imaginations.  Every day I am amazed at what they are learning.  Hopefully next week we will get started with some more structured learning time.  Every time I look at my memory card I have a million pictures that I have not taken!  I do love this one!

This is another find on the memory card…  Lizzie and Elleigh look so much alike!  They act a lot alike too which is why they normally are fighting!  Not sure how they got a picture this close together and both survived! Lizzie was helping A make pizza and she wanted me to take her picture.  She loves having her picture made (by herself!) I looked at this and noticed how much the toddler look is fading…  BIG SIGH!  Next yr she will be in school.  I hope I make the best of every second I have with them at home. We have been asked about our decision to put the girls in public school vs homeschooling.  Over the past few yrs of homeschool I have seen MAJOR benefits.  It is not easy (at all!) and it is not perfect (nothing is) but I think that Elleigh was homeschooled in the best yrs possible.  We were able to work through so many things at home during a time when they can be so easily influenced by others.  I hope that she has a firm foundation to stand on and is not changed by those outside influences now.  We felt like it was a good time to put her back in school and with us moving here where homeschooling is not nearly as popular as it was in FW.  However, we went into it all knowing that we would try it and if we feel that it is not the best for her then we will re-evaluate.  Others have said to us, “well it is public school.”  We are well aware of that and we know what goes on in schools and we feel she is prepared to handle those things but it is still our decision as to what situation is best for her as far as school.  I know some say you can’t shelter them forever (and I have said it) but I have learned that homeschooling is not about sheltering them.  It is about educating your children while preparing them to make wise choices without being influenced by things they don’t need to be influenced by.  We were talking to a homeschool family recently and we were discussing how you always get the comments about your children not being social enough.  Well, there is a lot of “social life” they do not need to be a part of!  As far as Sallie, well we just have to see.  So far, this seems to be a great fit for her.  We do plan to start Lizzie and Millie here in public school.  I would love to homeschool them during middle school but who knows?  All of that to say we are just taking it one yr at a time and making decisions we feel are best for each of our children individually.  So, that’s where we stand on the schooling issue!  As with anything, it all has its pros and cons!

A Beautiful End

On Tuesday morning we left Outapi and headed toward Etosha National Park.

This is the outside of our room in Outapi Outside of the hotel. Not fancy but very nice and clean and we eat all our meals there and the food is really good. It takes a while to get it and you might or might not get what you order but it is good. We stopped here for a photo op. The Namibian flag is on top of this termite mound! YES, that is a termite mound! In route we stopped at place that was the first missionary house in the area. We toured the home which is now a museum. On the property there is a village where people still live. You pay a small amount to go into their village and they will make mahungu which is a staple food for them. She is getting ready to pound it into a flour. These sticks are HEAVY! I am telling you, these are REAL women! They do this in rhythm and sing also. A and Richard trying it out This was the little girl in the village and as you can imagine they train them early. This is the grandmother of the village and she is making the mahungu which is like a porridge. Like our children would sit and wait to lick the spoon, she is waiting. We tasted it and to me it tastes similar to meal and water but very gritty. The lady told me to just use my tongue and not my teeth! They also do a lot of weaving and it is sold in the gift shop at the museum and to those who come in to visit the village. Very pretty pieces. Also, makes it special to have it knowing exactly where it comes from. Weaving Mrs. Melba giving it a try Outside of one of the huts. Can you imagine living in these? We are beyond spoiled! A inside the missionary church These are the gravesites of some of the children of the first missionary family that died. This really touched me. First of all, the family traveled by wagon and it took them a very long time to get there and they knew it was a great possibility they or their children would die from the many diseases. Would we be willing to do that? I was worried about missing mine for 2 weeks… The church Mrs. Melba giving the little girl a doll. Of course she was thrilled! We drove on to just outside Etosha so that we would be ready to go into the park the next morning. Normally the teams will stay inside the park but this time all the accomodations insid the park were booked so we had to stay outside the park. It was very nice! Definitely NOT sufferin’ for Jesus!!! This was just outside our room. Walking to breakfast the next morning. Very nice! We checked out of there and went into the park. I was excited about it but not as excited as I got once we got in and started seeing the animals. This is not like being in a zoo! Seeing these animals in their natural habitat is A-Mazing! I was taken away once again by all of God’s creation! I have tons of pics and we saw tons of animals but I can’t possibly share them all so here are some. Our guide said this was a great Elephant sighting. All the animals are close to you but this elephant was very close! A of course wanted to touch him but it is against the law to get out of your car! Movin’ on! There were lots of elephants at this watering hole The zebras were my favorite! At the end of the day and close to the end of the park we were able to sit for a while at one of the watering holes and we watched this elephant take a bath. It was really neat to watch. I say take a bath but maybe it was just cooling off! Coming in for water We spent that night on the other side of the park. Very nice room again. It was more like chalets. This was the view from our room. A enjoying his coffee EARLY the next morningA really wanted us to experience an African sunrise so I got up with him and I am glad I did. It was beautiful and a beautiful way to start our last day in Africa Shot of our chalet as we were leavingWe still had to drive about 5 hours to the airport and then we began the long journey of plane rides home. We sat on the runway in Joburg for over an hour and had rough weather most of that flight which is the 17 hour flight so we literally ran to catch our flight to Bham in Atlanta but we missed it. We were pleased to get out a few hours later. We were exhausted but very glad to see our girls. The drive back here the next day was LONG but we made it!

I know I have reflected a lot on my trip as I posted but I will do one more post of my overall reflections! Coming soon!