Grateful/Thankful Thursday

We do have so much that we are grateful for...
-and the very 1st one is each of you who prayed for Kalyn and me and for our mission trip to Uganda...and thank you for your sweet notes to my husband and Caresse who took over the blog while I was gone...

-boy, we were grateful that we were able to get this emergency passport...

-so that we could go to Uganda....
-I am so grateful that the LORD gave me the gift of being with the children and people of Uganda...

-and I am so thankful to have gotten to take this trip with my daughter, Kalyn.

-I fell in love in Uganda....with this young man, Tonny, and have "adopted" him as my son...I am so grateful to the LORD for bringing more love into our home through the relationship of this young man and the other amazing young men that we met. They each have become like sons to me and a piece of my heart stayed in Uganda with them each!

-I also am thankful for this give away that I won from Carebear ... it was so fun to come home to this and share it with my little darlin's. Thank you Carebear.

-Our team for this mission trip were amazing and I am so thankful to have met them each and to have had the privilege of working and serving with each of them!!! They have become very precious to me and my life is richer because of their friendships. I miss them so much already! (Who will I pick on now Justin?)

There is so much on my heart as I think of this mission trip and I look forward to writing down those thoughts in the following days. Thank you again for your prayers and support for us as we went to serve the precious people of Uganda.

Counting Down

My last post as the substitute for Shonni and Kalyn since they will be arriving home tonight around 6:30pm. The time has past quickly. I was thanking God this morning that there were no major "incidents" while my ladies were gone. No sick children, no one injured, no big disasters, no major conflicts. All in all it has been relatively calm and smooth sailing. I have many to thank for that; the kids themselves, especially Caresse (the little mama), then there are the girls who filled in while I was gone (Adriene, Stephanie, Charlotte, Bethany and Hannah) and most importantly Shonni and Kalyn who have done such a great job with the children to begin with that they were no problem for daddy!

Times like these always increase my appreciation for Shonni and her work each and every day. I know it is taxing, emotionally draining, challenging and so much more, but actually doing it myself for two weeks only reminds me even more of what an incredible wife (and oldest daughter) I have. What Shonni does is amazing and the fruit of her efforts is admirable. I could not do what she does long term, but by God's grace and through His power she does it and does it well.

In her last email from London, Shonni said her clock was still off from all the times changes. They were up early and ready to explore the town! They did get some good sleep and good talk time together before their final leg of the trip home. There was still sadness leaving behind the people God has put in their hearts, but only God knows would fruit will be born from the relationships that been created.

Yesterday we went to the park for some fun, so I hope you enjoy some of our photos.

Today is final clean up and clear up and shopping to prepare the home for our ladies arrival. We are all ready and so are they!

Blessings to you all!

On their way Home

Well, they are on their way home. The time always goes by faster than expected and there is a sadness in the leaving. I have been thankful to be able to talk to Shonni almost every night these past few days and did so last night as they got ready to board the plane for London.

She said the time in Uganda was great, eye opening, life changing, but went by far to fast. It was not always an easy trip, lots of emotional ups and downs, challenges and even disappointments, but a trip she was glad to make and hopes to make again. Our phone calls have been short out of necessity, but I know we will have many hours ahead of catching up and reliving her and Kalyn's adventures. They have made many new friends, both on the team and in Uganda and their lives have been enriched because of them.

The need is always so great, it can be overwhelming at times. There is never enough time, money, energy or people to do all that we want to do. But it may not be what we accomplish that matters, but just the very fact that we do what we can and keep trying. I know Africa, especiallythe orphans, hold a place dear in our hearts and we will never stop doing all we can, however seemingly insignificant, to make even the smallest difference.

Thank you again to all you who have prayed, provided support, or who even just read this blog to see what is going on. I know Shonni and Kalyn will be providing a lot of insight and info from their time in Uganda in the days or even weeks ahead. I hope to give you one more update tomorrow as I confirm the ladies have made it to London and then are on their final leg home.

Daddy's back

Well I was absent for three days on a business trip. I was blessed by two of our nieces as well as a few friends who came and stayed with the kids while I was gone. The house mostly survived! Of course Aiden did manage to tear up one decoration, that included cat tails, in our bedroom (you can imagine the mess!). Everybody is counting down the days until Shonni and Kalyn return.

I have run into an obstacle with Shonni's camera in South Africa. The courier will pick it up, but it has to be boxed and sealed first. I am trying to beg and plead with the airport (or one of the vendors at the airport) to see if they will package it for me. If not, I may have to use some resources of friends of friends who live in or pass through SA to see if they can pick up the camera for us and get it packaged and shipped to the US (of course one of those options has to do with flowers being shipped from SA to Greece. Too bad the camera can't take some pictures for us if it goes that route!)

Shonni and Kalyn are having a great time. Kalyn has really hit it off with some of the other teenagers on the trip and Shonni says she hardly sees her. Shonni says the trip has been life changing. She can't wait to get home and download with me all she has seen and experienced (I'm sure she will blog some to ya'll as well). She has loved working with the kids at the children's homes and she has made some great friendships with others on the team. Shonni got to meet with Katie, one of her blog friends, who lives and works in Uganda. Katie told Shonni about her work in Uganda and about some of the heart breaking problems the children face. Shonni has been impacted by the slum areas and the dangers the "least of these" face and the drug problems even the youngest struggle with. Shonni has met Tony, a young man who has a ministry to young girls, helping to train them on how to become nurturing mothers and caring women of their country. There is a lack of women to help train these children about how to be mommas, how sad.

Thank all of you again for your ongoing prayers and support! Two more days in Uganda and then the journey home begins, including a little adventure in London!

Snake Fright

Garett fond a snake under the mat outside our
garage it was so funny he lifted up the mat gave a yell and screamed " A snake, theirs a snake under that. No won eles wanted to pick it up so I did. I love snakes.

Hello its me Caresse. I have been here with my cousins and now I'm with won of Jaces friends from tonight tell tomorrow afternoon when two of my friends will be helping me watch the kids. things haven't gone to bad Aiden tore up a plant in mom's bedroom when he was supposed to be napping then he had two big fits because he was missing Mom and Dad. But other then that everything is doing fine. Well I have to get the kids in bed.

Odds and Ends

So, the update on my ladies - some amazing news, we found Shonni's camera in South Africa (on a whim I decided to check with the lost and found at the airport, and lo and behold-it was there!) God is good. Now just need to get it shipped to either Shonni in Uganda or back to the US. In Uganda, Shonni and Kalyn are loving the country and the people. They have been working hard (building a kitchen) but also got to visit the orphanage today, and yes, the little ones stole their hearts! All in all the trip is going wonderfully!

Me and the wee ones are holding down the fort. Yesterday, while the weather was good, we worked on the yard together. Got lots done before the rains came. Today was our day to do the laundry and clean some of the house, but we also took time to go see a movie (yes me and 8 littles ones ventured to the movie and they did fantastic!) We saw Up! An amazing movie for both kids and adults. Funny, moving, action, all you could want and more. Highly recommend for all to see.

In Bible time we read the story of Jonathan and his battle with the Philistines (prior to David and the giant) We talked about Jonathan's amazing faith in God. How his God was big enough to do what needed to be done and how Jonathan stepped out in that faith of a big God. While the rest of Israel held back, Jonathan moved out, expecting God to act, even before He did. The result, he routed the Philistines. Some times it is not a matter of how much faith we have , but of how big our God is!
Blessings!