Quick Update

Dear family and friends... We are home and doing pretty good. The transition is starting to wear on us a little, I'm afraid. But the end is in sight!! We found a house, and will close on it December 14. It needs a little work, but will hopefully get done in a quick and orderly fashion (it always happens that way, right?!)....

We have been bouncing around a little--between Joplin and Kansas City for the past 2 weeks. Shane is getting back into the swing of things at OCC, and the kids and I are actually in St. Louis right now. I do have some Scotland pics to post still, and want to keep up with posting... Our transient lifestyle of late doesn't exactly lend itself to that, I suppose. However, we should be getting settled before we know it (that's what we're telling ourselves anyway...). I will do my best to keep this updated until then!

Thanks for all the prayers and welcome home's from everyone! We are glad to be back!!

Cheers!!

We Are Home.....

Hello everyone! Well, we lost our internet the last 4 days we were in Scotland. So silly!! Anyway, we are home. Safe and sound. Just trying to rest up and get back on CST!!! We have the most amazing kids in the whole world!! They did just awesome. We are so proud of them!! I have more pics to post, and more stories, I'm sure... So, I will try to get those on here soon... And also, I hope to have internet whenever we finally get settled back here in the States (which we're still not sure where that is, but we're working on it). So, keep checking and hopefully there might be something interesting on here for you to see!!

We want to thank you all for your prayers and encouragement--especially during our time in Scotland! It means so much to us to have such supportive family and friends!! And thanks for the extra prayers during our traveling time. We love you all and are so thankful for you!!

Her Name Is Rebecca....

To know how wonderful it is to know that, you must know the story... She is our friend. I have no idea why she is in Scotland or how she got here. But she has been a consistent joy and light to us in this crazy city. Her smile is toothless, yet beautiful. Her face is always beaming with gratefulness--even when we have nothing to give her. And most of all, she has enjoyed my children, which warms my heart to her even more... Paige has been the most open to her--Paige is, by nature, our most social and relational. So, Rebecca must have picked up on that too. Plus, Paige likes to drop the coins in her beat up Starbucks cup--so, Rebecca has made the habit of kissing her little hand--(even when those sweet little hands don't drop any coins in...) Even when we're all the way across the street--and it's a large, busy street!--she still seeks us out with her sweet, grateful smile....

Maybe it's because neither of us truly belong here. Maybe it's because, in a sense, we're both sort of homeless right now--(which is ridiculous for me to say when I have a roof over my head). Or maybe it's because God in His infinite wisdom and kind nature has knitted our hearts together... I really don't know why, but she has become our friend. And she is what I will miss the most about Scotland.

You see, she doesn't speak English--except for "thank you" which comes out "thank ye." And I can't even figure out what language she speaks! I have asked her what her name is before, but to no avail. Today, all that changed. Zion and I ran to the store this afternoon. It was a rare day, and Shane came home in the afternoon to take a mental break and get ready for one more final push on the 'ol Ph.D.! So, since Paige and Maddox were sleeping, Zion and I headed out to get some milk and bread. When we came upon "our friend," as we've called her for the last 2 months, I could tell she was doing something with her fingers. I realized she had cut herself somehow and was bleeding. She had managed to find a tissue, or maybe some other kind soul had at least offered her that much... I asked her about it, and she knew what I meant. She asked me about Zion then... I spoke his name and she wanted to hug him. Then I asked a few times what her name was and patted her leg--and she said, "Rebecca." I wanted to jump for joy to know her name. Finally! Well, we wanted to help her--we always have--and she had a very practical need today. So, we dropped our coins in her beat up Starbucks cup, and Zion and I determined to help take care of her.

There was a pharmacy just a couple doors down, and we popped in there to find the necessary bandages and some wet wipes to clean it off. We headed on down further to get our milk and bread. When we came back by Rebecca, we stopped. I pulled out the bandages and wet wipes and she couldn't stop her smile or stop saying "Thank ye." I cleaned her up, bandaged her finger and then gave the stuff to her so she could keep taking care of it. She just beamed at Zion and me, and kept giving us hugs and kisses. It was precious.....

I started praying a while back that God would help us understand each other whenever it came time for us to leave. I want her to know that I will never forget her, and that even though we're going back to America, we will pray for her... How do you say this to someone who speaks another language?? I pray we already have in some ways... But I still also pray that God will let her ears hear me when I tell her, "God loves you and so do I."

Another Celebration!!

Many of you already know this, but I wanted to blog about it anyway--mostly because we are SO excited about it!!! This past Wednesday, I found out that I have officially been excepted into the Nursing Program!!! This journey started several years ago, actually. I started taking classes a few years ago--just 2 or 3 a semester. Now I have all my prerequisites completed, and this is the next step. So, this is big news in our family. Not only because it's something we've prayed about and waited for, but because this means some changes coming soon in our family. So, while we're excited, we're also a little nervous about what this will entail over the next two years of my program. All the while, we are trusting that God has his hand on our family, and that He is guiding us each step of the way.

So, to celebrate we went to McDonners. It is Indian cuisine, and they say, "Our motto is your satisfaction!" Well, you can't beat that, right?... The place was pretty small, and full, of course. So, we got "take-away," as they say here in Scotland. We had fun! Oh, and Shane bought me a chocolate cake--the same one he got for my birthday! (He knows me so well!!!) Here we are celebrating!!!...

Waiting patiently for our great food!! (I had a vegetarian calzone the size of a watermelon!! It was AWESOME! And it took me four meals to finish it! Leftovers are great, right?!)

What a life with this handsome, wonderful man!! I am quite blessed!!

Thank you to everyone for your encouragement and support along the way. Especially to my wonderful, sweet family--Shane, Zion, Paige and Maddox--you guys have been understanding and supportive at all times! Not to mention you've been a light in the dark times of the semester and never cease to put a smile on my face! I could not have done it without you!! Here's to the next two years! I praise you Lord for going ahead of us. We are your faithful followers....

Halloween 09

Well, this year Halloween was interesting for us. We did find some costumes, no problem. Halloween is totally celebrated here in Scotland. (Maybe not quite as commercialized...) However, because we're smack in the middle of the city, and our particular apartment complex is small--we didn't have anywhere to actually go trick-or-treating. So, our plan was to dress up and head downstairs to Kenny's newspaper stand, and let the kids buy some candy. In fact, it was funny, because another customer asked us after seeing the kids dressed up, "You know you have to buy the candy in here, right?" So, here was our Halloween adventure....

2 Buzz Lightyear's & 1 Dora

Attempt #1 at a picture of all 3 of the kids....

Attempt #2.....

"Little Buzz"

"Pretty Dora"

"Big Buzz"

This is the hallway to leave our building.

Scoping out the candy.....
Found something!....
Waiting for Kenny to ring it up... (Notice Paige's bucket--she just hated the thought of not having a trick-or-treat bag! So, she grabbed one of Maddox's toy buckets.)
Attempt #3... Adorable, huh?!!

So, we had a fun Halloween! Interesting, but fun. The kids were good sports about it all--they're pretty amazing!

Our Trip to The Castle of Edinburgh

This past Sunday we visited The Castle of Edinburgh. This is something we have been talking about since before we arrived in Scotland. The kids were sooo excited!!! We had a great time--even though it was cold, windy and rained on and off... It was worth it!! This particular Castle was a city within the walls. Amazing. Enjoy the pics!!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Friday Night Fun!

So, lastnight was a fun and interesting night for us. A friend of Shane's from school--who has a wife and 6 month old--invited us over for dinner. That was a very exciting thing for us since we haven't had the opportunity to make very many friends yet.... Anyway, they live across town, about 2.5 miles away. We knew it would take about 45 min. to an hour for us to walk it, but we were fine with that, and planned on leaving in plenty of time. Well, as things go, we didn't quite leave when we should have, and then when we stepped outside it started raining!! Now, so far when we've experienced the rain it's mostly been a light mist--not a down pour. It wasn't a down pour, but it was much more than a mist lastnight! PLUS, we were walking in it for over and hour since we weren't exactly sure where we were going! But we hadn't looked at the bus schedule, didn't bring a bus route map with us, and we don't know that part of the city that well. So, our options were quite limited. We kept walking...thinking it wasn't as bad as it was... Well, we had walked for over an hour in the rain--dripping wet once we arrived at our new friend's flat late! But they were very gracious to us, and they helped us find a bus route that would take us home when we left. Riding the bus absolutely delights the kids. They think it's great! So, here we are. Riding the bus.

And one last thing--this is why I'm cautious about riding the bus--we got on the wrong #5 bus!! It was headed in the opposite direction! But fortunately it was turning around to head in the right direction, and the bus drivers let us stay on. The "last stop" was actually at the ASDA--which is a "suprecentre" of sorts. I told Shane, "This must be there 'Walmart.'" And sure enough, as we were pulling out of the parking lot, the sign said, "Part of the WalMart Family." WOW! They are taking over the world, aren't they?!

So, to sum up, we had a fun night meeting our new friends and hanging out. Next time, if it's raining we certainly will not be walking that far! But it makes for a fun story, I suppose. And we were able to see some more of the city we wouldn't have noticed from the bus. Cheers, everyone!