Thirsty

I thirst for the word of God, yet in my busy life I struggle to find time to drink. I spend my days dehydrated and wonder why I can't get everything done. My body isn't taken care of properly yet I ask it to perform to exceptional standards. How can I expect to be a good helper to my husband, or a gentle, loving mother and teacher to my children, or a lighthouse in my community when I am starving myself from the Water of Life that not only sustains but in which I flourish.

Oh, but this morning I drank again from God's word. What a relief that is to my thirsty being. How sweet it tasted and what joy it gave. Thankfully when I drink my refreshed soul breaks forth with life and energy. My spirit is lighter and ... how I long to drink again.

"If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing" John 15:6


Michelle

Keeping in touch

Last Sunday Jeremiah called his best friend via skype. He was so excited to speak to Matthew that occassionally through the conversation he could do nothing but giggle. The smile on his face didn't leave for quite a while.

We are so thankful for modern technology.

Michelle

Sam and Esther

As most of you know my heart and passion is for children in need. When I came across this video yesterday my heart was broken. I wept as I watched and continue to be haunted by what I have seen. I'm asking the Lord what can I do to help? Where can you use me? I know can't do much as my hands are already so full, but I can't sit back and do nothing. I can pray. I can give. I may be able to go on a mission trip, or we may be able to adopt another child. Lord what would you have me do?

What about you? What can you do? James 1:27 tells us to "look after the widows and orphans in their distress". Could you pray for, give to, or even adopt just one of the over 40 million orphans in the world?

Please watch the video ... it may change your life!!!



Michelle

Christmas in February

My family decided to save their Christmas presents for us until we came over here so we wouldn't have to ship extra things and so the kids would have some new toys to look forward to when they got here. So when my parents showed up for a visit last weekend they brought the presents with them.

Four of the children had asked for scooters. Then when the other two (Deanna and Naomi) saw what fun the other kids were having they decided to purchase their own scooters with some money they had been given.

During the week they had fun riding them up and down the hallway in the flat, but this weekend they took them out to the park. They had a great time, but we won't let them ride them down the hills until their helmets arrive!! That should be in just 2 or 3 weeks when the items we shipped finally get here. Scooters and children got really muddy, so now the scooters have to stay outside and I'm trying to keep up with the laundry. (The washing machines here are really small!!)

Michelle

The Work Has Begun

Last week was a fairly easy week for Gary because most of the mornings were taken up with orientation types of activities. He had meetings everyday with different people to learn about what needs to be done around here, his responsibilities etc. But in the afternoons the physical work did begin. The first job was to knock a hole in the wall between our school room and the boy's bedroom. Until this happened the boys were actually sleeping in an adjoining flat (apartment). They weren't too happy about feeling far away from us at night so by putting a door between the school room and their room they have now become part of our flat. Hopefully this week we should see a door filling this space and a closet made out of the old entrance to their room.

Michelle

Feeling Like a Foreigner

It may be because everyone looks at us as we walk down the street,
or it may be because when I open my mouth to speak I sound American,
or it may be because my children are the only black faces I've seen in Rothwell,
or it may be because the banks aren't letting us open an account
But ... I feel like a foreigner in my own country.

Michelle

Leeds

Leeds is a very large Metropolitan area just a few miles from Rothwell. On Monday we decided to take the bus into Leeds to do some shopping. My parents were up visiting for the weekend and thankfully came with us - I was grateful to have 2 extra pairs of eyes to watch the kids. Here Gary is giving the kids a pep talk on how to behave on the bus and in the city. For the most part they listened!!

 

This was the children's first bus ride. We were hoping to ride a double decker bus, but it didn't happen this day. Nevertheless they still enjoyed the 25 minute ride and taking in all the new sites along the way.

 

Leeds has a very large indoor market. This is a picture of some of the incredible architecture inside. The market consisted of many stalls, with lots to look at. Our senses were bombarded with the sights, sounds and smells of the market. The kids were fascinated with the fish stall and Nicholas, in particular, kept exploring the sweet (candy) stalls!!

 

More pictures of Leeds below.

More Pictures of Leeds

This was the view of one of the entrances to Leeds indoor market

 

This was taken looking down one of the streets which was lined on both sides with shops. Despite England's reputation for always being wet and never sunny, this was a beautiful day. It was cold (in the 30's) but the sun was shining! In fact, we have seen the sun every day since we have been here - maybe not for long, but it has made an appearance!

 

This picture is a little blurred but I had to put it in as it shows the boys chasing the pigeons. We had trouble keeping the boys with us because as soon as they saw a pigeon the temptation was too strong and they were off chasing them!!

It was early Monday afternoon when this was taken. Gary was amazed at all the people that were around. Just imagine how busy this place gets on a Saturday, or before Christmas!!!

I think the highlight of the day for Daniel was watching 2 people get arrested. We are not sure what they did but Daniel was fascinated with the way the police showed up on their bikes!

Michelle

 

Rothwell

Behind the campus where we live is the town park so a couple of days ago we did a little exploring.

The kids had fun trying out the play equipment. We haven't seen many children up here playing though, probably because of the snow. There are a couple of good hills for sledging, but we don't have a sled so the kids tried sledging on plastic bags ... didn't work!!!

From the top of the hill, where the playground is located, I took these pictures of Rothwell.

Michelle

Jet Lag

Jet lag is a strange thing and affects different people different ways.

 

After being here for 5 days now I think most of us are on English time, but we have spent a few nights with the kids getting up at weird hours. One evening we had Daniel, Jeremiah and Deanna all get up after sleeping for just a couple of hours. They thought they were ready for the morning, but within a few minutes of laying of the couch they were asleep again.

 

When your sleep is messed up and you don't get up until 10.30am then your eating is messed up too. It has been interesting to try and get all of us back on a 'normal' sleep/wake routine!!

Michelle

An Incredible Welcome

The people here at Springhead Park House gave us an incredible welcome on Wednesday. Upon our arrival many appeared to help carry our cases in. Our home was decorated (including the front door - below) with balloons, cards and flowers.

We were amazed (and very grateful) for the amount of work they had put into our flat (apartment). A wall had been taken down to make more room, the place had been painted and all of the things that my sister and brother-in-law had brought up here were unpacked. The beds were made, the pantry was stocked and there was food in the fridge and food for us in someone else's freezer (we don't have our own yet)

Throughout Wednesday many people came in to introduce themselves and even offered to help us unpack. I'm sure it will take a while to get all the names straight.

On Thursday evening two of the ladies here brought us dinner so I wouldn't have to worry about cooking while I continued the unpacking.

So a BIG thank you to all here at Springhead Park House for making us feel so welcome and comfortable in our new home.

Michelle

From Dublin to Rothwell, England

Once we arrived in Dublin we had to go through Passport Control and security, which took some time. So when we reached the departure gate we only had just over an hour to wait for our connecting flight. The waiting area was fairly empty so the kids had an opportunity to run around. But before too long they started to get rambunctious. So went all else fails open up the laptop and put in a movie!! They only got to watch 20 minutes before we were called to board the plane.

The flight from Dublin to Manchester was only 40 minutes long. It seemed that as soon as we were up in the sky it was time to start the decent. Once we were above the clouds the views were spectacular. I wished the flight had been longer so I could have marvelled at the awesome work of God in the beauty of the top of the clouds. It was incredible.

Collecting our baggage at Manchester was interesting!!. Our 16 pieces (plus hand luggage) took up 4 carts so Daniel and Elaina had to push a cart too. It was quite an experience as they could hardly see over the top and Elaina had a little trouble steering!!

Once through customs we were warmly welcomed by Danny and Mike (both from Radio Worldwide). We were also supposed to be welcomed by our rented mini bus. Unfortunately we were ripped off. I knew we wouldn't be arriving in England with much local currency so I paid in advance so I wouldn't have to deal with the money issue as soon as we arrived. Sad to say, the company took our money but never showed up. I did pay through paypal so I will approach them tomorrow to see if we can get refunded. Danny and Mike came to our rescue and ordered another bus and lent us the money to pay for it. Thank you!!

After just over an hour of driving through the beautiful countryside we arrived in Rothwell. Tired but pleased to have finished the journey safe and well.

We let the kids watch the rest of the movie which we had started in Dublin airport, but Deanna could stay awake no longer. She fell asleep in the chair and I couldn't wake her - not even to eat.

Thank you so much for all your prayers over the last few days. As we reflected over the journey we are amazed at how well the kids behaved. We know it was because we have a God who answers prayers and that you had been faithfully praying. Thanks again.

Tomorrow I will write about the incredibly warm welcome we have received here, but now I need to catch up on some sleep.

Michelle

From Chicago to Dublin, Ireland

Part 2 of our journey took us from Chicago to Dublin. We left about 7pm CT and arrived just after 8am GMT (6 hours ahead of CT). The flight took almost 7.5 hours. The kids did really well on the plane. It was such an adventure for them. Deanna did admit to being a little scared as she thought the plan would spin and spin (thankfully it didn't), although we did experience quite a lot of turbulence mid way through the flight.

The flight wasn't too full so the kids were able to spread out and sleep for about 3-4 hours. They had to sleep with their seat belts on, just in case of turbulence - which Deanna did. It didn't look very comfortable but I guess when you are that tired you will sleep in any position!! After waking, Naomi threw up, she was grateful I had told her to take spare clothes in her hand luggage!!

This picture is the snow covered fields of Ireland as we were descending into Dublin.

Michelle

From St Louis to Chicago

I haven't discovered how to load more than 3 per post, so I will write about our trip over several posts so you can see more pictures.

 

We were suppose to leave St Louis around 9am but last minute packing went slow as we couldn't fit everything into 16 cases and had to decide what to leave behind. We finally left after 10am and then had to stop at the licence office to get Gary's driver licence fixed (they had made a mistake and couldn't fix it until Tuesday morning). So it was around 10.30am before our journey really started.

 

We had rented a 15 seater van and only just fit us all in with the luggage. We are pleased to report that the drive was uneventful. We stopped at McDonalds for lunch (the last time for a long time) but because of the late start we had to eat in the van.

 

We arrived at O'Hare Airport just before 4.30pm. Chicago is called the 'windy city' and on Tuesday we discovered why. The wind was so strong and bitterly cold.

As most of you know Deanna likes to wonder away so we brought the collapsable stroller to keep her with us. Unfortuantely it broke before we even got into the airport!! I wish you could have seen the faces of the people who were at the check in desk. They saw the amount of luggage we had and looked at each other to see who was brave enough to check us in. In the end they all helped!

A huge thank you to Robert and Chris for drving us to the airport and returning the van.

Michelle

We made it!!!

We finally arrived. Details to follow we need to get the kids settled first.

Michelle

Good bye St Louis

What an incredible weekend we have had. We have spend many fun (yet sometimes emotional) hours with friends and family before we leave here in the morning. Wow - after more than 15 years (for me and a lifetime for Gary) of calling the St Louis area home it is time for us to follow the Lord's leading to England.

I have so many stories of the Lord's provision for us over the last week, but unfortunately not the time to write them. I hope I will get the opportunity to do so in the next week or two.

Here is our schedule (Lord willing) for our travels. We plan to leave here between 9 - 9.30am in a 15 passenger van and drive (with the help of two friends) to Chicago. Our first flight leaves Chicago at 6.30pm and arrives 7.5 hours later in Dublin, Ireland. After a 3 hour layover we leave Dublin and fly to Manchester. It is only a 45 minute flight which should land at 11.45 am Wednesday morning (5.45 am St Louis time). The final leg of our journey is a 70 mile drive to Rothwell. We should arrive about 3pm (9am St Louis time). We are hoping the journey will only take 24 hours. I say hopefully as parts of England are currently receiving their worst winter storm in 20 years and I am told the snow is heading north towards where we will be living. It could be an interesting journey!!

We plan to take pictures throughout tomorrow and Wednesday and will put them up on the blog as often as we have the opportunity.

We have really felt and appreciated your prayers so far. Please continue to pray for us over the next few days. A couple of the kids are sick with bad colds and Gary has bronchitis. Please also pray that the Lord will grant all of us peace for the journey and that the children will enjoy the adventure but be able to remain calm as they are becoming so excited. Thank you.

So, goodbye (for now) friends and family in St Louis. We love you and will miss you.

Michelle