So Long Ordinary

Of the many things I've done in the past week, two things have become a near-daily occurrence. Shopping. Seems like we go to the store almost everyday as we set up house and figure out what we're needing. But this girl ain't complainin'. We live close to the main shopping center here in Oaxaca. Soriana is basically a Super Wal-Mart. There's a Sears, a Sam's Club, and another department store similar to a Macy's or Dillard's. People, we're having severe culture shock. Sean and I spent at least ten minutes debating about what air freshener to buy the other day. We're just not used to such choices! It is taking some getting used to, but this little perk of living in a larger city is going to be so nice. Mopping . This is the hot and dry season in Oaxaca. Which means that the dust is everywhere. I cannot keep this floor clean. I've mopped at least three times in the week we've been in this house and it was not nearly enough.

They don't always get along, but when they do....it melts your heart. Sean caught a good moment between sisters in Quito in the courtyard at San Fransisco church downtown.

Things are happening little by little - or poco a poco . It is hard to believe that just a week ago we were still in Ecuador! Wow. We are quickly adjusting to life here in Oaxaca. Every once in a while a picture from our time in Shell will pop up on the screensaver and it makes me feel a little "homesick." However, I really love it here in Oaxaca. You just can't beat the weather - all that sunshine is healing I tell you! And the feel and atmosphere here in Oaxaca is really neat. Brooklyn seems to be getting used to our new home. She has been quite busy in her room, organizing her things and putting everything just so. Just wait until the rest of her toys come in the shipment! She's going to think Christmas came early this year...and she'll probably be busy until Christmas putting it all in the perfect spot. Whose child is she?! Anyway, I'm glad to see her becoming a little more like herself. Of course, she still isn't totally there. Since al

Things are feeling a little more real here today. I'm so grateful to the Lord for the opportunity to be here in Oaxaca. I do, of course, realize that this is the honeymoon stage we're still in, but I just keep praising God that we are here. I miss Shell and I miss my friends there, but God is showing Himself to me in new and amazing ways here in Mexico. Leaving Shell was probably one of the hardest things I've ever done (that caught me by surprise, actually) and yet, I can honestly say it was worth it. Already. Our second night in our house went great. Have I mentioned that it is so much more quiet here than at our house in Shell?! Really, it is amazing. There was even music playing last night somewhere but it was nothing compared to the ruckus the bar across the street in Shell could make! I'm loving the nice quiet street, the birds chirping, and the peaceful atmosphere. There are roosters here...but they aren't right next to our bedroom window and they o

Yeah, so, we made it! The trip itself was not bad at all. There were a few stressful moments, as can be expected when traveling with small children, but nothing God didn't give us the grace to handle. We're grateful for the prayers of our friends and family and we're full of praise for our awesome God who has been with us every step of the way. We are already mostly settled into our new house! God has provided in miraculous ways. To begin with, the house we are in is awesome! It is perfect for our family in so many ways - bathtub and all! (Bathtubs are not common in Latin America.) This particular house is also very close to Mike and Joan Ross, our MAF co-workers, and it has been so nice to have them nearby. They've been a huge help as we settle into life in Mexico and even let us borrow their car Saturday so we could do some running around for the many little things that we needed to get set up in this house. We feel incredibly blessed to have this house to m

Just a quick update because, by golly, the sun is out up here in Quito and Sean and the girls are outside rolling in the real grass and I have to go join them. We are in Quito at a guest house. We arrived here yesterday at around 2 p.m. We'll be here in Quito until early Thursday morning, when we'll finally board the plane for Mexico. I can't wait! The past few days have been very hard - yes, just the logistics of moving a family of four internationally can be overwhelming, but emotionally, this has been an unbelievably hard move. This is our hardest move - both logistically and emotionally - EVER. And we've moved quite a bit! I'm not at a point where I can even begin to unravel all my thoughts and emotions coherently. I tried to type it all out for you just now and not even I could understand me! So, that will have to wait until things are a little more settled down :-) Suffice it to say, your prayers are greatly appreciated and will be appreciated for th

We did a little more packing on Friday - hard to believe there was still something to pack, but there was! I also did my last loads of laundry, so that everything would be all set to pack in our luggage for the trip to Mexico. It was our last day in our house. (We'll be staying at a guest house here in Shell Saturday and Sunday). I have to say that it isn't really all that hard to say good-bye to this house. It has been a good house, but now that it is all empty of our stuff and all the things that made it "home," it is just like any other house. We are basically living out of suitcases, (actually, trunks, in our case) and have nothing left but mattresses on the floor and a couch...I think we're ready to move out - even to a room at a guest house, which will feel like luxury after the camping out we've been doing the past few weeks! I know it will take a while to feel really at home in our new (new to us) house in Mexico, but I much prefer homemaking

Thursday was Brooklyn's last day at preschool. Her teacher and class threw a great party for her - a happy "un-birthday"/farewell party. I was so blessed to see how they really worked to make the day something special for Brooklyn - and boy was it special! It was just so sweet. I have to confess to a few shed tears on my part. The kids each made a pink card for Brooklyn (you can bet I'm going to save those!) and she got a special present from the whole class. When all the kids gathered around Brooklyn to give her a group hug, I lost it. Luckily, there were other grown-ups there and we were sort of in the middle of a conversation and I was able to do my "stop thinking" tactic. Don't know how healthy it is, but it works! This preschool experience has just been incredible. Brooklyn has never once wanted to stay home from school and she adores each and every one of her classmates almost as much as she adores her teacher, Miss Sharon. We will defin

Sean was up at 4 am Wednesday morning. Crazy guy. Apparently, he just couldn't sleep. By the time I was up, he had breakfast made and had done just about everything else. Nice! (Not that it is that unusual for Sean to be out of bed before I am, of course, just unusual that he had breakfast made...) We hit it hard on Wednesday, and by the end of the day our house was completely empty except for our airline luggage, a couch, and a mattress we are sleeping on. At this point, there isn't much going on at the house...we're kind of bored, though I'm sure there is still plenty to be accomplished - we just have to figure out what that is! Our house helper, Gloria, came for her last morning with us as well. She helped me clean out the kitchen and that Coke out of the freezer. I was appalled at the amount of food in our cupboards that we probably never would have used, even if we had stayed here. Gloria took most of the food home with her and we also took a load of "

We spent most of Tuesday morning re-packing all that we are going to be taking with us on the airline to Mexico. We had to be sure it will all fit...and we think it will. On Saturday, we'll pack up for real and take our luggage to the guest house here in Shell where we'll be staying until Monday morning when we leave for Quito. After Brooklyn finished preschool, we went on a nice drive up the hill and stopped to eat at one of our favorite restaurants called Miremelindo. We had a nice, relaxing lunch there. What a treat to get out and away from all that sorting/packing/organizing/re-packing going on at our house and just get some fresh air! Just being silly in Daddy's hat and sunglasses... Taking a break outside.... Discovering bananas... Sean also put a few pictures of our trip on his blog . In the evening, several of my missionary friends here in Shell surprised me with a last "Ladies Night Out." We went to an Italian place in Puyo and had a great time. We

On Monday, Sean watched Madison while Brooklyn and I went to chapel at the missionary school one last time. There was a singing evangelical group visiting called "Kindred" and they were great. I started to cry as we sang "Jesus Loves Me." I guess it was beginning to hit home that we won't be in Shell much longer, that my kids won't ever get to go to that awesome school (though they'll have plenty of other great opportunities in Mexico)....anyway, I finally just had to shut off my mind and stop thinking/feeling so as not to become a blubbering fool and scare the children. Brooklyn's preschool had class pictures on Monday too. What a group of precious children - and I'm so grateful for Ms. Sharon who has done a tremendous job of teaching this group of very active precious children! Brooklyn is really going to miss her preschool.... Here they are in all their active preschooler glory...(Lord, bless that woman!) We spent a while Monday afternoo

I wanted to catch ya'll up on our last week in Shell so far. Sunday was a good (but long and emotional) day. It was Sean's last day to lead worship, since his guitar has to be packed. It was a sweet time of worship and I was so glad to be able to stay (usually the girls just get too antsy). Our church then surprised us and presented us with a framed painting of a jungle village and a book about the province of Pastaza (where we live and mostly serve). I was holding up fine until everyone in the church came up to us, one by one, and gave us hugs and told us how much they'll miss us and how they will be praying for us. Oh my! It was so precious, and I'll remember it forever. After church was over, our pastor and his family, plus a few other friends from the church took us over to the preschool building to serve us an insane amount of food specially prepared just for us - parrillada (grilled meat, corn on the cob, etc) just because they knew Sean loves it! It was

We had our sale yesterday. It went really well, and we got rid of a ton of stuff. Everything we needed to get rid of is sold or given away - that feels good! There are just a few little things to do this week...finalize our shipment, clear out most of the furniture and get it to its new owners (our mattresses and appliances will wait until Saturday, when we'll be staying at a guest house here in Shell), clear out the last of the food in the house...and, yes, clean that mess in the freezer. We've been invited to a couple of friends' houses for dinners this week (which is very nice since we're down to very minimal cooking utensils, dishes, and food in the kitchen). This is Brooklyn's last week of preschool - she has class pictures Monday and a farewell party on Thursday. Saturday, MAF is throwing a going away party for us. We have numerous "last-time-ever" things we want to do this week. *sigh* I have a feeling this coming week will be full of emoti

Brooklyn was at a friend's house earlier this morning...and Madison had a pretty good morning too! She played on Sister's "bed" (two foam mattresses on the floor...and yes, that is a bruise on her head, it seems like she's always bumping her head on something - her head just gravitates toward hard surfaces) She "borrowed" Sister's markers and book She might have kept for herself a few of the pages fom Sister's pink journal She really just had an all around great time!

I thought it might be fun to give ya'll a taste of our lives around this place. So here you have it...I know you've all been dying for some shots of tubs, trash, junk, trunks, and more tubs. People, this is blogging at its best and you - yes you - get to experience it! You're even going to get the special treat of seeing inside my freezer. Don't you feel lucky, now? Here's what we've been up to this week: Just to get an idea of what was not going to be packed in the shipment, we packed our luggage for the trip on the plane to Mexico. Here is what we'll be living with the first month or two in Oaxaca....(there is a seventh trunk full of toys, but for obvious reasons, it was otherwise occupied at the time I took the picture) We dismantled all the sold items (basically every piece of furniture in our house) and stacked them in a corner of the living room so that as people come to get their stuff it will be a little easier to get it out of the house - plus i

Well, I can't believe that two weeks from tonight, we will be spending our last night in Shell. It is difficult to imagine...and, honestly, I'm avoiding even thinking about it. Good-byes are hard, and I see now how much Ecuador has "grown" on me. We've had a very good life here - as excited as we are for Mexico, it is just hard to see this chapter in our lives come to a close. Madison is teething! It sure does help explain a lot. She has been sleeping very odd hours and seems fussy quite a lot. Last night, I checked her mouth and whoa! there were several new teeth poking their way through. Poor baby. Here are a couple of pictures of Maddie playing with blocks amongst all the trunks and tubs and debris of moving! Well, the house just gets emptier every day. Seems like all we've done for the past week has been sort, organize, toss, sell, and move loads of stuff out of our lives forever. We still haven't really begun the packing, though it looks li