Zach and Laura Fry

Month 3

2015-05-06T18:54:00.004-07:00

3 Month a Fry

It's crazy to believe that Nethra has been with us for three months! I just checked the calendar today and realized that March has completely flown by. Nethra has kept us super busy...so busy in fact that I failed to write her three month blog update.

Nethra's third month with us was in fact one of the busiest times. We certainly expanded her world very quickly

March began with a fun trip to Missouri for Nethra's cousins birthday! Zach and I were curious to see how Nethra would react to a birthday party. Nethra absolutely adores her two cousins, Camille and Karina. So she was more than thrilled when we walked through the door and it finally dawned on her that she was going to get to spend some quality time with the girls! Here are a few photos from the weekend! The girls had an absolute blast showing Nethra the ropes of dress up. Nethra held back for a while and watched her cousins dawn all sorts of flashy dresses but eventually she joined right in! It didn't take much convincing for her to join the dance party! This would be her first exposure to Frozen, thanks to her two cousins that absolutely love it!

Nethra and Camille "Let it Go."

Nethra and Camille, Nethra hopped right up on Camille's lap. Thankfully, Camille was a good sport!

One of Nethra's favorite activities is to cut things! Her Aunt Valerie gave each girl a butter knife to cut cantaloup...Nethra was in high heaven!

This girl loves her Papa. She also loves to hop from lap to lap!
Here she is at the birthday party checking to see what Papa has on his plate!

Hanging out with her cousins as they all eat ice cream and cupcakes. She once again passed up ice cream and instead insisted on drinking out of the bottle of water, her big obsession!

Bubbles are a huge hit! Pretty sure she had never seen bubbles until she came to America.

Another first! Here she is in the bounce house...this provided great entertainment for those of us watching! Nethra could not stop giggling! Pretty sure her Aunt Valerie is pretty awesome in Nethra's eyes! She has the best toys!
Butter knives and a bounce houses!

Another big event included a post-placement visit from our social worker, Alison! When Zach and I started the adoption process we had no idea what to expect with our social worker but Alison blew all expectations out of the water! We love this woman and could not have done this adoption without her. She is the most gentle and kind hearted woman who has personally adopted two of her own children. She simply gets it! It was so fun for her to finally meet Nethra after working with us on this journey for the last four years. The first time she came into our home she met with two very young and naive people who just simply wanted to adopt from India. She stuck with us through the entire process, encouraged us and always provided answers. Not to mention she wrote our homestudy in two weeks (which in the adoption world is record time). Needless to say, we love this precious lady! Over this next year, Alison will be coming into our home every three months to write reports for India, regarding Nethra's well being. The reports are then submitted to the adoption authorities in India and eventually the orphanage Nethra came from, will receive the report. I am actually very thankful for these reports because I truly think the orphanage loves to hear updates on the kids and well...they deserve it!

Zach and I spent several hours with Alison that day and she continued to encourage us. So often we just feel like failures as parents...constantly trying to bond, discipline, be overly encouraging, keep a minimal schedule and on and on. It was so nice to hear our social worker say, "good job." I just felt the tears pooling in my eyes when she gently told us that we were doing great and that with adoptive kids there were way more layers. The fact that she could empathize and understand and just totally get it, made all the difference. Did I mention that we absolutely love this gal!

Alison and Nethra finally meeting after four years!

Month three also included a trip to Braums! Zach and I had to take a trip to Independence to get Nethra's social security card taken care of and in the process decided to stop and eat at Braums. Nethra who had been offered ice cream twice before this trip had always turned it down...but when it came to cookie dough ice cream from Braums, she happily accepted! After ordering our food at Braums, I watched Zach take his tomato off his hamburger and offer it to Nethra who quickly gobbled it down. It's fun to watch her eat foods that sometimes even Zach and I won't eat!

Month three also included Nethra discovering that the couch cushions were removeable! This made her day and also presented a new hiding spot!

Another very big first this month was a trip to Wal-Mart! Nethra was in high heaven! I honestly can't even imagine what her little mind was thinking as we walked through the sliding doors. Well, lets begin with the sliding doors...I don't know if she had ever even seen such things. Not to mention that she got to ride in a cart. I will never forget when she layed eyes on the huge pile of bananas and the loud gasp that came from her little mouth. She was so in awe! She couldn't hardly contain herself when we actually picked some up and put them in the cart. After being in India, Wal-Mart really is overwhelming. There really are so many options. Nethra was so happy. She just wanted to touch everything and talk to all the people. She really was mesmerized by the colors, the people, the displays, the smells oh and the millions of yogurt options!

Her first trip to Wal-Mart was in Bartlesville, OK.

The same day that Nethra visited Wal-Mart for the first time, she also met our dear friends Kevin, Kathy and Laura. Here she is pictured with Kathy as she rummages through Kathy's purse. Isn't that what we all do when we meet someone for the first time!

Our piano has been sitting in our living room for the last three months and has never once been turned on. Mostly just because we enjoy the silence! Zach finally broke down and decided to turn it on....this captured Nethra's attention instantly! Zach of course was thrilled that she took such a liking to one of his favorite things! Like father like daughter! These two truly are two peas in a pod. I have so enjoyed watching their relationship grow and change. They are becoming best friends!

So here we are, three months home. I sometimes have to remind myself that it has only been three months. It really seems like it has been so much longer. Zach and I still struggle. Every day has its own set of battles. We have begun to really make some major progress with our time-ins, thanks to some advice from Alison. The time-ins have become much less traumatic and have become more of a time to simply reset the brain. We have been so thankful that it only takes a few minutes for her to sit down and think it over before she is ready to go correct her wrongs. It's certainly not like that every day, but more and more of those days are happening!

We are falling more in love with this little gal every single day! She is simply amazing and full of innocence. Every experience is new! The deep freezer is so fun for her to open and close, the fact that she can drink water with her meal every single day and doesn't have to ask is unreal to her, ice cube trays are absolutely unreal and so much fun, straws are mind blowing, vacuum cleaners are the loudest, scariest but most intriguing machines, mini blinds are a toy in themselves (opening and closing them), not to mention opening every single spice jar and smelling them each a million times, oh and who could forget toilet paper! Toilet paper is fascinating and you can never have too much! Like I said, pure innocence...she really finds joy in absolutely everything!!! Zach and I continue to find joy in her!

Zach's Update:
As Laura mentioned, April flew by, but being a month late to post the 3 month home blog gives us a unique perspective of being able to compare both before and after. Iv'e heard it said that there is a "honeymoon" stage with adoptions that will often last around 3 months... while I didn't think this was true because of all our struggles and hardships, I will say that overall in month 3 we saw a lot of progress and had a lot more fun together as a family. Month 4 wasn't bad by any stretch, but I can definitely see where the comfortableness and familiarity is allowing her to push the boundaries more, and express her insecurities in a greater way. I'll save the details for the next blog, but I say this to emphasize that month 3 was great month. There were many firsts during the month, many of which Laura already covered. A few other things I can think of include:
Nethra cried her first tears (other than during time-in). Laura put her down for a nap and then got up and came out of the room (this was the first - and last time Laura left the room while she was still awake). A few seconds later, the bedroom door opened, but she didn't come out. Laura walked in to find her standing in the dark reaching for Laura with silent tears streaming down her face. It was heart-breaking to say the least. Month 3 was also the first time we saw her react to pain. We were going on a family walk and she was running on the gravel road. She tripped and caught herself with her hands. She looked startled for a moment and then looked at us with a new expression we had not seen. Her eyes started to well up, but that was all. We of course did and are continuing to do the exact opposite thing of what all good parents know to do when their child falls down or hurst themselves. We make a huge deal of getting hurt, baby her as much as possible, and emphasize the point of contact to encourage her to express pain. You may be wondering why we would do this, but when you see your child fall down and get up as if nothing happened only to discover (hours later) a large, gaping, bloody wound in the back of her leg, you will realize there are times when it is very important to at least acknowledge pain. Not to get ahead of our blogs, but a similar thing happened this last month when she got stung by a bee and simply jerked her hand behind her back and smiled at us to reassure us that there was nothing to worry about. We realized that was not the case when later her whole hand and forearm swelled up like a balloon. In month 3, we finally took down our welcome home banner. I'm pretty sure Nehtra just thought that was part of our house decor and we were always supposed to duck as we moved from the living room to the kitchen. There were also some very tender moments in this month. One of her new favorite things (which I regret to say did not continue on into month 4) was family hugs. She loved to have all three of us just hug and rub each others backs. This was a daily occurrence - well many times throughout the day really. And to wrap this up, I have to share one of my favorite memories from the month. The weather was finally starting to get nice outside in March so we went on many family walks and spent as much time outside as we could on the pleasant days. On one particular Wednesday evening, it was Laura's turn to go to the prayer meeting at church. It was the first Wednesday after the daylight savings time change, so it was still light out. Typically we would put Nethra to bed before the other person left for church. This time, however, we decided to let her stay up and enjoy the evening. We went on a walk down to the falls, pausing along the way to play with the gravel. It was a perfect night with that nostalgic feeling you sometimes get when the weather changes in spring or fall and you look forward to the approaching season with great expectations and fond memories of past years. Maybe I'm the only one that gets that feeling on the first cool night of fall or the first warm evening of spring. There is just something special about it. Well this was one of those nights. As we walked hand in hand (a very rare event at this point), I pointed out various items of interest including the large sheep/goat dog we always pass. One of the perks of passing dogs of any size is Nethra's instant desire to be held. This is not really a perk for my pregnant wife who is already having to hold Nethra throughout much of her day, but for me this is special. When we got to the bridge we watched the water and were surprised to see a beaver swimming around down below us. We watched as long as Nethra's attention span allowed (which was longer than usual). As we were leaving, she picked up a couple small rocks and started to throw them. I showed her how she could drop them over the bridge and watch them free fall to the river where they created little rings of ripples. Nethra, of course, found this very fascinating and insisted we do it again... and again. When we finally made the trek home, she got tired of walking after a couple blocks. My memory is failing me now, but I remember it being very sweet the way she subtlety indicated she was wanting to be picked up. Maybe it wasn't all that subtle, but it was definitely sweet. Either way I remember this was another "first" for the month. It was the first time she laid her head on my shoulder as I carried her. It only lasted a few precious seconds, but those are cherished seconds. I rubbed her back and she rubbed mine. These moments make every challenge and struggle worth it. It's these precious seconds that offset the hours of frustrations and days of exhaustion. I know this journey is just beginning and we have a lifetime of joys and frustrations ahead of us. I'm very excited to see what "firsts" next month will hold. My daughter has and will always have my heart.

Forever a Fry - 2 Months Home

2015-02-21T17:03:00.004-08:00

It has been two months since we brought Nethra home to Kansas! Zach and I seem to fall more in love with her every day. I feel like the more comfortable she becomes the more of her true personality comes out. A little girl with a huge heart has emerged. A little 25 pound ball of orneriness. confidence, and the sweetest little giggle.

This month has been filled with lots and lots of firsts. Nethra experienced her first snow and she was absolutely mesmerized by that white stuff falling from the sky. I picked her up and held her at the window and she just simply stared and stared and stared. I caught her many times that day looking out the window to see if that white stuff was still on the ground. It was so funny to watch her try and walk in it. She just kind of scooted her boots through it. She loved pelting Zach with snowballs and just running to look back and see her footprints.

Another first she experienced was her first visit to an American doctor. Zach and I wanted to wait a bit until Nethra was more comfortable before taking her to the International Adoption Clinic in KC at Children's Mercy. We made the appointment shortly after we returned home from India, just hoping that February was enough time for her to adjust before being poked and prodded by doctors. Looking back we are both so thankful that we chose to wait almost two months. On the 3 hour drive to KC, I could feel my stomach in knots, just not knowing how the little lady was going to handle being in a hospital. Our time in India, getting the required TB test, had been a complete nightmare. Nethra handled it all like a pro. She was delighted to be around the nurses who just couldn't get over her boots with the fur (and yes they even sang her a portion of that song), her long eyelashes, and her little stance with her hands on her hips. They gave her snack after snack, which is the real way to win her heart. Looking back I think she might have even given a few kisses to these dear ladies. Needless to say she made quite the impression...it didn't hurt that she was the only patient! After meeting with the doctor we quickly discovered that a lot of the medical issues that seemed so huge on her referral paperwork really weren't issues. We had known from the beginning that Nethra was speech delayed and it was confirmed that day that Nethra's speech would probably be the biggest thing for her to overcome. Yes she isn't even on the charts for weight but we have a healthy little girl. We were even more relieved when her blood work results all came back without any problems.

That same day Nethra met 5 of her cousins for the first time. Nethra's grandparents only live an hour from the hospital so we ate dinner with them and played with all the cousins. Nethra fell in love with Camille and Karina. It was comical to see her sit at the kids table and hold her hands out to the other girls to pray. She mirrored everything the others did. It was kind of like she had been apart of the family all her life. I watched as the other's went to get their little wooden chairs for meal time. Nethra didn't even miss a beat as she quickly followed to get her own, even though Papa tried helping her get the chair up the steps, she insisted on doing it herself. This was also the first time she had ever tried sherbert and she wasn't a fan. We made the three hours journey home that evening with our little traveler who was absolutely exhausted from a very full day.

A few other first for Nethra this month included going to church together as a family of three. Nethra is quite the social butterfly and has quickly made friends at church. She loves to watch her Great Grandparents, Glen and Mary, walk in the back door of the church building, 10 minutes after service has began, and throws a big kiss in their direction. She walks around greeting everyone with her hand to her forehead saying, "hi." She gets super excited when her Tata (grandfather) gets up on stage with the worship team. She loves to wave and give big grins his direction during worship service which he usually acknowledges with a hidden grin.

Nethra also had her first speech and hearing test this month during a second trip to Children's Mercy. She had her first sleepover at Papa and Grandmas in Missouri. She finally got her hands in clay with her Tata's help. She was overjoyed to watch her Tata on the wheel and eventually dipped her hands into the clay. The end result were two bowls that her Tata somehow salvaged from her very rough touch.

Zach and I look at this month and we see a crazy amount of progress! There seemed to be a week when everything began to click for Nethra. I watched as she began to hold her little hand held broom correctly as she swept up her crumbs on the kitchen floor. I have watched her match colors on the Ipad, something that Zach and I have spent many hours working with her on. I heard her say "Tata" for the first time. Her sign language has really taken off. She does amazing with her wooden puzzles. The list really does go on and on. The tantrums are becoming fewer. Time ins are very rarely a time of her spitting and slapping. They have become very short and have become extremely effective. When she is finished she bobs her head and quickly goes back to correct her wrong. Things are getting easier! I look back at the first month and I can honestly say I felt like we were in survival mode. We have slowly transitioned out of survival mode into a routine that seems to be working. We are seeing our daughter's real personality come out and it is beautiful! She has gained so much confidence over these last two months. Zach left for several hours this week to work which would normally lead to many meltdowns...instead Nethra handled it like a pro. My living room is no longer getting destroyed from angry meltdowns. I honestly could cry when I think of the progress that has been made. I look back at that first month and I can quickly see how far we have come. God continues to be faithful!

In the midst of progress there are always still struggles. Some of these struggles involve knowing that Nethra needs an extreme amount of speech therapy. Something that will most likely last many years. Zach and I are faced with many decisions on exactly who to reach out to for help. There is also the simple struggle of being parents and questioning if you are actually impacting your child in a positive way or are you ruining them. Some days I put Nethra to bed and can't help but think I ruined her today, or I am out of patience, or I don't think I can do this one more day. Zach and I are quickly discovering that we each need our own time away and out of this house. We are both realizing the huge transition that we have gone through these last two months. There is also the crazy twist that we are adding one more to our family in August. I certainly don't clump that in as a struggle but more of a huge transition that we will once again be making. I do have to wonder what exactly God is planning for our family We are in the midst of trying to advocate for the children's home in India all while knowing that we will not be able to travel back to India for a year. It's a struggle missing the 12 kids that we lived life with for 4 months. A highlight for all of us this month was talking to the kids on the phone and Caleb talking to Nethra in her native tongue. She went crazy with excitement and was trying desperately to tell him all about the snow. Zach and I have spent these last two months cocooning with Nethra, knowing that this was completely in her best interest. I mentioned in our last blog that this has been extremely difficult for me, simply not being around people. After two months of cocooning I can say that we are slowly getting back out to the real world. Zach and I are pretty much throwing our front door open and saying please come visit us! Ok, maybe we are on our hands and knees begging for people to visit us, discuss life, pray with us, share a meal with us, pour into us! We need our community! Of course I say all of this knowing that our daughter is still transitioning, so just call ahead...but seriously we are easing out of the cocooning stage.

This is not the most eloquent blog post I have ever written, between the constant yells for "ma" and the meal preparations but at least the progress and struggles are written down. So please excuse the broken thoughts! Our family is taking one day at a time, peeling back layer after layer of our daughter. We are discovering this little human that we absolutely love. These two months have made me fall in love with the idea of adoption all over again. It is amazing, beautiful, hard, sacrificial and full of unconditional love. Since we started this process, four years ago, we have had so many people tell us that they plan to adopt. I have also talked to so many people that desire to adopt but are scared of the staggering price tag that comes with it. Nethra is a doll. I look at her and can't imagine what her life would have been had she stayed in India. It makes me sick. I am so thankful for God's plan. Nethra is only one of millions but she is one! I don't know how to say this eloquently and without pleading but take the plunge and adopt if you know that it has been tugging on your heart. Life here is so short. So much is not going to matter and so much is going to matter. Nethra's life being transformed is going to matter. The size of our home and our income is not going to matter. There are so many Nethra's out there that need families! We need prayer warriors to rise up and we need families that will fling their doors open and welcome these kids. Once you see those faces they can't be erased from your mind.

Before I end this crazy, long, broken and very rough blog, I wanted to share a few photos from this last month!

We introduced a little Montessori life skills into Nethra's schedule. She did really well considering using a spoon is a new thing for her.

We looked out our back window to find Nethra jumping on the trampoline with her Achee and Tata. Not many grandparents would be so energetic! She is a very loved little girl!

Nethra and Ann hit it off! Nethra thought Ann was pretty awesome!

Geneva and Nethra reunited. Geneva met Nethra almost two years ago on a trip to India. So precious to see these two together again, in our home, in America!

Did we mention that this little lady loves presents. Ok, maybe not presents but more like wrapping paper.

She is a lover of popcorn! Totally our kind of girl! Zach and I love popcorn without butter and with lemon pepper. Our little lady has developed the addiction! Every day, Nethra has a special tea (chai) time and popcorn.

This is Nethra's idea of helping unload wood!

The mule continues to be a huge favorite for Nethra. Achee stole her heart by letting her steer! This month she spent several hours away from mom and dad while Achee and Tata watched her, allowing mom and dad to get ready for a church presentation.

She really does fit into Elk Falls (the Outhouse Capital of the World)! She has already checked out a wide variety of outhouses!

This is only after one kid...think what August will bring!

Nethra's sweet wheels! She loves to be out in her stroller and mom and dad love it just as much!

More presents came in the mail and boy did she have fun unwrapping them!

We celebrated Achee's birthday this month. Nethra was mesmerized by the birthday candles. Watching her stare and stare at them made me wonder if she had ever seen birthday candles before. It really was precious!

Thank you Traci Smith for this awesome hoodie!!! It's pretty special to us!

One Month Home

2015-01-18T19:18:00.002-08:00

What a difference a month makes!

Photo on the left is Nethra the very first evening we had her. Photo on the right from one month home as a Fry!

Here we are, one month later as a family of three. We are exhausted, overwhelmed, going stir-crazy but yet so in love with Nethra Grace. She wakes us up in the mornings with kisses on the cheeks followed by lots of giggling. Her days consist of “doing dishes” in her pajamas, devouring her breakfast which varies from Greek yogurt to a hard boiled egg and a banana.

Did we mention that she LOVES strawberry Greek Yogurt!

Typically after breakfast she migrates towards the phone and begs us to call someone so she can “talk.” After her phone conversation she gets side-tracked with her miniature broom and dust pan and tries oh so very hard to sweep up fifty percent of the food that didn’t quite make it from the spoon to her mouth. Getting her dressed is very much a hit or miss. Somedays she will easily put on the clothes we selected and other days she shakes her head “no” about a 100 times at our choice. Her afternoons are full of 30 seconds here and there. She runs between her wooden puzzles to dumping all the dvds off the shelf and then putting them back, to distracting her daddy a million times as he attempts to work from home, to playing with her play dough, to putting her boots on and begging to “go,” to handing me her box of 500 hair ties so she can have crazy ponytails, to stuffing her pockets with tons of various treasures (especially coins) all while she is putting chapstick on her mouth and her cheeks. Her nights are full of cooking, eating dinner (which can take a very long time if she is not interested), dance parties before bedtime with both mom and dad and flipping through pages of storybooks for about 30 seconds. When bedtime comes she puts her head on my shoulder and off we go to bed.

We usually flip through about 8 books in a matter of 5 minutes!
Her attention span is so very short!

Nethra is amazing and seems to become more amazing to us every single day. The little girl that we left the orphanage with, one month ago has made leaps and bounds transitioning into our family and moving to a new culture. I look back at the first two weeks that Nethra became apart of our family and I remember how she wouldn’t let Zach pick her up or touch her and how scared she was to even sleep between the two of us. One month later and this same girl can’t stand to be apart from her daddy.

I caught her putting his shoes on one day while he was gone!

She falls apart when he leaves for a few hours, she has to be in the kitchen sitting on the counter helping him cook, she can’t resist from giving him kisses in the mornings and she just begs for him to chase her and tickle her.

Daddy and Nethra tag teaming in the kitchen!
Her most favorite activity!

Just this week I walked into the bathroom to see Nethra sitting on the toilet seat watching Zach shave. She didn’t even glance up when I walked in...instead I heard this little “sigh” leave her mouth as she just stared at her best friend, “daddy.” What a difference one month makes! I think back on Nethra’s orphan shuffle as we walked around her orphanage. She would shuffle her feet and walk extremely slow...this same little girl is now running around our house, jumping on the trampoline and we can’t hardly keep up! Did I mention that she squeals...and boy does she squeal! When she sees her mommy or daddy come through the front door she goes crazy with excitement, clapping her hands and squealing! Oh and did I tell you that she now bows her head at the table for prayer before we eat.

Zach and I can’t help but sneak a few peaks at her during the prayer because it’s the sweetest thing to see her bowed head and her arms stretched out as she holds each of our hands...oh and her eyes are squeezed as tightly shut as she can possibly get them! Nethra’s sign language has taken off! She knew several signs from the orphanage but since coming home has learned the signs for: cook, bird, bath, cold, hot, super, like and snow.

After living in India all of her life, a country where car seats are not a thing, Nethra wasn’t so keen on the idea of being buckled in to this huge padded seat. After being home for one month, Zach and I are both able to sit in the front while Nethra happily sits strapped into her car seat in the back.

Nethra has made leaps and bounds over this last month. One of the best pieces of advice we ever read or were given in this adoption process was to cocoon with Nethra as soon as we got home. Friends we have been cocooning for a month and we are beginning to understand why it is so highly recommended. Nethra is growing leaps and bounds in a big part because she is beginning to find security with us. She is beginning to realize that when we leave the house we are coming home. Nethra has not set foot into an American grocery store, she hasn’t been to church yet, she hasn’t even met her cousins yet. Nethra’s world has been kept extremely small from the very beginning of bringing her home. She is still learning that we are mom and dad. Neither Zach or I want to compete for those titles with anyone else. We don’t want to take her into a grocery store full of colors, sounds and all new smells until we know she is ready. We don’t want to take her to church until we know that she can handle meeting all the amazing people that prayed for her and are dying to meet her. So many have asked us about the cocooning and the purpose behind it. We are learning that there is a lot! When babies are born they begin to bond with their parents. The mother typically will feed or nurse the child. This is very much the same with adoption. For Zach and I feeding Nethra is extremely special and important to both of us. We know that this is a huge part of bonding. Showing Nethra that we are the ones that are giving her food and meeting her needs is a big part of her learning that we are mom and dad. In many ways I think it’s just as much a need for Zach and I. We missed out on five years of our daughter’s life when we could have been feeding her, kissing her ouchies and picking her up when she cried. In a way cocooning has made this easier for the two of us. It allows us to not compete with others for our roles. It allows us to be the ones to feed our daughter and not ask someone else to refrain.

Like I mentioned the cocooning has been wonderful for Nethra but what I didn’t mention was that it makes me stir-crazy. After being in India for four months the last thing I wanted to do was come home and cocoon for several months. I missed people! Thankfully the phone has been a life line after Nethra goes to bed. Zach and I have also been able to take turns attending our prayer group on Wednesday nights and church on Sunday. We both crave to see people. This week was the first week that I had left Nethra for more than two hours. It was so refreshing to spend the morning and afternoon in Howard catching up with a dear friend, getting a hair cut, walking down the aisles of the grocery store after not being in one for five months and visiting the bank. I didn’t take a second of my time for granted. Though what a good feeling to pull into your driveway to see your little lady all smiles and squealing when she layed eyes on me.

Somewhere I had read that adoption was not for those weak in the knees. Never did this phrase ring truer until we brought Nethra home. Zach and I met all the requirements to adopt. We took countless classes on the risks involved with adopting over the age of 3, how to discipline, what to expect...etc. We read “The Connected Child,” the book everyone recommends when you adopt. We both went into our adoption with eyes wide open. We knew this would not be an easy journey but we also knew that we had God on our side and well we didn’t really want easy. People that adopt know that easy isn’t really an option. Anything worth fighting for is typically challenging, takes time and tons of work. This last month has not only been full of giggles and kisses and growth but also lots of ugliness that we don’t always love to share. We love our daughter and would never want to embarrass her. Yet many think of adoption and only hear that “amazing” side of things. Zach and I have been slapped, bitten and kicked. We have witnessed numerous tantrums. Our days are far from easy. To be honest we are exhausted. My mind is tired from always having to think ahead to be sure and tell Nethra what to expect. Our daughter is five and didn’t grow up with us teaching her boundaries...so she is testing all of them! Our patience wears thin as we tell her countless times, “no touch.” I have watched as she has taken everything off my coffee table and thrown it across the room just to get a reaction from me. I have watched her hover in a corner refusing to be picked up because she is so angry. Yes this is a glimpse of the ugly side of things...but it’s the reality of adoption. It’s not easy but it’s so worth it. The good always outweighs the bad. When I think of how far we have come in only a month, it brings me to tears. We love our Nethra and we know she is worth fighting for. The tantrums will become less, the kicking, the biting, the slapping will become less and the giggles and the kisses will become more.

So friends, when you see us and you ask “how are things going,” please know that it’s beautiful and it’s hard. We may not share all about the hard days but know there are plenty of them. We hold on to the good days and enjoy sharing them because they make up for all the bad days!

Nethra in her very own bedroom! We love her quilt that her Great Grandma Charlotte Baxter made!

She loves to drink out of a real pottery mug..made by her Tata aka Grandpa Steve!

When we first got home she would spend hours stringing her beads from Aunt Valerie! She has
become quite the pro at this!

The trampoline has been quite the hit with her! She was so uncertain at how to jump but she has come a long way in one month! Her coordination has improved immensely and she loves to jump up and down till we beg her to get off the trampoline because it's so cold!!! She can't stop giggling when her daddy sends her flying through the air.

She couldn't stop jumping up and down when we gave her a brand new apron!!

Her first time making sugar cookies!!! She was blown away!

We made cloud dough one morning and it kept her busy for hours!!!

She spent well over an hour cleaning up her mess!!! We started with clothes and ended with none!!!

Pretty sure this is the first doll she has ever owned! Thank you Sue Wolf!
Did I mention that she loves, loves, loves to have her hair up in tons of pigtails!

One of the biggest events this month was Nethra meeting all her grandparents! Here she is with Achee and Tata on
Christmas Day! Their relationship has come a long way since this photo!!

She spent two days getting to know her Grandma and Papa from Adrian, MO!!! She loved to squeeze Papa's nose and hear him honk! She often times points to their photo in her family book!

Achee and Nethra have developed quite the friendship!!! They seem to share the same love for cooking, the outdoors and are both always super busy getting the important things done!!

Grandma and Papa gave Nethra a rocking chair for Christmas! She was busy showing Papa all her amazing tricks!
Papa quickly discovered that this little lady is fearless!

Nethra spent lots of time with Papa and Grandma sorting bears!

Nethra went on her first Mule ride with her Tata on the very day that she was home for one month. Both her and Tata had some pretty big smiles!! She is giving us the Super sign...I think she likes her Tata and all his big toys!

Two Fry's and our Tot!!!

This is real life.

2014-12-17T09:42:00.001-08:00

Today was day eight - the start of if the second week with Nethra. We are so in love. It has been a crazy whirlwind week full of highs and some lows. Of course we have only shared the highs on Facebook with the photos of her amazing smile, incredible laugh, and stories of her ornery personality. But we want to keep it real, and give our friends and family a glimpse of some the difficulties we face daily and the ones we will have to deal with for years to come. I know most of you who follow us on Facebook and like our photos, probably think this a perfect little family and everything is going so smoothly, and for the most part things are going smoothly. Right now one of the biggest difficulties is meal time. We both dread meal times because we know it means a struggle. We saw Nethra eat in the orphanage and consume large amounts of rice, chicken/fish and some vegetables. The nuns all told us she was a good eater, but we were nervous from the stories we had heard from other adoptive couples. Shortly after getting her, she began to refuse to eat. At first it seemed like she just didn't eat if she was overwhelmed or overstimulated, but then she began refusing after just a couple bites of food. There was one whole day that she only ate maybe 2 bites of bread and one bite of egg. After talking to many other families who have adopted from India we discovered this is very normal and a part of the grieving process. And it will get better with time. Already it has improved and now it's mostly just dinner she will refuse to eat. Eating is a common struggle with adopted children. Some horde food, some overeat and you have to tell them when to stop, some refuse to eat because that's the one thing in their new life/world that they can control, and some regress to a much younger age and will only drink milk from a bottle. All these can be normal, but that doesn't make it any easier when you see your new daughter shaking her head, pushing your hand away, and turning her head so it's impossible to feed her after only one bite. You worry that she has not had enough to sustain her. You fear that you are not being a good parent, that you should know how to deal with this, or make her feel comfortable and safe enough to want to eat. Very often she will open her mouth like she wants to eat and then it's like she realizes what she is doing and she will quickly close it and push us away.

The other biggest challenge is Daddy time. At the orphanage she "loved" me. She seemed to enjoy being held by me, fed by me, liked to play with me, and hold my hand as we walked. This continued for 3 days. Then on day 4 it all changed. She absolutely refused to be held by me. If I reached for her she would back up to the wall and sink down to the floor. If I tried to pick her up anyway, she would arch her back and begin to cry. If we are walking together and I offer her my hand she will jerk her hand behind her back, shake her head, and stop walking. She also mostly prefers for Mommy to feed her, though sometimes she still lets me do that. The very few times she has sat on my lap or let me hold her we have captured on video and posted to Facebook because it is so precious to us. We have also discovered this is typical behavior for girls adopted from India. Some families said after their daughter stopped letting the father hold her it took several weeks before she warmed up to him again, other said it took a several months. Knowing that this is normal helps me not take it personally when she backs away with a terrified look on her face or when she will only give Laura kisses on the cheek. This makes it very difficult on Laura who now is forced to be almost a single mom. She has to hold her during the medical appointments, in the long lines, in the markets, at the US Embassy, and everywhere we go. Laura's back and arms feel like they are going to give out and I can do nothing to help. She has to feed her for most meals, rock her to sleep for nap time and bedtime, and play with her in the park. I am trying my best to win my daughter's heart, but it's not easy. I love it when she lets me feed her or give her tea. My favorite time was when she let me play with her in the park a few days ago and pick her up while she laughed. It only lasted a few seconds, but I will continue cherishing those moments.

She is becoming more and more comfortable with us, and everyday we see more of her personality come out. She is such a sweet girl and oh so funny. She is a good listener and mostly does what we ask her to do. She loves to help clean and put things away. We have recently discovered how easily she can get overwhelmed and overstimulated. It changes her whole behavior. She begins doing things she knows she is not supposed to do, starts getting into everything and becomes difficult to mange. She doesn't get overwhelmed by the crazy traffic in India, or the crowds of people in the market, but instead direct interaction with her by people she doesn't know seems to trigger all sorts of different emotions and behaviors. If the tuk tuk driver turns around and begins talking to her and touches her face (that's common in India) she will get a glazed over look in her eyes and kinda just stops responding. Or when we FaceTime or Skype family, she gets really excited and begins to do things she never does. Both times we talked to family with a video chat she wet herself leaving a big puddle on the floor or Laura's lap. It's all been happening exactly like read about in the adoption books. It's crazy. Adoption is a beautiful thing, but I think it's oftentimes over-romanticized. The only reason it's an option is because of broken relationships and a tragedy of some kind. With the proper nurturing most adopted children grow and mature to be well adjusted adults and live normal lives, but these children have emotional scars that will stay with them. Our job as Nethra's parents is to minimize the affects of the scars and to provide her with all the love and care that her biological parents could not.

All of these things have made us realize just how important this initial bonding time is. I've heard for every year of the child's life, it takes a month to become bonded. So for us we are looking at around 5 months for this process. During this time we are going to do our best to keep her world small by keeping direct interaction with friends and family to a minimum. We are so eager for everyone to meet her and see her fun personality. I think it will be very difficult for us to "cocoon" as it's often called in the adoption community. We have been gone 4 months and are just as eager to see you and you are to see us. So as much as it pains us to ask this, we ask that you refrain from dropping by our house for several weeks. Feel free to give us a call and maybe can figure out a time during nap time to visit with you. Large groups of people interacting with her are especially disruptive for her. So as we do begin to expand her world it will probably be with one or two people at a time. We ask that you please don't hold her, feed her, or make her the center of attention. I know that may sound overprotective, sounds rude, and I promise we would never ask this if it wasn't extremely important for her transition into our family. We have to be her primary caretakers and meet her basic needs so she understands that we are her parents and are not leaving her. At first glance she looks like a well adjusted child and most people will see the beautiful side of her. But what many people don't realize is the simple interaction such as picking her up, or giving her things, can cause relapses in her behavior that can last hours after the interaction. It can also cause confusion during the bonding process. We have talked to many adoptive families and our social worker who all agree this is important for a good transition. Our goal is to make her transition as easy as possible considering the amounts of grief and changes she has to deal with. We were trying to come up with ways to bend the suggestions so we could introduce her to family at Christmas, but we know it's not the best thing for Nethra. But we are her parents and we have to protect her and do what's best for her even though it's not easy and may not be what we want to do...

Everyday is new, exciting, scary, frustrating, exhausting, heart breaking and so much fun all at the same time. We are loving it. Parenthood is all new to us... I'm sure we are making so many mistakes, but it's fun to see her already begin to relax and feel safe with us. So yes we will be home in time for Christmas, but we will be staying at home thinking of you all. We can't wait for the day in the near future when Nethra is ready to meet you and you can become part of her "world."

Gotcha Day

2014-12-13T02:54:00.000-08:00

It's nap time right now, so I wanted to quickly catch everyone up on the last few days of becoming parents. There is lots to tell and I'm sure I will miss a few details but I want to get it all written down before I forget!

Friday night we got a phone call from Nethra's orphanage saying that her passport was in! The first words out of Zach's mouth were, "can we come get her on Monday." I stood there pretty much speechless listening to the phone conversation. It was quickly decided that Monday at 10am we would have our daughter. It's funny how something can take four years to happen....and when it finally does, you discover you are far from prepared. Zach and I spent the weekend packing the things in our room and unpacking Nethra's suitcase. We had decided that we still had quite a few things to finish up at the children's home, so we would go get her Monday and then leave the children's home on Friday.

We left from Vellore at 4am on Friday morning. We arrived at the orphanage and once again rolled through the gates. It really felt surreal. I looked out the window of the car to see the children all out in the play area...and there was Nethra standing at the fence waving and waving. She had a rolled up piece of paper in her hand...we later found out that the sisters had sat her down a few days prior to let her know that her mom and dad would be coming to get her on Monday and they gave her our photo...that she had been carrying around for the last few days.

Just the same as the last two visits, the sisters visited with us and then there came Nethra walking in with another sister. She came straight to us with the biggest grin on her face and quickly showed us the photo that she had been carrying. My heart melted as I picked her up. This little girl was so excited to have a mommy and daddy but there is no way she could fully comprehend how much her life was going to change.

The next few hours were highly emotional and somewhat of a blur. Zach and I gave Nethra a special necklace that I made before we left the country in August. It said "chosen" on it...we had decided a long time ago that we wanted to leave her first name as Nethra, because we loved the meaning "beautiful eyes." We also had decided on the middle name of Grace simply because it seems so fitting for her. The second middle name is Elita, which means "chosen." So the necklace we gave her had a lot of significance as far as who she is.

One of my most favorite memories was standing in the chapel with about five of the sisters as they held a special ceremony and prayer for Nethra. I watched as one sister called her up and the sister kneeled down in front of the cross with one arm around Nethra and just thanked God for this precious girl. Zach and I sat in the front row just taking it all in. Tears just kept coming as I watched the sister pray blessing after blessing over our daughter. They then called us to the front and handed our daughter to us. It was beautiful and once again made me realize how much the sisters loved our Nethra.

Like I said, the day was filled with tons of emotions. We watched as Nethra said goodbye to the sisters, one by one. Many of the sisters are doctors, so we were thrilled to meet the sister who actually had delivered Nethra at their hospital.

One of the memories I will never forget is when the caretakers said goodbye to Nethra. I thought my heart was going to fall to pieces. We asked several of them to say a few things to Nethra on camera and it was priceless. I know someday she will cherish those words. The caretakers told us how they had a nickname for her that means, "little mosquito," because of how tiny her legs were when she came to the orphanage. When Zach and I say the word in Kannada she gets a big smile! Zach and I were really touched by Nethra's main caretaker. It was obvious that this was hard for her. We had left a photo book for Nethra during our first trip to the orphanage, two year ago. We ended up leaving it with the caretaker who seemed so excited to have it. We walked away from the caretakers that day with tears running down our faces and little Nethra blowing kisses at all of them.

We spent several more hours at the orphanage. We stopped in and saw all the children as one of the sisters was teaching English. We asked about Nethra's best friends and we were quickly shown one boy who was several years older than Nethra. It was really clear that they just loved one another. We were able to get photos of them all together. He kept kissing Nethra's cheeks and saying goodbye. He was such a precious little boy. We learned that Nethra's little gang of friends had pretty much dispersed over the last week as their forever families had come to get them. We also learned that another little girl that we had come to love was meeting her family the next day and would be going to Italy. Made me realize how hard it would be on the caretakers and the sisters to always say goodbye.

As we left that room I watched Nethra wave goodbye to all her friends. It really broke my heart to see her wave and walk away from all those children that she had lived with and shared life with for so long. We took our time walking through the tailoring rooms and embroidery room. The sisters offer several classes for young woman on sewing and embroidery. Their work was absolutely beautiful. In fact Zach and I bought several embroidered hankies from them. (Nethra thoroughly enjoys folding and refolding hers daily).

Zach and I left the orphanage at 1:30 that afternoon. We stood outside by the car as the sisters all said their final goodbyes. The memory of the sisters saying goodbye will probably always be engrained in my mind. I looked down at Nethra who had very big eyes and was on high alert but really had no idea how her life was about to change. We thanked the sisters for everything they had done for our daughter. They really loved her. We loaded up in the car with Nethra on Zach's lap and pulled away from the home and people Nethra had known for 4 years. I looked down at Nethra who was holding tight to a little doll that a friend back home had made her. I remember turning and looking out the back window to see the sisters still waving and several of them in tears. The very little composure that I had left was quickly gone as I watched one sister in particularly wipe away her tears and wave. This Sister had formed a really close bond with Nethra and it was extremely heart wrenching to watch them say goodbye to one another.

Right now Nethra has been with us for 6 days. I would love to write more about her Gotcha Day but my emotions and mind are shot. I feel like I am doing good just to get the details down on paper. Nap time is nearing the end, which means I need to go crawl in bed so when Nethra wakes up she isn't startled. I will write more later about our little mosquito! We LOVE her to pieces!

Update

2012-10-25T06:47:00.002-07:00

Hey everyone,

We just wanted to give you an update with what's going on in our lives. We have been home from YWAM for about one year now. We had plans to return last January and lead the spring PhotogenX DTS, but God had other plans. We had a very hard time releasing our own plans and desires, but in time we saw how much better God's plan was. One of our dear friends led the school in our absence, and he did an absolutely fantastic job. While at home we have been able to focus on our adoption of two kids from India and go back to work. There have been many hurdles and setbacks with the adoption, but we are moving forward. Now we are just waiting on a referral from India. We have also been able to get more involved in our church here at home, which has been a real blessing. We absolutely love our church family here. It has been amazing help start a prayer and intercession night every Wednesday at the church. The passion and excitement for prayer and worship has been growing in our congregation, and it is an amazing thing. We are seeing our prayers answered, which I know is strengthening everyone's faith.

In September Laura and I opened our home to two exchange students - one from Brazil and one from Thailand. This has been a wonderful adjustment for us. Nannapat is 17, from Thailand, and is very funny. Her English has improved so much in the past two months that she has been here and I am excited to see it improve even more over the next seven. Marianna is from Brazil and is 16 (she will turn 17 next month). She is already quite fluent with English and is having a great time so far. Both girls are attending high school at West Elk in Howard. Laura and I have been brushing up on our Geometry/Trigonometry, US history, and Shakespeare as we help them with their homework in the evenings. We are loving the new life and energy this has brought to our house. I told Laura we are doing everything backwards... starting with two teenage girls, then moving on to two children under the age of 6, and eventually having a baby. Oh well, we aren't much for traditional anyway.

We are staying very busy with life, and at times it is hard to stay focused, but we are loving all the new challenges and adventures. Please continue to pray for us and especially for our children in India. We cannot wait to return to this beautiful country and reconnect with all our friends over there. If you would like to read more about our adoption journey, check out our other blog: http://adoptingourtot.blogspot.com/

Be blessed.

Weather Report from Battambang! Monsoon Season!

2011-08-07T06:26:00.000-07:00

When it rains it really rains here. Monsoon season seems to be in full force. So instead of saying "it's raining," we are now saying "it's monsooning." It "monsoons" quite often... probably 5 times a week... sometimes everyday. It is usually short lived though lasting for 1 - 2 hours. Check out this update from Laura! :)

Also check out Paul's (one of our students) recent blog post showing many pictures from the streets of Battambang during one of the daily monsoons. Just last night Paul and I got "monsooned" on at a BBQ buffet effectively ruining our food... it was quite the experience. Watch for story to be posted soon.

Beauty in the Rice Fields

2011-07-28T21:53:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday Paul (the only other guy on our team) and I got up early to ride our bikes out to the nearby rice fields to capture the beauty in the early morning light. We left around 6 am and began the pleasant ride in the cool morning air. We arrived at the rice fields after 15 minutes. It was beautiful. I have been told that many of the locals like to hang out at the rice fields with friends. I can easily see why; it is so quiet, and peaceful.

As we rode further in to the fields, the roads got worse. Because we are in monsoon season, it rains nearly everyday causing the once nicely packed dirt roads to turn into a muddy, rutted mess. I would be peddling my bike forward but moving sideways through the mud instead. I tried to get off and walk my bike, but my flip flops would get stuck in the mud. It was mostly a reddish brown clay which was very sticky. Eventually it became impossible to ride because of all the clay caked between our tires and fenders. We got off and tried to push our bikes, but the wheels still wouldn't turn which made it very difficult. We ended up leaving our bikes and flip flops by the side of the road and just walked barefoot through the mud. This really was the easiest and least messy option. As the sun got higher the clouds began to separate and disperse creating some beautiful scenes for us to capture. I played around a lot with taking multiple exposures of every shot so I could create HDR (high dynamic range) photos later. Some of them look a little fake to me, but I love the detail that comes out with such a wide range of light being captured. It's incredible to be able to see detail in the highlights and shadows at the same time. Anyway I will stop talking about technical details before I bore anyone.

Playing with HDR. The photo doesn't look real to me, but it is definitely interesting.

Close up of rice.

Paul cleaning his hands in a mud puddle.

By 9:00 am it was already quite hot, so we decided to head back to base. Well we attempted to go back... it was still impossible to ride our bikes, so we pushed the non-moving tires through the thick mud. It was very tiring and I was quickly sweating. I was able to clean out the fenders enough to ride for a few minutes before being forced to either get off or fall off. My flip flops and peddels were one giant clump of mud. Eventually we made it to the nearby village where we stopped to try to clean some of the mud off our bikes so they were ridable. Paul was digging some the the clay out with his finger when an elderly woman walked down the road and seeing what we were doing began yelling at us in Khmer. She pointed at Paul's finger and then to some sticks by the side of the road yelling the whole time. We figured out she didn't want us to use our fingers. So we grabbed some sticks and continued the tedious process. She observed us very closely and kept giving us instructions on how to do it, none of which we understood. She looked very upset that our bikes were so muddy. She went and got a bucket of dirty water and began splashing it on our bikes which helped a lot. Once our bikes were rideable we were going to leave, but the woman had other ideas. She continued yelling at us and pointed to our feet. She dragged us to a nearby gutter and scooped out some water and began pouring it on Paul's feet making him clean off all the mud. She then prompted for me to get down in the gutter and wash my shoes and feet. Then a younger woman who was in the background laughing came over to me and took me into her home and began scrubbing my feet with a brush and clean water. When it became clear that they weren't going to let us leave until every speck of dirt was off, I began scrubbing my legs, arms, feet and flip flops. If I missed a spot she was quick to either point it out or just clean it herself. Then she made me wash with soap until I was completely clean. It was quite humbling but incredible at the same time. Here were complete strangers taking us into their homes and washing our feet. I asked for her name in Khmer (which I have now forgotten) and thanked her profusely, "Akun jann." As we rode off, the older woman kept speaking harshly at us while the other women grinned or laughed. I could just imagine what she was saying, "Ignorant Americans! Riding your bikes through the mud and getting them stuck." It was quite the humorous situation. I'm pretty sure my feet aren't that clean after I take a normal shower here.

2011-07-22T21:08:00.000-07:00

Well week 4 is over and gone and week 5 is right around the corner! It's Saturday morning in Battambang which means it's 9:55pm on Friday evening at home. I got up early this morning and came to Sunrise Cafe for breakfast. The base closes the kitchen on Saturday so our team eats all our meals off base on Saturdays. Saturday is also our teams day off. This is typically the day that Zach and I go into hibernation where we try and not do any work. We try and catch up on emails, upload a blog post and just enjoy the culture.

This week has been extremely exhausting. Our team has been in bed by 9pm almost every evening this week. It seems like as soon as our head hits the pillow we are out! It's a good exhaustion! Our schedule is crazy busy from 7am until 7pm Monday through Friday. Zach and I both feel like our team is pouring so much into this country. I really do believe that there is going to be so much fruit from this outreach and I can't wait to see lives radically changed.

Our team has spent tons of time building relationships with their students in the Youth Center. So many of the students have been asking questions about God and have been really hungry to hear more about Christianity. This is extremely exciting for our team. Pray that the students will take the leap of faith and turn their lives over to Him.

This is Zach's computer class...aka "Computer Squad." One of the girls, Pach, invited Zach to her home to watch her family bake. Her family begins baking every morning at 3am and then sells their baked goods in local bakeries. It's a huge honor in this culture to be invited into anyone's home. This usually means that they consider you a real friend.

I had a great time in my cooking class this week! This week we started simple with No Bake Cookies! This was a treat for me! The students loved the cookies...which was somewhat surprising...typically they don't get very excited about our western food! The cookies turned out great considering we had no measuring cups.

All of our cooking students working on 1 batch of no bake cookies!

On Thursday our cooking class went to the local market and we had the students pick out various fruits. We brought the fruits back to base and sat around and taste tested them all. The fruit in Cambodia is soooo good and so extremely cheap! I wish that Kansas had fruit like this! My favorite fruit is mangosteen! It is somewhat compareable to the taste of a grape..but even better!

One of the fruits that we bought at the market is called durian. This is one of the most expensive fruits in Cambodia. Most Cambodians only eat it on special occasions. The students were so excited when we bought the fruit. We bought it inside the market for $7 and the woman sliced it open and cut it up on the side of the road. Never have I smelled anything quite like this! It's a smell that just doesn't go away. Needless to say my taste buds didn't really agree with this particular fruit. It's certainly not something I will be buying again!

Pictured on the right is durian! When Zach and I stayed in the hotel last weekend we saw a sign with a picture of durian on it and an 'X' threw it. Since then we found out that a lot of hotels will not let you take durian into the rooms because of the potent smell! It's crazy to think it smells that strong!

This week our village ministry started! The team absolutely loved it! Below are a few faces that were captured from the last couple of days. Four of us have been taking a tuk tuk out to Ghosthead Village and spending our mornings teaching Bible and building relationships with the people. I had a great time hanging out with the children and playing with them. Below is a little boy named Heng...who is quite the ham. He typically wears no clothes and runs around naked all the time. The last day we went this week he was wearing clothes...which is huge for him! The last team that came to Cambodia made beaded bracelet and necklaces with the kids. For three months now Heng has been wearing the same two necklaces and the bracelet. He absolutely loves them!

This is the typical Heng!

This is my precious friend Chickye from Ghosthead village. She is an absolute doll! She wears her pearl necklace every day. I held her for 40 minutes the first day we went to the village. It's crazy to see the difference between kids in the US and kids in other countries. I picked her up and she just put her head down on my shoulder and just laid there for the longest time. I later found out that because of the genocide a lot of parents don't really know how to show their children love. Her mother rarely holds her or shows any affection. This was such a treat for me to hold her for so long and just love on her. I love going to the village just so I can see this adorable face. I want to pack her in my suitcase and bring her home. If only things were that simple.

The drive out to the village is absolutely gorgeous! Everything is so green!

This is just a quick overview of week 4 of outreach! Zach and I are both so excited for week 5 because we have a pastoral visit coming up! Next Sunday Zach and I will be traveling to Seam Reap to pick up our school leader and her friend! It's going to be so refreshing to see a familiar face.

Please continue to pray for the team! Pray for Zach and I that we would have patience as we continue to lead. The two of us are really learning to rely on God for strength. We have been so exhausted from the constant go, go, go way of living! Please pray that we would feel refreshed and full of energy as we head into this week! Praying that all is well at home! We have heard lots of stories of how hot this summer is back home. Praying that God will send a cool week your way! We miss you all and we miss so many things at home! Have a great week and know we love you!

Life on Base!

2011-07-17T03:11:00.001-07:00

Week 4 of outreach begins tomorrow! Not really sure where the time is going! Before long Zach and I will be on a plane back to Kansas. Craziness!

This week has been an extremely busy but amazing week. Our team typically gets up at 5:45 and eats breakfast at 7 am. Then they do their 30 minute work duty on base. At 8am we regroup for a time of intercession and worship and then we disperse and go our separate ways for morning ministry. Everyone's schedule looks a little different in the mornings. Zach spends his mornings working with King's Kids, teaching photography to a man on base and visiting the local orphanage. King's Kids works with street kids and neighborhood children, sharing Bible stories and just loving on the children. One morning a week Zach teaches, Date, a man on base, photography. Date works with families in the slums and hopes to learn photography to raise money to eventually start his own slum ministry. I am also doing King's Kids in the mornings, visiting the local orphanage and watching a little boy named Rain at Jeevit's House (http://jeevitshouse.org/). Several members of our team are teaching at a local Christian school and ministering in a local village. Several of our team members are extremely passionate about the orphanage and have some great ideas to make a difference in the children's lives. Zach and I are extremely excited to empower the team and turn them loose! The afternoons consist of building relationships and teaching at the youth center.

On Sunday Zach and I made our first Cambodian hospital visit with one of our students. She had missed a step and sprained her ankle. It was instantly swollen which raised some concern. We loaded her in a tuk tuk...which was somewhat interesting and took her to the local hospital. Zach and I were impressed to see that they had an X-Ray machine. It certainly was different than the U.S...but we were thrilled to see that they had one. They took an X-Ray and diagnosed a severe sprain...big sigh of relief from both Zach and I! Kat, our student, was extremely excited when they let her keep the X-Ray. The hospital bill was $8.00...wonder what it would have cost in the U.S!

Well to answer some of your questions...many of you have been asking about living conditions. I took some pictures this week and thought you might appreciate seeing where we lay our head at night...all our storage space...etc.

This is home sweet home for the two of us. We have two fans which is amazing. The base is not air conditioned and it gets extremely hot! We never take the electricity for granted. Four days in a row we had no power from 8am until 5pm...which typically wouldn't have been bad..but with the heat and no fans it was somewhat miserable. On the left is our precious shelf and all our possessions for the next 2 months! We both love having such a small amount to travel with...though it's really nice to go home and have a different variety of clothes!

This is our washing machine on the left! Even though it takes two hours to do 1 load of laundry...it is still a blessing! We love, love the fact that we have a washer. We dry all of our clothes on the clothesline and we always pray that they will dry before the monsoon rain hits! On the left is the crazy parking area on base! Notice there aren't any cars but only motos and bikes!

These are several shots taken at the youth center! This is where we spend from 2:30-7pm every day. The top left is a picture of Zach teaching in his computer class. He is currently teaching several of the students how to type. He has 8 students in his class. On the top right is our students, Kat and Josie, in their conversation class. They are playing a game with the students. They spend an hour each day with the students teaching them how to converse in English. The bottom left is what a typical classroom looks like. This is where Carrie and I teach Level 12 English. The bottom right is Carrie and Katie teaching in their art class! They started with 1 student and currently have 11. The youth center has been a great way for us to build relationships with the students and really pour into them. We are excited to see lots of fruit from this ministry!

This was taken in what the Youth Center staff calls "the cage." Each week there is a relevant topic taught and the students congregate together to hear a speaker. This week was extremely special because our very own Sharon, shared her testimony with all the students at the youth center. Zach and I were really proud of her. She has an amazing testimony and it's exciting to see her use it to further God's kingdom!

Zach and I were pleasantly surprised and beyond blessed by our team on Friday night. Every Friday night we take our team out for family dinner. It's a great way for the team to regroup and share about their week. It's also a great way to just hang out and relax after a crazy week. This week after team dinner our team presented us with a room key at a local hotel. We were blown away. They told us to go and relax in air conditioning. Oh and they also bought us a pool pass for the next day. Zach and I were blown away by their generosity and thoughtfulness! Below are some pictures of the amazing hotel we stayed in. The biggest treat of the night was the air conditioning and hot shower. What a blessing!

One of my students, Grace, delivered these to our room the other day.
She bought them at the local market. They are absolutely gorgeous!

So this is our week in a nutshell! It has been a great week with a very packed schedule! We are waiting in great expectation that God is going to do something amazing while we are here. We recently were told a crazy statistic that 80% of Cambodia is under the age of 30. 45% is under the age of 15. After hearing these statistics it made our team way more aware of how valuable our time is at the youth center. We are getting an amazing opportunity work with this generation that really can turn this nation around! If you think of our team this week and want to pray for us, please pray for boldness and confidence!

We miss you and love you all! Blessings!

Welcome to Cambodia

2011-07-08T18:46:00.000-07:00

Zach and I are currently on outreach in Battambang Cambodia. We left from Kona on Sunday, June 26. The journey to Cambodia was very different from our last adventure to India. This time Zach and I had 11 other people relying on us to get them from point A (Kona) to point B (Cambodia). We flew from Kona to Honolulu to Seoul to Phnom Penh. For the most part the trip was uneventful. We arrived in PP on Monday, June 27 at 9pm...very tired! An hour later after going through the Visa process and customs we soon exited the airport to find our PP contact Kimson standing on the corner in the midst of chaos. I immediately felt like I had revisited India but on a smaller scale. Cars and motos were whizzing by as we hurried to pile 13 peoples luggage into a 12 passenger van. We packed ourselves in the van and soon found out that our plans had changed. Before arriving Zach and I had been in contact with the Phnom Penh base and were told that we would be staying on their YWAM base for 2 days before traveling to Battambang. Upon arrival we found out that the PP base was full and we would be staying in a hotel for 2 days. Zach and I both were somewhat uncertain about this but in the end it turned out to be a blessing. We checked into the hotel and quickly discovered there was air conditioning, a real shower, and comfy beds...all for $15 a night. For the 2 days we stayed in PP we felt extremely blessed. Coming home at night and having a hot shower and air conditioning was not at all what we expected.

We spent our time in PP familiarizing our team with the culture and the recent history of the country. Our team had a great time riding tuk tuks around the city, bartering at the market and learning basic Khmer. Three of our team members walked into an amazing opportunity to go and shoot pictures at the Not For Sale factory in PP. Not For Sale is a widely recognized campaign that is fighting to abolish slavery world wide. Part of their campaign is focused on rehabilitating women into society by providing jobs and skills. Our three team members, Grace, Paul and Katie were able to meet with the CEO of the campaign, go in and shoot photos of the products the women make and sit and talk with several of the women. It was an amazing opportunity for the three of them! The photos will hopefully be visible on the Not For Sale website very soon!

Our team did spend a very heavy day visiting killing fields and museums focused on the very recent genocide in Cambodia. God really gave the team His heart for the people. We saw countless pictures of horrific killings and acts of torture. Many of our team members have spoken to several Khmer who have lost parents in the genocide. This truly brought the history to life for our team.

On Thursday our team hopped on a bus and traveled to the Battambang YWAM base. All 10 of our girls are sleeping in 1 room! The room is extremely packed with 5 bunk beds and 10 girls worth of luggage. Our 1 single token guy, Paul is rooming with YWAM staff and has a huge room. Funny how God works. He must have known that Paul was going to need his space from all the women on the team!

Since arriving our team has been extremely adventurous. The first day in Battambang, the staff sent us on a crazy scavenger hunt all over the city. We had to ride on the back of a moto, visit several various locations and barter for fruit at the market. We had a few of our teammates get a little lost and ended up missing lunch at the base...but they came home happy. On the 4th of July, the base had a “base fun day.” Our team was responsible for making 2 American desserts, which was extremely challenging in the midst of Cambodia. Finding American ingredients is a challenge in itself. Somehow we pulled together a cake with frosting and a peanut butter, cream cheese dessert. It took us several hours but I along with 4 other girls on the team managed to get it done. It’s crazy how the simplest tasks can be such an ordeal in another country. Everything in the US is all about convenience...we are quickly finding out that this is not the case in Cambodia.

The highlight of this trip has been purchasing 13 bikes from a local bike shop. Zach and I had decided before leaving Kona that we wanted each person on the team to purchase a bike so they can get around the city. Little did we know how much fun this really would be. All 13 of us spent the afternoon at a bike shop testing out bikes and finally purchasing them. Each bike came equipped with a little bell and a basket in the front...all for $35. The bikes have been such a blessing for our team...allowing them to learn their way around the city quite well and not restricting where they can and cannot go. On Sunday we went to church...all 11 girls in long skirts riding a bike down the streets of Cambodia. It was pretty challenging but lots of fun!

Zach and I have spent hours working on a ministry schedule for our students. Each week our students will have 2 consistent ministries they will visit from 9am-12. This can be a variety of things...working in the local orphanage, working with a program called Kings Kids (sharing Bible stories to children in villages), teaching English and Bible at the local Christian school, working at an AIDS home, working with a street children’s soccer program, ministering to street children and simply doing manual labor around the base. In the afternoons our team will be teaching a variety of classes at the Youth Center. Several of our students will be teaching photography, Bible, art, voice and piano, conversation and sports. Zach will be teaching a computer and English class. I will be teaching a cooking class and helping one of our team members teach hip hop. Both Zach and I are extremely excited about our team teaching the classes. This is a great way for our team to build relationships with the students and really invest in their lives.

Well I know this has been extremely lengthy...but a lot has been happening over this last week! Please pray for our team as the heat tends to suck all our energy out. Pray for protection and health and that many lives would be transformed. We pray that each of you is doing well and having a great summer!

Old City Jerusalem

2011-07-08T05:04:00.000-07:00

Since Christian and I were only in Israel for a short time, we spent every spare minute going into the Old City and just walking around. I was surprised how filled it was with vendors and shop owners. I guess I expected an old city that was mostly empty; this was not the case at all. At first I was a little disappointed thinking that they had changed the city, but then I realized that it was probably filled with vendors and store owners in Jesus’s day too.

It was neat to walk down the Via Dolorosa and realize that Jesus walked down this very street. I loved just exploring the city and looking at all the old architecture. It was like a maze but after a few days we were able to figure out where things were and navigate through each of the four quarters (the Jewish quarter, the Muslim quarter, the Christian quarter, and the Armenian quarter). The GPS and compas on Christian's iPhone was definitely a big help.

The Via Dolorosa.

The wailing wall was probably my favorite thing in the old city. Christian and I spent some time there just praying for the city and the nation. I prayed for peace and reconciliation in the land between the Jews and the Palestinians, and for the salvation of the Jews. I also just spent some time reflecting on the historical significance of the country and the people. It was a powerful moment. I then spent some time watching the Jews pray and observing their traditions.

A close up of the prayers stuffed in the cracks in the wall.

Some other neat and interesting places I saw in the Old City were the Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Since we weren’t allowed inside the mosque, there wasn’t that much to see, but it was a beautiful building, though I think I expected it to be larger. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre on the other hand was huge! I couldn’t believe it. It just kept going and going and going. We rushed to get through in an hour, but there was definitely more we could have seen.

The Old City was definitely a highlight of the trip and I wish we would have had more time to look around. Christian and I enjoyed spending one morning just shopping and picking out gifts for our wives. And of course we enjoyed eating falafel.

Enjoying our Falafel with veggies, french fries, humus, and awesome sause wrapped in pita-like tortillas.

Exodus

2011-07-04T20:42:00.000-07:00

This is roughly the route we took from Egypt to Israel, except we started in Heliopolis, didn't do the
circle thing for 40 years, and ended in Jerusalem by traveling up the left side of the Dead Sea.

While we were in Egypt Christian taught the book of Exodus. It was neat to read it and think about it while in the land where it happened, but what really made come alive was our journey to Israel stopping at Mt. Sinai along the way. We left in the evening and drove through the night, arriving at the base of the mountain around 2 am. We began the long hike up the mountain in the dark with the moon (or headlamp) to guide us. This was probably my favorite experience in Egypt simply because I love hiking and sunrises. We arrived at the peak before 6 am and got to see a spectacular sunrise. Whether or not this was this was the actual mountain that Moses climbed up to meet with God and receive His law on tablets of stone, it was an incredible experience and put things into perspective. We rode camels down the mountain, which was not nearly as fun as it sounds. It was actually quite a painful experience because of the wooden parts of the saddle that dug into my front and back every time the camel took a step as well as my camera that kept swinging and hitting my hip bone. Needless to say I had black and purple bruises for over a week and it hurt to sit in some positions. At the base we saw a monastery that is located at the supposed place of the burning bush. Looking around I wasn’t sure why Moses would be herding sheep out in the middle of nowhere (unless they ate rocks). There was no water and practically no vegetation.

Long exposure in the middle of the night (probably around 3:30 am)

The long exposure lets you see the light trails from people's flash lights.

Walking in the desert, I began to sympathize with the Israelites. It was soo hot and there was no water as far as you could see. Even if I had seen God miraculously provide in the past, I think I would have still doubted and complained to Moses that I was going to die under the intense sun with no water to drink. Again my Bible story images of what this place looked like were incorrect. I imagined a vast sandy desert to wander around in forty years. In reality, as we drove though the desert to Israel, I saw very little sand. It is very rocky and mountainous. I cannot imagine walking through the area with a whole people group and carrying everyones possessions and dwellings. It was not easy terrain to take a hike in.

We finally arrived at the border and were welcomed by the beautiful Red Sea. It was such a refreshing sight after hours of nothing but rock. Our Muslim driver was very kind and dropped us off at Taba, the Egyptian border city. We carried our luggage through immigration and across the border. We then took a couple different busses and finally arrived in Jerusalem after dark. It was probably around 10 or 11pm when we made to our new home on the Mount of Olives. We stayed at the Jerusalem House of Prayer. It was a very nice place to spend our last week in the middle east.

Beautiful Red Sea.

Jerusalem House of Prayer

Egypt part 2

2011-07-02T01:01:00.000-07:00

Another highlight of my time in Egypt was of course the Giza pyramids. It was amazing to actually see one of the seven wonders of the world. It’s hard to believe how massive they are and to think that they were made by human hands. I still wonder how they did it. The pyramids have always fascinated me, and I studied and learned about them in my college art history course, so it was a surreal experience to see them with my own eyes and climb up on the stones. At one point I had to stop taking pictures and just let the whole experience sink in. I was in Egypt looking at and touching the pyramids. It made me realize how small I am... not just in physical size compared to the pyramids, but also in terms of time; I am just a moment compared to the thousands of years that these structures have stood.

Chillin' on the pyramids

Christian, Hana (our driver and translator), and me

From the pyramids we traveled to Tahir Square and looked around imagining the protests and violence we had read and heard about in the news. It was hard to picture. From here we walked to the Nile and enjoyed a couple hour long boat ride. The Nile isn’t what I had imagined it to be in my mind. For some reason I pictured a very large river in the middle of the desert. First of all it wasn’t near as big as I had imagined and secondly it wasn’t surrounded by sand but rather the city sprung up all around which makes sense since the Nile is the source of life for Egyptians. We had fun just relaxing as the motor boat slowly made it’s way down the river.

On our way back to Tahir Square we saw some buildings and vehicles that got burned during the revolution. It was crazy to see that much destruction as a result of the protests.

Cairo, Egypt part1

2011-06-23T18:55:00.000-07:00

After two days of traveling and some of the longest flights I have ever been on (San Fran. to Heathrow), Christian and I finally arrived in Cairo tired, but excited to see the culture. By the way, if you ever get the chance to fly BMI (British Midland International), do it... leather seats, bread out of a basket (not prepackaged), good food, nice flight attendants... The first thing I noticed about the city as we were flying in was that all the buildings were the same color... a nice sandy tan color. The second thing I noticed stepping out of the airport was how hot it was (which I didn't mind too much since I had been freezing for the last two days on planes and in airports). Our contact, Magdi, took us to the house where we were staying in Heliopolis (a district in Cairo). It was an awesome little oasis in the midst of the bustling city. There were two small rooms for the guys, and a larger room for the girls, as well as a kitchen and small living room. Each room had it's own outside entrance and surrounded a beautiful little courtyard where we hung out and ate our meals.

Our beautiful home in Heliopolis.

Egypt is a place I have always wanted to see, and now I want to go back to see more. Four or five days is not near enough time to see all the ancient history and beautiful architecture of this land. When driving around the city, I was struck with the similarity of traffic in India, though it did seem a bit more organized. All the people we met were very friendly and welcoming. I was told that they normally have 7 million tourists each year, but since the revolution tourism has almost completely stopped, causing the economy to suffer badly. Shop owners and the people in the markets were very happy to see us. Two young men I met asked where I was from and I told them the United States; they replied with, "We love the United States," and continued following me around and asking me to take their pictures.

Train tracks just outside our house.

On Sunday we were privileged to visit the church of Samaan El Kharaz, also known as the “Cave Church.” The church in Moqattam, Cairo is made up of 3 sets of caves. The largest one regularly holds 10,000 people, the middle-sized one seats around 2,000, and the smallest around 200. It is the oldest Coptic Christian church in Egypt and has a very interesting history. According to the stories, the mountain in which the caves are cut was miraculously moved during the 10th century by the extraordinary faith of a simple man, Samaan the tanner. He took the scriptures very literally even cutting out his own eye when they caused him to lust. It is said that he prayed for God to move the mountain because he had faith that Matthew 17:20 was telling the truth when it says "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." You can read the full story here: http://cavechurch.com/miracle/index.asp

It was amazing to see the different caves and talk to the people there. On Thursday nights they have worship services and see miraculous healings regularly. We heard stories of the blind seeing, people leaving behind their wheelchairs, and other sickness and diseases disappearing.

Many Bible stories were carved into the cave walls so the stories could be remembered by the illiterate.

Perhaps even more intriguing than the cave church was the city that surrounded it. It's known as garbage city. It's a predominately Christian community in the midst of a Muslim nation. All through the streets were bags of garbage. Everywhere you looked you saw trash. I have never seen anything quite like it. Cairo's refuse is hauled outside the city to one of many "garbage cities" where is sorted by residents into recyclables which are sold, reusables such as cloth which are made into other things, and food waste which is fed to the pigs. The large pig population is why there are no Muslims living and working in the community. It is a very dirty job and many of people there live in complete poverty. Some though are actually quite well off and make a good living as a garbage worker though you would never know it looking at the people and their surroundings.

Later we went to a large market in Cairo and got to see so many beautiful things. After walking about a block we noticed that there were no tourists, only a few locals looking for some clothing or household items. But the souvenir shops were dead. Nobody was buying from them. I think the whole time we were there I only saw one or two western couples strolling through the market. The shop owners were desperate for business, but were still very friendly and nice. I bought a few scarfs and some jewelry for Laura there. It was crazy to see how badly their economy is hurting as a result of fear. Tourists are too afraid to travel as a result of all the recent turmoil and protests that have taken place in the nation. We never felt unsafe in anyway. It was a busy day, but it was so neat to get out and just see some of the culture, and meet people. Our guide for the day, Hana, was awesome. I loved just asking him questions and trying to understand more of their culture.

Trip to the Middle East: how it started

2011-06-11T20:28:00.000-07:00

So as many of you know (and many more don't), I just recently traveled to Egypt and Israel. What an incredible experience! But what almost all of you don't know is why I made this two week trek to the Middle East.

It all started on a typical Sunday afternoon...

Laura and I were walking around in downtown Kona when we met up with Christian and Sharee Fox for ice cream. We had been helping watch Christian and Sharee's daughter Maiya. Sharee is the leader of the school Laura and I are currently staffing. Last year during our DTS, Christian and Sharee were both co-leaders of our school, and Christian was my small group leader and did 1-on-1s with me. He has basically mentored me and just been a good friend. This year he is over the PhotogenX Around the World Track (a year+ long program where students travel all around the world learning about culture, humanity, and worldview while at the same time combatting injustices and oppression through photography). His role is mostly administrative since he stays on the Kona campus while the students travel the world. This quarter, however, the students are studying the Bible in the BCC (Bible core course) and Christian was to be their first teacher. He had been trying to find someone to go with him for the two weeks in the Middle East where he was going to travel with and teach the students, but no one was able to go.

Christian and I were sitting on a park bench talking about his upcoming trip and how amazing it was going to be. I expressed how awesome that was, and how Egypt has always been the number one place I wanted to visit in the whole world. Christian joked about how I should come along with him, which of course I couldn't because I am in the middle of staffing a school and planning an outreach to Cambodia with Laura. We continued chatting out it when suddenly the whole conversation shifted and it was no longer a joke. I still remember the unexpected transition. Christian calmly said, "But seriously, you should pray about it." referring to going with him. Up until this point I had not actually considered going; I had just been talking about how amazing it would be to go - knowing full well that it wasn't even a remote possibility. I responded with a shocked and skeptical, "What???" My astonishment began to turn to excitement. I looked at Sharee and Laura who were sitting nearby, searching their faces for a clue if this actually was a possibility. Laura just grinned and slightly shrugged her shoulders. Sharee was also smiling and had her head cocked in a way that I could tell she was considering the effects of me leaving during the school. We discussed it further and Sharee said she was completely ok with me going if that's what I decided to do; there were plenty of people to take my responsibilities for two weeks. I asked Christian when I needed to let him know by and he said he was planning on booking his tickets that night, but he could wait a day or two to let me think and pray about it. Talk about pressure. As I'm sure you all know, I am probably the world's most indecisive person. However, the following day I had booked my ticket. Crazy.

So now I'm sure you all are wondering what I did while I was there. Well... I was mostly a traveling companion for Christian, but I also got to meet with the students encouraging and praying for them, as well as just trying to serve them in small things while I was there. Seven out of the ten people on the Track were in Laura's and my DTS last year either as fellow students or staff. So it was really great to see them again and talk to them about all that has gone on in their lives since I saw them last September. I also got to observe and learn from Christian's leadership skills. He's a great leader and I consider it a privilege to learn from him and have him pour into my life. During our time there we saw the great pyramids, the Nile, Mt. Sinai, Old City Jerusalem, the Dead Sea, En Gedi, Masada, Bethlehem, and many other historical sites. It really was an incredible trip. Even with all the amazing things we saw, one of the major highlights for me was just processing with Christian everything that was happening and the things we got to see. I have great respect for him and hope to continue learning from his experiential wisdom.

The Track + Christian and myself

I will post more stories soon of the individual things we got to see.

15 Passenger Van, 13 YWAMers, 13 Cameras and Kalopa State Park!

2011-05-20T01:20:00.000-07:00

Zach and I just came off of an amazing weekend spent with our team! On Friday we all loaded into a 15 passenger van and took off for Kalopa State Park for a team retreat. The drive was absolutely breathtaking. No one got sick, which is always a perk when driving up and down hills and winding roads. This weekend spent together was such a bonding experience for all 13 of us. We laughed, we cooked, we prayed, we told stories, we ate smores, we took lots of pictures, we burnt spaghetti and we came home unified! It's amazing how just a few days off campus of living together can really bond people. We spent some time sharing our testimonies, praying over one another and pouring into each other. Here's a quick look at our weekend...

Dog Pile!

Our attempt at a pyramid...we have a very talented team!

This is our awkward family photo! LOL...love the expressions so much!

Some of the most absolutely amazing people ever...the end!

I just love them all!

Grace, from Georgia, totally a southern belle. She totally reminds me of myself 4 years ago!

Besides Zach, this is the only guy on Team Cambodia! His name is Paul, we all love him and he obviously really loves lunch meat!

Someone asked if we had a photographer on our team...more like we have 13 of them!

On the road again! Jess and Carrie...happy troopers!

We decided to get a little creative at Hapuna Beach...this is the result!

The fairly large rigg that Zach drove for 2 hours filled with the amazing Cambodia team!

Our awesome cabins that we stayed in at Kalopa State Park! It was so refreshing to get away from campus for a while!

The two precious hospitality girls, Grace and Campbell. They are our southern belles!

A dishwasher's nightmare! We cooked an unreal amount of spaghetti...oh and some of it burnt! Sharon on left and Kat on right. Stoked to spend 3 months with these girls on outreach!

Snapshots!

2011-04-26T17:10:00.000-07:00

Check It Out

2011-04-25T14:17:00.001-07:00

New Address

2011-04-25T14:03:00.000-07:00

2011-04-25T11:32:00.000-07:00

Well week 2 has come and gone! I can't believe we are already preparing for week 3 of DTS. I feel like these 6 months are going to go so quickly. I have to remind myself to stop and enjoy every moment before this whirlwind is over. Zach and I are so happy and content with where we are in life. We both feel more alive now than ever before. We love discipleship! I love walking with students as they embark on a life changing journey. The fact that God is using us to bring truth and freedom into brokenness is the most incredible and humbling experience. We are literally getting to minister to God's treasures...what an opportunity. Already students have been experiencing freedom from past baggage. There is nothing quite like seeing someone find their identity and freedom in Christ.

God really has been doing some pretty miraculous things in our DTS. Addictions have been broken, relationships have been restored, identity has been spoken and truth has been proclaimed. Crazy to think how much has already happened in only 2 weeks. I felt like there were a lot of breakthroughs this week in our DTS. This weeks speaker, Kenny Jackson, spoke on relationships...which was awesome! I loved hearing him speak during my DTS and enjoyed it even more the second time around. So many people in our generation come from such broken families...that the idea of having a healthy relationship seems so impossible to them. It was awesome to see restoration take place in many of the student's hearts.

Week 2 was also an exciting week for students and staff! Outreach locations were finally announced...along with teams and outreach leaders. Zach and I can finally announce that we are headed to Cambodia with 11 students! We are so incredibly excited about this opportunity. We will be staying in a YWAM base working with a wide variety of ministries! Our team consist of 10 girls, 1 guy and 2 leaders! We had our first team meeting on Friday and we were blown away by how mature and passionate our team is! We both feel like we have an extremely gifted team! Needless to say...we can't wait until departure day in June!

Month 1: Staff Training

2011-04-11T19:57:00.000-07:00

Wow it has already been over a month since Laura and I returned to this rock in the middle of the Pacific. I wasn't that excited at first to come back to this giant lava rock, but that all has changed now. The incredible beauty covering this rock still blows me away every time I look out our window. From where I sit now in our room I can see the ocean blending into the sky, many palm trees, plumeria trees, small butterflies, a bougainvillea bush, and many other beautiful plants for which I do not know the name. It's funny, I didn't think this place was that pretty last time I was here, and now I cannot get over it. Yes this island has desserts, fields of plain lava rock, and vast stretches of dead flora, but it also has mountains, snow, waterfalls, beaches of every color (black, white, green...), tropical areas, huge plants, super tiny plants, rain, sun, evenings cool enough to wear a hoodie, and afternoons warm enough to swim in a pool or the ocean. I love all the diversity. I believe it is this diversity that makes this rock so special. But the diversity doesn't end there. Here at the University of the Nations, we have students and staff from so many nations. We have students from 39 different countries this quarter (and that's not counting our diverse staff of several hundred). In the building where Laura and I live, I think Americans are a minority group. It really is awesome to fellowship and learn with and from so many different cultures. I love it.

The last month of staff training leading up to this quarter has completely blown my expectations out of the water. It has been far less logistical and more just meeting God and growing in intimacy with him. It has been truly amazing. I'll share just a few of the highlight points I have taken away from these last several weeks from speakers like Darlene Cunningham, Andrew and Faith Dutton, Joseph Avakian, Dan Bowman, Andy Byrd, Pete Greig, and many many others.

I'm striving not to pick up offense from anyone.
I'm learning to meet people in faith and not judge.
Our capacity to lead is directly related to our capacity to love... with is related to our capacity to embrace.
Love always believes the best.
We need discipleship our whole life.
If we have enough to take for granted, then we have more than we need.
Learn to cast your cares and burdens on the Lord. - complain to the Lord and not to men.
People will be what they see.
Too often in the church we are trying to pass something on that we ourselves don't have. (like a virus... you can't give it to someone if you don't have it.....such as intimacy with Christ)
You can't drive starring in the rearview mirror; it's good to have one, but you have to look forward.
The future belongs not to the imitators but to the innovators. Do not imitate; innovate.
The Lord is on the move.

I could easily write a paragraph or more on each bullet explaining how revolutionary each one of those are to me. Most of them aren't new concepts but the implications of them really are huge. I really feel like I have learned so much and am growing a lot since coming back.

The staff is also amazing. Six of us out of eight all did our DTS together last year. Of the other two, one staffed our DTS last year, and the other has been involved with PhotogenX for awhile. I love this group of people. We are like family. We can pour out our hearts to one another and build each other up. We work very well together. I can't wait to spend the next three months together staffing, growing, loving, and having fun together. Laura and I feel completely free and alive; we love our jobs. I'm so glad we returned to this beautiful rock in the middle of the ocean.

More to come soon.

Tsunami hits Kona

2011-03-11T14:52:00.000-08:00

Let the Journey Begin!

2011-03-09T06:00:00.000-08:00

Well friends and family March 9 is finally here! Zach and I are sitting in the Wichita Airport, Gate 10, waiting for our flight to board! We have spent the last three days cleaning out our fridge, backing up hard drives, paying our bills, and saying bittersweet goodbyes! I think we probably gained 10 pounds from trying to eat everything in our fridge so we wouldn't have to give it away! I upped Zach's breakfast from one egg to two eggs, he didn't figure it out until day 3...though he was never hungry when it came time for lunch! He's said several times that he feels like all he has done for the last 3 days was eat, eat and eat!

Ok...25 minutes until we board our flight! We will be flying from Wichita to Denver to Portland to Kona! We should arrive in Kona around 10 pm. Looking forward to being back on Hawaiian soil. We have around 1 month worth of training before the students arrive in April. Zach and I are super excited to meet all of them and not just see their pictures on facebook!

Well for now it is goodbye Kansas and hello to another adventure! I'm sure we will be posting periodically...or at least when we have wireless!

HA Aloha Passport Promotion: Photo

2011-02-27T19:57:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone!

Want to support us in our upcoming mission trip? Vote for our Aloha Passport and we could get free tickets home! I'm guessing we need several hundred "likes" so please vote and ask someone else to vote. (This could be a facebook like, tweet, digg, etc, or all of the above) Each form of sharing the link counts so please share it as many ways as you can and hopefully we'll get a free plane trip. Mahalo (Thank You).

HA Aloha Passport Promotion: Photo