My GRAYt Venture

Day of the Dead

2010-11-16T00:08:00.002-06:00

Day of the Dead. Truly a celebration here in Mexico that I will miss. I think some people get the wrong idea about what this holiday is all about. More than anything, it's all about setting a day aside to remember the loved ones we've lost. Now that Halloween has crept it's way across the border, it's creates a good mixture of celebrations for us gringos. Of course, Ry and I love the traditional essence of this holiday.

We've always loved this season and the festivities that it brings. Before we moved to Mexico, we threw Halloween parties. However, as I stated in my last blog, we decided to keep things low-key this year. Of course, my idea of low-key may not be the same as others.

We had great fun just sitting around and chatting. We chowed down on chicken and veggies, pan de muerto, a Day of the Dead cake and some other goodies. The kids in the congregation enjoyed their Scooby Doo Halloween movie. Then when they were off to bed, the adults played! Well, we watch the latest remake of Nightmare on Elm Street. Mostly it was just a blast to hang out and spend time with our family here. It was the perfect way to celebrate this holiday for the last time here in Mexico.

Fall Happenings

2010-10-29T10:02:00.000-05:00

Things here have just been CRAZY! We've been extremely busy in every area possible. Since my last post, we've been to an area-wide leadership retreat, having our regular weekly groups, setting goals and have had meetings after meetings with the leadership of the Nueva Creación Church and enjoyed a visit from a dear friend. I've been baking cakes for kids, downsizing on my recipe books, working on gifts for our goodbye and spending time saying goodbye to some of our favorite things in Mexico City.

So, let me start with the first thing. At the beginning of October, Jay Jarboe (Missions Resource Network) and Paul Dowell (Sunset International Bible Institute) came down to Mexico to help guide us through an area-wide leadership retreat. Leaders and servants from four different congregations throughout the city, came together to reconnect and renew the vision that we have to make disciples in Mexico City and turning this city into a Christian City! It was a refreshing time and we even got the chance to see some faces of people we've haven't seen in a long time. Vero, Juan Pablo, and Alejandro joined the three of us from the Nueva Creación Church. After this fruitful weekend, our leaders here have taken the same excerises we did at the retreat and have implimented them within our own congregation. Last Sunday we broke up into small groups and had "dreaming" sessions. Some of the things we discussed within these groups were things such as: If there were no obstacles, none at all, what would you want for the Nueva Creación Church? What are the strengths you see among our church family? Weaknesses? Threats for these dreams to come true? Oportunities?
This proved to be an amazing opportunity for those within the congregation who tend to keep quiet and roll with the punches.

Everyone had a voice last Sunday and with that comes a stronger connection between the members. Tonight the leaders ad servants will meet and we'll be putting everyone's thoughts together and ready to be shared this coming Sunday. Goals will be made and the wheels will start turning to begin new Bible studies and community activity. One of the things that was mentioned more than anything was that the members want to make sure we live up to the name of our congregation: Iglesia Nueva Creación: Una comunidad para la comunidad. (New Creation Church: A community for the community) We want to make sure that we have a presence here within the city. That we are reaching out and pulling people in with the Light of Christ.

Please keep the members here, in your prayers. Many changes are coming their way and with that, Satan will for sure begin his attack. I'm a firm believer that Satan attacks harder when Believers are working hard for the Kingdom.

Our good friend Brian Hall paid us a visit this past month. It came as a total surprise to us and we couldn't have been more thrilled. Brian was an AIMer in Guadalajara and worked as an apprentice under our missionary friends there. Now, done with his AIM time, he dedicates his life to the training of future AIMers and work throughout Mexico. To be honest, he's one of those GREAT people. He has a big heart and isn't afraid to show it or give it away. He also happens to be one of Jax's favorite people. Could it be the constant attention he recieves from Brian or the fact that Brian would crawl through Jax's tent and play endlessly with him...well sure! We are blessed to have his friendship and the common bond we have in Christ. He's living in Lubbock and so we are super excited to be able to live in the same city with him.

We are in the "goodbye" process. That means we are relunctly saying goodbye to some of our favorite things this city has to offer: public transportation, fresh fruit on the corner, corner stores for that late night snack, the best quesadillas at the park, elote, tacos, culture found in everything, Day of the Dead, Mexico's Independence Day (the list could go on). However, believe me when I say that there are several things that I CAN'T wait to say goodbye to: loud honking of cars at 6 in the mornings, sirens at all hours of the night, the loss of electricity 2-3 times a day, the terrible shrill the steam makes from the cart of the sweet potato dude (I've never gotten use to him).

Anyway, we've been going around to some of our favorite places and doing some of our favorite things lately. I suppose this is a way to bring closure to things so that we don't feel later on that we ripped ourselves out of Mexico City. Last week we went to one of our favorite parks and had THE BEST quesadillas in the city. We've been enjoying these quesadillas since 2001, when we came down for our internship. We will miss them, THAT'S for sure.

If you've kept up with me throughout the years, you know that we love to throw a good Day of the Dead/Halloween bash every year. Well, due to packing and the stress that all brings, we're doing things more low-key this year. We decided to just enjoy time with our church family. So, tomorrow we'll have a potluck type meal and watch some scary movies. Of course, I can't help but bake some goodies for the occasion. I'm planning on some mini pumpkin and leaf shaped cakes (from the molds that Marilyn Burnett brought me last year) and then some yummy Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread! I'll be sure to post some pictures.

A Change On The Horizon

2010-10-04T08:51:00.000-05:00

Yesterday we had our last area-wide service here in the city. Last? Yes. In case you haven't heard it of this by word-of-mouth or from our own mouths, we are relocating back to the States. We are in the process of selling furniture and once again, scaling down EVERYTHING. Everything we will be taking back will either fit in luggage for Jax and I (with some help) to take on our flight or in our van.

During this process, emotions are in full swing; excited to once again live near our friends and family, but leery of leaving our family here. Our hearts and spirits have been with this work since 2001, so it's time for some more stretching. Moving here has been, by far the BEST decision Ryan and I have EVERY made. We came here as a fairly new married couple in our mid-20s. It's strengthened our marriage and we've done our growing into "adulthood" here. We now have extended our family with Jax and have TRUE family of another culture.

Wow, there are so many thoughts and feelings, that they are hard to put down...and I'm sure there are more to come that I don't even expect. That's the adventurous part. Ryan and I have always been those who view life as an adventure and a journey. We can't help but to do so. With adventure, comes nervousness, excitment, and the un-expected...sounds a lot more fun than the normal ho-hum that life can tend to feel like.

So for now, we are sorting through our things, selling furniture, having a blast during our final 2 months here. Jax and I will fly out on December 12th. Liz Madrid from Georgia has blessed us with buddy passes and is even coming down to fly out with us. This will allow for extra luggage and of course much needed help. Our flight will take us through Atlanta, where we hope to stop for a day or so and hoping to see a few friends. From there we will be home-bound. LUBBOCK, TEXAS!

Ryan and Israel Campos (member here) will drive to Lubbock, leaving the same day. Ryan is so excited to have someone tag along with him, but man, I know there will be memories made during that trip.

There will be more news to come, but until then please pray for:

The selling of furniture
Organization
Memories to be made
Strength to continue within Iglesia Nueva Creación
Our upcoming travels
Our sanity through it all

Nueva Creacion

2010-08-10T21:29:00.000-05:00

The work here continues to go well. We continue to have active members and more more people taking leadership roles, which is extremely encouraging. We’ve been having a lot of f also with games night and movie nights. In fact, this Saturday we are having “A Day with the Godfather”. Alejandro gave the whole Godfather series to Ryan for his birthday, so we are having a marathon with sum yummy Italian food to go with the theme. Everyone is so excited that they signed up on the list with Godfather characters names. Below you’ll see a menu below. Ryan continues to dabble in every area of the leadership, multiplying himself with others. He has bi-monthly meetings with the Elders and other leaders throughout the city. Small groups continue to go strongly. I am busy with Ada and organizing the children’s’ class and am participating with Israel in working with our singing group members. Vero’s knee is starting to heal, slowly but nicely. Please pray for Vero’s father. He lives about 10 hours away in Tilaco and his health is diminishing. Israel was in a car wreck last Sunday. He’s alright but of course his car is in need of some repair. Please keep Israel in your prayers. He’s a hard worker within the congregation, but also at his job. He is coming to a crossroads with making some big decisions concerning work. Alejandro is a great friend and a great leader in the congregation. He’s taken on the responsibility of being our treasurer and he’s amazing. He provides steady reports and is taking a huge role with helping the congregation in the center of the city.

I want to say thank you to all our supporters, new and old. Your prayers, phone calls, Facebook messages, money and emails are so encouraging. The life-long friendships we’ve developed with many of you and treasures and ones that I know we hold dear.

A couple of shout-outs to some people with birthdays this month: Dad, I love you. You’re not old, just older and with that comes more years behind you that you can treasure. Ken, I love you so much. I’m so proud of you and your accomplishments and the goals you set for yourself. Amanda, it’s been too long since I’ve seen you. I love you dearly. You’re a great mother and a precious friend. Shauna, you’re the sister I’ve always wanted. You’ve been put through the wringer this year, but you’ve step out with a light around you that attracts greatness. Thank you for being an ear to listen and an example to me as a mother. I love you!

R.I.P.

2010-08-10T21:26:00.003-05:00

While all this crazy money stuff was going on, our beloved computer slowly died. I was able to get all important documents and pictures transferred to the external hard drive before the old PC went completely sour. So, we are currently using the church’s laptop until we are able to purchase something new. It’s seriously is so crazy how much we depend on the computer and the internet. Basically it’s our connection to the States well, and Mexico in a lot of ways. Our Vonage phone connects through it, our house phone for the house connects through it, documents made for the church here are saved on the computer and well, emails, blogs, etc. etc. You get the idea! So you guys can be praying about that situation also. We’re in no hurry but know that we will have to get something sometime.

I Was Cloned!

2010-08-10T21:25:00.000-05:00

Well after the group left tings got interesting. That next Sunday morning Ry went to the ATM to pull money out for the offering. He came home with a funny look on his face and was asking why our account was showing NO MONEY. I thought for sure it was a glitch with the machine, but low and behold I checked our account online and our funds for the next three months were G.O.N.E. I couldn’t believe it and then upon taking a closer look, noticed that these withdrawals from our account were ting place in the State of Nuevo Leon, about 6 hours away. We had no clue was happening, but we knew it wasn’t good. Ry immediately called to cancel our debit cards to the compromised account. Upon talking to members before worship service, they said oh your cards were cloned. Cloned? Yes, and apparently everyone knows about this crime expect for us. ABC even had a special about on the news a couple months ago. We hear now that it’s quite common in all parts of the world. Well if it was the lottery, then our numbers were drawn, literally. The next morning we began communicating with the bank in Georgia and started investigation processing. We have finally received the money back. We thank everyone for the concerns, giftedness, and support. We finally feel like we are getting back on our feet.

Special Guests

2010-08-10T21:24:00.000-05:00

From the 23rd till the 31st of July we had company and the house was buzzing. Newnan church of Christ sent us a group to help out with the work here. It was a great time and they had a Mexican experience! (Sickness included) They had been preparing for months for a VBS to do down here. We had a wonderful time and they touched some lives. Most importantly, however is that their lives were touched and perhaps changed in some small way, forever. It was great to have some here that came in 2008 and love on them and it was equally great to have some new faces and new friendships made. We worshipped with them and sang in the evenings. We appreciate each and everyone of them taking the time out of their summer to be here with the Nueva Creacion church.

A Toy Story

2010-08-10T21:15:00.000-05:00

When we made it back to Mexico City, we hit the ground running. We finally made it home late in the 17th of July and we were expecting a group of 30 from Newnan on the 23rd. We still had a lot of prep-work, grocery shopping and organizing to do before they arrived. However, I also had a birthday party to plan. Jax was turning 3! I still can’t believe it! So we threw together a Toy Story 3 party. Now I know I said “threw” but those of you who know me, know that throwing doesn’t mean that I wanted to skimp on anything…more just running around like a crazy mother trying to get everything “perfect”. Ryan and I went on the search for ANYTHING Toy Story for décor, found a piñata, and I stayed up till the wee hours baking and decorating a cake.

The plan was to throw the bash the evening that our group from Newnan came in. We had tacos al pastor (one of Jax’s favs). Well the plan panned out wonderfully! We had good food, and a happy 3 year old. Now that Jax is 3 he’s decided to start a whole slew of new things: being a monster and yelling constantly, telling us to be “happy” when we get onto him for being so loud, and he’s singing along in worship service (which is about the most precious thing EVER)! I’m so lucky to have such a sweet little guy in my life. He loves and doesn’t know a stranger. In fact, while in the airport on the way to North Carolina, he made many friends and every tried on their clothes. He’s one crazy boy and goes and goes like the Energizer Bunny, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I'm Going to Carolina

2010-08-10T20:57:00.000-05:00

From the 25th of June till the 17th of July I was in North Carolina. Mom had some major back surgery, so I went to be there with her and also to provide a helping hand to Dad. The trip turned out to be extra special since my sister-in-law, Adriane and my nephew Nico were there also. My brother was even able to join us for a few days. Needless-to-say, it was awesome to have Adriane and Nico there. Jax and Nico has some great cousin time and Adriane provided great company and help for me.

While there, we even had a small birthday bash for Jax. We thought it would be great for Dad and Mom, along with Kenny, Adriane, and Nico to have some celebration time while we were all together. We threw a small Sesame Street party. Ryan, of course was greatly missed. Jax had a great time opening some gifts and eating cupcakes with Nico. Speaking of Nico, I have to brag…he’s a wonderful nephew. He and Jax hit it off and did pretty good sharing. They enjoyed playing in their “cars” together. Nico is a sweet boy. Jax and I both miss him. There other day Jax and Nico talked with each other on the phone. They exchanged hellos…Jax wanted to give Nico a hug (his favorite) and Nico wanted to show Jax his choo choo train. Sweet cousins!

Mom is home and recovering well. It was a little bumpy at the start of her recovery, but it’s great to talk to her and hear how positive she is about her recovery. I’m proud that she’s taking one day at a time and not trying to overdo it. Dad, of course, is always there right by her side and being an encouragement. Please keep my parents in your prayers: Mom’s recovery and Dad’s job search.

New News!

2010-05-31T13:42:00.002-05:00

So much has taken place this past month. I turned another year older and Ryan and I celebrate 12 years of marriage. We have some new members in the congregation and we even have a new name!

For my 33rd birthday we had the opportunity to go to Puerto Vallarta to meet up with our friends, the Pilgrims. They are members at our supporting congregation in Newnan, GA. However, they are far beyond that. They are good friends that we have remained close and in contact with since our return to Mexico. This is a BIG DEAL! Often with moving away, let alone to another country, friendships seem to fall by the wayside. However, the Pilgrims are “good folk” as they say. They are even organizing and bringing a group down this summer from the congregation there in Newnan. In fact, although you DID read correctly that we went to meet them in Puerto Vallarta…I still claim that it was a “business trip.” Hahahaha. Nah, we had tons of fun but we did have “business” talk. This summer the Newnan church is sending down about 35 people to help our congregation and some other congregations in pulling off a VBS. They brought us materials and such for our congregation to get prepared and learn everything that they are learning back in Georgia. We are super excited and working hard down here to get everything prepared for their arrival. Please pray for this group coming on the 23rd of July!

At the beginning of May we sat down with the leaders of the congregation and planned out a calendar for the next three months. We just held an all-night prayer service this past weekend and it was highly attended and needed. We have a lot of people that needs prayers, both here and scattered around. We focused mainly on our personal burdens and church growth. God is working! We see it in the lives of the members here and within ourselves. We are deeply blessed to be among the believers here in Mexico.

The Benito Juarez congregation has a NEW NAME! This has been in the works since the beginning of the year. Our logo came first and then the name. Our name mostly came about from a verse that we all love. We felt like giving our congregation a name would help inspire purpose and outreach. Its funny how God works because since all the planning and voting of the new name and logo we’ve had several people just stop by the house to ask if there is a church that meets here and what we believe. In fact one of our newest members comes from Venezuela. Her name is Ada and she’s become a good friend to me. She has lived here in Mexico for about 2 years but only in Mexico City for about 3 months. Her boyfriend, Miguel also attends regularly. You might also remember Raul who was baptized not too long ago. We’ve been praying constantly for his work hours to change so that he can join us on Sundays! Well, last week we got news those things are a changin’. Raul now comes at least twice a month and is even working on changing some other things around so that he can bring his daughter! I am proud that the leaders commissioned me to design the logo and create a website for the congregation. The website it still a work in progress and I hope to have it finished soon. However, our name is in place. I will now refer to our congregation as, Nueva Creación! New Creation! Please continue to pray for our congregation as we grow individually and as a body of Christ.

Ryan and I celebrated our 12th anniversary on May 22nd! CRAZY! I f we were celebrities in Hollywood, we’d be known as the old married couple. Funny thing about that is that we’ve been married a tad bit longer than most of our friends! I have to say that being married to Ryan is NEVER dull! If you know Ryan, then you know this is true. He’s an incredible man that seeks the depth of God’s love and has a heart to be more like Christ. He’s a great example to me and to many he knows. He’s a wonderful father to Jax…who becomes like Ryan more every day!
Speaking of Jaxon…he’s a TRIP! He wants to do EVERYTHING that Ryan does. He sits like Ryan and laughs at the things he sees Ryan laughing at. He’s constantly doing new things and really talking up a storm! He’s big into music and everything about it. He’s taking a music class every week. We often have to remind him to not try and take the instruments away from the teacher. However, the teacher is convinced that Jax has natural talent when it comes to music. Jax has responded to music ever since he was a TINY and I mean TINY, baby. Jax is a joy, even when he’s testing the boundaries with his parents. He’s often running around pretending that he’s a lion or a monster and making all those cool “boy” sounds. Jax truly makes our family complete. I can’t believe that he will soon be turning 3! We have some party planning ideas in the works for this upcoming celebration! WOO HOO! I love a reason for a party.

Well, I will close for now by saying thank you to the Monterey and Newnan congregations for their continued support. We love you all and cherish you even more. Plus a big thank you to all my dear friends that make being away from them easier with their messages and emails. You know who you are! Plus, although late…a big shout out to my in-laws, Bourley and Rita Gray who just celebrated 46 years of marriage. I love you guys!

Some of my favs!

2010-05-12T14:48:00.002-05:00

Those Eyes! (2 years, 9 months)

So Serious! (2 yrs, 9 months)

Terrible Twos! (2 yrs, 9 months)

Filling Daddy's Shoes! (2 yrs, 6 months)

Bikers, Pedro & Jax! (2 yrs, 2 months)

With oldest cousin, Grayson! (2 yrs)

Ole! (2 yrs.)

Jax Bot! (2 yrs.)

On the Road Again! (1 yr. 9 months)

Pirate Party! (1 yr, 9 months)

Eatin' Dirt! (1 yr, 7 months)

Sunday Best! (1 yr, 6 months)

Silly Monkey! (1 yr, 3 months)

Doin' Laundry! (1 yr, 1 month)

With Youngest cousin, Nico! (1 year)

Bath Time! (11 months)

From Georgia! (9 months)

Merry Christmas! (5 months)

Home At Last! (2 months)

History In The Making

2010-05-12T11:12:00.004-05:00

When I was a child, I moved every two-three years until I was sixteen and seems as though that trend didn’t stop after High School. From Oklahoma, to Vegas, to Florida and Texas (and those are just to name a few) until I left home I moved a total 11 times, houses and cities included. Once I left home, the trend continued with now a total of 13 times (houses, cities, and countries included). I am no stranger to moving and sometimes I have to rearrange furniture when I get the “itch”. Not for one minute would I change my childhood or adventures I’ve had throughout my life thus far, due to moving so often. As I get older I am starting to like the idea of “settling down” in one place just so I could get to KNOW people…REALLY know people. With moving so often, I believe I never really learned how to completely let go and develop a true, TRUE friendship. I have a lot of people I know, but for that deep, “they-know-everything-about-me” was hard to find, especially when you know you’re just going to move again.

I’ve had the privilege of getting close to a few women (or girls at the time) in my life. I had one great, great friendship all through high school. Life happened (doesn’t it always) and we lost contact for a while. We are on the brink of re-connecting via Facebook. She and her family played a significant role in my life. I also had a wonderful team-mate here on the field that I knew I was able to be myself around and someone just to have fun with, and boy do you need that on the mission field!

However, in writing all of this I want to honor one friend in particular. This friend (and that word doesn’t even seem good enough) came into my life 15 years ago. Forces bigger than myself (Adventure In Missions) brought us together. Angela Burns is truly a magnificent woman. Now mind you, during our first months/year together it was wobbly…but we were young and both fighting to discover who we were as young women. However, I’ve had the privilege to watch this lady grow, grow, and grow into the woman she is today. Our relationship over the years hasn’t always been bubbles and cartwheels, but I think the things we’ve seen each other through made us have an unspoken dedication to one another. Ang has seen me at my most icky…inside and out. She has been by my side through the saddest and happiest moments in my life. She stood by me when it would have been easier to walk away. We’ve had a bounty of great times and plenty of hard times…but now our friendship is different.

It’s different in the greatest of ways. I believe it comes from knowing one another…and not just knowing someone for years and years, but KNOWING and UNDERSTANDING one another, every ebb and flow, every puzzle piece, every nook and cranny. I can truly say that I’ve never had a conversation with this dear friend that God wasn’t present. How could He not be? Like any relationship, He has to be the center or it just doesn’t work! These days Ang and I spend a lot of time “poking” each other through Facebook, sending emails, sharing phone calls that still bring tears to our eyes. In fact she recently said this to me:

…”We have laughed, reminisced, cried, dreamed... And that was just during your phone call! :-) …”

I couldn’t have said it better. So I will stop rambling and just say this. Although Ang just celebrated a great birthday, I celebrate her being in my life for 15 years. She has taught me a lot and part of who I am has been because of her presence in my life.

Angie, there are no words really…I’ve tried and failed to express…I know you just KNOW how much you mean to me. Never lacking in laughter, which we can’t seem to avoid when on the phone with one another. Never lacking in tears, the good ones and the bad ones. Never lacking in understanding, we’re women. And never lacking in dreaming, dreaming of the future and seeing how God’s pattern and plan for our lives is truly perfect in every way.
Friendship is like peeing on yourself: everyone can see it, but only you get the warm feeling that it brings.

Ang, is it sad and a little disturbing that this is one of my fav pix of the two of us?

Disclaimer: I have had many friendships that I hold dear. I thank AIM for this. Going through the Adventures in Missions program taught me several things that I will carry with me for the rest of my life, however probably the greatest lesson I learned was how to develop true and meaningful relationships with people. I mean HELLO I met Ryan through AIM! I love you all and those I have in my life and some that were there for the time-being have left a stamp on my life. I try to honor you all on how I live my life…but this post…well I just had to give Ang some props!

Artsy Fartsy

2010-04-16T11:45:00.000-05:00

Jaxon just completed his first week at Gymboree! We're so excited. This week's theme was all about the garden. He learned about flowers, grass, and what the sun and rain do. His first class was on Tuesday. This is his regular Gymboree class. It was 45 minutes of dancing, climbing, jumping and using their imagination. His favorite part was the parachute time.

On Wednesday, Jax took his Gymboree Music Class. Now we've always thought that Jax was somewhat musically inclined. He's clapped on beat ever since he was teeny tiny, he loves to dance and sing...ALL THE TIME! So when Vero told us that he was amazed by him during his music class we were very pleased. He was the only one in his class to keep beat on the drum. He played the tamborine, the maracas, and the symbols. Vero said they learned a song and the teacher was trying to teach them a song on the drum...just keeping a regular beat and Jax was the ONLY one to do it. Vero said the teacher said, "Sin duda, este niño tiene la musica en su sangre!" (Without a doubt, this boy has music in his blood) Now for those of you who know me well, you know how music is VERY important to me.

So, FINALLY he's interested in something like I am. I mean, those of you have met Jax and in recent times...he's the spitting image of Ryan. The two of these were born on the same day, weighed about the same and look exactly alike. So, for there to be something in Jax that I KNOW comes from me...well, it's just pride pride all the way.

Yesterday, Jax took his first Gymboree Art class. He had tons of fun and came home with two art projects. Here are some shots of his art work...I believe we will start a gallery in his room.

What could be better?

2010-04-13T11:18:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a fun day. We did two big things. Jax is now signed up for Gymboree classes, which he will start today. All three of us are VERY excited. This is going to be a great opportunity for Jax to interact with some other kiddos his age, and Ry and I will be able to meet some other couples.

The other day Ryan came home and told me about a new neighborhood greenhouse that had opened open a couple blocks away. It didn't take us long to make our way over there. It's a son and mother operation and Jax had a blast running around and smelling all the flowers. We bought four pots of flowers that now hang over the balcony. This should bring some more life to the front of the house.

I was speaking to my mom ont he phone the other day and Jax kept asking for "pop-pop"...that's lollipop for us grown-ups. Well, I knew I didn't have any in the house so Jax of course cried, typical. Then about a half hour later I remembered something...a huge, ridiculous lollipop we bought at the zoo. So here's Jax in lollipop heaven!

Silly Monkey

2010-04-09T20:46:00.004-05:00

Before I told him it was time for bed.

"Sleeping & Snoring"

I will make this short and sweet. Jax has started doing this faking snoring and sleeping when he's told it's time for bed. It's pretty funny, atleast he thinks so...he belly laughs each time he does it.

April Showers

2010-04-05T11:33:00.002-05:00

No rain for us here in Mexico City, but the rainy season isn’t too far off and it will last all summer. We are only into the 5th day of this month and we’ve been showered with gifts and fun times.

Easter (Pascua) is celebrated for a whole week here in Mexico. So, with the other missionary kids out of school and people off work, we had a big gathering at Papalote, Mexico City’s children’s museum. We couldn’t have asked to have more fun. There were 17 of us in total. As families, we were able to use the nail wall, tromp through the bubble room, and watch a 3-D movie about ocean life. I can’t help but wonder why these things aren’t in a normal museum…it was tons of fun…but perhaps I’m just young for my age…yes, that’s it!

For the past month, Jax and I take a walk just about every day. We mostly stick within our neighborhood and say hello to the passers-by. Jax is quite the attraction since he says “Hola” and “Adios” to E-V-E-R-Y-O-N-E! This past week we took him to his FAV place to eat…that’s right, McDonald’s. He thinks the “Golden Arches” are fries. He is perfectly content with a small cheeseburger and the playground equipment. This is always a treat for Jax, because truly, his Dad and Mom can’t handle McDonald’s. After McDonald’s, we went and played in the park. This is great for Jax because he can just run wild. Boy did he sleep wonderfully that night!

Jax is changing every day. Each day he has something more to say and when he’s frustrated with us because we can’t understand him, I imagine his yelling fits has some “not-so-nice” things to say to us. He’s really into sharing things with his Lorax. That’s right. For Easter, his Mimi sent him Dr. Seuss’s Lorax book along with a stuffed Lorax. Jax has never really taken to a stuffed animal (is Lorax an animal?) before, that is if it doesn’t sing and move…but this one is a hit! He goes everywhere that Jax goes and Jax shares his milk, juice, and snacks with him. I caught him once sharing his sandwich. Jax tells Benson to “shush” all the time and we hear him in the mornings yelling out to the cars on the street to “Shush! I leeping!” (Hush! I’m sleeping!) He constantly makes us laugh.

He’s getting taller and taller. Our friends here swear he’s taller every time they see him. Well, he’s wearing a 7 shoe and will be out of those soon. There’s also something new on the horizon…he’s asking to sit on his potty. Believe it, this is GREAT! Before he would scream and slam the lid down if he saw it. He’s willing to sit on the potty and try. He’s a big boy!

Easter was very successful this year. My parents sent us a box full of Easter goodies for Jax and a few gifts just for us parents. We were all thinking it would never arrive, since it took a month to get here. However, the box showed up the last day the mail ran before shutting down for the holidays. Since we weren’t sure that the box ‘o goodies would show, Teri Odle brought some things for us. She even included the fake grass! We were extremely blessed and even have stuff for next year. We colored eggs and stuffed plastic eggs full of goodies for Jax to find on Sunday.

Our Easter Sunday was wonderful. The Benito Juarez congregation was blessed with two visitors, a mother and daughter from Venezuela. The daughter, Ada, moved to Mexico City about 3 months ago and her mother was here to help her find a congregation. Ada is great! After services she committed to being here tonight, Monday, for our movie night and is looking forward to our potluck next Sunday. It’s going to be soooo nice having another young woman in the congregation! I baked some goodies and laid out some traditional Easter treats for the the Benito Juarez members. They were most impressed with the Peeps…that was WAY too funny. After services, Ro and Israel joined us for our Easter lunch. We all loaded up in the van for Italiani’s…nothing like some great pasta dishes for Easter. After lunch, we came home and Israel and Ry his eggs for Jax. Then the hunt was on. Jax had a blast, but kept wanting to sit down every time he found a plastic egg and wanting to open it. As for the dyed eggs…well when he found one, he just threw it. Smart kid, he knew where the good stuff was.

That’s all for now.

March Madness

2010-03-18T14:29:00.004-06:00

We’ve been quite busy here these past few weeks. Today we said goodbye to 7 university students. We had a mix of Abilene and Lubbock Christian University, and a couple of students from Texas Tech. It is very rare that we have such a small group. We were very excited about their trip here and let me just say, this small group of seven had a powerful punch and made lasting impressions. The day Audrey, Karla, Emily, Austin, Courtney, Jared, and Chris arrived, they went straight to work. We took them to Coyoacan for some Frida Kahlo history and then that evening we prepared over 100 sack lunches for the homeless.

Sunday we had a combined service with the congregation down in the center of the City. Ryan set the two congregations out a mission to hang out this sack lunches to people in need. The homeless are everywhere in the city, so that wasn’t hard to do. However, one of our elders Filo, put a spin on things. He handed out food to anyone, just letting them know that we were from a church and that we wanted to show them love by providing lunch and them have one less thing to think about. It was a great success and it was the first time that we had gotten both congregations involved in a community service project.

After services, Ryan took the group to see a museum in the city center. The group made it back to the house in time for our Praise Night with the Benito Juarez congregation. Israel Campos, our token praise & worship leader, led us in some great praise. Our college group provided such encouragement with their singing and thoughts. Some of them just played with the kids, which is always welcomed and needed. After our praise night, more sack lunches were made for a full day of service on Monday.

Monday the group went to an orphanage. They took lunches, t-shirts, a piñata full of candy and their hearts. They spent the day give their love, laughter, and hearts to children that have found themselves abandoned by their families. I’m sure they made a lasting impression on those children, but I’m thinking it was the group’s lives that were changed more than anything.
That evening, we were invited Vero’s sister’s house. It was Beto’s 24th birthday. We are use to these celebrations and cherish all the opportunities to pass this time with our Mexican family here…but it was so much fun to share the experience with these college students. Some of them expressed that the birthday party was their favorite thing and that the food provided was the best that they had. Vero told me that she was extremely impressed by how much they all ate.
Tuesday was “tour the city” day. They went to the Basilica, the Zocala, and the Tower of Latin America. This always makes for a long day, but no rest for the weary because that evening we had a game night at the house. We had a great time playing domino and Texas Hold ‘Em with church members. We played well into the evening and there was a lot of joking that made it pass the language barrier.

Wednesday we wrapped things up with a trip to the Pyramids and the market for them to do all of their gift shopping. Last night, we spent the evening catching up and sharing thoughts about the week. This morning we made to Bisquits’ for a big breakfast together and then some prayer walking. They even snuck in a little Italian Gelato at Chiendoni’s before they grabbed their taxi’s to the airport.

This was a powerful week for our congregation and for us. Ryan and I having a hard time expressing the importance of visiting groups here, but they are SOOOO important for us and the church. Just like in the States, when you know of a guest speaker, or a group coming, perhaps a seminar that your congregation is offering…well it keeps you excited and coming around on Sunday’s and Wednesdays to see “what’s next?” The same goes here. Sometimes those visits from other members in God’s Kingdom keep us going for a wild. It keeps the Benito Juarez congregation on a “high.”

So, thank you Austin, Emily, Jared, Chris, Courtney, Karla & Audrey! You’re time here will always be remembered. Thank you to those who have been here and for those who are coming this summer! Ryan, Jax and I look forward to seeing you…but more importantly, your family in Christ here in Mexico City can’t wait to spend time with you and fellowship with you. For those of you who have thought of coming, but fear has hindered you….COME be with us! The Benito Juarez congregation awaits you!

Other news…this Friday, the leaders of the Benito Juarez congregation will start a grief recovery seminar. This is going to be very useful for us and teach us things that we can us ourselves and tools to be able to help others in the future. This is to be a two-Friday event. Please pray for punctuality and attendance. We believe that this is very important. Next Thursday Ryan will leave the city with Vero and Beto to go back to Tilaco (Vero’s home village). Vero’s father will be another year older and she is in need of some help with taking care of her father and her father’s farmland. Ryan has volunteered to go spend about a week with them to help out. Jax and I will stay behind here in the city and go about of normal weekly schedule. Please keep Ryan, Vero, and Beto in your prayers next week as they travel. Pray for Jax and I as we stay in the city. I am never fearful being here in the city...we’ve never been worried for our safety….however, as a safety precaution, one of Vero’s other sons will stay with us here in the house at night to watch over us. Jax and I will more than likely stay in the house except for our daily walk around the block or the occasional trip to the ice cream shop.Well that’s all for now! I love you all and know of those that are reading. Thank you for the comments that are left on here. Thanks for the emails and encouraging words. I miss you all often.

February Thoughts

2010-03-02T17:40:00.002-06:00

February was a great month for us here. Once again, we welcomed the 2009 Adventures In Missions class plus some of their guests. We also had visiting missionaries from Leon and Guadalajara, Mexico. We spent the mornings cooking breakfast for 100+ people and spent the evenings wrapping things up and listening to these young apprentice missionaries share their experiences. I have to say, that out of 8 AIM groups we have hosted during our time here in Mexico, this class was the best. They were true servants with hearts for God.

The week after the AIMers left, we welcomed the Rocha family into the Sunset House. Lalo & Jamie Rocha, along with their boys, Liam & Jonah and finally made it to Mexico. Lalo recently graduated from Sunset International Bible Institute. Lalo and Jamie are not strangers to Mexico at all. Lalo is originally from here and we've had the pleasure of working with his parents from time to time. Jamie was living here in Mexico when we first came. Their story is a wonderful one and we are so glad to have them here. We are excited to see how God will use the Rocha family to further His part of the Kingdom here in Mexico City. Please be praying for their transition. Getting settling in to a new environment is always challenging.

The congregation here in Benito Juarez continues to make great advances. We have renewed our small group that meets in Del Valle and the Mexican leadership has really lit a fire within us. New roles have been placed which is always exciting. Juan Pablo and Ro have stepped down as treasurers for the congregation and now Alejandro and Adrian are seeing to the duties. This is a great passing of leadership. Laura and Vero have really taken to leading up the Children's Ministry. Ryan continues to encourage the preachers within the congregation. Many of the men that are on the preaching rotation are coming up with new and inventive ways to encourage the congregation on a weekly basis.

We will welcome a group of seven college-age students from Texas come next week. We are in the middle of dreaming and planning up things we can do with them and how they can help us out and also how we can give back to them. We are planning a Sunday service in the park while they are here and also a praise night. There are other things underway, but much planning to do.

I do want to throw this out there...Ryan and I are needing to raise some more monthly support. We are lacking about $800/month and we are starting to feel the squeeze. After returning back to Mexico after Christmas break, we were faced with rising prices on EVERYTHING. The prices in bills and groceries are rising constantly. We are also wanting to place Jax in school. We feel this is very important. Jax has very little opportunity to interact with other children and we are starting to see some developmental things that we believe school could help. He needs to officially start this fall, (3 being the age when children start school in Mexico) but we are hoping to place him in a little earlier so he can catch up and be ready to start with the other children his age, come this fall. We ask you to spread the news of our needs onto others. We realize that everyone around the world is feeling the squeeze financially...we are no different. Perhaps your Sunday morning class would consider supporting us, or you Ladies' Bible Class. We've known places of business that have taken up collections on a monthly basis. Please let us know if you or someone you know can help. However, most of us please pray that we find these funds.

Our family is doing quite well. We were able to get away for a bit after having the house full for three weeks. It was a wonderful time of family bonding and growing. I can't express how much I love my family. Ryan is such a rock for me and Jax is the sunlight...even when he's testing my limits. I have no complaints about my health. I feel great and to be honest, the best I have in a long time. Perhaps getting older likes me!

We've Only Just Begun...

2010-01-22T10:44:00.002-06:00

Hello every one and hello 2010! Wow, I can't believe that we are offically in the final days of January. This year has already been a whirlwind and we've only just started the year. 2009 ended perfectly for us. Although I had doctor and dentist appointments, we were able to share Christmas with family. We had a wonderful time and I am so blessed to have a great family through Ryan. Jax had a wonderful Christmas. Each year is more and more fun with him. We read “’Twas the Night Before Christmas” every night. He’s a fan of candy canes and Santa Claus. Jax was showered with gifts this year and he’s a happy little boy. Of course Ryan and I were blessed in every way also.
Many may be curious as to what the doctor had to tell me during this check-up. Well, the lump in my throat has not grown, but it hasn’t shrunk either. He feels that surgery will be in my future, perhaps within the next year. I had a bone density scan done and have loss some bone, but nothing too bad that he wants me on more medication. He and I both feel that at my age he wants to keep me on vitamins and not introduce too many chemical medications into my system. He’s a great doctor and I am so lucky that he’s taking this conservative approach. I feel great and since I’ve cut out most caffeine from my diet, (coffee is the one exception…I’m just plain evil without it) my joint pain has gone away and I just feel better.
We are now in the midst of preparing for this year’s AIM (Adventures in Missions) class to come for their annual visit. It looks like we will have about 114 people joining us here February 5 -10th. We will have 21-22 girls staying in the house and then the rest bunk up at the hotel around the corner. This visit by the AIMers is one of our favorite things about being here. Since Ryan and I both went through the program in 199…uh humph….we get excited to see who God has brought to AIM and the passion they have within them. It’s also a great time to re-connect with old friends that make their way down here around this time. We know for sure, that if it weren’t for the AIM program, we would not be missionaries here in Mexico.
We will also host a small group from Texas in March. It’s a mixture of Abilene Christian University, Lubbock Christian University, and Texas Tech University students. They are coming down to simply serve the church here. With a smaller group there are some things that we will be able to do with them that we can’t necessarily do with a large group. Please be praying for these two groups. Pray that all lives will be touched in ways that we can’t imagine.
Tonight we have our leaders’ group. We will be talking about the renovation of our small groups. We’re trying some new things for the New Year. The leaders within the Benito Juarez congregation are very excited about it all. I’m going to start working on putting together a website for our congregation. This Sunday Ryan is doing a seminar on the importance of small groups within the Church. In fact, he’s isolated himself today preparing for it.
The beginning of the year is exciting and busy. Forgive me in advance if I’m not blogging as often during the next month or so. This just means we’re busy and “staying out of trouble”. I love you all and will post pictures soon from our Christmas trip.

November News

2009-12-02T11:16:00.012-06:00

The month of November can be described in one word; FUN! We had a lot of excitement this past month. From going to my first college level football game, two Thanksgiving meals, a praise night, and a trip to the zoo…we had fun as a family and experienced great opportunities getting to know new people and getting closer to those with whom we already have relationships. We also are two weeks away from an exciting time for the Benito Juarez congregation…more of that later.

November started with the addition of two more children in our congregation. Minerva and her two children, Marcos and Zaritzi (Sa-reet-see) have moved here to the city and are now a part of our congregation. Minerva is the younger cousin of our dear Vero.

Now just let me tell you about the type of woman Vero is. If you have been here to visit and have had the privilege to be in Vero’s home, you know how hospitable she is, but you also know the size of her apartment; TINY! Vero lives in a VERY small two bedroom apartment with her 3 sons. The guys share a room and she gets her own. Most of the time the Marquez family eats together by squeezing onto their couch, however if there are guests, they stand. Well when Minerva and her 9 &10 year old children showed up to our Halloween party, she explained to Vero that her husband had left her and that they were almost at the point of living on the street. Of course without hesitation, Vero moved the three of them into her home. Now, Marcos (10) rooms with Vero’s three sons and Vero now sleeps on her couch and willingly gave Minerva and Zaritzi her bed.

The first week they were here, Vero put the kids in school and found Minerva a job. Needless to say, the Marquez household is under a lot of stress and Vero reaps most of that. We ask you to keep this entire household in your prayers. Minerva is NOT a believer, but her children push her every week to go to services on Sunday, and now without choice, they participate in Vero’s Thursday night small group. It’s amazing to see the thing Minerva’s CHILDREN are teaching her. Things such as; God is bigger than us…we have to be thankful for all of our blessings…and even thanking God for difficult things that happen, because that’s how we come to rely on God. Yes, these statements have come from the mouths of a 9 and 10 year old.

See by the three of them coming to Mexico City, a prayer of the Benito Juarez congregation was answered. We’ve been praying for more children and an opportunity to showing God’s outpouring love. Now our kids’ class is being used every Sunday and every member of the Benito Juarez church is taking turns teaching the children. At the end of services, each child (yes Jax too) shares what they learned during class. They are going through The Story with us, which is very very exciting. Please be praying for our kiddos! We love them and they are the future of the Church here in Mexico!

Mid-November Alejandro took us to a Pumas vs. PolyTech football game (GO PUMAS!). Now that’s American Football, not Futbòl (soccer). I have never been to a football game outside of high school (stop cringing!). Of course, Alejandro had to explain everything to us, but it was fun to learn and now I appreciate the game a lot more. It was a great opportunity to spend time with Alejandro and his family. We even brought Jax back a hat from the game.

The day before Thanksgiving we took Jax to the Chapultapec Zoo. Chapultepec Zoo is FREE! Can you believe it?! We had a ton of fun and Jax sure did love his day out. Usually we have a “park day” and we just go to our local park, but last week was a special treat. Jax got to see monkeys, a rhino and some giraffes. The monkeys were his favorite by far. However, I think his MOST favorite thing was running around and being more of a spectacle than the animals. Everywhere we turn people are saying how beautiful he is…at this point I’m pretty sure Jax knows how cute he is and he eats it up! At the end of our zoo trip he got to have his picture taken with Spiderman, Elmo, Winnie the Pooh, and Tiger. He was alright with Spiderman, but really nothing compares to Elmo.

Thanksgiving Day, we hosted the congregation that meets in Tlalpan. The missionaries down there met at the Pink House and served their church members a traditional Thanksgiving meal. Of course, we got to eat and it was fun! I think they had a total of 60 people. What a great turn-out!

This past Saturday, we did Thanksgiving on a much smaller scale. Ryan and I wanted to share the Thanksgiving tradition with the Benito Juarez congregation, so we planned a praise night focusing on thankfulness. Ryan and I cooked all day…all the works; turkey, ham, sweet potatoes, roasted potatoes, broccoli casserole, rolls, deviled eggs, pumpkin pie and everything else. After our praise night we began to eat at 11pm and then ended the evening with the Lord’s Supper. The last people left at 1am. It was a great night of reflection and we even learned some new songs.

Now, we are gearing up for a Christmas party here at the house. The 5th of December we are looking forward to the surrounding congregations coming to the Pink House and celebrating the holiday season with us. We’re planning a potluck and some Christmas carol singing. Please pray for this time together.

Now for something new and exciting; on the 13th of December, the Benito Juarez congregation will have their Mission/Vision 2010 Sunday. We’ll be talking about plans, goals, and dreams for the New Year. Topics that we will be discussing are the importance of small groups and renovating them, Sunday morning commitment, financial goals and responsibilities, and community outreach. We ask remember us on the 13th. We are hoping to end this year with a bang. I will try to post again before we leave for the holidays. I have a follow up doctor’s appointment on the 22nd to see if my medication is working and also to have another ultrasound on my neck. Please pray for those things also. We love you all and hope that while you are reading this, you are remembering all of our Lord’s blessings in your lives!

More Treats, Than Tricks!

2009-11-02T11:09:00.008-06:00

Wow…the month of October has been full of excitement! We’ve had a lot of dreaming, a baptism, I was able to go to a women’s retreat, and we closed the month with a successful Halloween party.

Leadership Growth
Many of you know that we have small groups that meet throughout the city during the week; well we also have a leaders group. This is a time where the leaders of these small groups can get together and share the things that are taking place in their individual groups. We are meeting on Friday evenings and as leaders, we’ve decided to use our time together differently.
As a church we are going through The Story. If you haven’t heard of or read this, I highly recommend it. Now with a new cover and refined storyline, The Story reveals the unfolding, grand narrative of the Scriptures. Using the clear, accessible text of Today’s New International Version, this rendering of the Bible allows its stories, poems, and teachings to come together in a single, compelling read. We are reading this together and spending the first half of our Friday evenings going over how being in the Word of God has impacted us that week.

During the second half of Leaders’ Group, we spend time in prayer, planning, and dreaming. This is where we share the things on our hearts as far as vision for the congregation, for groups, and ways that we can reach out to the community. This is an exciting time for us and a time where we know we can throw any idea out there and then as a group, bring it before the congregation to get some feedback. Please continue to pray for our leaders. God is using them in great ways. There is a fire within each of them that excites us and spurs us on to work harder.

News from La Viga
We have great news from the central eastside of the city. La Viga is the home to Vero Marquez and her three sons. It has also been a meeting place for a small group that meets in her home on Wednesday evenings. Raul has been a long-time friend of the Marquez family and has played a huge role in the three young men’s lives. Ryan and I remember working with The Marquez family when Raul was a constant presence in the group. He would come to group every week. However, he would simply sit there. Participation was not something he was interested in. The participation he would have would be at the end of group saying, “The Bible says wonderful things, but it’s not for me.”
Well loved ones, it goes to show that God’s power and love is mighty. On October 15th, the Benito Juarez congregation met together to witness Raul be baptized into Christ. Oh how I wish you all could have known him before and then see him now. There is no doubt that God changes people. Raul, who was once a man who kept to himself and really never greeted anyone, is now giving out hugs freely. He often shares of his struggles with his daughter and how he longs to set a Christ-like example for her.
After Raul’s baptism, we returned to the house and celebrated with a meal. There is nothing like celebrating a new life in Christ. We concluded by sharing the Lord’s Supper together…Raul’s first as a Christian man. Please pray for Raul and his new walk in God. The La Viga group continues to minister to him. He is also asking for prayers that his work situation will change so that he can join us on Sunday mornings.

Women Of The Harvest
From October 18 – 21, I was privileged enough to attend an all women’s retreat in Cancun, Mexico. This retreat was organized by The Women of The Harvest. Thanks to supporters from Monterey Church, I was able to attend this retreat. After the year I’ve had with health scares and readjusting here, this was a great time for me to get refocused. I was reminded what my role is as a woman here on the mission field. It was also a great opportunity for me to meet some other woman missionaries within the city. It doesn’t get lonely from time to time, so now I have connections with some other women. God is good and always provides refreshment and encouragement. Thank you Monterey Missions, for sending me to wonderful retreat!

Halloween Fun!

David and Marilyn Burnett from the Monterey Church in Lubbock just left this morning. Their mission while they were here was to help the Benito Juarez Church a successful Halloween party. Well, mission accomplished! It started with careful planning and list making. There was no problem with getting the church excited. However we had a different plan this year. Instead of it simply being an event that was spread by word-of-mouth, we decided to target the Del Valle area. Del Valle in the colonia where the Pink House resides. This area tends to be very difficult to reach out to. People are more closed and tend to stick to themselves and in their homes.
With much prayer, we spent one Saturday morning dropping invites into the mailboxes of our neighbors. Our party was intended to focus on a family outing and something fun for the children. The Children’s Mission Ministry of Monterey church sent down Halloween crafts for our visitors to make. The children spent the evening making photo frames and door hangers. We snapped pictures of the families as they came in and then printed pictures for them as souvenirs of their evening. We ended the evening with the children taking turns at smashing the piñata! It was a great success. We had just under 80 people in attendance. More than half of that number was children and about 70% of the attendees stopped by due to receiving invites. I would also like to thank the Brednich and Henderson families for coming up and helping us out. We’re do glad you could join us. This is so exciting for all of us. Now for Ryan and I, since we live in this neighborhood, it opens up a lot of opportunities to connect with our neighbors as we are out and about daily. Please pray for the area of Del Valle. A change is coming with this fall season. We are excited and prayerful!

Falling Into Step
As a family we are quickly coming to the point of completely our first year back. We are in the groove and falling into step with our routine and family here. Although we miss our families back in the States, we are convinced more than ever, that Mexico City is where God wants us to be at this point in our lives. It is hard to doubt when there are so many positive things taking place. With so many great things happening we remind mindful that Satan is lurking and ready to attack. We ask that you keep Benito Juarez and all of her members in prayer. We are starting to talk, plan, and set goals for the coming year. Please pray for hard workers and open hearts. We know as a Church, we got our work cut out for us…but then again…it’s God who is doing it all. Praise his name!

A New Fire

2009-09-26T12:18:00.002-05:00

This past month has been great for our congregation here. Tomorrow Ryan will wrap wrap up the Nooma preaching series. After much discussion between the members, we are all equally encouraged. There's a new spark among our members and a new energy to begin new things.

A fellow missionary here in the city, James Henderson, preached at the area-wide service two weeks ago in the center. He spoke about us being active Christians and not passive Christians. He posed some through-provoking questions to us all. Things like, "What is your deepest desire?" "When were you the happiest in your life?" These questions have been in on our hearts since, and we've had many a discussion. Last night in our leaders' group meeting, we had a brain-storming session about the direction of the Benito Juarez congregation. We have many plans on the horizon...new groups that will be starting, and new preaching series, and evangelistic events that will take place.

One of the most encouraging things that has happened lately was one of our fellow workers, Alejandro, stopped by to say good-bye. Yep, he just left for a month-long vacation to Europe...we feel REALLY sorry for him! Anyhoo, when he was over saying his good-byes, he blew us away. "I'm ready to do something more, something NEW!" he said. We were blown away and very inspired. Alejandro is a great leader within this congregation and has the gift of speaking. Whenever he preaches, people listen! Upon his return, we hope to help him start a new cell group in his mother's house. Please be prayerful of this!

Starting soon, as a congregation we will be reading "The Story". We are excited that we have found it here, in Spanish! We are hoping that this tool will provide a way to get all of us involved in reading our Bible on a daily basis.

Also in the works, is a fall festival. The Benito Juarez congregation hopes to use this event to reach out to the Del Valle community. Del Valle is where the Pink House is located. We are planning a Saturday for us to drop invites into mailboxes. Israel Campos and I will be working on the design of the invitation. We are looking forward to some members from the Monterey Church in Lubbock to come down and help us out.

That's all for now. Please pray for us and the fire that burns within us to grow the leadership within this congregation. We feel blessed to be members and co-workers among so many dedicated people. God is great!

Mexico Missionary Retreat

2009-09-26T11:52:00.005-05:00

We are hopefully wrapping up the rainy season here and then starts the cooler weather. We're excited. We did get a break from the rain when we met with other Mexico missionaries for our annual Mexico Missionary Retreat. This year, Ryan and I took on the responsibility of planning the event. With the help and generosity of good friends, we were able to meet in Puerto Vallarta this year. There were 66 in total this year. We had a blast and enjoyed mornings of praise and devos. The AIMers even had a surprise visit from the directors of the AIM program. On our last morning together we were talking about next year and there are going to be news missionary faces that join us and then also some that won't be there. There will be several missionary families wrapping up their time in Mexico and also some taking a furlough. We're already looking forward to seeing what next year will bring.

Meagan Jarboe was our guest for the retreat. We had so much fun with her. She is in her second year of Med School, and boy did we admire he dedication to her studies during the retreat. Of course, if you have to study, study at the beach!

We also visited one of our favorite restaurants while in Puerto Vallarta. La Bodegita Del Medio is a Cuban restaurant that Ernest Hemingway use to visit. They have some in Mexico City, the best one by far is in P.V. Meagan and our good friend, Toby joined us. Jax got to play the drums with the band and Toby took Meagan for a spin!

Jax swam everyday and by mid-day HE was the one begging for a nap. Every night, the resort had a mini-disco for the kids. This was the highlight of Jax's day every night. He loved being up on stage dancing and showing off his moves. Jax had a great time with all the other kids and playing in the sand. Of course there are more pictures of him than anyone else, but can you blame us? He's too cute!

We were encouraged with the time spent with the other missionaries and are blessed by the success of the retreat. Please pray for all the various works taking place throughout Mexico. God is working mightily across this nation.

Visit from the Hendersons

2009-09-26T11:24:00.003-05:00

This past month we had a visit from Jacob, Amanda, Adah, and Noah Henderson. It was so great to have them here. We had the chance to see them this summer, but it was just different having them here with the Benito Juarez congregation. We had a game night, a special dinner, and even a potluck while they were here. One of the biggest treats was our friend Alejandro treating Jacob, Amanda, and Ryan to a World Cup qualifying game between Mexico and Honduras. I sacrificed not going, to give Ryan a chance to " bond with the guys". This really was a sacrifice, because I am WAY more into Futbol than Ryan. The all came back to the house full of energy and soaked from the rain. This is definately something they will never forget.
Jax sure did enjoy playing with Adah and Noah. He woke every morning with a smile on his face ready to see Adah. Of course, how could he not love his Uncle Jacob and Aunt Amanda, when they bring him a HUGE lollipop. He couldn't get enough of it.
This time with the Henderson family was very special to us and we made good memories. Please keep them in your prayers.

Tilaco: Issue 3

2009-08-31T09:57:00.004-05:00

Tilaco is located in the Mexico state of Queretero. The back road to this remote village is sparsely populated and winds through the Sierra Gorda mountians. While traveling, we found steep climbs through rocky valleys.
In the 1750's, Father Junípero Serra, known as the future apostle of California, ventured with his fellow Franciscans into the rugged Sierra Gorda area of eastern Querétaro state. They set out to evangelize the semi-nomadic Indian tribes who lived there, and gather them into mission towns. Within a few years, their efforts formed five new missions in the grassy valleys of the region. These churches are famous for their elaborate, "folk baroque" facades of painted and sculpted stucco, recently restored to their original, multi-colored condition.
South of Landa, a side road through a green valley to the village of Tilaco, where rustic walls, gateways, and corner chapels frame the pleasant hillside mission of San Francisco. Founded by Father Serra's companion Fray Juan Crespí, Tilaco is the happiest of the five missions, tinted in hues of blue, white and yellowish-brown, and has a neat and slender three stage tower. Its cheerful facade is the most intimate of all the churches, busy with figures of cherubs, mermaids, and angels - some playing instruments, others clutching grapevines or holding tasseled stone draperies, and a few just smiling joyfully.
It was an incredible place to visit, and we feel lucky to have been able to see this small part of Mexico history. I hope you enjoy some of my favorite pictures from the visit.

A Little This, A Little That

2009-08-19T14:41:00.007-05:00

We have now been home for a week and boy oh boy are we glad to not only be home but to be together and be here!
Here in Mexico its the "Temporada de lluvia", or The Rainy Season. It's staying in the 70's everyday and we welcome the rain. Everything here is so green. Jaxon loves playing outside in the yard with his new toys. He got a slide and lawn mower for his birthday and has been a busy boy. Jax's re-adjustment to being here has been interesting. For the first few day he was very clingy and would freak out if Ryan and I were not BOTH in the same room. He's been sleeping a lot which we are sure is due to the high altitude of the City. Jax is quickly remembering his favorite people here...his Tia Vero, Betty from the fruit stand (she gives him free mini bananas) and Chutney, one of the AIMers that works in the south. Jaxon is "bien travioso" or very mischievous. He's always up to something and is full of faces. We've dubbed him The Godfather since every now and then he feels the need to walk around the room and have everyone kiss his hand. Oh, we are sooo buying him a signet ring for Christmas! HA!
The work here is going so well. Before Ryan came back to Lubbock to get us, he planned the preaching series here. Various men in the congregation are taking turns showing numerous NOOMA videos. Each one does something different. One man may show clips of the video and then preach, others show the entire video and then have open discussion. The church here has been so excited for us and is asking that we find the rest of the NOOMA videos to add to the church's library. We are so thankful for these tools.
Israel Campos is our designated "song leader" here in the Benito Juarez congregation. He loves translating the latest Contemporary Christian songs and then teaching them to us all. For his birthday, we bought him two song books from the NOW series. I know he was excited to have them, but Israel...you do know that you have a lot of work on your hands?! HA We are enjoying watching so many people step up and take on more roles and responsibilities within the church here. God is good!
The new Children's classroom is stocked! With us we brought a new television and Veggie Tale videos in Spanish for the kids to watch. We are thankful for the space this house provides and that we have the room for a separate kid's room during services. If you have been to this house, you know how it echoes.
Ryan and I have been busy with planning various upcoming events. With the help of other missionaries in Guadalajara, Mexico we are planning the 2009 Mexico Missionary Retreat. We are excited to have over 40 adults and 20 kids signed up to go. This time together with fellow workers throughout Mexico is always encouraging. Please pray for this retreat and all of those involved. You know how I love to throw a party, so I'm super excited!
We're hoping to have some visitors this fall. We should be hearing soon if they are coming and then we will be planning service projects with Pedro's help.
Our small group continues to grow spiritually. We are low in number but BIG is our faith and growing as a Christian family. Please pray for us. The area that we live in can be difficult to reach out to.
Monday night was our game night and we had a great turn-out. Every 2 weeks we all get together for some food and fun. Now we have people joining us outside of the Benito Juarez congregation on a regular basis. Another way we spend some down time together is having movie nights. We have a big SHOUT OUT to Roland Gagnon who blessed the Benito Juarez congregation here with his gift of a projector. It is now used EVERY Sunday and then also for our movie nights. Roland, you should see the faces of the guys here when they watch an action movie on the BIG SCREEN with the use of the projector. You will now always be tied to the church here, for we think of you everytime we use the projector. Thanks!
I hope this finds everyone doing well. Above you will see Pedro showing Jax his new Vespa. It was a hit. Below I have a prayer list. Please join us in praying for these people that are so dear to us! Much love to you all!

For all the small groups that meet throughout the city
For the Thornton Family and the new baby that will join them in September.
For the Brednich Family and as Carolyn carries the fourth boy. He's due in November!
For the Wiist family as they wait for there second child...she's due any day now!
For our open hearts and minds as we serve God and the Church here
For Vero's father...he's getting older and his health is getting worse
For the Young Family and changes taking place in their household
For my parents and my mom's health and healing

Cool Dude

2009-08-14T11:43:00.003-05:00

Just a quick note to say; Jax had to eat his breakfast this morning with his sunglasses on. Silly!

Tilaco: Issue 2

2009-08-14T11:00:00.002-05:00

Ok, just to catch everyone up; back in April I started writing about our trip to Tilaco, Mexico with our good friend Vero and her sons. That was posted back then, so you can refresh your memory by reading the old post and then here I will continue as if nothing has happened these past few months.

The 8 hour bus-ride to Tilcao turned into 10. Our driver was more than willing (grrr) to stop and pick up people in order to pocket the bus fares. Well, hey pretty smart on his part, but frustrating for us. You'll see the pictures from our bus trip. A sleeping Jorge, Jax taking a snooze and even walking up and down greeting everyone on the ride. (Truely his father's son.) It was soooo hot that when we made a pit-stop, Jax walked around in a shirt and diaper...he was still a hit among the other travelers.

Once we arrived in Tilaco, we had to take another taxi ride just to get to Vero's home. Seriously, out in the middle of NOWHERE! We were greeted by four of Vero's sisters, her father, and her two brothers. (There are 11 children in total.) They had cooked us up a great meal, and I couldn't help but snap a few shots of the kitchen. This kitchen was amazing! It was seperate from the main house (which wasn't a house at all, just some rooms.) The kitchen was open air. You wouldn't find any modern conveniences in the Marquez kitchen. There were no stove or oven. You wouldn't see a refrigerator, coffee pot, or microwave. Everything was cooked over an open flame. In fact, the chicken you see in the pictures above, laid her eggs in the kitchen and Vero would then scramble them up for Jax. Everything that we ate besides the rice, came from the ranch. The meat, vegetables, fruit. and bread came from their ranch. You'll see Ryan eating a turkey heart. (Insert gagging sounds here.) They even had a wonderful lemon tree which amazed me, since lemons are hard to come by in Mexico.

Vero tried to explain to me that by going to Tilaco it would be like stepping back 100 years. At first site of the Marquez ranch, I was quickly becoming a believer in Vero's words. Did you know that electricity didn't make its way to Tilaco until 1968. This was the same year that the first vehicle made an appearance in Tilaco. The delivery truck was actually carried into Tilaco because there were no roads. They then built roads in order to use the truck to deliver products around the village. Craziness.

Jaxon's Birthday Blast Off!

2009-08-03T20:38:00.004-05:00

So for Jax's 2nd birthday we threw him a Robot party. The pictures will tell it all. Thank you to everyone who came and to my family for helping out with everything. Jax is a lucky boy to have so many people who love and care about him!

"Change of Plans"

2009-08-02T14:37:00.003-05:00

Recently my dear friend Angie reminded me that the words "change of plans" seemed to have been used quite frequently in our family of three. Well Angie, I have to agree...and now perhaps I will be more leery of "making plans".

We had everything set to go. Good news from the doc, clearance to go home, finished with a great birthday party for Jax (that blog to come soon), and the car was loaded. We decided to spend a few days with Jacob and Amanda Henderson. We had a gift from the Benito Juarez congregation to deliver and we couldn't think of a better way to end things here. We also thought that this would work out perfectly because we could drive into the city on a Sunday where there is lighter traffic and such.

So we pulled into Childress Wednesday afternoon, had dinner with the Henderson clan, and even worshipped with the Church there. That evening a terrible storm came through (insert tornado scene music from Wizard of Oz here). With 102 mile winds...the entire top half of Jacob and Amanda's sycamore tree landed on our van.

Altough unquestionably frustrated, we can laugh about it now. When Jacob looked out the window and then looked at us and relayed the news that there was a tree on our car, we for sure thought he was joking. However, just like a scene from a movie, we were looking out the window, a crash of thunder and then a bolt of lightning lit up the sky and there we saw our 6 month old van, covered in branches and leaves. It wasn't ten minutes later when Jacob hollered again that there was more tree over the van.

It was undeniably something. So, what could we do? Nothing. We stayed up late laughing and saying, "What are the odds?". Definitely some memory making going ont that night. We woke the next morning, took some pictures and filed the claim online.

Progressive Insurance is amazing so far. They called us within the hour of filing the claim and got everything set up. So, since our car can't go into the shop until tomorrow (Monday) morning, Jacob and Ryan taped up the hole in the windshield and we left Childress and went to the H5 farm. H5 (Henderson Farm) served us well and took our minds off of everything. The fact that not only are we going back to Lubbock, but we will be here longer, AND have to unpack the van.

We enjoyed our time there. Spent time onthe four-wheelers, the kids played in the river, and Jax even fed some cows. Just some time to escape and make some more memories with our beloved friends.

So, that's the latest...Packing, loading, and driving to Childress. Visiting, eating, and worshipping in Childress. Thundering, lightning, and trees coming down in Childress. Scratching, breaking, and shattering of our van. Taping, mending, and driving back to Lubbock. Waiting, waiting, and waiting in Lubbock.

To be continued...

92 Days and Counting

2009-07-23T14:14:00.002-05:00

Well...hello to all. I want to apologize for my lack of blogging. To be honest, I just haven't felt up to it lately and also have been busy trying to be busy. So Jaxon and I have been in the States now for 92 days...and well...we miss home. We miss our "normal" routine and our familiar surroundings. Being here has had many positives though. Jaxon has really had the opportunity to get to know his Aunt, Uncle, cousins, and of course his Pawpaw and Mimi. He's is spoiled rotten, but just like the baby of the family should be.

Jax has had plenty of adventures since being here. He's gone to several birthday parties, been swimming all summer, has gone to school, had an allergic reaction, and even made a trip to the ER. I can barely catch my breath after typing all of that.

I've tried to keep busy with helping Shauna (sister-in-law) with things for the Children's Ministry at Monterey, taking care of myself and health of course, and I made a trip to visit my parents in North Carolina. Ryan is back with us and we will soon make our journey back to Mexico.

So here's the great news, my DNA results have come in and I DO NOT have MEN Type 2. This is great news! We were all in shock at the negative results. Even my doctor was shocked, but pleased just as well. The lump in my throat appears to be getting smaller, my calcium levels and parathyroid levels are slowly getting back to normal. My doc believes that this is due to the extra Vitamin and Calcium that I am taking daily. There is a possibility that there will be an increase of this medicine, but if all I have to do is pop a couple of pills everyday...no sweat off my back. So, after speaking with the doctor today, I have clearance to go home!

So we will end our time here in Lubbock with Jax's birthday party. We of course will be celebrating Jaxon's second birthday, but we are also celebrating the good news for our family. Knowing that we don't have to worry about Jaxon's health as far as this disease is concerned. We praise our Lord for answering our prayers in this manner. We thank you all for being in battle with us through prayer. We know God listens to our hearts and pleas, because really...God is the only answer to this. We love you all and my next report will be from Mexico. Love to you and yours.

And so it goes...

2009-05-21T17:11:00.004-05:00

Here comes another update...prepare yourselves. We have now been in Lubbock for about a month now and we've enjoyed our time with friends and family. We were lucky to escape the Swine Flu (ha) even though all three of us ended up with colds. I've kept busy with helping my sister-in-law with some projects at Monterey. Ryan's been busy with the Children's Mission Committee from Monterey. They are getting together supplies for our new Children's Classroom at the Pink House. We are very excited to have Bibles, curriculum, songs, and puppets for the Benito Juarez church in Mexico.

Last weekend we took a trip to Childress and spent the weekend with the Henderson family. We have missed them so much and we really enjoyed our time with them. Jax was so sweet with Noah and was amazed by Adah's Hannah Montana moves. Their house is beautiful and we say "Thank You" to Adah for letting us three use her room while we were there. Thank you Jacob, Amanda, and kiddos. We love you and will see you again soon.

As many of you know our main reason for coming to Lubbock was because of my health. This past Tuesday I had my appointment with the Endocrinologist here to check on my Thyroid. Well, my thyroid levels are low and after the ultrasound, it was confirmed that there is a sizable lump on my thyroid as well. After a long conversation and speaking about family history, my doctor's main concern right now is the possibility that I may have inherited Multiple Endocrine Neoplasm Syndrome. Now there are two types of this Syndrome and my mother has both. So at this point surgery to remove the lump is postponed as I go through DNA Screening to determine whether I have type 1 or 2 or if God chooses, neither. From there we will discuss which type of surgery I will have.

In a little over a week I will begin Thyroid medication and hopefully begin the DNA Screening process. All of this will take at least a month. Beyond this screening process, we do not have a time-span of how long I must remain here. As of now Jaxon and I will remain in Lubbock due to frequent doctor's visits and regulation of Thyroid medicine. Ryan will be returning to Mexico the beginning of next week. We still have many goals to reach down there and some work with the Benito Congregation that Ryan wants to be a part of. He will return here to Lubbock as soon as surgery decisions are made.

During our time (Jaxon and I), I will continue to help my sister-in-law (Shauna) with the Children's Ministry at Monterey. This will be great so that I can keep busy and not go insane. We are hoping to get Jaxon into a summer program during our time here. I believe this will prove as a distraction to Jax as surely he will miss his Daddy. Also, the exposure to other kids will be great for Jax. Please pray for this. School is ending and summer is here. Many of these programs through churches are already full, so we are hoping an opportunity will appear.

Tomorrow Ryan and I celebrate 11 years of marriage. WOW! He's got something up his sleeve, so I'm totally pumped!

Please continue to pray for our family. Pray that the end result is finding that I only have a slight thyroid issue and the surgery and recovery are minimal. Pray for Ryan's trip back to Mexico. Pray for our time apart. Continue to pray for the Benito Juarez congregation and for all the projects and new things happening there. We love you all! I thank you for the all the love and prayers already sent my way. Here are some pictures of our time here so far! I hope you enjoy!

News Update

2009-05-02T12:03:00.002-05:00

Heads up everyone! We are currently in Lubbock, TX for a bit. Here's the scoop...

I have been feeling a little under-the-weather for...well...really since Jax has been born. I've been doing a lot of things to get healthier and such. Since we've been in Mexico I've been seeing various doctors to help with Diabetes prevention and also a Nutritionist. I'm not at risk for Diabetes but still will continue to see this doctor to talk about prevention. After a few appointments, both doctors could not understand why I was continuing to face certain health issues, so they ran some tests...come to find out my Thyroid levels for out of this world!

Anywho...although this is just another thing to face, it is an answer to some of my health issues that I've been having for almost 2 years. SO....YIPPY! It's good to know people and some friends helped with getting me an appointment with an Endrocrinologist here in Lubbock. We left early because of the H1N1 Flu scare in Mexico...not that we were afraid of contracting it...because well, we were safe as long as we took percaution...however, we were afraid that the might have closed the borders and then I wouldn't be able to cross for my appointment.

So, here we are...awaiting doctor's visits and such. I had a great birthday this year. Best present...not contracting the H1N1 virus...hahahahaha. Thank you to everyone for the wonder birthday wishes. Ang! You are a wonderful and dear friend. Thank you for the one-on-one time...and the shopping spree...I couldn't have asked for a better person to do those things with.

Please keep me and of course, Ryan & Jax in your prayers. Although we are here for good reasons, its difficult to be away from the work in Mexico. We miss our family there and know that things are crazy down there with schools and businesses being closed. Benj & Care...we think of you all everyday and pray for your family more often!

I'm out for now and will keep you all updated! Much love!

Tilaco: Issue 1

2009-04-20T15:55:00.002-05:00

For those of you who know me and know me well, you’re aware of my “city-ness”. Yes, it’s a word, I made it up. I have always lived in large cities and the closest thing I ever got to non-city was driving past one on the way to another large city. Let’s put it this way, when I was 18 and moved to Lubbock, I went through culture shock. HA! There are a few people in my life that can validate my city-ness…can I get a shout out from Big Creek, Mississippi!!??!! I’ve even camped out with the church family in Georgia, although I am pretty sure they don’t deem my being in a trailer “truly” camping. I went camping from time to time when I was a child; in fact one of my childhood memories is my family going to Zion National Park.

Late January my dear friend Vero and I were sitting here in the office just chit-chatting and I said… “Vero, I would love to see where you are from. Someday, we need to go to Tilaco and meet your family and see your old stompin’ grounds.” I suppose the first red flag was the extreme wideness of her eyes and the element of surprise on her face when she asked, “Are you sure?” Of course, I agreed without a second thought and then before I could blink plans were made for Easter weekend.

All of this to say that when Ryan, Jaxon, and I said YES to going to Tilaco, Mexico, I quickly became considered. As the days came closer to make our trip, Vero took the time to sit down with me and explain some of things I would NOT see and then those I WOULD. She started using words like; the ranch, the well, no bathing…and then it was me with the wide eyes and shocked look on my face. Sissy me, and I admit it, I cried almost every day before we left. I secretly wished something would come up so I didn’t have to go. However, God is stronger than I am and he made SURE there was a way I would be going.

This is just the launch of a series of blogs that I will do on my Tilaco experience. I will share some great stories and some great pictures along the way. I hope you enjoy. This is a pic of Jax at the bus terminal. It was 5 in the morning and he was NOT going back to sleep. Timbra, this pic reminds me of your stories of Alani at the mall.

Love to you all and remember to stay tuned.

Oh Ryan

2009-04-03T13:16:00.002-06:00

I'm on the computer and Ryan's in the living room watching Ellen.
Ryan blurts out something and I ask, "What?"
He says, "Nothing, I was just talking to myself."
I ask, "Why are you talking to yourself so loudly?"
He says, "Cuz I'm hard of hearing."

Blast Off!

2009-04-03T01:00:00.001-06:00

So I’m sure you’ve noticed some changes to my blog. I thought it was about time, but the funny thing is that my friend who also blogs, just blogged about people changing their blogs, email addresses, and such. And so, here I am now joining the masses.

The actual reason for this change is because well, if you know me I love change. Ryan’s always laughing at me when he sees furniture moved or the kitchen completely reorganized. My poor guy’s always on the search for something due to my inability to let things stay the same for a long period of time. However, doing the ole switch-a-roo keeps things interesting. There is also the fact that I have never liked the name of my blog or the look of it…so here I go…I’m blasting off into a new adventure with my family and our lives in another country…so why not a new lookin’ blog?

So now that my intro is done…onto to bigger and better things. The month of March kept us very busy. It was full of birthdays, making new friends, seeing old friends, and growing in our work. Ryan preached his first sermon since we’ve been back and is on the list to preach in this next series. He will then plan a series for the men in the congregation to preach. Ryan loves this part of our work and gets super excited.

A couple of weeks ago I started going to a study with three other women. We are starting a Beth Moore study. I’m very excited and very grateful. I long for “girl-time” and just for the opportunity to meet some new people. Please pray for the four of us…Carolyn, Yuli, Hayley, and myself. Pray that bonds are made and that God is the center of it all.

Jax was invited to his friend Piersen’s party earlier this month. He had a lot of fun playing with so many kids and eating cookies that looked like dog treats. We’re excited that there are some children around so that Jax can become more socialized…well, he definitely doesn’t have a problem with being social, but he loves being around other kids.

This past Tuesday we met our friends Israel & Nelly for lunch at our favorite local eatery. They brought along with them a couple and their young son. Paco, Mariela, and Luca live quite close to us and are in the same situation we find ourselves in…looking for a playmate for our son. Luca and Jax are very close in age. We are excited about making new friends with this couple and for Jax and Luca to become playmates. Please pray that we can be good examples to this family and that schedules work out for play dates.

We celebrated some birthdays here in the Benito Juarez congregation this past month also. We had a potluck to celebrate Beta Garcia (Vero’s youngest) and Juan Pablo’s birthdays. We, as a congregation, never have a problem with partying. Vero cooked incredible food as usual and we spent the day laughing and enjoying each other’s company. Later that evening Ryan took Beto to the VIP movie theatre. Going to the VIP is the ultimate movie experience…I’ll write about that some other time.

Ryan and I continue to look for ways to grow spiritually and for extra training to make us better Christians, better parents, better spouses and better church leaders. We were blessed this past weekend when the Iglesia de Cristo Rio de Vida in Morelia invited us all to a Leadership Training seminar. Not only was it a great time of encouragement and of being reminded of why we are here, but it was so great to see so many of our friends that are also missionaries throughout Mexico. Some of them we haven’t seen in 10 years. It was invigorating to re-connect with so many people. Gailynn and Becky Van Rheenen were the speakers for the seminar and were such a great encouragement.

We had a great weekend and so did Jax. He spent the whole day last Saturday in a day care full of children and had so much fun that he only took a 25 minute nap. As if that weren’t enough stimulation for the day, after we got back to the hotel, Jax went swimming with Benjy and Carolyn’s kids. Needless to say, we all crashed at the end of the day. We then worshipped with the Rio de Vida (River of Life) congregation the next morning. It was so uplifting and a great chance to see how some of our co-workers in the Kingdom celebrate their time together worshipping our Lord. Please remember to keep Sam & Ann Gonzales (the missionaries) and the Rio de Vida congregation in your prayers. Thank you guys for hosting such a great event and showing us a great time on Sunday!

We are now entering into our third month back in Mexico. We love being back but we are experiencing some loneliness and definite culture shock. We do a good job at keeping ourselves busy. We have some people coming to visit us soon, which is great since we love having people in the house. Jax continue to grow up quickly. Every day he is doing more and more things. He now says “poop” and “book” and “ball”. His favorite show is “Yo Gabba Gabba”. He gets so excited when it comes on. He love dancing and loves to take rides on the vacuum cleaner. He’s now growing taller and so with that he’s climbing on things now. He makes me so happy and I just have to look at him to see life and love.

We are continuing to put our touch on the house and should have curtains for the whole upstairs up before long. You’ll have to excuse me for not adding pictures this time around, our digital camera finally went kaput, so as soon as get the opportunity to purchase a new one, I’ll play some catch-up with some pictures.
I hope this finds everyone well and as blessed as we are. Pray for this coming Saturday. Starting at 7pm we will have a half-night pray session with the Benito Juarez congregation. We will end the evening by sharing a meal and breaking bread together. Our love to you all!

Truly an Awkward Day

2009-03-18T18:41:00.001-06:00

One of my favorite things to do is find bizarre holidays that are actually recognized. For instance, did you know that September 6th is Salami Day? Perhaps you may have heard of Belly Laugh Day recognized on January 26th? Well, today is Awkward Moments Day…and well in the Gray family we observe this holiday quite often and were glad to find that there is an actually holiday celebrating awkwardness.

This morning as Ryan and I made our way into to Jax’s room, we were greeted by a strong aroma of poo. That’s right; the scent of poo hit us in the face like a cement wall. After we were able to battle our way past the door and stench, we looked at our charming, handsome, and adoring youngster and noticed that he was exposed from the waist down. His pj bottoms were on the floor and his diaper was wadded in the corner of his crib. Well, as you might have guessed, as we did, poo was EVERYWHERE. It was smeared into the sheets and blanket. He had poo spread on his legs, face, and hair. The mystery was that there wasn’t a whole lot of poo on that little white bottom. So, while Ryan was stripping the top half of our little monster, I was stripping the bed and getting ready to start some laundry. Then a thought came to mind…”Where did all that poo go?”

You see, one of Jax’s favorite things to do is take his socks off and chuck them behind his crib. As this awareness came to mind…all I could say was, “OH NO!!!!” I slowly edged the crib away from the wall only to discover little droplets of my 21 month old’s poo. Just as I made my unearthing I hear Ryan echo my own words. Ryan found poo in another area at the same time I did, in our little boy’s mouth. That’s right, as Ryan pulled Jax’s paci out he found poo all in it, which means…JAX ATE HIS POO!

Aww…the stories we will tell his girlfriends!!!

With a day beginning like that…Jax has been a little more awkward than typical. Seems that taking off his pants and diaper is a new trick of his, as when I went in to check and see if he was napping, he was once again bare and jolly…good news…it was poo free.

Here’s hoping your Awkward Day was poo free!

# of times the word “poo” was used in this blog: 13

Springing Ahead

2009-03-11T11:59:00.000-06:00

So, who’s ready for spring? We’ve paid attention to the weather in a lot of places where our family and friends are, and wow you’ve been all over the place with tornados, snow, and heat waves. Spring is one of our favorite months. You all have already sprung forward with your clocks…here in Mexico we won’t have our change until the first Sunday of April, but we are definitely having spring-like weather. My favorite thing is to wake up and open the doors and windows of the house. It’s been beautiful and all the flowers in the yard are blooming wonderfully.
February was an exhilarating month for us and for the Benito Juarez congregation. We of course began the month with 102 AIMers and Staff from the Adventures in Missions program from the Sunset International Bible Institute. A few days after they departed, we were blessed by having two couples join us here in the house from the Baxter Institute in Honduras. The team was here to check out the city and scope where they want to begin a new work. We enjoyed having them in the house and we pray for grand things in the future. It’s moving to see natives of Mexico become missionaries and return to this city to work with God to turn this city into a Christian city. Please pray for their fund raising and team dynamics.
As many of you know, when the Oscars are televised, it’s like the Superbowl in our home. We love the Oscars and Ryan more than anyone, takes them seriously. So what a superior way than to turn it into a PARTY! On the 22nd of February, we stocked the buffet with movie treats and drinks. We set up the house with the TVs and had the Oscars blaring. We had our own ballots and we all dressed up in our PJs. This is something Ryan and I have done in the past and we were excited to have others join in. We had around 30 people here, voting, visiting, playing games, and watching the Oscars. It was a great occasion to get to know one another…and Ryan and I love any reason for a party!

For the church in Benito Juarez, this past month brought us some great event planning. Our first order of business was encouraging a fellow congregation that meets about an hour north of the City. We had gotten wind that the congregation there had been low in numbers and feeling a little discouraged. We feel so blessed to be a part of a congregation where the leaders hear this and act on it. The following Sunday, our entire congregation took ourselves north to worship with the congregation there in Cuajimalpa. I have never been a part of a congregation where that would happen. What a proclamation of unity for the Lord’s Church. Please pray that the Cuajimalpa congregation grows in encouragement and guidance.
We were joined one Wednesday evening by one of our elders Jesus Torres and his family. It was his birthday and we had cake and sang along with him. You’ll see some pictures to the right.

We are also planning a Leadership seminar for the area congregations. Our congregation will be planning the event and we hope to have this take place sometime this summer. We ask that you pray for this planning process and that we can build a lot of enthusiasm. I think we all need a little encouragement.
Our cell group that meets here in the house is going well, but we are lacking visitors. Pray for us as we continue to adjust here and meet people. Ryan has met a guy that works at the corner store. His name is Julio. He’s very friendly and we hope that he will join us for group or perhaps a game night. We have also decided as a group to begin looking at Matthew as a guide for our group and see how Jesus speaks to us individually and as a group.

This next month brings some fun things also. We look forward to reporting on our time in Morelia, Mexico that will take place on the weekend of March 28th. Dr. Gailyn and Becky Van Rheenen will be leading a workshop for missionaries and national church leaders who are seeking to find theological foundation of how to take their ministries to the next level. We are excited to go, more to come soon.

As a family we are magnificent. Ryan and I constantly continue to be amazed by Jax and the little man he is becoming. He’s walking like a champ and trying so so hard to talk. He’s still going through his hitting phase, but it seems to be disappearing. Being parents is our favorite thing. We still look at him and cannot believe that God chose us to parent this child. He’s so great. A big shout out to our nephew Griffin! He had his birthday on the 8th! We love you and Happy Birthday!

To the right you’ll see some various pics. A couple are of Jax with his new friend Julian. She is the daughter of some local missionaries, Israel and Nelly who work in the south. They join us every Wednesday for our weekly prayer time. You’ll also see Jax enjoying his time in the kids’ classroom in Cuajimalpa.

Down in D.F.

2009-02-15T20:45:00.000-06:00

Hello to all from our home in Mexico City. We hope this finds everyone well and feeling as blessed as we know we are. This past month has been demanding, nerve-racking, and encouraging all at the same time. Jax and I have been here a month and Ryan just a little under that. We owe our friend, Liz Madrid, a big thank you…maybe even more of a thank you to her husband, for being ok with her flying down with Jax and me. I couldn’t have done that without her. She was also able to go with me to buy a washer and our bedroom furniture. Though her time here with us was short, it was greatly needed and even more cherished. Seriously, she is a great servant and an example.
We continue to adjust well back here in D.F. (Federal District of Mexico). However, we’ve all had some hiccups already, starting with Jax. Most of you all know how social Jax is, well that came to a stop for a while when he figured out that everyone was speaking to him in a different language. Before Ryan joined us down here, the two of us didn’t have anyone to speak English to. I was able to cope and keep my frustration to myself…on the other hand; Jaxon does exactly what I WANTED to do and started hitting people in the face when they started talking to him. It was a bad habit and has since died down…but part of me wanted to smirk with approval and with complete understanding.
Now for my blunder; it happened today after services and during our Leaders’ Group meeting. We were talking about future plans we are making to have a Leadership seminar for the City. I was telling everyone that Ryan and I were going to get a good friend to come down for the first seminar but after that, we are all able to plan and host a seminar. So, here I was, trying to get my point across and I thought to myself, “What’s the word for ‘capable’ again?” So I blurted, “Cada uno de nosotros son capables…” Then I noticed the faces of my fellow group members…nobody stopped me, no one corrected me, and they just let me keep talking. Then I found out that the words for “we are capable” in Spanish are “somos capaces” and so what I said meant that we were all castrated. That’s a big YOWZERS and one that I will never live down, nor one the Mexicans here will ever let me forget. Ryan of course, is beyond thrilled that I made this awkward mistake and that he was able to cackle with everyone else.
Ryan is doing great. I think he’s tired. We’ve been going non-stop since we’ve arrived. We’re still working on trying to make our mark on the house and make it somewhat our own but at the same time, wanting to make it appealing to those we know will join us in the house from time to time. We just had the Adventures In Missions (AIM) class of 2008 join us here for their annual trip to Mexico. It was so much fun and we three enjoyed having all 93 plus with us. We cooked for an army every morning that they were here and we didn’t have anyone too seriously ill, which is always a blessing. Jaxon and Benson both loved all the attention and have fallen into a slight depression after everyone left. I suppose they thought they all came for just them. We now have a group here from the Baxter Institute in Honduras. They have a team scouting out the city in search for a place to start a new work. We are excited to have them in this home and get to know future co-workers here in the city.
So to wrap up, we are thankful to you all for your constant encouragement and love. We are doing well and adjusting into our new role here. We know we just begun, however we look forward to the new challenges ahead. We ask for your continued prayers for our readjustment and also for our co-workers here…the congregation of Benito Juarez. Although we work directly with the Benito Juarez congregation we also have co-workers spread throughout the city. Please pray us all as we have one goal in common, to help God turn this City into a Christian City. Here are some pictures to enjoy of some things we’ve done to the house…more to come. Also so pics of Jax’s first Sunday here and of the AIM group that was here. Ciao for now and stay tuned!

P.S. Jaxon is now walking!

Playing Catch-Up

2009-01-31T16:32:00.000-06:00

So, it was brought to my attention that Christmas is well over with and that I need to post something. Therefore, I will just play some catch-up with some pictures from Christmas. We had a wonderful holiday season with family and friends. We've made it safely to Mexico. We've all been fighting some sort of cold, but we're fine and taking it one day at a time. I PROMISE to blog more later...after things die down a bit. So for now, enjoy the pics and remember that we love you all.

Christmas, Christmas Time is Near!

2008-12-09T07:50:00.000-06:00

Christmas, Christmas time is near
Time for toys and time for cheer
We've been good, but we can't last
Hurry Christmas, hurry fast
Want a plane that loops the loop
Me, I want a hula hoop
We can hardly stand the wait
Please Christmas, don't be late.

Just thought I would post some of Jax's shots from his Christmas card phot session. It was a lot more difficult this year since he's into EVERYTHING. So here's from this year and his picture from last year. Love to you all!

So Very Thankful!

2008-12-02T13:49:00.001-06:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with my family. The four of us (Benson included) headed up to Charlotte, NC to be with my family for the holiday. We got there and set up camp. Jax did very well on the trip there, poor kid has been sick for over a week now. My brother Ken, and his wife Adriane and son, Nico joined us on Wednesday. We had a good time together and had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal on Thursday. Thanks to Kroger I made a Pumpkin Struesel pie that was a HIT! It was very yummy. We had plenty of fun and kept busy while we were there. Mom joined us for some shopping at the local square there and then Saturday the whole family was brave enough to make our way to Concord Mills...we definately shopped 'til we dropped. We came home Sunday and were faced with bad weather and bad traffic. A trip that normally takes us 5 hours turned into 8. Jax had enough by the end of that trip. I am so thankful for the memories we made with family over the holiday. Jax went down his first slide and took his first steps. He is now being shy about the whole walking thing, but I'm sure its due to his cold. He's looking and acting better today...no runny nose. I have add one more thing. The other day I was facebooking with my friend Carolyn and we were reminising about two Thanksgivings ago when we were all around her dinner table for the celebration. They had paper feathers for us all to write our "thankful things" on. We, being the smarty pants we are, we put something to the effect of: We are thankful that we don't have any annoying children. Well, who would have known that God took that message and changed it for good. Not that Jax is annoying, well not all the time. Now we have a constant reminder of God's miracles and blessing...we wake up to him waving at us every morning. Thank you Carolyn for sharing that memory with me.

So here are some pictures of Jax in the leaves at my parents' place over the weekend

CHRISTMAS!

2008-11-19T12:36:00.000-06:00

We set up our tree early this year. We will be traveling quite a bit and then have to pack things up early. Jaxon loves when we turn the lights on the tree every night. He's so cute...now I know everyone says the same thing about their child...but really he is. Last year Ryan and I started a new tradition where we buy an ornament to represent those we will spend Christmas with. So I thought I would share this year's ornaments with you all. A special one goes out to the Kicklighters, we spend EVERY Thursday evening with them...there are so many of them its hard to keep up. So as our family begins to celebrate the holidays, we hope the Spirit of the Holidays is blowing your way. Love to you all!

Cha - Cha- Cha- Changes

2008-11-08T09:51:00.001-06:00

Change – it’s a word all those living in the States have heard A LOT lately. Change happens every day and to everyone. Those who embrace it are blessed and those who don’t are missing out. So many things change this time of year there are so many things that go through change. We’ve had a change in a president, a change in gas prices, a change in the type clothing we wear, leaves changing into their fiery colors, and even our little man Jaxon is changing by doing “big boy” stuff.
My family is also making some changes. On January 12th we will change our home once again to Mexico City. We are more than eager about going back, but change can be difficult. This time around in Mexico our environment will be different. We are going to be the new caretakers of the Pink House. This is exciting and bittersweet. Although we look forward to new challenges and adventures, the people that once graced that house are gone. Billy and Belinda have long since been away and now those that we consider more than just friends and more like family; Jacob, Amanda, Adah, and Noah are now going through their own change of re-adjusting in Texas. The house WILL NOT be the same without these people, but we are thankful for the history and memories and we look forward to making some history and memories of our own.
Leaving the States this time is also a new adjustment for us. We feel God’s pull for us to be in Mexico, even more than before, but now there is a little guy named Jax involved. We know that this is the best decision for our family but we know it will be difficult on our parents and siblings that their grandchild and nephew will be far away. There is always that feeling that you want your child to grow up around cousins and grandparents; I mean, isn’t that part of the American Family? However, Jax will have so many opportunities in Mexico. We have only seen the positive of those who have spent years of their childhood in a different culture and how that has opened so many doors. In a world that we find it difficult to be tolerable of people “different” than us, we hope to provide Jax with the realization that we really are all the same. Background, family life, skin color, and such are just part of our make-up…when it comes down to it, we are all on this journey of finding God who is also making his way to us as we make our way to Him. That’s how we are designed.
So now we are packing and working on the CHANGE that comes our way. We are even putting up the Christmas tree early since we want to enjoy it for a while before we just have to take it down soon to pack.
A little about Jax. He is trying so hard to walk. He wants it…he desires it…he craves it, but it also means change for him…a lot of bumps and bruises that is. He has some funny things he does now. He politely goes into another room to fill his diaper and then crawls into our room with a smile for a diaper switch. He also goes to his chair when he’s hungry and says “eat” which really just sounds like “EEE EEE!” Then when he’s done he claps his hands once and says, “Da. Da.” (Done). It’s very cute and helpful. He also loves Fraggle Rock. Ryan and I rented a few episodes for our own entertainment and then Jax start shakin’ his booty and clapping…he gets way too excited. He has turned into the drool factory again which means molars are on their way in. He’s now a healthy 27lbs and 30 inches long. He’s healthy and happy. Who would have thought that little bird boy born at 3lbs would be doing so well? God, that’s who…and he reminds us every day!
I will close for now. There are so many things I ask that you all pray for. The Henderson family; for all their adjustments and memory making. We can’t wait to see you guys! For our friend Evin and her husband, Jason; the birth of their first son is just around the corner and then Jason is being deployed to Afghanistan. I can’t even imagine…our thoughts are with you guys! For our one-time support…we’re still searching…any takers? *wink* *wink* For our families, the Grays and the Brunswigs, us leaving will be hard and tearful. For the hearts of those in Mexico…that our role there will just be a role in the church like any other member. We want to integrate and love and share God. For the congregation here in Newnan…they continue to go through many changes; aren’t God people constantly doing this? Pray for the hearts of the leaders.

Here are a few pictures of my boys for Halloween. Ryan and his creepy version of a sleazy car salesman.

“Time changes everything except something within us which is always surprised by change.” – Thomas Hardy

Knit Knacks

2008-10-29T08:11:00.000-06:00

Just thought I would let everyone see my first knitting project. I owe a lot of thanks to my good friend Rosemarie. She's awesome and can do just about anything. Just when I thought Jax couln't look any cuter, I put this stocking cap and on and TADA! Anywho, we are doing fine here. The time is closing in on our big move. I can't believe it. So much to do and so little time. I love you all. Enjoy the pics!

Go BIG Or Don't Go At All!

2008-10-22T08:11:00.000-05:00

Well all my dear friends and family…I did it. I just arrived home from my very first trip away from Jax. It was a long time coming. Now, some of you may think differently. I know some of my friends who still haven’t left their children and they are older. It’s been a 15 months since my baby was born…and I was dying for a getaway. Being that Ryan and I were “older” (whatever that means), than most of our friends when they had children, we were even more use to our “alone” time. Anywho…all that aside…when I began to think where I would take my little escape the first thing I knew was that I didn’t want to go it alone. Granted, Ryan had Jax…which he was so incredibly awesome about. Jaxon and Ryan are like two peas in a pod and love to play and eat junk…so that aspect was all settled. So, who would I go with and where would I go? The answer was clear…Big Creek, MS to spend a luxurious extended weekend with my dear friend Ang.
That’s right! We ate granola, drank cappuccinos, washed our hair with Tea Tree heaven, got our groove on with yoga in the mornings, and I even gave tennis a try. Poor Ang, I’m sure Big Creek is still wondering who was doing all that screaming at the tennis court. I became one with nature as we rode the ranger out on the trails, had some GREAT ribs and chicken, and even became familiar with the phrase, “callin’ the law.” I’m sure there will be talk of me freakin’ out over the sound of a broken window and me fearfully shaking and saying, “Are we just going to sit here and let them kill us?” Oh, yes…never a dull moment with Ang. We laughed TOO much, did some wig wearin’, spaghetti squash eatin’, and some Elvis and Patsy Cline listenin’. I was treated like a princess the entire time and had the delight of dining with Buddy & Lisa and none other than the legendary Carter and Martha Ann. I had so much fun that I even stayed an extra day with the “okay” of a encouraging husband.
So, some may ask what my favorite part of the trip was. Well, I’ll tell you. After our meal at the steak house, some local folks put on a show singing some great Elvis and Patsy Cline goodies. Although Ang and I were a little creeped out (*wink* *wink* Angie!), “Patsy Cline” began to sing Sweet Dreams of You, Carter Burns yelled, “That’s my song!” He made his way over to his charming wife and asked her to dance. They then swayed with each other under the lights. The best part was the look on their faces and the love that was exchanged through laughter and sweet kisses on the cheeks. Angie and I couldn’t help but tear up. It was a pivotal moment for me.
As I sat there in the cold watching this couple, I couldn’t help but think of the leading man in my life that was at home caring for our child. I couldn’t help but wonder if Ryan and I give each other those looks and smiles in front of crowds of people. When we made it back to casa de Angie, I was sharing with her the overpowering thoughts I had from watching her parents. Then she said to me, “You and Ryan will be the same way.” I smiled and then said, “I hope so.”
I hope so. Our first year together with a baby has been anything but trouble-free. We’ve learned more about ourselves and I think at times, we were even flabbergasted that there was more to learn. As our time as a family of three lengthens, I believe Ryan and I learn about this new love we have for each other.
So yes Ang, I believe Ryan and I got what it takes to dance under the lights with some creepy person singing Styx in the background.

Caverns, Haircuts, and Football, Oh My!

2008-09-13T09:31:00.000-05:00

This is an exciting time for my little family. We have been busy with Jax...just trying to keep up with the crawling, pulling-up, trying-to-walk, cutting-four-teeth-at-once, bumping-his-head-everywhere, little guy has been a change of pace. He's a treat and every stage he enters is so much fun. He's trying so hard to stand on his own and learning on the way that some things aren't as sturdy as others. He's suffered a busted lip and a knock to the head that we thought for sure would leave a bruise for great pictures, but no such luck.

My in-laws were here this past week. We had a great time and Jaxon loved seeing his Pawpaw and Mimi. He loved waking up in the mornings and having them there to greet him with kisses and hugs. The day they left, and after his nap, I brought him out to the living room. On our way down the hall he had this huge smile on his face and then we got to the living room and no one was there. "Sorry kid, its just the two of us," I said. That smile went away and he just starred at me...the feeling was mutual. I always have a hard time when Bourley and Rita leave. Its fun to be busy with family and being out and about.

Let's see, there's a picture of Ryan and Jax at the DeSoto Caverns in Alabama. Ryan enjoys these little excursions that the two of them have together. They went to their first football game last night. Those two are the greatest men I know. I am so freakin' lucky!!

So the day after Bourley and Rita left, we took Jax for his first haircut. He really enjoyed walking in and seeing all the cool cartoon-like things they had there...and then he was strapped in the chair, a bib was put around his neck and then some lady started messing around with him. Number one, Jaxon hates, I mean HATES to be messed with. Number two, the poor kid has never, until this moment, been strapped to a chair and had a bib put around him and NOT recieved some food. So, I'm sure in his mind he was like, "What? Where's my food?" and "Who's this lady messin' with my hair? Why is she putting that machine that buzzes next to my head?" In the end he survived it all and looked super cute. How could he not?

That's about it for now except I have to share with you my favorite "Mom" moment I've had these past few weeks. We are in a one bedroom apartment at the moment until we get back to Mexico, so that means Jaxon shares the room with us. The other morning, WAAAAAY too early for Jaxon to be up...he was standing up in his crib, grabbing the rails and shaking them, looking at Ryan and I, yelling repeatedly, "Mama!" "Dada!" "Mama!" "Dada!" I guess he was ready to start the day.

Words That Rhyme With Blog (and a recent picture of Jax)

2008-08-28T13:34:00.000-05:00

Hello blog world. Its been a while since I last posted, but we've been as busy as ever. Jax and I went to North Carolina for about a week to visit my parents. We had a great time, and its always hard to say good-bye. We will see them soon when they come down for my nephew, Nico's 1st birthday. These boys are growing up so fast. My oldest nephew Grayson started High School this year...holy cannoli! Then Graham started Jr. High...another wowzers...then little Griffin isn't so little anymore...he start Kindergarten...he's a big boy and I hear he likes P.E. best of all. There are too many boys in this family, but at the same time not enough. I love them all and feel so blessed to have such a large and great family.

Jaxon is crawling of course, and pulling up on everything...his favorite thing is to give the RAAAASBERRY,(a shout out to all Spaceball fans), thanks to his Pops. He does it in the car all the time and absolutley soaks his shirts. I have broken him of the habit of doing it while he's eating. Still no sign of his top front teeth, but his eye teeth are poking through, perfect for a little vampire for Halloween.

So this picture was taken today as Jax and I were playing peek-a-boo. Enjoy.

Oh, and words that rhyme with Blog:

1.Agog
2.Analog
3.Ants on a Log
4.Bog
5.Clog
6.Cog
7.Catalog
8.Dialog
9.Dog
10.Egg nog
11.Fog
12.Frog
13.Groung Hog
14.Hog
15.Ideologue
16.Jog
17.Kellogg (TM)
18.Leap frog
19.Pollywog (my personal fav)
20.Prague
21.Smog
22.Snog
23.Sog
24.Tagalog
25.Unimog

Got anymore? What's your fav?

Wow! What a Year!

2008-07-30T08:49:00.001-05:00

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I can't believe our little Jax has turned a year old! In some ways he was the eternal infant with him being so small for so long. However, now a year later, he weighs 23 pounds, exactly 20 pounds more than he did the day he was born. We hope you enjoy the slide show. I couldn't have wished for a better birthday for my son. We were able to go to Columbus, GA and visit some of those that took care of him (and us) while he was in the NICU. When we arrived at the Ronald McDonald House, they had cooked cupcakes for him and he loved it. We then headed over to the hospital to see as many of the staff as possible. You'll see pictures of him with some of our favs. Our deepest apologies to Evin...don't hate us...we tried to get there earlier. Amy, we thought you were working that day, but never ran into you. We will be there again this Christmas...looking forward to seeing you all. Seeing Bobby was great. He hadn't see Jax since he left the hospital, so it was a special moment for us all. We love you Amanda and Adriane!

We had Jaxon's big party on the 27th. Everyone we hoped would be there, was. Jaxon loved having "Happy Birthday" sung to him, but he loved his own personal smash cake all to himself. We were regretting letting him eat that later on that evening. He raked in the gifts and was loved on enough to last him till next year. My parents came down for the weekend and it was a blast. For those of you who have been continuously praying for my mother's health, thank you. She is doing so much better and even babysat Jax for an afternoon as Dad and I went and saw The Dark Night. I haven't been on a "date" with Dad in ages...I loved it. It was a terrific weekend and looking back, our small family has had a great year. We love being a family and I love being a mom, even when Jax is "testing" his vocal chords and screaming in my face.

To all of you who have been celebrating Jaxon's life this past year, we thank you. Jaxon has so many people who love him and that means the world to us.

Ryan Turns 34!

2008-07-22T11:33:00.000-05:00

Although Ryan and Jax share the same birthday, we threw Ryan a suprise party down in Mexico. Meagan Jarboe, Amanda Henderson, and I stayed up till 1 in the morning Friday evening making a cake to look like him. We had a lot of fun and definately made some memories. We took Ryan to our favorite Italian place in DF for a great meal and then showed up at the Pink House for a great surprise. Here are some photos of the cake and from the party. We hope you enjoy. Jax's 1st Birthday party is Sunday, so I will have some pictures from his celebration!

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Get your own

2008-07-22T11:31:00.000-05:00

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Mexico City Mission Experience

2008-07-22T11:12:00.000-05:00

The Mexico City Mission Experience Team from Newnan church of Christ has now returned and are busy sharing their stories and pictures. We are so excited about the success of the trip and the lives that were touched. Even though we were able to lend a helping hand to those in DF and Apaxco, I believe that the hearts and lives that were mostly touched were ours. Ryan, Jax, and I stayed on in DF for a few extra days, and people were still talking about the presence of the group. We are so proud to be a part of the Newnan church of Christ and this group of 25 that poured their blood (yes there was blood), sweat, and tears to those down south. I love you MCME Team and feel privileged to have had this experience with you and now be connected a more special way. Now that we ALL are back, I am looking forward to sitting down with everyone and reflecting on our time in the one of the largest cities in the world.

Introducing....BOBBY!

2008-06-18T21:39:00.000-05:00

As I begin to think about Jax's first birthday, I've been doing a lot of reminiscing of the past year of Jaxon's life. Besides us being there for every step, someone else has been by Jax's side since he was born. If you haven't had the pleasure of meeting Bobby, I would like to take the opportunity to introduce him to you. Bobby is Jax's best friend. He's been here since the beginning and continues to go everywhere with Jax now. Bobby was given to Jax by his Pawpaw and Mimi when he was in the NICU. Bobby was the one constant that slept by Jaxon's side when he was at Columbus Regional. He slept in the incubator with Jax, was there when he was sick and had to be put back on the ventilator. We have so many pictures of Jax with Bobby and this one is the most recent. So, Bobby huh? You might be interested in knowing how we came about this name. While we spent time in Columbus, where they took care of our baby boy, we developed some friendships along the way with some of the staff at the NICU. We joke now every time we go down there that we feel like we are going home. There is a sense of comfort that comes when we walk through the doors of that hospital...I know, weird. Anyway, although we love everyone at the NICU there and know that they all work as a team, there were a few that will always hold a special place in our hearts.

Amanda, who was there when Jaxon got so sick. She did not hesitate at all to comfort us with hugs and kind words that night when we were so scared. She was a amazing. Just sitting here thinking about the love she showed our family brings tears to my eyes.

Then there is Debbie. Debbie was a hoot to be around. We were always excited with she had Jax on her shift. We sat and talked all the time. She shared pictures of her family with us, and her HUGE DOGS! She loves those dogs. She was the one that really got me to "get in there" and bond with Jax. I remember her words, "He won't break!" How did she know that on that day I was having the hardest time with the fear that when I held him I would do something wrong? She taught me how to hold him when he needed to be fed and was the biggest encourager of Kanagroo Care!

Adriane. There isn't enough we can say about nurse Adriane. She has our sick sense of humor and had a knack of making us feel miles away from the sterile environment of the NICU. With just one smile and one smart comment. We love seeing her and she is always the first to grab Jax when we go to visit.

Now there is Evin (she's going to kill me if I am spelling her name wrong). She is one of the social workers at for the NICU. There is only one word to describe this incredibly bright woman...AWESOMENESS! I can't begin to imagine how difficult her work is, however, I do know enough to know that she SEES and HEARS IT ALL! So that day when she was going about her job and made that first initial contact with us, I know she had now idea what she was going to run up against. I'm sure that is a daily thought that passes her mind. We had no preconceived thoughts of what a NICU Social Worker would be like, so we just treated her like anyone else we were getting to know there and she did the same with us. Although I am sure there are families in hospitals around this country that dread their visits from the social workers, Evan (notice different spelling) always made us feel at ease when we say her walking our way. Now she has one on the way and we are SUPER excited!

Amy, Amy, Amy...the other NICU social worker. She's fun, has the most infectious smile, and boy, is she as smart as a whip!? I've had the privilege of getting to know Amy through the Parent Advisory Council there at Columbus Regional. From the beginning, she made me feel welcomed and at home. I love it when she calls my cell and I miss it, because I know she we always comment on the music she listens to while waiting to leave a message.

So, last but certainly not the least is Robert, for whom Bobby was blessed with his name. I suppose Robert is one of those people, well you know, you either love him or you hate him. I suppose the reason he holds a special place in our hearts is that he was there for Ryan. He was so good, calm, annoying, funny, smart...and well he loves movies. So Ryan gravitated toward him. Robert could go on for hours about one scene in a movie and so could Ryan. Talking with Robert helped flush out the many noises in the NICU. We always found him refreshing and a pleasure to be around. He had a way of lightening the mood when things were tense. So, possessing all these qualities left us with no other choice than to name Jaxon's sock monkey Bobby.

Bobby, the mighty sock monkey. Poor guy has been peed on, pooped on, spit-up on, drooled on, sneezed on, and coughed on. He rides along with Jax in his car seat, hangs on for dear life in the stroller, and still sleeps with Jax every night. The latest game Jax and Bobby play together is wrestling on the floor...Bobby usually wins.

We truly love everyone there at Columbus Regional. They are amazing people. That hospital has been great to us. We are looking forward to taking Jaxon back down to Columbus to celebrate his 1st year. We have pictures with many of these staff members and are looking forward to taking more. So those of you there in Columbus who will read there, be prepared...WE ARE COMING!!!!!!

Family News

2008-06-11T17:53:00.000-05:00

As many of you know, Mom went into the hospital Monday morning. She was admitted into ICU in Charlotte due to elevated blood sugar and high blood acid levels. Although she is in a regular room now, she is still having problems with keeping her blood sugar at a normal level. It continues to spike and then drop. Her blood pressure is better than the day they brought her in. Ryan, Jaxon, and I are here in Charlotte and helping anyway we can. My brother and his family also joined us here. Today I was able to sit down with the doctor at the hospital and had a great conversation. I voiced my concerns about her short-term memory and confusion. I mentioned that I felt that this went beyond her problems controlling her diabetes. Her doctor was great and now will have a neurologist consultation and a brain MRI. They are starting her from scratch with her insulin intake and her diet. This has been scary and we are determined to get to the bottom of what is going on with her. Mom will remain in the hospital at least until Friday but will probably end up staying over the weekend. Please keep Mom in your prayers and also pray for us that we ask all the questions we need to in order to get Mom the help she needs.

Also, in case you haven't heard, we continue to ask for prayers for Jacob, Amanda, Adah, and Noah Henderson. Little Noah is undergoing some serious health tests. We are asking that you specifically pray for miracles and complete healing. We ask God that his body is clean of anything that can harm him. Noah and his family are in God's hands, so ask God to have mercy and heal this sweet boy!

Ah! Peace and Quiet!

2008-05-26T16:41:00.000-05:00

This past weekend I spent my very first night away from Jax since he has been home. Let me tell you, it was a blast. I don't usually go to bed until late, because I wait till everyone else is asleep to have "me" time. So I took a bubble bath, watched some t.v., and then went to bed early. I did wake up at 6:30 but looked at the clock and said, "NO WAY!" The morning was the oddest part, not having to fix a bottle for Jax ontop of other morning rituals. Benson and I just enjoyed taking the morning slow with coffee and the Today Show.

So where were Ryan and Jaxon? Well they joined some friends from church for a camping and BBQ weekend. They spent the night, dipped their feet into West Point Lake, and ate some BBQ. So here are some pictures of Jax with his dew-rag and something that screams..."We're in the SOUTH!"

Back To Mexico

2008-05-08T20:55:00.001-05:00

Some of you may have heard already, and I think I may have mentioned the fact that we are in the middle of making our way back to Mexico. It hasn't even been a year yet, but our hearts are yanking us south of the border. Not too long ago, the elders here at Newnan had a meeting with Ryan and were very encouraging in saying that they don't want to keep missionaries off the field. Even though we have gained much knowledge and we know there is more education to take place here, our home is among our family in Mexico.

Now we are taking steps for our return and what we consider, our final move. Although the decision to go back was an easy one, it was still difficult to tell family. Deep down I believe both sides knew that we would not stay in the States for long, but now there is a grandchild in the picture. I realize that it is difficult for the grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins to swallow this decision, but to actually come out and say it left somewhat of a bittersweet taste in my mouth. I suppose that since my side of the family isn’t large, I want that sense of unity among us. Ryan’s family is large and we want Jax to really belong. Well, when it all comes down to it, we will share and grow with our families and love and know each other just as well as the others, we will just have to work at it a little harder and go about it in some creative ways.

So anywho, we’re sending off the packet to Bell Trust soon, we’ve talked to some of our previous supporters, and if God sees fit, we may be back as early as January, but more realistically, by the end of next summer. We are moving out of our house now and renting a smaller place with a 6 month lease. So plans are being made and we now have an incredible sponsoring congregation through Newnan.

PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE pray for our fund raising. We need all the help we can get. So if you want to help us out, know of someone who will, or you yourself have recently left the field and can point us in the direction of some of your previous supporters, let me know. Letters are waiting to be sent! I thank you in advance for your prayers and well wishes.
I promise the next blog (when I think of the word “blog” I always hear it with a vomiting sound) will not be so serious!

Walk For Babies!

2008-04-26T19:52:00.001-05:00

Some of you know that I serve on the Parent Advisory Council (PAC) at Columbus Regional Medical Center in Columbus, Georgia. This is the hospital where Jax was for 6 weeks in the NICU. Well, Columbus Regional was the title sponsor for our region's March Of Dimes walk this year. The PAC was the host of the event. It was a huge sucess and everyone looked great in their bright blue shirts (designed by your's truly).
It was a special day for our family. We were able to see some of our favorite doctors and nurses from the NICU. You'll see a picture of Evin with Jax. She was our social worker while at Columbus Regional. She has turned into a great friend. In the middle are the members of the PAC with their families. There are only about 10-15 members of the PAC, so you can see that their families came to support us all. Then there is Ryan finishing up our walk. We walked today celebrating Jaxon's life and the progress he has made. You wouldn't even know by looking at him that he was two months early. He now weights 19 1/2 pounds and is 26 inches long! BIG BOY! His smile is infectious and his laugh will make your heart leap. So we walked with pride for 2 miles with other families that have similar stories to ours, but also for some of those whose babies didn't make it. The T-Shirt says: "Marching Together To Conquer Prematurity. Be a Hero to the Tiniest Babies."
There was someone else we walked for today. Laston Dennis. He is the son of our friends Ginger and Jon. Laston was born in January and still remains in the NICU in Atlanta. Even though he has gained plenty of weight it seems that the rest of him is having a hard time catching up. He is now the oldest baby in that NICU and I know that Ginger has come to her wits end time and time again. We are praying for Laston and the entire Dennis family...won't you do the same?

Sock Monkey Heaven

2008-04-17T09:22:00.000-05:00

Here’s our boy with some of his sock monkeys. He loves nothing more than his monkeys (except for a little fox named Cesar). We did his room in sock monkeys and other vintage toys. He’s now starting to notice all the things on his shelves. It’s just a matter of time before he’ll want to pull everything down.

Things here are going well and we are still adjusting to parenthood…this is a lifelong process, I’m sure of it. Anywho…so we are super busy here at the moment. This weekend is our first fundraiser with the group that is going to Mexico City this summer. We are having a huge yard sale is the parking lot of the building and we are selling BBQ plates. A man at the congregation makes some of the best BBQ and he was kind enough to offer his services to our fundraising efforts. Everyone at NCC really stepped up and donated a lot of things for the yard sale…we know we will be successful! We also plan on having some other group fundraisings events, but everyone is also writing letters and doing something on their own to raise their funds. We already have our tickets reserved and the deposit has been paid. We are on our way! We can’t wait for this group to get a glimpse of what we love and are so passionate for.

So speaking of Mexico City and fundraising, here’s the scoop… After being back in the States now for 10 months we are beginning to make our plans to return back to Mexico City. It is home for us and we are homesick. The elders at NCC know this also and have stated that they do not wish to keep missionaries off the field. So, we are in the beginning stages of returning home. Our plans are to be back no later than the end of next summer, which is really just right around the corner. This is a final move for us, our hearts are there in Mexico and so we belong there as well.

Just to put a bug in all of your ears…if you have anyone whom you know that would LOVE to support us in prayer and/or finances, we are on the search. Let us know and we will get in touch with them. Even though it is a little over a year away, we can’t start too soon. Please pray for us. Pray for our journey here in Newnan as it continues. We are learning so much here that we will be able to carry into our next step in life.

"Life is like getting dropped off in the middle of the woods, and then year by year, gradulayy walking home." April Foiles

You Might Be A Redneck If...

2008-04-10T09:28:00.000-05:00

You might be a redneck if your baby is teething and he looks like this. We took this picture earlier this week. My parents gave Jax this pacifier a while back and we thought it was perfect to show off. Jax is still going through the stage of teething but has yet to cut any teeth yet. So, we wait "patiently" through the fevers, pain, and screaming till his first tooth pops out. This past week Ryan's parents were here and we all took a trip to Savannah. I have only 2 words to say about this city...Absolutely Amazing! It is so beautiful and we had a great time. If you ever go, eat at Vic's on the river...great restaurant. So Jax has two new tricks...he's sitting on his own now and is also shaking his head no. I owe these two things to his Mimi. She really worked hard this past week with his sitting. Thank you so much Rita. Sometimes I know Jax gets bored with his mother and needs someone else, his Mimi is perfect. Jaxon will turn 9 months old this month...its hard to believe how fast he is growing. Just this morning Ryan and I were watching him jump in the living room and Ryan said..."He's the best thing we've ever done." There could be nothing more true!

The Tales of Jax

2008-03-15T11:16:00.000-06:00

Jaxon has been through a lot this last week. He received his last RSV shot, we're happy those are over. Did you know that those shots are only for preemies and that they are a whopping $2,000 a pop!? Jaxon has gotten one of these once a month since he's come home from the hospital. That means that just in those shots alone, he's worth $14,000. That's one exspensive baby if you include his birth and NICU, but we won't go there. Jax also had a check-up with his doctor and she says that he doesn't even look like a preemie anymore. He weighs 17.9 pounds and is 24 inches long. He's a big boy and starting to sit up on his own. He loves his food and is now only really wanting his bottle in the morning and right before he goes to bed. Jaxon also went and got his passport picture taken this past week. That's it above. We are gearing up for Mexico! We are getting so excited, especially after speaking with several of our friends down there. We just can't wait for Jaxon to meet everyone. So, apart from all these little mile stones that Jaxon is reaching, he is also scaring his parents. Jax has now entered the phase of screaming when he wants something. Now we knew that if we ever had a biological child that we were doomed. Both Ryan and I were "attention-getters" in one way or the other when we were little (ok, maybe we still are), so of course Jax will be. The only thing is that we didn't realize that it was going to start so soon. His thing right now is that if we are both home, he wants both of us in the same room as him. One of us doesn't do the trick. He yells, with this high-pitched squeal if one of us walks out. He's something else...especially when he's screaming and one of us picks him up, then he smiles at the other one like, "HA! SEE, I KNEW I WOULD GET MY WAY!". Amazing, absolutley amazing...and its all just starting. So that's him in a nutshell for now. Hope you all have a great weekend. Our love to everyone!

No Rest For the Weary

2008-03-07T09:48:00.000-06:00

After a week of Jaxon and I both being ill, we are finally feeling "normal." I put this in quotes because I am sure there will be comments on either one of us being labeled as normal. So anywho, we are feeling better and are ready to get back into the swing of things. Everything is about to pick back up and we will be busy again. We have begun meetings for a group from NCC to go to Mexico City this summer. We are super excited about the response we had from the congregation in those wanting to go. We expected a lot of interest from the youth but were stunned to find that we had more adults interested. We will have our commitment meeting this Sunday and then begin making plans to have some fundraising activities as a group.

Ryan has been busy with work of course and in a couple of weeks will be traveling to Mobile, Alabama with the youth for Leadership Training for Christ (LTC). The youth has participated in this event every year and Ryan has been working with the group focusing on praise and worship. I plan on going to my parents' place for an extended weekend. A week after Ryan returns his parents are coming. We are very excited for them to come and see how much their newest grandson has grown since Christmas. I can't wait! I am busy with the church’s website, working on some design things for upcoming church events, and so forth.

I would like to ask you all to pray for a particular family. The Dennis family has been visiting at NCC for quite some time. They also have a little boy named Jaxon, spelled the same and everything, he’s 4…well, Ginger the mother gave birth to another little boy almost 6 weeks ago. Laston came way early, like our little Jaxon. He is still in the NICU here in Atlanta and is growing well, but is still having problems with some respiratory things and his iron is still low. Please keep Laston and his family in your prayers. I know that Ginger is having a hard time and just wants her baby home. It seems as though it has been an eternity for her. Pray that Laston heals perfectly and quickly that he can join the rest of his family at home.

Ok, signing off for now…don’t forget to set your clocks ahead!

Pooh Pooh On You!

2008-02-22T14:34:00.000-06:00

Anyone who knows me well knows that I am not a Winnie the Pooh advocate. However, when some one gives you an outfit...one that isn't lost in the mix of a baby shower...and more importantly, when it is given to you by a good friend, you have to put it on your child and take a picture. My good friend, Rosemarie Gagnon gave little Jax this overall set as a Christmas gift. I have to admit, although it pains me to do so, that he's looks way too cute in it. (But he looks cute in EVERYTHING!) My sister-in-law put a spell on me! I remember when she and Rita came to visit Jax after he came home, she said, "I hope someone gives you a Pooh outfit that you end up liking." Well Shauna, here it is but please don't take this as though I'll be wanting everything little thing to be Pooh. So to all of those who did a "WHAT?!" or a "WHAT YOU TALKIN' 'BOUT?!" when it came to me not liking good ole Winnie...well POOH POOH on you!

It's The Circle of Drool! (insert Elton John's voice here)

2008-02-13T10:54:00.000-06:00

Look how cute 6-month-old Jax is. Pretty cute huh? Happy and awake, peaceful and asleep. Jax is now teething, so all of you parents know that those times are treasured. Jaxon is grabbing at everything in sight to jam into his mouth. Funny thing is that this action is always preceeded with a growl. He growls at everything. Its funny, except for during the quietest moment of worship service on Sunday. So along with that comes a lot of excess saliva. That's right...its everywhere; it oozes from his mouth to ours during the "super baby" flights, its strings from his hair to our hair, its drips from his hands to our cheeks, and it seeps from the corners of his smile onto Ryan's goatee. Poor kid is perpetually in a bib...no point buying him cute clothes...can't see them. (Although, I did have an incident with a cute outfit earlier today...that involved stuff from his other end.) His favorite toy, Cesar (thanks to Adah and Noah Henderson) is now his favorite thing to gnaw. Boy, he can spot that little fox a mile away, you give it to him, then comes the growl, and then the slobber. So, what have I learned...well, boys start drooling around this time and continue until they die. As babes, they drool because they can't help it, then they drool over things such as food, girls, (claiming they can't help it) and cars, you name it, then they drool again in their old age (again, not being able to control it.) Its the circle of life...The Circle of Drool.

I leave you now with this great quote: "If you were to open up a baby's head - and I am not for a moment suggesting that you should - you would find nothing but an enormous drool gland. - Dave Barry

Thirsty for more!

2008-01-20T10:54:00.000-06:00

We're back. It's been a while I know. As soon as we set up our new blog, our motherboard to our pc kicked the bucket. We were lucky enough to find a good deal and replace the computer. Thank goodness. So, our holidays were the best! We kicked things off with a Christmas party for Jax at the Columbus NICU where he stayed. We were able to show him off and re-connect with the doctors and nurses there. We were amazed of the overwhelming feeling of "going back home" that we felt when we were there. That place is so familiar to us. We are blessed with our new friendships there at the hospital and the Ronald McDonald House. After that celebration we then whisked off to Lubbock to have Jax's first Christmas with his Mimi and PawPaw. Our other nephews were able to meet Jax for the first time. Graham just gravitated towards him and boy did Jax love his cousins! While back in the Hubb City we had the pleasure of meeting baby Noah and seeing our family, the Moores and Hendersons. It was an event...a blessed one with so many little ones running around. A big thanks to the Jarboes for having us all get together...it meant more to us than you realize. We then made our way back to the ATL and settled back into the swing of things. But not too long after that, we celebrated our Christmas with my side. My parents came down from Charlotte and my brother and sister-in-law came over with our new nephew, Nico. Man, these two new grandboys were spoiled by their Pops and Nana! We had a great time and I cooked my first official Christmas dinner, ham and all without a hitch! I'm becoming quite domestic...guess it took a kid for that! So now, finally, and I mean now...as in last night, we took our Christmas decorations down. We loved Christmas this past year. We had so much to be thankful and so much to celebrate. With this new year we hope to remain as wide-eyed as Jax above! Wide-eyed and amazed with what God has in store for the NCC congregation, our family, and for all of God's Kingdom. We thirst to learn and experience more. God has some great things planned...we can feel it!

We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a
list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance
the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives... not looking for
flaws, but for potential. ~Ellen Goodman

Santa's Stinker!

2007-11-30T17:48:00.001-06:00

Yes, we are finally making our way back to the world wide web. It's been a long time coming, but as most of you know, its been an eventful 6 months since our return to the States. Jax made his appearance 2 months early...exactly on his Dad's birthday and weighing 3lbs., just about the same as Ryan did when he was born. Jaxon was in the NICU in Columbus, Georgia for 6 weeks. It was the longest six weeks of our lives and we had some major scares when Jaxon got staff infection. Jax is doing a lot better now and now weighs 11lbs. He's starting to smile a lot and is the biggest stinker we know. In fact, his first Sunday at services as Ryan was holding him up and introducing him, he greeted the congregation with the loudest toot we've ever heard. Only parents such as ourselves would be so proud. Adjustment to parenthood has been exciting. We love every minute of it and getting up in the middle of the night is worth it all when we walk into the room and he greets us with a sweet smile.
Well, now that we are back amongst the "living" we hope to use this blog to entertain family and friends with our weekly (maybe daily) happenings. We love to share our lives and hope to reconnect with some of those we've lost contact with.