30 Days!!!

I can hardly believe that we will be in New Zealand in 30 days!!!  THIRTY!!!  Wow!  These next few weeks are going to go FAST!  I can already feel the wind in my hair!  
Bryce and I are in St. Louis meeting with our team.  I am excited to spend the weekend with these great friends and do a little sight seeing.  I'll post some pics next time.  Hope you have a good weekend!  And to you scrappy followers, Happy National Scrapbooking Day!  : )
Cheers!

Aden's Slippers

Yesterday I bought Aden new slippers. He has been wearing his Bob the Builder ones that he got for his second birthday. He is now 6 1/2! His toes have been crammed in there all scrunched up. I found these new slippers on the clearance isle at Walmart. I thought that they would be big on him and perfect by the time we got to New Zealand for winter. I was wrong. He only has about 1/2 an inch left in them! My how that child is growing. Not only did he love them, he hadn't taken them off since he got them. This morning he woke up with them on, at breakfast with them on, and was even going to walk out the door for the bus with them on. He did do a quick shoe change for school but my guess is when he gets home, the slippers go back on. I love that he just loves them so. Warm and cozy, just like my love for him.

Cheers!

God's Quilt

Sunday as we were sitting in church, Aden made a very observant comment. We had a free Sunday so we visited a church in Topeka that we had never been to before. Aden chose to stay with us during the church service so we let him pick where we sat. His pick? The balcony! As we were waiting for the service to begin, he commented that it looked like a quilt down below us. He was so right! The colors that everyone was wearing, the different hair colors and styles, all combined it did look like a quilt. I'm not a quilter. Ok, I did do each of the boys an embrodery block quilt for when they were born, but that's about it. I do know that when making a quilt special care goes into picking the material, cutting it into pieces, and putting it together.

Aden's comment got me to thinking. God has hand picked us just like a quilter would. He has lovingly ran his hands over our make up, our "material" if you will. He has taken the time to bind us together. This makes me think of the song that goes like this....bind us together Lord, bind us together. Bind us together with cords that cannot be broken. Bind us together, Lord, bind us together. Bind us together with love. I am thankful that not only has God hand picked me, but that He bound me together with great family, friends, and Christians. And all with a loving hand. May God's love bind you with someone this week. May that love cover you like a beautiful quilt.

Rain and thunder

Rain, rain, and more rain. The rain stopped and the sun made a feeble attempt to come out around 5:00 this afternoon. More rain is expected for tomorrow. This forcast doesn't dampen my spirit at all though. Actually, I love the rain. Today was especially nice since the rain was accompanied by thunder.

Hearing thunder takes me back to when I was a kid. I remember my mom telling me that I would ask her to open my window so I could hear the thunder better. Side note, I also liked to have a lamp on so I wouldn't see the lightening. Thanks, Mom! : ) Back to the thunder.....I also have memories of thunder in the Colorado Rockies. We would camp there each summer. Almost every afternoon it would rain and with the rain would come thunder. Boy, to hear the thunder roll across those mountains. When I close my eyes, I can still hear it. What a sound!

While in New Zealand fall of 2008, I remember one particular tea (our dinner) where our host asked us to stop talking. It had been raining and with it came thunder. One little roll of it. That was all. He commented that although rain comes daily, thunder does not come very often.

So today when the thunder came, I stopped and listened. Soaking up that sound. Letting it roll through me and take me to my memories. I suppose one day I'll be in New Zealand and hear a thunder roll and remember the days of listening to thunderstorms with my windows open. Tomorrow I'm hoping for rain. More accurately, I'm hoping for thunder!

38 days

Wow! Somewhere I've lost count of days till we leave or my number was off to begin with. Either way seeing "thirty" in front of that 8 makes my heart begin to beat faster!

Today I went with Aden and his Kindergarten class a concert and the zoo. It was a good day to just hang out with him. I think in all our busy-ness, we've put the one on one with the boys aside. I am ready and anxious to pick that back up. Before all this New Zealand move, we would make sure that we had time each week for each boy individually. It might be as simple as going to the gas station together or a trip to the neighboring town. The treat for us was to spend time with that particular boy and the treat for them was always something sweet to eat! Its so good to spend special time with my boys. They are growing up way to fast!! Next is Ian's field trip on Friday, provided it doesn't get rained out. Special days for sure! : )

Cheers!

Favorites

I have many favorite things. Spring is just one of my favorite seasons. I love the flowering trees and new leaves! Tulips are my most favorite flowers. Today we took our boys to the Topeka Rose Garden and looked at all the tulips. They have over 7000 tulips in bloom. The flowers are beautiful to say the least. Ian kept oooing and ahhing over them. He asked me which one was my favorite. I said the pink ones with white, the red ones with yellow centers, those purple ones that look two toned, the other small white ones, the yellow ones.....I can't pick just one! Thankfully I don't have to. Sharing my favorite flower with my boys was a memory I won't soon forget. Oh, and of course I got a "bunch" of great pictures. I can't wait to scrapbook them!

What's your favorite thing about spring?

Cheers! : )

Lydia

Breathe

Inhale......48 days till we depart. Today I realized that I've been holding my breath. I really don't know for how long but I think longer than I'd like to admit. Sitting at the park tonight watching my boys run and laugh, made me think that somewhere in these past months I've lost my carefree self. Temporarily lost that self I'd like to add, I'm looking to get her back. I enjoyed that walk with the flowering trees and the sun streaming though the clouds, thinking, contemplating, wondering, realizing. A good email with a great friend helped me realize that I've been lost among the boxes and the stress of moving overseas. Something that somewhere down inside I knew but now its time for me to breathe. Exhale.........Breathe deep.

Testing 1, 2, 3...

Testing 1, 2, 3....testing....Is this thing on? Ok, here I go.....Welcome to My Life Upside Down! I am excited to share my life, my journey with you. In 49 days, I will be on my way to New Zealand to be an active missionary. How did this all come about you ask? Well, grab your cup of coffee, sit back, and settle in.

It all started February 2008. I'd been living in Indiana with my husband and boys for almost 10 years and suddenly, I just didn't feel settled. I had the feeling that home just wasn't home anymore, that my roots were dangling, not attached anymore. And for a girl that puts down deep roots, this was something serious. By June of 2008, we had been asked by a good friend and fellow missionary to New Zealand, to come and plant a church there. Sure enough, this is what God had in mind. This is why my roots were dangling. In September of 2008, our family took a 2 week trip to New Zealand. While walking on the beach there, I felt at home. This is where I was suppose to be.

Fast forward to today, after 18 months of prayers, goodbyes, moving, support raising, tears, meetings, and much packing, we are 49 days away from landing in New Zealand. 49 days from another huge change in this life of mine. 49 days until I'm living life upside down in the Land Down Under.

Stay tuned and fasten your seatbelts. Its gonna be a wild and wonderful ride! :)

Cheers!