Thanks giving

I am currently waiting out a lay over in the Orlando, FL airport, on my way to Peru. At this point, I feel like I am in between two worlds, my life in Montana and my soon to be life in Lima, Peru. Strange how emotions can be so mixed. I am very excited for what God has planned for my life in Lima, yet, there is still a intense sadness at leaving relationships with family and friends here. It was hard to say good bye, yet that is part of what I am thankful for. Thankful that I have people who I love, who love me and who are not easy to leave.

The pictures below are just a small compilation of what has been going on in the past weeks, in very random order.


Playing some cards after dinner on Thanksgiving day.

The view from the back deck at home.

Karli and I

Mom, Karli, and our cat after they helped me pack.

Playing in the snow one last time.

Karli and I playing with our cousin's son Derek in Billings, Thanksgiving weekend.

My Mom, Grandma, Aunt Susan, and Aunt Peggy in Denver. (notice why Peggy isn't smiling, she's the one in the reindeer ears)

My Mom and Cousin Adam's baby, with Kylee trying to get the baby. She really wanted him.

December 4th!

Good news, I have a departure date! At the end of last week I received a phone call from FH in Peru saying that things looked like they were going through with my visa and to start looking for a plane ticket to Lima. From there things moved quickly and the next Tuesday we booked a flight. I am both super excited and a little scared. It seems like I have been waiting so long and now things have finally come together. I have to go down to Denver the week after Thanksgiving to pickup my visa from the Peruvian Embassy and then come back to MT. I will be flying out of Billings on December 4th, which is about two and a half weeks away. 17 days to be exact. Seems kind of crazy... to wait and wait, and then when it finally comes together, to get a strange pang of "I'm not quite ready!" Don't get me wrong, I am so looking forward to the life, learning, and adventure that awaits me in Peru. Thing is, I don't think I'll ever truly feel completely prepared and ready. I think that this is part of trusting that God's timing is best and that he will equip me for his purposes as I seek him.
I am eager to meet and get to know the other Hunger Corp that I met very briefly during the April training, to meet my host family, to meet the Peruvian staff, to begin language study, to learn from another culture, to be challenged and stretched, to grow in dependence upon Christ. Not so eager to say good byes... I still have 17 days.

A few fun photos from the past couple of months

Well, I don't have any new news on when Iwill be in Lima, it's still estimated that my work visa won't be done until the end of November sometime. So, I thought I'd share some pictures from the past few months to show how good home, family, and friends are.

My Mom and Toby hiking.

Friends that came for the Hootenanny.


Night swim, that Karli talked us into, at Lake Blaine.
(thanks Kar, it was fun and is a great memory)

Toby and Robby with roller coaster hair at Magic Mountain in L.A

Karli, Toby, and I at the Ice Cave.

The family, minus Robby :( , camping at Crystal Lake.

My friend Melissa, her two girls, Karli and I at the Garden of the Gods in CO Springs.

Hill Kids at Sea World, proving you're never to old to ride a manatee.

Night water pit Challenge at YAA. This is really only something that you would do at camp. :) Karli and I are on the left. The goal is to knock the opponents into the water first. Karli and I won...but still fell victim to being pulled into the breath-taking, ice cold water below. :)

Pumpkins and Picnics

I spent four days in Bozeman last week helping my friend Kim watch the Hawthorne kids,while their parents were out of town. I don't really think she needed my help, but it was a great excuse to spend time up at camp with her, other friends, and the five Hawthorne kids, who I have missed since I moved back to Lewistown a little over a year ago. The kids are great and make things pretty easy. Because they had school, Kim and I had a chance just to hang out too. We hiked up the Cottonwood Canyon trail to the Big Rock (official name?) and had a picnic one afternoon. The view from the top is as breathtaking as the last uphill, my heart is beating abnormally fast, and what's the elevation here again? section of the trail, so it makes it worth while... that and the thought that maybe the burning in your legs is possibly causing some kind of quad or calf toning and that by the time you are finished you might have the legs of a marathon runner.

I took some pumpkins and a bigger pumpkin/squash cross breed thing (a squmpkin if you will),that my Mom had grown in her garden, to carve with the kids. Overall it went well, messy, of course, but that's half the fun. The kids all carved their little pumpkins, some with a bit of help, and then we tried to carve the big guy. He didn't really carve so good and was too soft, so we decided the best thing to do was to thow it out the window on the second story of the house, onto the cement below and watch it splat. The kids thought this was a great idea, of course, so we did it. There is something about throwing stuff from high places that is just intriguing... maybe that's just me. :) Any way, it made a good mess, which we cleaned up right away so that the bears wouldn't decide to come and share in the squmpkin fun later that night. I lived up at camp for over a year and never saw a bear up close, so part of me wanted one to visit, so I could get a better look... from inside the locked house. I was relieved when no bears showed up that night. :)

Patience and Enjoying the Now

Waterfall in Yellowstone


Visiting my brother Robby in Wyoming

My friend Shannon and I

Girl's night with friends from Bozeman

Having fun after swimming in the Boiling River in Yellowstone Park. (If you are ever in the park you should should definitely take a dip. Hot Water from geothermal activity cascades off the river banks and mixes with the cold river water)

About a week and a half ago I found out that things are going to take a little bit longer than expected for my work visa to be completed. Instead of the original estimate of later October, it now looks like it is going to be the end of November. Initially I was frustrated, but then came to the realization that there is nothing I can to to change the timing of things. Not that I am going to stop praying that God speeds things up a bit, but now I can just take comfort in the fact that He is in control and that I will arrive in Lima according to His timing.


I have decided that it is much easier to have patience in the presence of amazing friends and family. I have started substitute teaching again, but have really just been able to take advantage of opportunities to spend time with family and friends and enjoy fall. That has meant being able to go hiking with friends, visit my brother in Wyoming, play cards with my grandparents, make numerous visits to Bozeman, visit Yellowstone, and much more. I also feel like God has answered my prayer for patience and has focused my attention on the positives of being home for a little while longer.

Beginnings

So begins the blog of an inconsistent journaler hoping to become more consistent for the sake of those back home wondering about people in seemingly far away places. The purpose of this blog is to allow people, who so desire, an opportunity to know more about my beginning and life for the next three years in Lima, Peru. An opportunity to give people a better glimpse than newsletters allow.
At this point all of my support is in and I am waiting for things with my visa to get worked out. The hope is to be in Lima sometime in October. So, I am still in Montana for the time being and thought I should practice this consistency thing before I go. As a result you will now get to know about what has been going on in my life here.
Over Labor Day weekend my family went to Family Camp outside of Bozeman. (see above pic) It was pretty much great. I am treasuring all these last times and memories with my family and friends. I am eagerly looking forward to Lima, but not looking forward to saying goodbye.