Africa, Here I Come!!!

Wow, what a whirlwind it has been since I decided to go on this crazy missions trip. :0) I cannot believe the time is here. God has done amazing things to get me to this point.I have no doubt that this is His plan. That does not mean that I am not feeling a bit anxious and not having a hard time leaving my family for 2 weeks. Tucking my kids into bed last night was rough. Livy and Jonah were crying and Keith was extra playful. What that means is that on the inside he was crying too. Well, I stayed strong, gave lotts of reassuring words and extra lovin. Then, I cried myself to sleep. :0) Well , I actually did not cry myself to sleep. Right before I fell asleep my wonderful husband prayed over me and I felt that peace wash over me . The same peace that has been washing over me all week. God is GOOD and gives us just what we need. All we have to do is seek Him and ask. Part of how he does that alot of the time is using others. So ,I ask you to please be praying for me and my family while I am away. Here are my requests and please check out the side of this blog for my itinerary.
                                       PRAY FOR:
~ that I would be myself and let nothing hinder me from being used fully by God in the lives of the children etc. I will meet while I am there
~ a hedge of protection around my family while I am away and that they would have so much fun that it will be hard for them to be too sad
~ Safety for all of them but especially for the little one who is not quiick to obey.:0/
~ For Guy David while he is being Mr. Mom
~ For all who will be helping to take care of my children
` that all of the children our team will meet will see and feel  the love of Jesus in us and will somehow be changed because of our presence.
~that I would not be anxious for anything......especially while I am on the planes
~ good weather and smooth flights ( maybe too much to ask but I am asking :0) )
~ no stomach/ food issues while I am there and no reactions to Malaria meds ( so far ,so good)
~that I will sleep well so I do not get sick
~ that I and the rest of my group will be led by the Lord  and have unity and wonderrful new friendships
~ that I will have a sweet time w/ the Lord and though it will be a crazy trip ,that I will come home refreshed
Special Request in my heart:
~Some of you know that last year I became even more passionate about photography and started taking classes. In one of my classes, there was a gal who goes on mission trips for the purpose of capturing the trips on film. I thought that sounded so fun. Well, this is not the main reason for my trip but it is certainly something I am very excited about. The Lord even provided an extra job for me so I could get a new lens. :0) I haven't had the time to devout to my classes like I wanted to or to even play w/ my new lens. So I ask  that you pray that I remember all that I have already learned ans that I will capture what is in my heart w/ my camera. Also ,please pray that my camera works well for the trip.


Thank you!!!!!!!! Hugs and love to all of you!!!! I am blessed !!!

I will soon be here and feeding these children!! It will be moments like these that will make all of this worth it!!! I cannot wait to share it with you!!!

The hearts of the Children

 

What a fun week we had at VBS. This years mission project was raising money for the Amazima Feeding Program. This was very special to me because I will be visiting Katie Davis http://www.kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com/ on my mission trip and will be part of this Feeding Program while I am there. Sarah and Julie did such a good job at teaching the children about the Feeding Program and why there is a need for it.Thes children worked so hard to bring in money for the kids in Uganda. I heard that some  were having lemonade stands,some gave all of their allowances and some gave away birthday money.In the end the children raised about $1,000.00 and w/ a very generous donation all together we were able to donate $2,000.00 for the Amazima Feeding Program. Even now, I write this w/ teary eyes. What a blessing and soon I will see those little children in Africa and be feeding them myself. :0)

We definitely needed to reward the children at VBS for their great efforts and giving ways. Since , the theme was High Seas Expedition, we decided that the reward would have to do w/ water and since some of the pastors were getting the kids wet during the week........hmmmmmmm............there was only one thing to do: The Pastors must Walk the plank!!!!!

First, the kids had to find all of the  pastors.

The Plank

Let the bombing begin. :0) The kids got to throw water balloons at them and try to knock them in.

I think Sailor Jack is going down.

There he blows me hearties!!!!

ARRRG!!!

Well Shiver me timbers!!!Finally, all men overboard!!!

What good sports!! It was alot of fun!!!

PS Thank you Seneca for taking pictures ! Very nice girlie!!!!

Shots of the Fling Part 2

Ok , Now it's time to dance!!! It was what I was waiting for all night!!

Jonah is showing off his moves!!

Riah showing off something else. LOL

I couldn't get a good shot of Molly because she just kept spinning.Check out that hair though!!!

And the winner Is...... She was trying to outdo Jonah and she did!!

Connar was acting all shy and then the truth came out. He is not too cool for crazy dancing afterall. These make me laugh every time I look at them!

Lydia getting down!! Really we were surprised that she did not fall down. Rock on Sister.

Too cute!! Livy was giggling w/ embarrassment but she couldn't help herself.

Annalise bustin a move. I tell ya Break Dancing  must run in the family. Go Annalise!!

It's time for Family  Feud!!!! I must say that my team kicked butt. Woot Woot!!!

Molly and Livy modeling the Tu Tus we made to auction off.

And here is a little taste of the goodies that were donated for the auctions. :0) So thankful!!!

This is the beautiful quilt that my Mother in law made and donated. My Aunt Judy was blessed to take this home!! She was so excited!

I love the tag and what it says. :0)

Shots of the Fling Part 1

 

If you plan it , they will come!!! If you make the sgetti , they will eat it!!! :0) We filled both the upstairs and the downstairs of the VFW. Who needs to sell tickets ahead of time!!! Isn't God good!!! If you obey , He will provide!!!

Mom and her friend Debbie working in the kitchen.So thankful to my Mom and all she did to make this dinner happen. Debbie was so sweet to spend her night in the kitchen helping!!

 

This is my friend Val and her kiddos Quinnten and Quersti. What a blessing !! These guys along w/ their friend Whitney and Vals husband , Billy  were such a huge help. They shut the place down w/ us as well!! Thank you , Thank you!! 

Here are some more of my kitchen helpers! There is my Mother in law, the one who made that beautiful quilt!!:0)That man of mine was busy all day!! Running errands, setting up and cleaning up. He has been so supportive ! Did you know that he is taking a whole week off to be Mr. Mom while I am gone?? :0) I love you Guy David and appreciate all you do for me!!

Hey Bartender!!! Good thing he wasn't in the kitchen!! LOL Thank you Papa!!

 Here is my sister in law, Michelle and my nephew Jackson. Shell spent the night putting together a scrapbook for me along w/ other things. I love it!!! Here are some other shots I was able to get during the short time I used my camera. Thanks to all who came, made donations,prayed for me, baked goodies  etc. etc. God was so good and used so many of you to bring about the success of this event!!

I am blessed w/ great friends and family!!! I wish I got shots of all of them.

I love this one as I remember back in the day ,my mom and Aunt Helen teaching me how to do the bump.

 

I really have seen Gods Hand  all over this event and my trip in so many ways and so many people have been so generous but I feel led to share a story in particular. Because it shows how His timing is perfect and that he truly loves us and cares about the details of our lives!! As I shared in my last post, I really did start to get a little stressed as I was spending money on this dinner that I did not have.  There was one day  that I was having a really bad day and even shed some tears as I was praying. That afternoon when I went to the mailbox there was a very generous check from my Aunt Mougie and Uncle Johnny w/ a note that let me know I could use it however I needed whether to help w/ the dinner or for the trip. I felt so loved  at that moment and so blessed!! How awesome that that check was used for both!!! I look forward to all that God has in store for me and all that God will do through me  as I continue to prepare and travel to Africa.