hi friends...

        I have been back in the States for about a week now.  Emotions and culture-shock aside, it has been so good to be with my family.  For the past few days we've been in Kentucky spending some time with my sweet Mammaw.  We are leaving tomorrow and I'm going to miss her all over again.  Still trying to process and plan for the future, but I trust that God will give me enough time and peace of mind to fit everything in.  I'm excited for the fall but so thankful for this time.  I'm trying to blog better, so we'll see how that goes :)

 

Mammaw, Jenna and me... I'm blessed.

last but not last

this is my last week in the country before leaving for a much needed few months of vacation at home.   lots of emotions, thoughts, lessons learned, and hopes for the future have my head swimming pretty much 24-7 these days, but I think I will save all of that for another post :)  this week will be spent moving into a new house in the neighborhood that stole our hearts, spending time with friends who have become family, and tying up loose ends.  it will be a week of "last" things, that are really just last things for now. the last time I had such mixed emotions about leaving a place was when I left my house 8 months ago to come here.  there are so many things I am going to miss while I'm away but sooo many things I am looking forward to.  here are some pictures of what's been going on the past little bit:

 we threw a birthday party for Ariel, for which he wanted to decorate the house himself :)

I made a trip to Santo Domingo to spend some time with Dr. Peña, a doctor and pastor who my home church has been supporting for years, and his family.

 this past week I had my last day of teaching at Ciudad de Luz.  i will miss the kids so much!

this is where we are living in the coming year! we are so excited for what the Lord has waiting for us on Calle Altagracia (high grace).

we have seen so much of the Lord's favor in how this 8 months is closing out and we're just constantly reminded of how faithful he is.  he continues to do "immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine" (ephesians 3:20) and we continue to learn how to trust that he always will. 

fullness of joy

"The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance." Psalm 16:6

The love of God falls to us in so many ways, in all areas of life. It will invade the very core of us if we let it. Sometimes I'm overwhelmed with how each day is so drenched with beauty, and other times I spend my time worrying and miss out on it. For me God's love is something I'm still discovering and encountering in new ways, one day at a time.  Some days His love looks like this:

Café con leche. Hot sun beating down on bare shoulders. Salt flats and broken green glass. Reaching into my bag and finding a necklace that Ariani made me. Reading Psalm 16 and peace washing over me, peace that you can't find anywhere else. Nelson wearing a Buzz Lightyear costume to school just because.  Listening to life-giving sermons with my two sisters.  25 peso icecream in styrofoam cups.  Laughing so hard that you start to cry and almost pee your pants. Knowing in your heart that hard things are worth it. Homemade kites. Learning to ask for impossible things. Riding through the country on a motorcycle to round up cows. Conversations where you see a little bit more of someone's heart. How good it is to take a cold shower at the hottest part of the day. Rain on tin roofs. The way Chicha pours coffee. Walking up the path to Jacqueline's house. Lighting candles when the power goes out. Unexpectedly seeing a familiar face. Knowing that the Lord really must care about even the most minute details.

The twins working on some bracelets.

 

The photo we took for our moms for Mother's Day.

Some days it's going to bed smiling, knowing that God took care of all the details, and some days it's going to bed crying, trusting that He will tomorrow. He continues to show just how good and faithful and glorious He is.

"in your presence there is fullness of joy..."
Psalm 16:11