Reunions :)

I made it back to the States on October 24th. My parent's were pretty excited to see me as you can tell by the picture below. My daddy wore those 2 ballons tied around his wrist the whole time he was at the airport!Mama found these words online..."Welcome," "I love you," and "Older Sister."We took a similar picture almost 3 years ago when I was leaving to move to EA, but Dad and Ross decided we should make a "3" sign instead of the peace sign.We stopped by Grandmother's house on the way home. That was a sweet surprise, several of my relatives came over too!My precious 85 year old Grandaddy, promised me he'd make it til I returned, even when I told him I was gonna stay a 3rd year. We're gonna have to renegotiate those terms now that I'm back! :) Ross is looking rico suave with his long hair.Los Compadres! Caroline got to wear the sombrero for her birthday. And my sweet friends Sharon & Cliff on the right...they've been married for 2 years now!Dwight and Jan!!MORGAN!!!And I finally got to meet Jotham!!! This is him at 2 months.

I really thank Father for the support he's provided through family and friends during this time of transition and "re-entry" to the States...they've shown SO much compassion! I love yall!

And for my dear friends in EA!!! Word can't even express how much my heart aches for and misses yall! Know you're loved and lifted up often!

Parting Gift

The day before I left EA, I made a quick run to the electronic store to purchase some cheap phones for friends. Well, that "quick run" turned into an all morning activity. Computer issues and miscommuncation left me standing at the coutner for an hour and a half. Right before I left, the clerk told me he wanted to give me a "small gift" for my patience in waiting. I figured that "small gift" would be a keychain or stuffed animal, but when he reached down and plopped it onto the coutner...it was a giant WOK!

And no I didn't pack it in my 5 pieces of luggage that I couldn't see over the top of when rolling them throught the airport...Jeshica had been wanting a new wok...voila (I looked up how to spell that word for you Jesh)! :)

Gettin' Hitched

Two of our good friends that are working in the city had been talking about marriage for a while. They decided they'd go get their marriage license before I left, and that they wanted Jeshica and I, along with others from their fellowship to join them. It's not everyday you bring 10+ friends with you to the justice of peace, but it made for some awesome memories.

Here's the bride and groom heading off on their e-bike to the hospital/marriage license department:The rest of us piled up in 2 taxi's, but these guys wouldn't fit so they willingly pedaled the 20 minutes to get there. We arrived ahead of the bikers, so we lined up in front of the building to give them a grand entrance:

While the lovely couple were getting health exams and filling out forms, Jeshica lead everyone in building pyramids and playing the human knot game (all in the waiting area)! :)
After an hour or so we finally got to go with them into the "sorta like a wedding chapel" place and hear them say vows to one another.It was really sweet. And we sang, "This is the day," as they were walking out.The certificate:They invited us all over to cook us a meal afterwards!And while they took another 2 hours to cook the meal I snuck around taking pictures of people falling asleep with this giant bear:Yay, dinner is served! Great meal, great people, great day, great Father!!!

No "good byes" just "see you agains" :)

Jeshica and I spent my last Saturday hanging out with the bros and sisters reminiscing, sharing the word, making lifts, breaking saltines and drinking juice, singing a lil karaoke, and eating hot pot!!! It was a really special, really fun day!

So the word for "good bye" in EA literally means "see you again." :)

October Holiday

I got to enjoy an afternoon with the girls at the beginning of October. We had a few free days because of national day celebrations. Our friends invited us up and let us drive their scooter (fun times) to go visit this park:

We were able to climb up in this ancient square pagoda:

An idol inside of the pagoda:

The writing below says, "Zhu Ming was here." :)

The doors to go out onto the terrace got progressively smaller with each level. I had to get low to get through this one at the top: A shot from the top:

Neat to see the more traditional housing in the foreground and the modern skyrises in the back.

And Jer taking death-defying shots over the railing at the top!

25 x 2 = 50

Happy 2nd 25th Birthday Daddy!!! :)

We sure do love you Big Show!

These are some pics of the festivities: (and no, even though it may look like it, that's not me with blonde hair and facial hair above)

Rolling on the River

I've always wanted to take a night time boat tour through the canals here...and last weekend I finally had the opportunity to enjoy it with friends!

This young girl rode with us, playing a traditional East Asian instrument and singing various songs throughout the tour.

Some of the sights:

Underneath the bridge:

Pretty lights on the pagoda:

An old pedestrian bridge: