One of us is home ..

I am back in the US of A .. (shh.. Ive been back for a few days now. Just hiding I guess)
I am still trying to process everything and Im not sure that I ever will.
I am definitely touched & have been deeply changed by our trip
I am especially shocked we didnt bring back a baby with us
I am so excited to tell you all about the last 2 weeks
and Im more in love with Freeland than I ever have been
I have a lot more to pray about
I feel restored and lost all at the same time
I really hope & pray that God calls us to go back again one day

in the mean time while I still slowly crawl out of my hole that I have been enjoying here is a song that Im l-o-v-i-n right now:

The Call - Regina Spektor



For too many reasons to list I love this song.

Freeland is now in Kenya. He has sent me the most wonderful emails every day and we have been able to talk some too (thanks to skype) Its been sad being home and adjusting without him but Im also so incredibly thankful he is there and he is having the best time. Bob got on the phone last night while we were talking and said "I believe Freeland & I are long lost brothers" that made my heart jump. How wonderful & crazy is it the way God planned all this out!

Thank you again for all your prayers. Once I get some other things organized I promise to start uploading pictures! (we took about 3,000 pictures - no joke)

PS - I mowed the grass all by myself yesterday! Im very proud of myself.
PPS - Extreme Home Makeover is currently in Erie so maybe I can also sneak over and get some pictures of that too!

Here we go

Today is the day. I cant believe its finally here.

We are leaving for Africa as I type this. We are sitting at the airport.

Incase you have no idea what Im talking about click here, here, here, or here.

We've been up longer than I care to think about packing, finishing all the last second things, visiting with friends, running errands, cleaning out my inbox at work, etc. etc. etc. But in 1 hour none of those things will matter. The trip will finally be here.

Even just a minute ago I was overwhelmed with the knowledge that as hard as I try there is really no way to fully prepare for this trip. I know there is no way to comprehend what is in store. And as much as I think I understand what we are going to be doing or what were going to see - I realize that I have no idea what we are about to witness and experience. I do see where God has filled my heart with a deep love for the people already though. Just thinking about it really overwhelms me. And I realize we dont need to be prepared - we just need to go love people.

I cant wait.

We're going to Uganda. (Jinja & Entebbe) Freeland & I will both be on the medical team. Freeland is actually going to be leading the team. And well - I have no idea what I will be doing seeing as I have no medical experience but Im just thankful to get to serve along side Freeland and be there together. He did teach me how to check someones blood pressure today - so thats one thing I can do. :)

Practically, I have no idea if I will be able to call anyone or ever get internet anywhere so it may be 2 weeks before you hear from us. In the mean time Thank you for all of your support & all of your encouragement. I dont know that I will ever be able to say thank you enough or in a way that it deserves. But thank you.

And of course, please continue to pray for us, our team, and the people we will be ministering to in Africa.

I wish I had more time to write, elaborate, etc. but our plane is currently boarding so thats all I have for now.

PS - I feel it very important to share with you (and to make sure it goes on the record) that I officially packed my suitcase (for a TWO WEEK trip) in a carry on size suitcase! Miracle - I think so! Im very proud of it.

**Updated**
We're in New York and just met with our team. We're loving everyone. My thoughts so far are this: I think I will pretty much just be in tears for 2 weeks straight. Freeland too! I have already cried twice & we arent even in Africa yet. Our team leader (who is wonderful & I already LOVE her) was explaining what the medical team will be doing and going over what each day will look like and the tears just starting coming. She said we will be seeing somewhere between 200-250 people each day. And that every day we will be turning people away since there arent more than 24 hours in a day - and that will be one of the hardest parts. We'll be working with anyone and everyone. I will be doing intake, distributing medicine, and helping crowd control since she said it is going to be very overwhelming with the large amount of crowds that will be waiting outside. Freeland will be seeing as many people as possible and helping in anyway he can - even if its just praying with them.

I will also get to see Freeland doing what he loves to do & caring for those who are sick and in need. I cannot wait. Freeland is of course beside himself and cant wait to actually be there and get started.

We will also be in an orphanage some days and I cant wait to go and hold every single baby they will let me..

Okay gotta run. We're off to the start figuring out the luggage. If I get a chance to update again before we leave I will. If not - we're on our way to Africa now.

pictures, cherry blossoms, and rain

So while we all continue to wait for our internet to be set up I am going to work with what I already have. Our computer is still sitting in a box so I cant upload our pictures from vacation. Not to worry though our internet is supposed to be set up today. (meaning I wont have to live/work out of coffee shops & panera anymore) and I can hopefully get organized.

Anywho, a while ago our dear friend Christy introduced us to her friend Rachel. She is a local photographer here in Erie & I've been following her blog ever since. And a few weeks ago she wrote that she needed a Couple to take pictures of. Freeland & I happened to be free so we offered to run and meet her. I was so excited because I am always eager to watch/learn/etc. how photographers do what they do. And this gave me the chance to see. And I knew it would be fun getting to hang out too! So we ran out (in the rain) and met Rachel & some of her friends to take some pictures. Here are a few that they took so you can all see. I love them! Make sure to check out all of their websites! (I posted links to all of them) They are all very talented & we had lots of fun!

These first pictures below were all by Rachel (puremotif photography):











To see more of her pictures from that day click here and here! She's wonderful & Im so glad Christy introduced us!

2 of Rachel's friends were also out there. And I loved getting to meet them too! They are also super talented. Here are some of the pictures they took:

These were taken by Amanda Kifer





You can see more of hers on facebook here

And these pictures were taken by Heather Neckers.







To see more of her pictures click on her blog here

And did I mention it was raining! Seriously! They took all those while it was raining! That takes talent my friends! Heather, Amanda, & Rachel .. thank you so much for letting us be your little subject for the day! We had a blast. I think youre all SUPER talented and I'm glad I was able to meet all of you & watch you work your magic!

PS - I died my hair while I was in California so its no longer dark brown! AND Freeland shaved his head.. so we no longer look this way anymore. :)

while we all wait on the edge of our seats for a recap of our trip

.. I will leave you with this:


see more Fail Blog

paper towels

I meant to post this on camille's birthday for her. (In the chance you arent aware she is a proud owner of the shamwow thanks to her brother. Best Gift Ever!) .. so when I saw this I thought of her. Obviously I never even turned on our computers over the weekend so Im just now posting this. But I think you will all enjoy it. Especially if you have seen the original video





Still working on the whole internet, moving, packing - unpacking, enjoying life thing.. keep you posted.

and we're back

We said bye to the Pacific Ocean (California) and Hello to Lake Erie this weekend.

Our trip was wonderful. And my (sweet 26th) Birthday was wonderful too. I would love to show you pictures but we are currently without a computer or Internet access. So it will have to wait just a little bit longer.

The moving process has begun. Freeland & his friend Kevin are currently loading up the moving truck and taking trips back & forth. They took a slight detour to pick up a Piano (birthday present from Freeland) only to find the Piano was in pretty much horrible condition so they dropped it off at salvation army instead of bringing it home. Sad story but I Love Freeland for trying to get me a piano. We'll keep looking.

We spent the night last night at our new house. We made a little pallet on the floor in the living room since the house was still empty at that point. The animals are doing okay so far. Last night was a little rough with the cats. We should have brought them during the day instead of at night - I think they would have done better. Instead they just laid next to us on the floor and cuddled, then when we fell asleep they would meow, then cuddle, sleep, meow.. etc. etc. The dogs of course are loving all the space. And the cats seemed to be more comfortable this morning. We'll see how it goes.

Okay my battery is dying so its time to run. Once our Internet is up I will post more from our trip. (lets cross our fingers its up today!)