We made it!

All packed and ready to go!

17 checked items

10 carry-ons items

4 carseats

4 kids

1 stroller

20 hours

2 flights

Entertainment at the airport

Bright eyed and Bushy-tailed!

Getting our luggage through Customs and Immigration!

Brothers

We left the mission house in Columbus, Ohio at 3:15 a.m. yesterday. We only had 5 hours of flight time, which is great! It was the 10 hour lay-over that was killer! But we found plenty to keep us busy. First, there was a construction site outside one of the windows! (Well, actually it looked more like "destruction" because they were removing the brick roadway with a fork lift and manual labor.) The kids loved it, especially Levi. Matthew as happy to roll around and check out things. Ryan and Ellie had a few new toys to keep them entertained! 

Our flight arrived in Puebla, Mexico at 9pm. That's when the fun really started! All four kids had a mini-meltdown while waiting to get through Customs and Immigration. (I'm so thankful that we didn't fly into Mexico City! The personnel at the airport in Puebla were awesome!) Each item of luggage had to be scanned in the x-ray machine. Levi was very upset that his backpack, blankie and puppy dog had to screened too!

From the airport we had a 30 minute drive to the guest house. It was dark and there wasn't much to see. After hearing about how exciting it was to move Mexico, Ellie leaned over and said, "This isn't very exciting to me, Mom." The poor girl!

The view from my dining room...love it

View from the street.



To-Do List

The final 4 days in the States...the to-do list is shrinking, I think. We still need to make a trip to the post office to mail some packages and letters before we leave. One more Walmart trip? (Really? Is it necessary? They do have Walmart in Mexico!) And I need to finish packing...I have packed 8 footlockers and 1 1/2 suitcases. We are allotted 12 checked items for our family of 6, plus 2 carry-ons per person. (Although Matthew requires a diaper bag, and is allowed to take 2 bags, I really don't want to be carrying 4 bags, plus the baby!)

It should be entertaining to watch us load 9 footlockers, 3 suitcases, 6 carry-ons, and 4 children into a couple of vans and get to the aiport by 4 a.m. on Monday...at least I'm sure it will be more entertaining to "watch" than it is to actually "do."

Tonight I explained to the kids that we're in the final countdown. They typically understand how many nights we have to sleep in one place the best. (Yeah, I'm starting to realize how abnormal life has been over the last 9 months...our kids are very accustomed to the countdown of how many nights we have left in a given location. I just counted and we've stayed in 12 different homes, not hotels, since April of 2011.) And so, we have 5 nights to sleep in the mission house at Uncle Charles' church. (Yes, I know it's not really Charles' church, but that's how my kids identify it.)

Here are a few things that I'd like to still do...in no specific order.

1. Eat at Chick-fil-a
2. Watch my children play with their cousins :)
3. Eat at Olive Garden
4. Visit with my brother and his family
5. Eat American pizza
6. Visit with Mom
7. Eat birthday cake and ice cream with my nephew Jonas (we leave on his birthday)
8. Say farewell to my family

Bringing in the New Year...

     How will we celebrate the New Year? We reflect back on where 2011 has taken us and it's been a wild ride to be sure! A few of the highlights...

Peek a boo!

• We listed and sold our house in the spring. It only took one month! Praise the Lord!
• After selling our house, we moved in to a small rental behind Clay's parents. What a blessing for the kids to be so close to their grandparents! (And we had a GREAT reason to begin purging the excess belongings.)
• Baby Matthew was born May 12! Need I say more?
• The Harris/Blake family reunion in July found us driving from Idaho to Mississippi with a 2 month old baby! How sweet it was to see my family!
• In September we said goodbye to friends and family in Idaho and began our journey across the country, again.
• The trip across the country (from Idaho, to Iowa, to Ohio, and finally to Virginia) allowed us to visit more friends and family while enjoying a beautiful, warm autumn.
• Mid-October found us settling in for 2 1/2 months of training in preparation for our final destination: Mexico.



It's Levi!

• After training we took a whirlwind tour of the northeast--New York City, upstate New York, Toronto, a short stop in Detroit for our visas, and finally back to Columbus, Ohio.

     Wow! And now we are packing once again. The final purge is here! Of course, I have many little helpers who make the job much more enjoyable!   We are entering the final countdown...three more Sundays!

Brotherly Love

How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony!

Psalm 133:1

The kids are adapting well to "our new house." I am thankful for their resilience and adaptability!

Merry Christmas!

Beginning our Christmas celebration
with the reading of Jesus' birth.

We have much to be thankful for this Christmas season. This has been an amazing year, full of changes and many blessings. While

many things have changed, the important things remain constant: God's love and family.

We are thankful to be in Ohio, where we will have the opportunity for a little bit of stability before leaving the country in January. It also provides the opportunity to be near my family. We are very blessed to be staying at a mission house at my brother's church. We have a lovely 3 bedroom home, fenced in yard, and internet! (We really weren't sure we'd have internet since no one lives in the house full time.)  Ryan asked for a box of cereal for Christmas this year...it made me smile and I had to get it for him!

Ellie was so happy to get pretty hairbows this year for Christmas! She wanted to wear them to bed, but instead we planned what she would wear to church in the morning.

But the one thing I'm most thankful for this Christmas season is my family. God has been so good to us!

                                                                                                            

Big Apple Adventure, Live!

Our time in Virginia has come and gone. We are now homeless once again...we're on the road, visiting friends and family before we head out of the country. First stop...New York City!

Our "tour guide" for the day was excited to show off her stomping ground! She took us to the original Macy's to see Santa...

 I'm not sure that we prepared our kids well for sitting on Santa's knee. They really didn't want anything to do with him. I am surprised that Ellie didn't tell him the truth about Christmas though...

We were so excited to find Elmo on the street! He was so kind to pose with us for a picture!  (Ok, maybe he wasn't doing it out of kindness...and he didn't speak much English. I'm not sure where they

found him, but I'm sure it wasn't Sesame Street.) Unfortunately, we didn't notice the wonderful background of the picture until we downloaded the pic...perfect for America's most loved puppet!

Clay was excited to purchase a halal kabob from the street vendor!

 

Grand Central Terminal...minutes before Ellie fell asleep!

Ryan was excited to see Grand Central Terminal, a favorite from VBS 2011!
Unfortunately, we never made it to see the Statue of Liberty...Ryan is a bit disappointed, but I think he'll be okay!

"Mom, I didn't have any paper."

We've had lots of birthday parties here on campus recently. Saturday, Ellie went to a princess party for her friend, Becca. It was so much fun to see all the little girls in their long dresses and crowns, licking the frosting off of their cupcakes!

And of course, Becca's mom sent home a bag of goodies for the girls. (Thank you, Sarah!) Ellie was so excited when she got home to dig through her little bag. She found a ring, a wand, and a cute green, glitter pen! She immediately asked if she could write, and I distractedly answered, "Yes, just grab some paper."

Ellie walked into the living room about 10 minutes later and very matter of factly announced, "Mom, I didn't have any paper."  Upon looking at her, I replied, "I guess I'll have to take that green pen away from you if you don't have any paper."  And that's when the tears came rolling...anything but the pen!



"Mom, I didn't have any paper."

What I didn't notice until bedtime was that she didn't just use her face and hands...it was also all over her feet and legs. Even between her toes! A special thanks goes to Daddy who quietly left the room and grabbed the camera! A moment to remember forever...