Homeless!

"And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers." ~ John 10:3-5

We will be officially homeless as of September 30th! We officially gave notice in writing on the house that we rent.

We're locked in now, I guess. No turning back! :)

Someone at church asked me if we have a Plan B. We actually never thought of that... No Plan B. Just a Plan A: follow God to Argentina to do missions. That's it.

That's the plan.

What a walk of faith and practice in trusting God this has been. It is all a joy to follow Him, because we hear His voice. "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me." - John 10:27

The hardest part about this has not been trusting God, but dealing with and accepting the misunderstanding, the questioning of our motives, the doubting of us as Christians and people. We just shake our heads that there are people that choose to believe we are just "moving back to Argentina". Like life is better there or something. It's not (imagine going to this hospital in Neuquen where we are moving - just take a look, go ahead. Then tell me we are going to be living large.). We're just "moving back to Tony's home country" - we're not really going to do missions. We just want to live abroad and have other people support us and not work. Who are we to do missions anyway? We've heard it all (or at least I hope, because I can't take much more of this). I could go on, but won't... (sigh). That has very much been the. hardest. part. of all this, hands down. We never in a million years imagined that our greatest support and encouragement would come from outside of church, from non-believers, from the third world even. But it has, at least so far. It doesn't make sense. For every word of encouragement from a believer, we have received two from non-believers. I don't understand it. [And please don't criticize me for just telling the truth, I don't know if I can take one more person jumping on us for just wanting to do mission. This has simply been our experience]. Of course, we hope and pray that this changes.

I love what Hudson Taylor said in response to his critics and doubters when he was about to leave for China,

'“A foolhardy business,” said those who saw only the difficulties.

“A superhuman task,” sighed others who wished them well. And many even of their friends could not but be anxious.

“You will be forgotten,” was the concern of some.

“With no committee or organization before the public, you will be lost sight of in that distant land. Claims are many nowadays. Before long you may find yourselves without even the necessaries of life!”

“I am taking my children with me,” was the quiet answer, “and I notice it is not difficult to remember that they need breakfast in the morning, dinner at midday and supper at night. Indeed, I could not forget them if I tried. And I find it impossible to think that our heavenly Father is less tender and mindful of His children than I, a poor earthly father, am of mine. No, He will not forget us!”' - from Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret, p. 124 [read the whole thing here]

I thank God for the example of Hudson Taylor. For Gladys Aylward, and for all the others that have gone before us in faith and have proved God to be faithful. Their testimony speaks and encourages us even to this day. Thank you, Jesus.

So... we're looking forward to being homeless!

:)

and the countdown is on

We decided on a departure time: September.

We don't have an exact date, but at least we now have a timeframe.

We'll see how it all unfolds. Any number of things could happen to keep us from going in September, but at least now we are shooting for something. But once we give our 3 months notice on the house, there's no turning back. Argentina or bust.

Tony and I just realized the other day that we only have a couple hundred dollars in the mission fund (a little ratty envelope where we keep cash marked "mission fund") to do this. We don't have our tickets, or the money for tickets, we don't have the money to ship our stuff, or the car, or... uh... anything. And we don't have a savings or retirement or investments to help us out. Or a job waiting there yet either.

So, uh, yeah, I think we're a little bit o' crazy. I think you have to be a little bit o' looney to do what we're doing - or you just wouldn't do it.

If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. (NIV)

If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit. (NLT) ~ 2 Cor. 5:13

The death of a dream, and other preparations



Aphid damage... wah


My dreams of a little backyard homestead have died another painful death this year. With great sadness, I decided to ditch the garden dream (just for this year). I lost half my seedlings to aphids, anyway.

The arugula and collard greens survived, though.

baby arugula :)

I guess aphids don't like arugula and collard greens.


baby collards

Hopefully I can pick the Backyard Homestead Dream back up again next year, on yonder Southern Hemisphere. Better luck next year.

Other than that, we've been VERY busy. Besides packing up our whole house, buying the Mission Mobile, figuring out Paypal, writing letters, and even compiling an email list for people who want to receive monthly/bi-monthly newsletters after we leave.... there is so much more going on now that I'm finding myself with less and less time to post.

We have been busy talking with the bank, figuring out how to do our taxes abroad, trying to sell our other two cars, learning how to sell stuff on Craigslist and eBay, finishing up the school year, wrapping up the kid's classes and sports, attending tons of birthday parties (a lot of people were born in April!), lunches and dinners with friends and family, oh and don't forget Easter's coming! - and then there's doctor's and dentist's appointments, yard sale prep, fundraiser meal planning, field trips, and oh tomorrow's my birthday but, hey, who has time to celebrate?

And it's probably going to get even busier from here on out!

The Cost of Cars in Argentina

IS INSANE!

Just check this out: the going rate for Ford Econoline vans in Argentina, aka our beloved Mission Mobile.

(just divide by 4 to get the dollar amount).

IN-SANE.

A 1981 Ford Econoline for $10,500.

No joke.

A 1995 Ford Econoline for $24,000.

Seriously?

Oh, and my favorite - a Classic '67 Ford Econoline for.... $8,000???

I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

So basically, if we don't take a car, we'll never be able to afford one there. Ever.


Oh, Lord, make a way...!

Meet Big Blue

Or "The Mission Mobile". Or whatever we'll end up calling her.

Ain't she pretty??

We prayed this puppy in. After recently paying off all our credit cards, we were able to hoard the rest of our income tax return (God's saving plan for the poor, I call it:)) to go towards preparations for the big move.

Tony wanted to take a big van with us so we could pile all the kids in, any equipment or supplies we'll need (like JESUS film projectors etc.), and still have room to stuff a small village in there, too. And we do, check it out:
 

Okay, so  you can't see it really well, but the first row of seats is missing. There's this huge wide open space there, perfect for stuffing equipment in. And I'm sure we'll eventually have plenty of "how we fit 25 people in our van" stories. We really like it like this. It works out great because the kids can be all the way in the back seat whining asking for something, and I can just shout back, "I'm sooo-rrryyyy, I can't heeeeeaaaaar yoooouuuu!". No really... It even has a hitch on the back. We're sure that'll come in handy for something.

The back seats fold down into a bed which could sleep all three kids, and there is still room for us to sleep where the seats were! Stellar. Tony is very happy with it. He loves the '94 Ford van we have now, but this one is newer with 60,000 less miles. We prayed long and hard for God to lead us to the right car, and the Man was sure that this was the one. Now we're getting rid of our other two cars, 'cause we need the money!

So, assuming she's not a lemon - and Lord-willing - we'll be shipping her down to Patagonialand.

:)

*To understand why we decided to buy and ship a car as opposed to buying one there, check out the prices on this site (just divide by 4 and you will get the price in dollars)for what you get = crazy!

The packing has begun!

  I decided to start with the girls' room... maybe because it seems the most overwhelming?

I keep muttering over and over to myself, "How do you eat an elephant, Chris? One bite at a time.

One bite at a time... one bite at a time, Chris... one bite at a time... yeah, one bite at a time..."

 Boxes and baskets and piles are everywhere, making my recovered OCD act up.

 AHHHH!

But thanks to my clothes organization system (a la  Complete Tightwad Gazette),

 - the sanity level is manageable. As manageable as it can be under the circumstances, I guess.

Homeschooling on the frontier, more books, and geeky SAT Prep

I've been busy this week looking at what we have to take to Argentina in order to homeschool for the next couple of years. It's good to have at least a skeleton outline of where we're going educationally, even if I end up changing things later.

From what I can gather, we'll pretty much be homeschooling on the frontier. Homeschooling in Argentina is about what it used to be like homeschooling in the United States 30 years ago. It almost doesn't exist. And, although it's not illegal, there aren't any laws that protect it either. When we mention to people in Argentina that we homeschool, we get about the same reaction you would have gotten here in the US 30 years ago if you mentioned that you homeschool: "Huh?", "What's that?", and "But what about friends?"., etc., etc..

Homeschooling on the frontier also means no other homeschooling families to get together with, no homeschool co-ops, no homeschool classes, no homeschool field trips, no homeschool anything. We'll have to get creative with it, I guess. It doesn't bother me, though, and hopefully won't bother the kids. I think it'll be fun! And, for us, it also means no homeschool law to cramp our style - YIPPEE!

So, since we are planning to continue this home education venture for the next couple of years, and since I know I have to take everything with me (Amazon don't delivah, folks), I've been hitting the thrift stores and library sales. I LOVE used book sales!! I figure if I surround my kids with good books, they'll be fine.

And, in case college is part of the future that God has for my kids (I couldn't tell you if it is or isn't at this point), I have to start thinking about how on earth we are going to "do high school" (assuming I am brave enough to tackle that, which I can barely even visualize surviving, let alone doing well).

So, since I have NO CLUE how I'm going to prepare my kids to take their SATs being so far away and so far out of the loop, I found this fun SAT Question of the Day site. It's been good to see what is actually on the thing, so I can make sure we cover the content somewhere along the way.

And, of course, now I'm following this site in Blogger. GEEK.

And if you're geeky like me, you can follow it, too, or have it mailed directly to your email inbox. There's some strange satisfaction I get from seeing how many I can answer correctly. Geeky fun. And since we are taking a deliberate step to go from "poor" to "poorer", it's good to know that, with just a good Internet connection, I can maybe prep my kids to ace their SATs and get free ride scholarships. At least in my mind, right?

:D

Shots versus no shots

Our two oldest kids are completely vaccinated. Somewhere between baby #2 and baby #3 I started getting more into healthy living and herbs and all that crunchy stuff. Now I'm a total freak about shots. Pendulum swung totally the other way! So much so that Peace Baby (who is now 2) has not had any shots.

They just scare me to death.

But (and this is my dilemma) I'm too much of a scaredy-cat to live in Argentina again - especially in the rough places we know we're called to - to take unnecessary risks with my kids by not vaccinating them! Argentina's dangerous enough without having to deal with a good case of spinal meningitis. I can handle colds and vomiting and diarrhea, but I don't do well with strange diseases and high fevers. I really don't.

I am not brave, just so you know. Some people think I am, but let's just dispel all the myth right now. Tony says I'm the biggest (well, I can't translate the word he uses!) scaredy-cat he knows. It's true. I discovered that while riding the hot air balloon at the Zoo several years ago. Scared. To. Death. I almost went in my pants (fortunately I made it to the bathroom in time). Yeah. Brave. That's me!

So, I've decided to go ahead and get my little schmoopie some shots. The ones that prevent the really scary, serious, can-be-fatal diseases. Reading this post scared some sense into me. Like, seriously.

So please pray for my baby! We'll be starting TOMORROW with her shots (and no, we won't be getting all of them - they over-vaccinate kids these days, if you ask me). Hopefully spreading them out over the course of this year will enable her little body to handle them better!
:)

The evolution of a gardener



 I grew up half of my childhood on a 16-acre farm. It was a gentleman's farm, really - my dad had a day job and worked on the farm after work and on weekends.

We had chickens, pigs, horses, a Christmas tree field (8,000 all planted by hand), and a giant one-acre garden. We had so many cantaloupes come late summer that, to this day, I can't stand the smell of them - that overripe, too sweet, half-rotting smell of cantaloupe which hung thick in the kitchen year after year - bleh!

Our chores as kids included watering the chickens every day (the three of us rotated weeks), mowing all the acreage in the summer (alternating weeks), mowing the rows between the Christmas trees, and Christmas tree planting bright and early every Saturday morning in the spring. My Dad's motivator was: "Come on, kids, this is your college education!" - and it was, Dad made a killing every December selling trees. We joke now that it was slave labor, but it wasn't all bad. We did learn hard work and responsibility, even though we grumbled through most of it.

I was never interested in the garden, and my Dad didn't make us do it. I don't know now if I wish he had or not. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have been interested anyway - the neighbor's pool was much more appealing!

Gardening didn't start interesting me until I was in my mid-30s. Because my Dad never dragged us into the garden, now I find myself having to learn it all from scratch! But, I like to read and learn new things, so I'm mostly trying to teach myself. Fortunately my Dad is still around, and as spry at 76 as he was back then, so he and some gardening friends pitch in their knowledge, plants, tips, and help from time to time.

I am so excited to garden again this year. This is only my 3rd year, so I'm still totally amateur (ie., I started my tomato seed in February, probably a month too early). But I'm looking at it as a learning experience - gardening is a process, constantly evolving. One does what one can, learns through mistakes, takes what works, and adapts as one goes. And because it's highly likely we may be in Argentina next year, I can't do anything permanent in our garden this year - no raised beds, no strawberries, no perennials. Sigh.

My motive in gardening is two-fold: 1) I want to eventually be able to off-set food costs by growing most of our own vegetables and some fruits, AND 2) I think it will be a step in the direction of self-sufficiency should things get financially tight on the mission field. At least we'll have vegetables to eat! (at least that's my reasoning :D). Throw in a couple of chickens for eggs, a goat for milk, and maybe a cow or two for meat, and we're not devastated should the American economy nose-dive even more than it has leaving us with less support than we need. You never know.

I read once that you should never depend on anyone to support your work (meaning ministry/missionary endeavors). Ehh, I don't know about that, but it's something that's given me some good food for thought since then. Like, "How can we move more towards self-sufficiency and away from depending on others 100% for our survival?" (meaning depending on a day job or support).

Well, how about Backyard Homesteading? Or, hey, if you're stuck in the city, Urban Homesteading!

Food is very expensive in Argentina. We will probably pay more for food than for our rent. An old high school classmate of Tony's living in Patagonia said average rent is about $500/month, but food for a family of 5 would be $600 or $700 a month! CRAZY.

So, being the visionary that I am (oh, I've got visions coming out of my ears :))  I envision a nice little, semi-self-sufficient homestead somewhere in Argentina that would serve as a means to help support ourselves as we reach out to the needy around us. You know, like Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Little House on the Prairie lol... or something like that.

And, down there, you don't really need to check with the township or municipality or even city for permission to have chickens. You can just have them. Come on, folks, it's South America! In Tony's old neighborhood in Buenos Aires (population 12 million) the neighbors three houses over had free-range chickens, or at least a rooster whatever-they-were, that made all. sorts. of racket - oh, and the cumbia. Lord have mercy, I don't even LIKE cumbia. Can you turn that down, please?? And, excuse me, but do you have a permit for those chickens?? I think not. I can guarantee they never checked whether there was a city ordinance on having chickens, and how much acreage you need and yadda yadda. When we went to Ecuador a few years ago, same thing. The rooster at the house next to our hotel decided to get vocal at FOUR AM. I wanted to kill that rooster. But I was confined to my very uncomfortable bed, freezing in the high altitude, convinced I was dying of some strange disease I had picked up after less than 8 hours in country. Turns out I had altitude sickness. And let me tell you, it feels like death. I couldn't even raise my head or get up to nudge Tony warning him of my imminent death. It feels like the flu TIMES ONE HUNDRED (obviously I lived to tell about it).

Anyway, rabbit trail... back to my garden.

When we moved two years ago, I had one year of gardening under my novice belt and had just begun composting. I was so into it that I announced to Tony that I was not leaving my organic compost behind at the old house. Since I had just had a baby and was overweight and out of shape from stuffing everything in sight into my mouth for 9 straight months (oh, and don't forget C-section #3), he was kind enough to bag it up for me in heavy duty bags and drag it to the new place. Now that's love.

we had 6 other bagfuls around somewhere...

And here the boys are breaking ground...

I was SO proud of my city-slicker husband for doing this for his lovely wife. Wow, I thought, as he tilled away for HOURS, he really does love me! At least enough to humor me. 

But, sorry, no more photos of the glorious mid-summer garden. The groundhogs had a hey-day gorging themselves on my organic garden all summer long. I was still not sleeping through the night, so the poor garden didn't get the attention it needed. I did discover, though, that groundhogs apparently don't care for the taste of tomato leaves - they ate everything else but the tomatoes! See, learn something new every year.

This year, it's war. I'm sleeping through the night, so they better watch out. I'm up for the challenge. Just you wait, groundhogs. It's fence time for you.

Busy, busy

I'm still here, just busy teaching my kids, and teaching other people's kids as well...

I discovered I actually LIKE teaching 1st & 2nd graders -
 what a great age. :)

Also busy squeezing some field trips and outdoor activities in before the weather gets too cold...

State Park lady pointing out how to identify poison ivy when it has no leaves (it's the fuzzy stuff)

Preparing for the mission field also means working on the "Must-visit-these-museums-before-leaving" List.

Tough, considering museums and baby don't seem to gel. Recent trip no exception. This really needs its own post entitled, "Museums and Other Disasters".

On a lighter note, we recently visited an Apple Cider Factory:

Throw apple on conveyor belt...

get apple cider out...

 

feed leftovers to cows.

Also visited Mom-mom for a great day of power-washing the mold off her house.

Now there's a man. 

 Always a great time. Mom-mom feeds us.

(Mommy likes this.)

:)

My Missionary Training

A few years ago we lived in a two bedroom apartment in a small apartment building on the main street of a small town. It was a quiet little town, but apparently Main Street had begun to attract a few interesting characters. We had interesting neighbor after interesting neighbor. Half were evicted. Half eventually moved out on their own. I mean, we had problems, but our neighbors really had problems. We wanted to move out of their pretty soon after we moved in. One day we would be able to afford to. Until then, it would be five years of missionary training.

We had all kinds in our building. One woman who moved in across the hall told me her husband had been molesting her daughter for years, so she finally left him. It was unnerving when we began to see him come around to visit her and her other two children.

The family that occupied that apartment before her were the loudest people I have ever had the displeasure to live next to in my entire life. They had 6 adult smokers crammed into a two bedroom apartment. I am sure that this was not code. Six adult smokers put out a lot of smoke. It would seep through the walls and fill the kids' room with, well, the smoke of six smokers. This would go on from September until May, when they finally took the majority of their smoking outside. Otherwise known as loitering. Our kids camped out on the living room floor for 8 months. I tried to make it fun, "Woo-hoo, kids! Let's do a camp-out!". (Fortunately it works when they are young:))

Another woman across the hall was a packrack. Most of the stuff in her apartment and on her balcony was trash. You could not walk in her apartment or on her balcony without walking on trash.

Downstairs there moved in what seemed like a fairly normal woman my age. I'll call her Jane. Then we realized Jane was a pathological liar and addicted to prescription drugs. Which she would forge the prescription for herself.

This is a felony, I learned.

Next to her were two early 30-somethings that lived in an apartment with no windows. When Jane was arrested for the umpteenth time and signed into the mentally unstable wing at the local hospital, they decided to move into Jane's apartment and take over her check book. All that happenned after I found Jane passed out half naked on her bathroom floor in a botched suicide attempt. But that is a story unto itself.

The young man that lived in Jane's apartment before she moved in was a somewhat skitsy and shady character himself. He really just had a lot of problems and didn't seem to know how to get out of them. From what he told me, he just only ever wanted his Dad to notice him. I took him to church with me once. Some girl I have never seen before in my life, and never saw again, came in and sat down next to him. They proceeded to give each other the eye, and then they left together.

Oh, boy, do I have stories.

One time Tony and I were lying in bed at about 11 o'clock one quite summer's eve. The windows were open, and we heard a "pop-pop-pop" outside. It took a minute, but then it registered that it was probably a gunshot. I think Tony called 911, something we had done several times before in these here parts. The next day we found out that the guy next door had gone to a party across the way. An altercation, a gun, and he was arrested. The police later found the gun thrown in the grass nearby. Not a smart guy.

Another time I answered a knock at the door to see a young man standing there, shaking and sweating profusely, with blood on his arm. I recognized him as a friend of several people in the building. I had handed him a tract one night out in the parking lot. He said, "Oh, my mom is always telling me the same thing." I gave one to all the kids that were standing there with him. Anyway, he said he was looking for so-and-so, and had fallen on his bike riding over, and could he have something to for his arm. He was acting funny, like he was under the influence of something. I said sure, locked the door behind me, went to get him a paper towel, unlocked to the door, and handed it to him. The next time I heard about him was in the paper. He was facing 120 years in prison for leading the police on a high speed chase through two counties for something or other. Maybe attempted murder, I don't remember.

Right below us, bless-ed are we, moved in an old, mentally and physically ill man named Bob. We came to call him "Urine Guy". Nice, I know. Real christian, right? Well, he would urinate in a pot and dump it right outside his door. His door was right below our window. Unfortunately for us, when the windows were open and the fan was on, pulling "fresher", cooler air in from the outside (at least that was the idea), it wasn't exactly fresh. The ambulance was always showing up for Bob. He was always calling 911 on himself. The EMTs told us they came over 80 times in one year. They have to come if you dial 911. Everybody knew Bob, he was famous in the (neighbor)hood.

Hospitality was not something we practiced a lot during that time. I couldn't figure out why no one would come over! You go to visit someone because of them, not because they live in a mansion with a pool out back, right? It was shocking to me that not everyone thought this way. And it hurt. It hurt that the fix-it man would come over and say, "How could you live here?". Now, what am I supposed to say to that?

I noticed that the only ones that would come over were usually our Latin friends that weren't phased in the least by these things. Or the family and friends who really cared about us.

I could go on and on and tell you about how we finally moved out of there Praise the Lord, only to move into a bigger apartment in a house with a huge yard and, it turns out - a pole-dancing neighbor. Sigh. It never ends. "Why, oh Lord, are you doing this to me?", I would moan for years. Tony always said, "This is for YOU, Chris."

Thanks, honey.

But it's true. Street smarts is not something you learn living in a comfortable bubble in white suburbia.

I am thankful for those five years we lived in that apartment. The LORD knew exactly what He was doing. I'm so glad He cares about me enough to take the time and care to teach me what I need to know, what He wants me to learn. Because it is for my good. And for others', as well.

There is not one person there at that apartment that did not hear the Gospel from us - some many, many times. Most were open, or at least listened. But some literally kicked the Bible I gave them into the dirt. The fruit is in God's hands. We were just learning what it means to be the message bearers.

Just yesterday little M said out of the blue, "Mommy, I liked our apartment."

"You mean the house, the apartment at the house, with the yard?"

"No, the apartment. You know, our old apartment. I was, like, three when we lived there. I remember it. It was great! I loved it. I mean, we shared a room and everything, but it was so peaceful. And we would go to the park all the time. It was so fun."

:)

Update on the Big Move - July 2010

It's been four months since we started this blog. Thought I'd post another update on how things are unfolding.

BREAKING THE NEWS: My mom still does not know. This is really hard, but I guess the timing is still not quite there. She is still adjusting to being a widow, so we are definately trying to be as sensitive as we can to that. It will be hard, though, whenever we do tell her. Just trusting God. I wanted to bring it up at a recent family get together, and I asked Tony whether he wanted to mention it. He shook his head "no". So, of course, I chickened out. It's hard when you know what obeying God will mean for other people. We are still telling people one on one as it comes up at church and with friends. People who already know are telling other people we know, which helps spread the word. We know too many people to tell them all one at a time.

PROVISION/SUPPORT: I was at our local homeschool conference this month and got a chance to talk to Dave Hazell, founder of My Father's World curriculum, who lived in Russia for 8 years as a missionary. So of course I went up to him after one of his lectures, to pick his missions-minded brain and to ask about their own experience as missionaries. He shared that it's not really "his thing" to ask people for money (yeah, me either), so they just went. They had a small salary from the agency they went with, and he got a part-time job there. Once they got abroad and people began seeing what they were doing, they started giving. Through it all, they scraped and pinched pennies (ruples:)). He encouraged us to not put God in a box, that it doesn't have to look a certain way. If God is calling us, he said, he believes He is big enough to take care of us. His faith encouraged me tremendously, and I was able to encourage Tony with what he shared. Tony could get a job there, for example. We could start a small business. He suggested I could also teach English part-time. (I say no to all three, but that's because I know the economy there. It's the PITS. A peso doesn't go far anymore. A dollar goes four times as far. But, okay... must not box God...). I don't know, I agree with our missionary friends in Ecuador who pointed out that going with a job is not the ideal. You end up doing the same there as you do here, just changing countries. You end up with little time left over to do anything else.

A woman from church called me one morning recently and said she had been thinking about me and wanted to come over and catch up. We had a great talk, and I did the best I could to share what we think God is laying on our hearts, and all He has done to prepare us for it. She was very encouraging, and it helped to talk to her about it all. She, too, mentioned going as tentmakers. When she got up to leave, she pulled an envelope out of her purse and handed it to me saying, "The LORD told me to give this to you."

Inside was a check. She said she didn't know what "trip" it was for, but that the Lord told her to give it to us.  :)

FUNDRAISER/YARDSALE: I'm sure now we need to do a fundraiser meal. I think this FALL we'll do a combined ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT $10/plate-type thing, maybe with a YARD SALE on the side. We have so much stuff we need to get rid of. I don't know how much we will make, but hopefully it will take care of plane tickets for starters. Or enough to ship a container with our stuff (and possibly a car) inside. It's a start. Definately a great way to share with people what God is calling us to do and to get the word out.

PRAYER: Praying A LOT. Praying for faith. We've never had to trust God to this degree before. I mean, really. Praying for wisdom. For specific direction. Even started praying for a place to live there, specifically listing to God all the things we'll "need" there. Even praying for a job for Tony, if that's what the LORD would have. He has done it before, and I know He can do it again. I've learned to not hold back in prayer. He is good to give us all we need.

KIDS: They now know that we are moving to Argentina. They accept it as fact and as their future. Big A is not happy about it, however. Whenever we try to talk about it with him, he almost starts to cry. I guess 10 is a hard age to do this. I can't imagine 12 or 14 then. Please pray for him. We know that God has him in mind, He has all three of our children in mind, in calling us there. The call is just not for us, but for them. This is part of His will for their lives, as well. He has not forgotten about them and his sovereign plan covers them also. They are not an afterthought, and we know that God has amazing things planned for them as well in this. :)

TONY: Tony keeps wanting to write something here, but it just hasn't happenned yet. He's not much of a computer guy. One of these days. He does say that he feels more and more strongly that God wants us there. That God wants us to move "al Sur" - meaning to the south of Argentina. Funny, because I hear the same thing. Loud and clear. My friend who came over (and left the check) said she always saw us working with Spanish people. I remember one Sunday, some 8 years ago, she was praying for me at church as I just wept over how Tony was persecuting me for my faith (he was not yet saved), and she said, "Christine [she calls me Christine, I don't know why], this is preparation for you. One day you will be able to encourage Tony. I just see you working with Spanish people. I don't know if it's here or there. But, yes, I see it. Hang in there."

I'm so glad I did.

:)

Bees, a four letter word

Our whole yard is a blanket of clover right now.

And therefore, one big blanket of BEES.

I hate bees. I don't care if they give us honey. They are evil, as far as I'm concerned. But, then again, I'm allergic. So that probably affects my opinion somewhat.

This spring I was sitting outside, watching the kids play in the cool of the day, Epipen by my side, when I saw it. The first bee of the season. My heart sunk. They ruin everything, those bees. So I began praying, yet again, what I pray every spring. "Oh, LORD, please don't let me get stung, ever again, for as long as I shall live. InJesusName. Amen."

Now, I've only ever been stung once, when I was 6 or 7, but once was enough. When my arm swelled up to four times its normal size, we realized I may have a slight allergy.

This year I began to pray a special prayer, "Oh, LORD, please, please, please don't let my kids get stung by any bees this summer. Unless they are not allergic. Then, please do let them be stung, but just once, so I'll know that they are not."

Then I tried to forget about the prayer and just trust and rest in God's protection. All the while continuing to bark at the kids to "put flip-flops on if you're going to go outside!".

But do they listen... NOoooooo! So, I chose to shrug my worries off and just let them run over fields of clover in bare feet if they so chose.

"Alright," I would say, "you may get stung by a beeeeee. Just so you knooowww..."

So guess who stepped on a bee this weekend?

Big A has been stung several times, so I know he is not allergic, but the two younger girls haven't ever been stung. There was a while there that I was just gripped by the fear of bees and dying by bee-sting (I know, I can be somewhat neurotic - I'm working on it, okay?). I was so afraid of hitting the mission field, walking along some deserted mountain road, and stepping on a hornets nest or something. Dead. By bee sting. That, and drowning, or being eaten by sharks, are my greatest fears. Oh, and heights.

Don't you feel better about yourself now? Chris is completely neurotic. Take heart - you're most likely not as bad as me.

Anway, I am so glad God answers prayer. Especially when you are least expecting it.

Little M stepped on a bee this weekend. And, boy, was she LOUD about it! Good thing I was not obsessing about bees at the moment, because I was able to go over to her, completely and miraculously CALM, and see what she was crying about (although I could guess, since she was bent over her foot and screaming bloody murder). The stinger and attached venom sack were still sticking out of her big toe. I had Tony pull out the stinger - 'cause you know, what if it sticks me or something? I watched her closely for the next five or ten minutes.

Fortunately, she does not seem to be allergic like her Mommy. Yay for answered prayer!

Whew. Glad that one's over. Now baby. I pray she gets doesn't get stung for at least another year or two...

I have a whole list of other prayer requests I'm waiting on the Lord to answer before we are able to take off for lands unknown. Maybe bees don't sound important to you, but the Lord knows I just need peace of mind in certain areas. If I am the only one allergic, then that's one less Epipen we have to carry around (if you can indeed get them there) and one less Mommy-worry for Mommy.

"Be anxious for nothing; but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds through Christ Jesus." Phil. 4:5

:)

Research, Gospel Translations, and Company

I've been spending a lot of time this week in research. Researching the people of Patagonia, the ministries (or lack thereof) going on there, and searching online for as much info as I can find.

We also had company from Argentina.

Tony, Pollo (Tony's friend and former co-worker), and Patri

It was great to be able to talk to them about how things actually are down there right now. The economy (bad), crime (very bad), and Bariloche (which they have been to, not so bad).

I had also forgotten how open Argentians are. They came right out and asked me when I was converted. And listened intently as I shared my testimony and the way of salvation. Tony also witnessed to them a lot on and off the entire 5 days they were in our home. So amazing. Salvation is of the Lord, but it was so fun to be able to openly share with people who actually listen to you, and respectfully. Wow. Refreshing.

Anyway, we've been praying alot, too, about what on earth God would specifically have us do there. There is a lot to do, that is for sure, so I've been having a good time continuing to research info and online resources, and posting a lot of the links above on our new Missions Links page. Fun!

This one I find a tremendous blessing and extremely helpful for sure, since we can print them out on the field!

Sweet!

:)

An Update on Preparations - April 2010

It's been two months since we started this blog, so here's an UPDATE on how things are unfolding towards the Big Move To Missions...

PRAYER: We continue to pray daily about the "vision", as Tony has come to call it. I guess it is. God does that. Gives you an idea, lays something on your heart, puts something in your mind, gives you a dream, or just gives you an all-consuming passion for something. A vision. It is so neat to hear my husband, who used to persecute me for my faith, pray every day about serving the Lord with his LIFE. It's just awe-inspiring to me. Following God is so not boring. Except when you're washing the dishes. That's boring.

BREAKING THE NEWS: My mom still doesn't know about our plans. She's the only one! We went for a visit over a month ago to tell her face to face, but it was clearly not the right time. Her husband (my stepfather) had been declining physically, and she was barely hanging in there as his full-time nurse. I just couldn't bring myself to tell her. The timing was wrong and way off. A week later my stepfather died. :( They were married 25 years. I definately can not tell her now! Not yet. She needs time. So, for now, we're just praying for her, praying for the right time, and praying that, in the meantime, no little birdies accidentally leak the news. It's sweet when we ask the kids who they would like to pray for and they say, "Mom-mom".

MISSIONS ORGANIZATIONS: We are looking at the whole "missions organization" thing again. In talking to people, going with an "umbrella" has its benefits. So we're researching it some more. We don't read where it's a biblical requirement to serve Jesus, but we will certainly go with an umbrella if that is what is best. We would also love to go with the support of our home church, so Tony is in the process right now of sharing our plans with them. However it works out is fine with us, all we know is that God has made His plans clear, so we are walking forward. The details are in the Lord's hands, the best and most safe place they can be.

PEOPLE'S REACTIONS: It's been funny to see people's reactions. At first, it wasn't funny, but kind of discouraging. You always want people to be as excited for you as you are. That, of course, is not always the case. It does seem crazy. It is crazy. It was crazy when we took our young kids to Ecuador to do missions alongside us, where there just happpened to be an active volcano spewing ash all over the place. Who does that? Not many people, I guess. The reaction was the same back then. Not everyone reacts hesitantly, and no one says anything, but you can tell when the eyes momentarily bulge and a look of shock, then disbelief, then concern, sweeps over their face. It's still just so weird to me that some Christians think forsaking all to follow Christ is crazy or WEIRD. I never get used to that. And hope I don't.

here are the kids playing underneath the active volcano with their gas/ash masks on

BUT, many people have been very encouraging. I especially appreciate this. Tony doesn't seem to be affected so much from people's reactions, but he's a guy. And a natural born leader. He does what he needs to do regardless of what anybody says. That's what leaders tend to do - that's part of what makes them leaders. Regardless of the reactions we get, whether good or bad, nonetheless, the commands of Jesus still stand: go into all the world, preach the Gospel, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the fatherless, visit those in prison, suffer little children to come unto Me, love your neighbor, etc., etc., etc.,... well, you know them.

TRAINING/EVANGELISM: Tony has been evangelizing as he is able, which isn't all that much when you have a job working with the same two or three guys all the time. Precisely why I encourage him to try not to think he "has to" get a job in Argentina (although he is willing to do this). It's leaves little time for anything else. The other week he took the kids into town to pass out invitations to the Spanish church to as many Latinos as they could find. They knocked on doors, handed out tracts, and talked to every Latin person they saw. Which seems to be a lot lately down on Main Street. Tony is one of those people that has no fear of man. He'll talk to anyone, and he does it so naturally.

SUPPORT/PROVISION: And, since we can't do all this without MONEY, I've begun planning a "Moving to Patagonia" Yard Sale. We have to get rid of a lot of STUFF. Whether we leave the rest in storage or take it with us remains to be seen, but I just can't believe we actually have to downsize after 9 years in the States. We started with our underwear in cardboard boxes because we didn't have furniture! All the proceeds will probably be put towards plane tickets or supplies. Also going to do a Fundraiser meal at some point, as well. Mostly just sharing with people one on one and spreading the word for now.

DEPARTURE DATE: Many people ask WHEN we're leaving. At the earliest, next Fall (their Spring). At the latest, when the baby is 4 or 5. Although I don't see us leaving that late, you never know.

ON THE HOME FRONT: More of the same: homeschooling, preparing meals, washing dishes, washing clothes, changing diapers, lots of Bible study... the occassional fun field trip. In addition to doing a lot of research regarding the Big Move, I've been praying to just NOT LOSE FOCUS. For both of us. It's so easy, especially for me (since I grew up to be an "independent woman of the '90s", not to "waste" my life staying home with kids) to forget that my first God-given ministry is to my husband and my children. If I fail here, I fail (this is my opinion and conviction). It doesn't matter how many people we reach for Christ, if we don't reach your own family first, our own children that God has given us, we've failed. If we lose our own kids for "the ministry" or "the call", we lose. It is very easy, and a subtle slip, to start putting "ministry" or your perceived "calling" ahead of the one you've already been given: your own family. That is the temptation when I think about living in Argentina as missionaries, where the need is SO great. I pray that God always helps me, helps us, to always keep our priorities straight.

I think that's all for now.
:)

----------------------------------------------------
PS - posted another pic on Tony's Adoption Story :)

Adventures in Washington, DC

Our "fantabulous" trip to DC was quite possibly the most distastrous weekend vacation of all time. Here is what happenned, in a nutshell:

Let's see... purchased defective cell phone for trip, had to exchange said phone, so left late, forgot directions, had no time to charge or activate new phone, therefore stood-up old college roomie I was planning to see, museums swamped with entire population of East Coast, children not listening, baby screaming, baby only wanting to scoot on dirty floors/wet ground picking up old food, children whining, children running off in museum wanting to see everything all at the same time, can not discipline in public, dinner too late=migraine, check FB at hotel to send apology message to old college roomie only to find stepfather died AHH! :(, worried about mom, can not call from hotel OR cell, wake up with migraine, oh well off to zoo, entire east AND west coast at zoo, hot, children not listening, baby scooting on dusty ground picking up more food, screaming baby, hungry, thirsty, attempt to eat at restaurant on way back to hotel, baby so tired and screams entire time, bad parent stares from everyone within 50 mile radius, more migraine pain, meds not working, back to hotel, try last resort migraine medication=bad reaction, call 911, last straw for husband who begins pulling own hair and saying "What am I going to do? What am I going to do?" as he throws pillows in attempt to pack bags for unplanned ER visit, about to faint or die not sure, tongue lolling out of mouth, EMT assure me I am not dying, decide to stay at hotel, Monday pouring rain, pop only Tylenol now, smile!, bag plans and tour DC by CAR, get lost, husband forgot map of DC, me too, illegally park to get gratuitous pic of White House, attempt to leave town for home and end up in VA a little out of the way, now caught in rush hour, sigh... at least headache gone now and the kids said they had a GREAT time in DC. :)

Well, that's good, because WE didn't. Tony is still having fun doing his impersonation of me calling 911 on myself. With no help from him, I might add. We laugh about it now.

At one point during the mayhem I looked at Tony and just shook my head. He said, "Well, we'd better get used to this because we'll need to be prepared for all sorts of things allá (meaning Argentina). It'll be ten times harder than this." I know he is right. I momentarily and somewhat seriously reconsider this whole missionary thing.

There were so many great photo opps to be had, but nursing my pounding head took presidence, so we really didn't take many at all :( .

So glad to be home. The funeral was more than sad. Maybe I'll write about that a year from now, maybe not... we're all still licking our wounds and trying to recover.

"Behold, all souls are mine..." -Ezekiel 18:4

[Check out our next attempt at an enjoyable weekend in DC here]

Missions Organizations

Some of you are probably wondering if we're going to go with a missions organization.

I used to think that that's the only way to go. I don't know where I got that idea, but that's what I thought. In my research, many missions organizations require college degrees, seminary, and/or special training of some sort. Not to mention other major and minor "requirements". Although I understand where they are coming from, it "disqualifies" so many well-intentioned Christians from ever doing anything for the Lord abroad. Or at least that's what they'll come away believing. It also "disqualifies" us from ever being able to work with certain organizations.

At some point I realized that, if we were to go some day to an overseas mission field, it might not be with an organization. I let that dream die a slow, pitiful death, and actually mourned that loss for years. What would we do? I guess I was wrong, maybe we're not called. Tony did not go to college, and neither one of us have gone to seminary. We have no special training that we could put on a resumé to make us look really good. We're just ordinary people who happen to love Jesus and want to live for Him. That's all. Sigh. I guess we're not qualified either.

Peter was a lowly fisherman. Probably didn't even finish high school, the poor guy. There were tax collectors, women, soldiers, somebodies and nobodies who all followed Christ and helped to spread the Good News 2000 years ago. Yes, Paul was highly educated and well-trained... but that was Paul.

But back to missions organizations... our situation is unique in that Tony and I are already fluent in the language. We don't need to spend six months and a lot of money on language school. We don't need special visas to get into the country, we're already citizens/residents (Tony and Big A by birth, the rest of us by association). We don't need special training on how to get around, how to bridge the culture gap, how to pay the bills, or prepare the food, or really anything. God himself did a pretty good job already preparing us.

Cameron Townsend, founder Wycliffe Bible Translators

I remember wanting to go on a mission trip to a South American country once and tried to jump in on the action a little too late. I didn't end up going, but I was shocked to find out how much it cost the people who did go. We could have sent our whole family for a month on what each individual paid to go! The $1500 ticket we could have easily found for a third of the price.  And I guess that's why organizations are needed, most Americans don't know their way around the system or how to get things done the right and best way abroad, so they need that help.

We are 38 and 41 years old. We don't want to spend any more time "getting ready" or waiting until we are "prepared enough", whenever that is. It reminds me of parenting. If you wait until you are "ready" or "have enough money", you'll never have kids. The truth is, who is ever ready? and who ever has enough money?

If you want to be inspired, read a few great missionary biographies. Cameron Townsend, Gladys Aylward, George Muller, to name just a few. You'd be surprised to find out that Gladys Aylward flunked out of Bible school. Cameron Townsend, who founded Wycliffe Bible Translators, found himself in Central America at a very young age as a missionary, only to realize he had NEVER ONCE SHARED THE GOSPEL WITH ANOTHER LIVING SOUL. George Muller had faith he said was nothing special. We all have access to the same kind of faith.

Interesting how God still used a failure, a young unprepared nobody, and just some ordinary guy... Read it for yourself! :)

When To Go?

"To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven" ~ Ecclesiastes 3:1

When to go? Well, definately before I'm too old to want to go, that's for sure. I told Tony we better go before I hit 40, definately 50, or I'm not going to want to go anywhere. Each year I spend back in the States I get more and more comfortable, further away from ever wanting or believing I could ever leave again. I just feel my age, that's all. I really do.

Anyway, that gives us two years, tops.

There is a lot to do, a lot of preparation, but the two most important things are:

1. Go with support (ie, money)
2. Go with a good car (which could mean trading the vans for a good 4x4 which, again, takes money)

I would love and prefer to go visit first, you know: scope the place out, see what the Lord has in mind, check out the living conditions, talk to the people, check out the local churches, get an idea of ministry opportunities, you know, plan. So, I mentioned the idea at dinner when we were talking about the whole thing with the kids. Tony feels visiting is waste of time and money. He would just go. Ship all our earthly belongings in a container, rent a house upon arrival, then take 6 months or so get to know the area and move again, if necessary.

We definately would love Peace Baby to be mobile, out of diapers, and sleeping better. She needs a year/year and half to grow and settle her little high-strung, screamy personality down a little. Well, a lot. Let's just say her name means "peace", but she's not living up to it yet.

Where To Go?

This weekend we were talking a lot about where we should go.

We both agree Patagonia.

We are thinking northern, as opposed to southern, Patagonia. The town of Bariloche is located in northern Patagonia. Luckily for us, Tony has been there twice, both for work during his former life as a television cameraman. It's a "little town with nothing to do" he said (well, to someone from a city of 11 million, I guess so). From what I gather, that is not true. Not true at all. It's the only "major" city in northern Patagonia, with a population of 100,000-150,000 (I've read conflicting things), that is located in the Andes mountains. It might work well as a home base for several reasons:

1) There is access to good medical care (important when you're 40-ish and have 3 kids)
2) Access to good banks
3) Internet access (uh, need I say more?)
4) Access to resources we may need for the kids' schooling, supplies for life, and missions
5) It's a good central location to all the indigenous communities of the native Mapuche people of northern Patagonia
6) And it has whatever else a civilzed person may need, except probably peanut butter
7) Oh, and word has it they are building a Wal-mart soon! How happy am I?

It's a match made in Heaven.

There are many other reasons, all good, we thought of that we could also list here. But mostly, it just makes sense. It's a starting point, anyway. We'll see how things develop!