A Most Wonderful Weekend

Lions, Tigers, and Bears, Oh My!  Our last weekend of travel began with a Friday afternoon trip to the OKC Zoo with Kalli, Tori, and Aunt Stephie.  Cade's 1st trip to the zoo turned out to be a great success.  We enjoyed a detailed description of the animals by our dear nieces and had a great time seeing the baby elephant, Malei, grizzly bears, Bison, and of course the bats (Kalli's favorite).

Saturday afternoon held another fun new adventure for our little munchkin.  It was time to see pumpkins and play in the hay!  We made our way to WINGS pumpkin patch and took some great pictures of Cade amongst the gourds.  He was a trooper and loved the pumpkins, indian corn, and crawling around in the grass.

Later that evening, Pete and Phil headed out to the OU v. Texas Tech game and had a blast cheering from their sweet suite while the rest of the crowd enjoyed a nice shower.

Meanwhile, back East, my best friend's man was getting down on one knee and popping "the question"! She said, 'YES!"  We couldn't be more excited for them as they begin preparing for a life together.

What a wonderful weekend!

Oklahoma City

I had my first encounter with Oklahoma City when Pete and I were engaged and we came out to visit his brother and boy oh boy, was it beautiful!  I remember walking around downtown, over at the memorial, and strolling through the Bricktown area.  I was impressed by it's pedestrian friendly streets, quaint restaurants, and fun things to do.  Throughout our married life thus far, Pete and I would tell you that if we had to live in the States, OKC is one place we would consider.  This is a huge step for me coming from the Southeast and loving the great state of GEORGIA!  But honestly, Oklahoma City is really that beautiful and it has an essence of home, warmth, and friendliness (even if it's not technically in the south).

While living in Longview, TX, Pete and I would occasionally make the 6 hour drive up to OKC to visit his brother, Phil, sis-in-love Steph, and their adorable girls, Kalli and Tori.  We enjoyed spending our Easter holidays and other random weekend getaways here in OKC.

Tonight, we spent the evening in Bricktown.  Just as beautiful as it was the last time and so family friendly!  After dining on some great burgers, chicken fingers, sandwiches, and mac'n'cheese for the little ones, my oldest niece and I went on a mini-walk.  It was a bit too cold for everyone to walk around and was starting to get late, so while the rest of the family packed into the car and got it started, Kalli and I took a mini-walk down the street, past the baseball stadium and statues to the splatter-painted buffalo at the end of the road.  It was a short walk, but it was so fun to skip, sing, and chat with sweet Kalli-Joy!

While we do love OKC for all the great attributes of the city and the great things to do day and night, the absolute best part about this city is our family here!  We look forward to showing them around our new home in Indo and to fun times returning to OKC and visiting them on our furloughs.

Kalli standing beside the buffalo!

See You Soon...

These last few weeks in Longview have been wonderful.  Pete and I continue to be amazed at how the Lord is providing our Ministry Team and the people who are excited to partner with us to share Christ's love through aviation and technology.  When we rolled in to Longview three weeks ago we were overcome with the feeling of being "at home".  During our time back, we have enjoyed many great meals and conversations and have been able to share how MAF is reaching isolated people around the world.  It's been a long and exhausting few weeks, but it has also been incredibly rewarding as we watch God build this team of people eager to see Him work in Indonesia.
Tomorrow will be bittersweet.  Tomorrow, we will say "see you soon" to the place we began our married life and family.  Tomorrow, we will say "see you soon" to the family that the Lord has provided here for us.  Tomorrow, we will say "hello" to our family in Oklahoma City and look forward to enjoying some family time and sharing ministry opportunities with new people.
But tonight, tonight we just sit back and thank God for His work and His provision.  Tonight, we rest knowing that He is in control and that His timing is perfect.  Tonight, we enjoy His faithfulness and love as we relish in these last moments with our Texas family.

Cade Crawling

On Your Mark... Get Set...

GO!

I promised a few pictures of our little monkey crawling.  We have a new game now - Cade crawls a little ways and I pull back on his legs.  Then, he squeals with delight!  And we begin again.  It's so much fun!

On the MP Trail | Support Raising and Friend Visiting

Blessed.  This word is the only word that can truly define how Pete and I feel about the amazing journey God has us on.  We are blessed by His guidance.  We are blessed by His presence.  We are blessed by His provision.  We are blessed that He has gone before us in truly remarkable and unmistakable ways.  We are blessed by every meal shared and every moment filled with His love and guidance.  Glory to God for all the partners in ministry that we have gained over the past few months and for the team that He already has in mind for us as we prepare for ministry in Indonesia.  Glory to Him who created us, loves us, and continues to work in our hearts/lives until He calls us home.  Glory to Him for the ability to walk with Him and share His love and saving grace.

Our time in Texas is half way over and I can't help but think about future trips here to share with the family of faith that God has cultivated and blessed us with in this place.  

If you are interested in joining us on this journey as a partner in ministry, please click the "Partner" link above and sign up to receive our prayer letter or give online.  We would love to have you on the team!


In the Life of Cade:

During our first week in Texas, Cade got a nasty cold - so bad that we went to the doc just to make sure it wasn't the flu/something worse.  She reassured us that is was just a cold and that he would be fine in a week or so.  He's had some rough nights, difficult days, and is just now getting back to his normal self.  Praise God!  He is such a joyful child and it broke my heart to see him so miserable.