Eternally Grateful and Incredibly Overwhelmed...

The last two weeks of our lives have been an absolute blur - to say the least.  On our drive out to Houston, we had the privilege of meeting the newest member of the Shanahan family, and oh my word is he PRECIOUS!  It's always so much fun for us to see them and we had a blast playing with Andrea and Jackson, and holding little Owen.  Did I mention that although I am a momma, I had COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN how to hold an infant.  Seriously, it looked like I had never been around babies in my life as I stood there in the kitchen holding Owen as Holly made dinner.  Pete thought it was hilarious, but I can honestly say that it made me nervous about ever adding another to our family...

We then completed the journey to Houston and had an amazing time with many Indonesians at the house fellowship, Indonesian Consulate, and IFGF Houston.  We are always overwhelmed by the generosity and hospitality of our Indonesian brothers and sisters in Christ - truly blessed, and overwhelmed (in a good way)!   We had the chance to fellowship, sing praises, and share in the Word of God, not to mention try the infamous Durian fruit.

Our host in Houston was a kind, caring, and incredibly hospitable man who will forever hold a special place in our hearts as just one of the many ways the Lord has shown himself to us along this journey of support raising.  No words can express the depth of our gratitude and the blessing we experienced while being in Houston with Irfan and the IFGF community.

We also had a chance to see some friend in Houston - shout out to the Gibson's, Uncle Tim, and Skinny - before heading to Longview for a much needed face-to-face goodbye with dear friends.

In Longview, we updated a very special small group on our journey and timeline, enjoyed dinner with our dear friends the VanBrocklin's, and had some dessert as we met little Logan Arnold for the very first time!  Our home away from home, the RV in the Ash's back yard, was as comfy and peaceful as we had remembered and we enjoyed being with the Ash family - picking out paint colors, shopping for Indo supplies, sharing meals, and being amongst family who have been where we are going and have helpful advice and tips for our journey!

Upon our return we said a few more goodbyes to Pete's brother's family.  The hugs were a little longer than usual and a few words my sis, Stephanie said will forever ring in my ears, "I can't believe I'm about to have a sister in Indonesia."  For this only child, those words are very special and even as I type this, I find myself tearing up - grateful that the Lord has provided in so many ways, including that childhood prayer of having sisters!  To both of my sisters - I love you and thank God for you (and my awesome brothers, too)!

God is incredibly good to our family and we are eternally grateful and incredibly overwhelmed by His faithfulness and love which is lavished on us.