Hard to argue with a jubilant toddler who runs up to you, holding out a book, saying in rapid succession, “yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!”

  
Of course, baby. All else must wait. Even for the fourth time through this book this morning.

– Adore her and her little snuggles.

– That’s just our Eden Rose for ya.

Today we’re cleaning out the garage and passing along some of our blessings to others. So, so many have blessed us in the past that it’s quite sweet to see the things take on new life in others’ homes. 

We’re slimming down to the outdoor things we hope to send across the ocean to our next adventure. Goodbye bike trailers. Goodbye old adult bikes. So long double jogging stroller. The memories rolling off with the cobwebs. 

The inflatable sled remains for our last winter. And the kid bikes we hope might make the trip. 

But it’s phase one of things looking a little more bare. A little more organized. A little more ready. 
He calls and it resonates to our core.

We are beginning to pick up pace.

Gently, but intentionally. 

We’re beginning the final laps of this American marathon…

We just stayed home that Wednesday. It had been a long journey, those four seminary classes. And a stressed Mommy tried not to make her fantastic four CSI victims. We all just needed a night. A night to settle. Get into pajamas a little early and enjoy the nothingness of a cleared evening.

But we were waiting for him. Because without him our evening doesn’t end like it should. Nope, I’m not talking about mass chaos breaking out, I’m talking about how they relish in His teaching of God’s Word around the kitchen table.

But tonight was special.

Sometimes you just have to make the ordinary special.

By the power of candles.

It’s the simple, really,

that makes it all so beautifully extravagant.

-Thankful, grateful and blessed.

Well dear ones, It’s a bit hard to believe it but I have completed the biggest seminary term required of me in preparation for Africa. It. Was. CRAZY taking my four online one-credit master’s level courses. And honestly after seven weeks (plus 3-4 prep weeks before the term even began) of pounding through lectures, quizzes, papers, worksheets, discussion threads, textbook reading, and over four hundred chapters in the Bible… I’m still in a bit of shock that it’s over. It’s quite weird not to live in this constant state of mild panic that I’m forgetting some assignment in the daily shuffle. But I’m doing my best to come to terms with a more calm normal.

I have 2.5 (one of my classes drags on for a few extra weeks for some reason) classes left to complete my Missionary Certificate. One continues from last term (I seriously have no idea why, but whatever. LOL) and one, Old Testament 2, begins on October 14th. Then my final class, New Testament 1 (I already took New Testament 2) is from January to mid-March.

Old Testament 2 (OT2) is no walk in the park, dear ones. I have a huge amount of textbook reading, 526 Bible chapters of reading, weekly worksheets, weekly quizzes, weekly discussion threads, weekly lectures, and a final paper. Um…. OT 2 is just as exhausting as OT1 was, but alas, I too shall overcome it. So when I burst into spontaneous tears on the term’s completion on December 4th (in honor of my Mother’s birthday. hehe), you’ll know why. 😉

This week the kids and I are taking a break from school (in theory), which really means that I try to get ahead in my schooling (cause I know how much it’s going to drain me when it begins so I can’t help but kill myself to get it done now) without having the added responsibility of homeschooling my masses. I’m thankful that our jubilant running amuck this week is providing temporary distractions from seminary stress.

So other than seminary requirements, God has been narrowing down the African horizon for us as we are now actively pursuing one job match. Our Sub-Saharan Africa Affinity leader is currently scoping out the job we’re applying for so he won’t return to the office for another week (lucky traveler). But in the meantime, we have made contact with a cluster leader (cluster = small grouping of countries primarily focused around similar people groups) on the African missions field and made an initial contact with the veteran couple that, Lord willing, would be training us on the field. Things are going wonderfully and we continue to covet your prayers as we seek God’s direction for our family. We are told that the country matching phase can be long and grueling, but we have yet to get the full specifics until the return of our affinity leader from the preview trip.

I will tell you one thing, though, dear friends… it’s quite humbling to begin to see literal streets on which God is potentially calling us to serve. Thanks to the internet, we have been able to take a virtual tour of the job area, hear the native tongue, watch videos of past missionaries serving in the regions surrounding the job location (this job is the first one to this specific location), and even learn about local foods, climates, conditions, see the market places, check out area boats (because there are boats. hehe), and so much more. It’s a little crazy, dear ones, how close African can feel when we’re still what feels like light-years away from seminary completion and potential job matching.

And then again it’s also crazy to think that 6.5 months from now we will complete the last thing on our list that binds us to the United States.

That is so unbelievably crazy to think about.

Freeing.

And kind of like the floor falls out at the same time.

So in the mean time, we keep praying. And seeking. And preparing. And yearning. And biting our nails off. 😉

Because it’s all so real.

And yet so surreal too.

*Watching Him guide us one day at a time is just so astounding.