Thoughts on new year's, shirts, and socks

I love the start of a new year.... the feeling that I am staring into a big, vast blankness called "the future 12 months" and wondering what events will fill those months, and knowing that only the Lord knows. I think it's a mercy that we don't always know what the future holds - hard sometimes, to wrestle with unresolved issues and heavy burdens, but thankful that we can be without the sorrows that sometimes await.

This time last year our big pressing issues were our housing (we were being kicked out of our house in June) and how to pay for our visas (due in July to the tune of over $15,000). I remember last January being so weighted down by the "how are we ever going to get through this year?" thoughts. But here we sit, a year later, in a beautiful house overlooking the whole valley, with our visas in hand (and money still in the bank!) and more pineapples than we could ever eat. :) So God reminded us again in 2011 that He always provides.

God also provided a lot of opportunities to trust Him this last year - with Penny's death and questions of "What should we have done differently?" and Paul's death and lots of tears and pain. Opportunities to trust Him through very bitter conflict with co-workers and learning to forgive... and forgive... and forgive... and wait and trust for resolution and peace.

This coming year brings our return to America after three (at times very long!) years away. Lots of fears about fitting back in and how the boys will transition and how we will ever afford un-government subsided gasoline prices. :) Lots of questions about our future ministry plans and where the Lord is leading us. Lots of excitement over the anticipation of walking down the aisles of WalMart, eating macaroni and cheese and tacos and sub sandwiches, catching up with friends and family and worshipping in our home churches.

I tried to come up with some great New Year's Resolutions for the year. Brant thinks resolutions are stupid, so he was absolutely no help. One of my favorite blog writers suggested "No buying any new clothes for a year" but I kinda think this is not the year to try that, as we are already scheduling a trip to WalMart to pick up new underwear on our way home from the airport. :) Another friend has the goal of reading a book every week (really fun, but not practical for a mom of 3 little boys). Another to take a picture of her life every single day.... which might be fun except it's already nine days in and I haven't taken a single picture since Christmas Day.

Okay, a few pictures so this isn't too heavy of a post. The first of the boys on Christmas morning. Can you tell they were a TAD excited?


This one is one we took of Caleb to send in with his school application for the school the boys will attend in the States in the fall. We went through all of our pictures from this past year and could not find a. single. picture. of either Caleb or Elijah wearing a shirt other than a few family pics. Seriously, they are going to go through major culture shock when we got back to America and my laundry load is going to double. So we made Caleb put a shirt on a took a few pictures of him. :) We sent the school a picture of Elijah with no shirt on.... climbing up this huge rock barefooted. It's a great pic and we really didn't think it was honest that we send a picture of him looking like a normal American kid with shoes and a shirt when he never wears either. :) We actually put on his application that one of the areas we were concerned with in him attending the school was he will have to be so dressed up for school all the time - I don't think he's worn socks 5 times in the last 3 years. I think it's a MK rule that MKs don't ever wear shoes and only wear shirts if they are girls. :) Seriously, at the high school graduation last spring most of the kids walked into the auditorium barefooted!


We actually didn't send this one. We sent one where he is looking at the camera and smiling like a normal kid. Boy, will they be surprised! :):)