This fall is simply stunning. This is the view just out of our front door at present- that could hardly be more lovely (in the city, anyway).
And looking down, just for posterity...
The brevity and the fact that we experience this only once every few years makes it all the sweeter. There's nothing like driving or running with a shower of falling leaves around you. God is simply glorious in His creation.
Even as we revel in experiencing the beauty around us, we're thinking of and praying for the people of Thailand, who are experiencing the worst flooding the country has seen in 50 years. We are praying for our church as they give aid to those suffering and continue to wait to see how our area will be affected. It's odd to have your heart and mind in two worlds.
On this side of the world, we've been soaking up our time with loved ones. We've celebrated some grandparent birthdays...
Done some camping with family...
Splendid Tallulah Gorge in north Georgia
At the zoo with our dear friends and former teammates- it's always amazing to me to see how the bonds formed in Thailand don't break. These little girls fall right back into giggles and closeness even after living worlds apart for the past several years.
Soaking up friends in Atlanta, too- at the Botanical Gardens
We had the fun of a visit with our friends and future teammates, which was such a joy, and we're all anticipating Baby, who will be making his appearance this month!
Ceramics has played a major role in our time here, which has been refreshing and stretching for Tim. He has loved working as an artist again and desires to see his gifts mesh with the work we've been given in Thailand. He had the opportunity to show his work this month, which culminated in a closing event last weekend. It was a privilege to share his work and to use ceramics to help fund work in Thailand. Our amazing photographer friend took pictures from the show, and perhaps I'll post some of those when we get them.
playing with fire- an ancient japanese firing method called raku
a more traditional firing- a load of pots ready to come out of the kiln
students at our local school visit the studio for some instruction from the potter
I had the privilege of spending the weekend at Berry recently with my four closest friends from college- it was refreshing and a reminder that these are forever relationships- I'm so thankful for these girls.
Halloween was just fun- a visit with Uncle G and Aunt B, as is our tradition, then dinner and trick or treating with dear friends. Because we don't do this every year, Asa had no trick or treating experience and was a little slow to warm up to the whole endeavor...he thought Halloween meant hiding candy in the house to find, which we've done in Thailand in an attempt to celebrate in some small way- so funny!
Recent travels have taken us to Nashville, which we really enjoyed- beautiful honky tonk city that it is. We visited good friends, then ate burgers and signed our names in sharpie on a rusted out car in a country-western bar- how's that for fun?
And that about sums up our recent weeks. Life is full.
piano recital
ballet's lovely ending
The Nutcracker
It was indeed a blessed Christmas, starkly different from the last and from what will be next year, joy and the everyday trials all mixed together. May God give us the grace to live each moment in thankfulness on this journey.
This fall is simply stunning. This is the view just out of our front door at present- that could hardly be more lovely (in the city, anyway).
The brevity and the fact that we experience this only once every few years makes it all the sweeter. There's nothing like driving or running with a shower of falling leaves around you. God is simply glorious in His creation.
Splendid Tallulah Gorge in north Georgia
At the zoo with our dear friends and former teammates- it's always amazing to me to see how the bonds formed in Thailand don't break. These little girls fall right back into giggles and closeness even after living worlds apart for the past several years.
Soaking up friends in Atlanta, too- at the Botanical Gardens
We had the fun of a visit with our friends and future teammates, which was such a joy, and we're all anticipating Baby, who will be making his appearance this month!
playing with fire- an ancient japanese firing method called raku
a more traditional firing- a load of pots ready to come out of the kiln
students at our local school visit the studio for some instruction from the potter
I had the privilege of spending the weekend at Berry recently with my four closest friends from college- it was refreshing and a reminder that these are forever relationships- I'm so thankful for these girls.
Halloween was just fun- a visit with Uncle G and Aunt B, as is our tradition, then dinner and trick or treating with dear friends. Because we don't do this every year, Asa had no trick or treating experience and was a little slow to warm up to the whole endeavor...he thought Halloween meant hiding candy in the house to find, which we've done in Thailand in an attempt to celebrate in some small way- so funny!
Recent travels have taken us to Nashville, which we really enjoyed- beautiful honky tonk city that it is. We visited good friends, then ate burgers and signed our names in sharpie on a rusted out car in a country-western bar- how's that for fun?
Straddling the state line. This pretty much sums up our last few months. We have been on the road, soaking up this time with our families and so many we love, sharing about life and work in Bangkok, doing home life and school. The pace has been intense, and full of so many good things! Any attempt to catch up here will be in vain, so I think I'll do just a brief flyover for posterity's sake.
We had the chance to visit our dear cousins in India on the way home to the States this summer. We had an incredible time enjoying them and enjoying the little bit of this country we were able to experience. A few glimpses of that...
Em celebrated her birthday in 3 different countries this year, and had the fun of celebrating with her cousin in India!
just a bit of summer- my very favorite picture from the lake in NC
We had a party filled with family and friends just after his big day, and spent his actual birthday indulging in a bit of culture at an art museum followed by a visit to one of Atlanta's finest eateries...
And most recently, Mountain Day at Berry, which was lovely and slightly chilly and warm with old friends. Our oldest children expressed their desire to go to Berry, and Asa expressed it perfectly, "Mountain Day is the funnest!"
We began a new tradition this year- a Mountain Day hymn sing after the main festivities; I don't think it gets much better than old hymns and good friends, a guitar, a banjo and a fire...
We began our home schooling endeavors today. I'm happy to report that these bright faces stayed bright all morning long, and my favorite comment of the day was, "This is the most fun school ever!" I'm well aware that we're experiencing initial excitement and that the shine will inevitably dim to some degree, but today was an unequivocal success, and for that we are thankful.
As an aside, isn't the alphabet wall amazingly fun? A lot of dear hands made those letters prior to our arrival, and they make an excellent backdrop for a school/play room!
