Back where I belong

Today was crazy busy, transitioning back, settling in, running

errands, doing all that needs to be done for being gone next week,
and setting up for the work team coming to KP.
BUT
at 3 when the kids were out of school and I stopped
to take my place once more as playground monitor.
My heart smiled as I gave and received lots of
hugs and kisses and said Happy New Year so many
times that I lost count....
Have I said yet how great it is to be home?

Playing with shadows on the climbing wall

spelling out words with our shadows

at my post on the bench my girls by my side

the sun was CRAZY bright behind us it was such a beautiful day!

Home!

I'm Home and my heart is happy:)
As we were driving home again last night the thought
once more hit me. How totally different the two worlds
are that I live in, States and Jamaica, and yet how easily
I go from one to the other as if they are completely
natural and all I know.

Praise God for Being The Creator of All and With
Me Everywhere I Go.

Catching Up With Friends

As I try and catch up with as many as possible I try to get pictures

with everyone I get together with but this time I failed miserably at
capturing pictures.

I was able to get together with Trishana multiple times
and loved getting to spend time with her, but along with her
I got to hang out with Janice, Becky, Sheldon, and Rachel,
failing to get pictures of/with them too!

On my way home from Indiana I was able to meet Jenn
for a boarders date. God really moved that night and I
praise God for each opportunity I get to see this beautiful
girl in person and catch up with her.

Megan got me out of a few hours of helping my brother move
so we could eat Monicals and talk. I love my visits with Megan.
There is no small talk just right to the point. What is God doing
in your life? How is your Ministry? How are you doing with that?
and getting true solid answers. Love It!

Then I got in a good hour of laughs and a great time with
these two Blessings. Sarah will be greatly missed in Jamaica
this Jan. So I wanted to make sure I got in a date with her and
Lisa before I came back.

I know there are some of you that I got together with and
I'm sorry I didn't get a picture or blog about our time,
BUT please know I truly did cherish each and everyone!
I love you and Praise God for you!

Indy Nights

One Wednesday it worked out for a few of us to meet up
and spend the day in Indy together.
Plans changed as plans tend to do especially when 2 Jamericans
are involved so before we met for lunch at Taste we
all made a pit stop at Panera to meet Marvella who
works with DTQ in Indy, and will be coming down this
summer to work with CCCD.
After meeting Marvella, Jaimie, Katie, Tamara and I were
then off to enjoy a lunch at Taste, to grab some groceries then
back to Jaimie's place to hang out and make peppermint chocolate.

Jaimie and Tamara spreading the white chocolate over
the regular chocolate to cool and harden

Jaimie and Katie breaking up peppermints to sprinkle over
the top.

Little Betty Homemaker melting chocolate.

Katie and I taking Huge bites of the finished product

Kates and I in a "nice" picture:)

Stuffing my face...again. Notice there are no pictures of me
helping cook... just eating. I guess I did cut up the peppers
for the salad wraps we made for supper.

Blake showed up. I think it was cuz he missed me... Ha!
but really I know it was for the lettuce wraps we made
for supper, and place to wait until basketball, then to
give Kates a ride home.

Kates and Tamara

Me and These Amazing Girls God Has Blessed Me With!
Thank You Thank You Thank You!
For the Gift each of these girls are in my life!

Another Victory Won!

Wednesday Night I got a call that Grandma went to be with Jesus.
No one was expecting this, For me reality has not yet hit that she is gone.
But I am rejoicing that she has won her Victory and is now in Heaven
with Jesus and Grandpa.
Please pray my family through her funeral this weekend and
the transition of not having her around.
Thanks.
Blessings.

Merry Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve it snowed and snowed and I was thankful
that I didn't have any where to go since the roads were
awful and my parents lane was worse.
Aunt Becki was brave and ventured out and upon her return
she pulled into the lane and its normal for you to fish tail down the hill
(at the top of the lane)that spits you out onto the dam....

As Aunt Becki fish tailed down the hill and attempted to
cross the dam she did a little off roading and ended in the gully.
Her other options on the other side of the dam...

the lake. She didn't feel like swimming so went gully side:)
(yep thats my dad out on a blizzard day with just his jeans
and a long sleeve shirt...no coat... no boots...)

as Aunt Becki and Dad argued about what "really" happened

I just smiled to myself thinking of what I will go out in
to get a blog post.

Since there was no way the truck could be driven out and
we didn't want it to slide any further down the gully and
into the creek

so ropes and chains were gotten out of the barn

and phone calls were made to find a tractor that had 4-wheel drive.
(a perk to living right by cnh and having a cousin that has
access to their big tractors)

once the truck was chained up

and dragged across the gully it was finally pulled out and we were
able to drive it back to the house.

A few hours later we got a call from my other Aunt who was stuck
in the snow a few miles away and needed help out too:)

Praising Jesus for the safe arrival of everyone in time for Christmas!

Time with T

Wednesday Morning I was up at 5 to travel out to Albion to hang
out with T (and Matt:)

T and I
(Tina was trying to zoom real close to mess up the picture
and it actually turned out to be a really good one:)

Wednesday consisted of lots of catch up talking, sugar cookie
making, soup making, movie watching, book reading
and blink playing. It was an excellent day!

Thursday T's siblings and Kalika (the girl T interprets
for) came over to decorate cookies, eat soup, and
hang out for the day.

Before T's siblings, nieces and nephews came over Kalika
and T made frosting to decorate the cookies.
While they invented a recipe, not finding one they liked in
her 100+ cooking books,

I continued to look through cook books while drinking
lots of coffee....

and standing in front of their wood burning stove
trying to keep warm:)

As they were testing the frosting for taste Kalika smeared some
on T's face and she thought it was Hilarious!

Jessi doing an amazing job decorating her cookies

Some of the finished products.


Praising Jesus that the weather stayed nice and the roads
stayed clear so I was able to get away and
catch up with those I love for a few days!