Back Home

I struggle with the idea of home. There are very familiar places that feel familiar, but is that the same thing as "home"? A couple weeks ago I set out for a Member Care course that was being offered in Pennsylvania. Thanks to a busy schedule and the start of classes for Tim at TWU/CanIL, my family (Tim and Micaiah) wasn't able to come with me. So I set out by myself. The course was amazing and I learned a ton, but I missed my family. When we were finally reunited two days ago at SeaTac Airport, I couldn't have been happier! Home for me is definitely wherever those two are!

Since arriving back at our house here in Canada (we are fortunate enough to be renting the same house two years in a row!), I also feel more "at home". It is difficult to live in transition all the time, so maybe one aspect of "home" is stability and feeling like it is a place to settle and put down some roots.

The past few days have been a whirlwind for us as a family! I arrived at Seattle on Sunday and we spent the afternoon driving back to Langley and doing some shopping. My family did a good job of eating decent food while I was away, but I could tell Tim was anxious to give back the burden of meal planning and food prep. :) I'm happy to have it back, honestly, and I'm looking forward to trying some of the new recipes I've collected... not to mention the three new cookbooks I will be working through this year! Yay for More With Less, Simply in Season, and Extending the Table!!! I can't WAIT to try all the recipes!!!

In other news, we also officially started our Homeschool Kindergarten year on Monday. We're two days in and loving it! It is going so well, and I think being able to create a "desk space" for Micaiah is helping her get into it as well. She has a calendar and a schedule on the wall by her desk and I made a name sheet for the top of her desk... you know, the kind with your name printed neatly on the lined sheet with decor on the edges?? She lit up when she saw it. She was still very sad that she wouldn't get to ride a bus to school. But even if she went to a school here she wouldn't ride a bus since the elementary school is within walking distance.

Micaiah is getting so big! I know I keep saying this, but it is really hitting me hard. To make things even more real, she lost her very first tooth this afternoon. My how time flies. I remember when she got that tooth (at four months, mind you!) and I couldn't believe how fast my BABY was growing up... so much to be nostalgic about. :)

Anyway, that's about it for now. I have a few more things to blog about in the near future, so hopefully it won't be so long between posts. :)

-JLR

Five People Who Annoy Me on Planes

I just finished seven different flights in about a month. Four of them were around 9 hours in length. With these experiences freshly in mind, I’m honored to present:

Five People Who Annoy Me on Planes

1. The Rush-an. These people will knock over little old ladies to get on/off the plane first.

2. Cologne guy. They need to have a separate section for these people in the back of the plane.

3. B.O. guy. Put on some cologne. Seriously.

4. The Natural Lighter. The whole plane is dark. Except for one window. WHY won’t you use the overhead light to read? Do you not see people trying to sleep?

5. The Cell-Phone Addict. WHAT is so important? Turn off and put away the phone when they ask you to. And quit hiding it under the chair like you’re in 4^th grade. And you are not the exception.

What annoys you about certain people on flights you've been on?

-TR

Quote

Micaiah saw me crying this morning and came over to talk to me.

M: "What's wrong, Mama?"
J: "I'm really missing your daddy right now."
M: "I know, me too. But sometimes you just have to cry it out."

I have an amazing five year old and an amazingly wise God for giving her to me!

-JLR

Prayer Parallel

I had a revelation this morning. This week I have been struggling with being so far away from Tim. We're more than halfway through his trip, but it must be an emotional slump of some sort-- the excitement of him leaving on this great adventure has passed, but the excitement of his impending return has not yet arrived!

As I sat here in tears this morning missing the man who knows me better than anyone else in the world, I was struck with the realization that this parallels (or should parallel!) my relationship with Christ. I can get busy and distracted with various things and go a few days without talking to God, but I start to fall apart if I go too long. I'm not talking about Bible study or praying through a list of prayer requests (though those things are also important), I'm talking about meeting with God in a personal way-- hearing His voice, knowing Him and being known by Him. Tim was able to talk with me for a few minutes this morning on the phone, and just hearing his voice secured me in my relationship with him! I was comforted in an amazing way knowing that he loved me and cared for me and would be praying for me even from so far away. This was a huge encouragement to take all of my emotions to God-- that He cared even more about me and what I was going through than my husband ever could!

Sometimes I feel like God is so far away. But other times I wonder if it's only my perception or the expectations that I put on God to be something He isn't. I am more encouraged now than ever to pray and to spend that personal intimate time with Him. It's like hearing my husband's voice.

-JLR

Goodbye

We said goodbye to Tim today-- he's on his way to Tanzania for almost a month. While he's there he'll be joining a language survey and also doing some research for his MA thesis.

I'm not sure if it's fully sunk in yet that he'll be gone for so long. In our 7.5 years of marriage we've only been apart for a maximum of 5 days at a time. I could probably count those separations of 3-5 days apart on one hand! I'm sure some of you think we're wimps or codependent or something, but our family philosophy has always been to do our work together-- that we're BOTH missionaries working on the same team. And Micaiah, too, for that matter. She's a part of our family and we want her to understand why we do what we do.

Yet, there was no way we could justify the expense of us going with Tim, especially considering we'd just spend most of our time in a guesthouse somewhere in Tanzania. We would be in the way on the survey and only distract him from his research. Still, a part of me was so sad seeing Tim get into the queue at the airport knowing I wouldn't be going with him!

Safari njema, Timo. Tutaonana mwezi ujao, Mungu akipenda!

-JLR
ps... I told Tim he could post on here from Tanzania if he wanted and/or was able... just a heads-up to watch for who is writing each post so you're not confused!