A Year in the Life: October

The first week of October, I am in Brazil for the Connections renewal for missionary women, sponsored by Great Cities Missions. This is a wonderful few days of rest, teaching sessions, lots of time for silence and solitude, and time spent in small "connection" groups. The food is delicious, and the setting (a cozy hotel on a secluded beach) is beautiful, but the best part of the whole week is being with sisters in Christ! The fellowship and especially the singing (in English!) is amazing.

Rusty spends the week at home with the kids. He keeps the Facebook community entertained all week with hilarious "misadventures of a single dad" posts. This has become something of a tradition that his friends look forward to every two years. This year, my parents are there to help out, so I don't think he gets as much sympathy as he normally does.

On the day Jerica and I return from Brazil, Rusty brings the whole family to pick us up at the airport. After dropping Jerica off, we head to the Marcums' house to help my parents get settled. They will be living there "on their own" for the next few weeks and studying Spanish. We attend a church in the valley near the Marcum's house the next day and help Mom and Dad make some connections with the Christians there. Then, we say goodbye and head back to the camp.

For the next two weeks, we have a fairly normal routine. I begin homeschooling again as well as planning for several upcoming camp groups. I have several special projects I am working on for the after school program -- preparing enrichment activities for each class, taking pictures of the kids for the picture wall, and updating the bulletin boards. I have decided not to start English classes until November, so this gives me a little extra time to work on these projects. I am also working on updating Facebook photo albums for me and for the camp, and on a PowerPoint for our presentation on Camp Bellevue at the upcoming Operation Ecuador Summit.

The boys have baseball every Saturday. Elizabeth has a Field Day at her school one Saturday, so I take her to that while Rusty takes the three boys to Quito for practice and games. Alex also has his first Homeschool Teen Fellowship night of the school year. He really enjoys these times -- they are one of his only social outlets right now.

Rusty has been invited to preach at the church in Cayambe, so we attend there one Sunday, followed by lunch at one of our favorite restaurants, the Café de la Vaca. The next Sunday, we are busy with a weekend group from the U.S. spending their fall break in Ecuador serving at the children's home next door. They stay at the camp for three nights and we prepare breakfast and dinner for them each day. They leave on Sunday after church.

The next day, Mom and Dad drive out to the camp. They will be staying with the kids while Rusty and I travel to the States for a week to attend the annual Operation Ecuador Summit. We go grocery shopping and make sure they are set up for the week, then pack our bags (again) and head to the airport for our late night flight to Miami.

The OE Summit is being hosted this year by the Livonia Church of Christ in Livonia, MI, but our first stop is actually Dallas to spend a few days with the Shawnee Trail Church of Christ. This church began supporting our family in January, but we have not personally visited them yet. Our days in Dallas are full with missions committee meetings, errands, shopping, and visits with our friends the Wilsons (who recently moved back to the States from Ecuador), and my Uncle Ken and Aunt Barb, members at Shawnee Trail and our initial connection with this church.

After a few days in Dallas, we fly up to Detroit. We stay at my parents' house with the Marcum family, who are wrapping up their 4-month furlough. The OE Summit takes place at the Livonia church on Friday and Saturday, October 26-27. Rusty and I do a presentation on the camp together for the entire group. We enjoy hearing about the good things that God is doing in the other "sister ministries" of OE -- the Bible college, church planting teams, and Kumanii and medical missions.There are also scheduled break-out sessions and times of prayer for the various ministries. On Saturday afternoon, the church has planned a fun outing for all the Summit participants -- the Rouge Factory Tour followed by dinner at a wonderful Middle Eastern restaurant in Dearborn.

On Sunday, we attend church at Livonia -- Rusty and Josh co-preach. The rest of our day is filled with visits with friends and supporters, as well as the requisite shopping and then packing until the wee hours of the morning. We fly back to Ecuador on Monday, October 29th. Mom and Dad drive back to Quito the following day, while we unpack and start prepping for a large group coming to the camp this weekend.

On Halloween, we manage to procure four orange pumpkins at the market for the kids to carve into jack-o-lanterns. That evening, they dress up in their costumes and we attend Fall Fest at Elizabeth's school. We finish the night by watching "Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin," a family tradition.

October moments (clockwise from top left):

1. Haircuts for three boys and their Babu
2. Rusty and I presenting on Camp Bellevue at the Operation Ecuador Summit
3. Rusty bought two Great Dane puppies -- we named them Lucy and Ethel.
4. Carving jack-o-lanterns
5. Halloween, 2018 -- a cowboy, Doc McStuffins, a brave and daring knight, and Bumblebee!
   

A Year in the Life: September, 2018

The first part of September is quiet (the kitchen staff are taking a week of well-deserved vacation), and I am trying to reestablish the routines of a "normal" life, including homeschooling, hospitality, pizza-and-a-movie nights with the kids, lunch dates with Rusty, and meal-planning and food prep for just my family. I always find that I have to sort of relearn how to cook in my home kitchen for a small group of people after an entire summer of thinking in large quantities for large groups. I feel like a little girl playing with toy pots and pans at first!

The boys and I finish out the last two weeks of the school year, which we didn't get to before the summer rush, and then I begin planning the next one, pulling out and organizing the books and materials we will use. My house has been neglected for an entire summer, and there are many things that need to be organized and put away, many areas that need tidied up. Ben is ready for bigger clothes, so I pull out the tub of size 6/7 clothes and put them away in his closet, then bag the clothes he has outgrown for donation to the camp's clothing closet. I still haven't finished getting everything in order to file our taxes, so I spend several days working hard to finish this project. I also write and send a family newsletter. I feel like I am playing catch-up on so many things I've gotten behind on over the past several weeks.

On the way in to Quito for some errands one day with Rusty, our Nissan overheats and breaks down on the side of the highway. We have been having problems with it for some time, and this is frustrating, especially since my parents are coming to visit soon and we will be going to the beach with them. We have it hauled to our mechanic in Quito and he keeps it for a few days and makes a few repairs. Later, we find out that we need to have the motor rebuilt, an expensive undertaking that we don't have the funds for right now. Thankfully, Rusty's Landrover, which has been in the shop for over a year having body work done to convert it from a pickup to a wagon, is at least drivable by this point, so we have a car to drive while we try to make a decision about the Nissan.

Elizabeth's first day of preschool is on September 10. The first day is just the opening ceremony, and the rest of the week, she is home each day before lunch. So, it is an easy and gentle introduction to school for her. She has a great first week!

Rusty attends the Global Member Care Conference in Quito during the second week in September. This conference is focused on educating and training those who provide care to missionaries or cross-cultural workers. He has a great time and makes some new friends and contacts.

The camp ladies come back to work in mid-September after two weeks off. They spend a couple of days cleaning, sorting and folding piles of clean sheets, and organizing and setting up their classrooms for another year of the After School Program, which will begin on Monday. I put their supply boxes together and help set up the library.

On Saturday, September 15th, Rusty takes the three boys to their first baseball practice of the season. I stay home, finally finish our taxes(!), prep food for our beach trip next week, and decorate the house for fall! I want to do this now because I will be gone for the next nearly 3 weeks, and then when I get back, I'll be busy for a couple of weeks before traveling again.

On Sunday, we head to church at Pisulí, then go out to lunch and do some grocery shopping. There is a huge hailstorm in Quito that afternoon. In some sections, the hail is over a foot deep! From a distance, it looks like snow. Isabel calls us to say that she won't be coming into work tomorrow because her house has flooded. We decide to go over and try to help her family. Rusty and Alex help her husband shovel hail off their roof before the melting ice can cause more damage to what's inside the house. Aside from everything getting a good soaking, the only casualty to their belongings is a chipboard cupboard, which we offer to help her replace.

Monday September 17th is the first day of After School Program. It's great to see all the kids again after the summer vacation! I spend the day packing and getting ready for the beach. Rusty loads the car. We eat dinner and then head out. First stop -- the airport to pick up my parents who will be spending the next 2.5 months in Ecuador! We stay the night at the Marcum's (they are currently in the U.S. on furlough, but their house makes a nice stopover and will shorten our drive to the beach tomorrow).

The next day, we continue our journey to the coast, finally arriving at Tonsupa and our friends' condo about 5:00 p.m. We will spend the next week here enjoying some rest, relaxation, and family time.

We pass our days playing in the waves, digging in the sand, swimming in the pools, playing games, doing puzzles, reading, watching movies, enjoying beautiful sunsets, and eating yummy seafood. One morning, we take a boat ride out to the Isla de los Pajaros so my parents can see birds. They really love birding, and Ecuador is quite the place for it! We see frigate birds and blue-footed boobies. Another day, we take the kids to the Aqua Park. Rusty and I have agreed to help our friends with the purchase of a new fridge for the condo, so we head into the city one afternoon to make the purchase and then have dinner at a restaurant on the beach. Mom and Dad keep the kids -- grandparents are awesome!

All too soon, our family vacation is over and it's time to head home. We drive back to Tabacundo via Mindo, stopping for a late lunch and to visit the butterfly farm. We arrive home in time for dinner. I have one day at home to do laundry, and repack my bags before leaving for Brazil. Mom and Dad will be staying with Rusty and the kids next week while I am gone, and she will be in charge of meals, so I take her grocery shopping and show her around my kitchen.

I travel to Brazil on Saturday, July 29th. Jerica and I travel together. We fly to Bogota, then to São Paulo. We make our way to the Monreale Hotel, where we will be staying for the next two nights. The Connections conference doesn't begin until Monday afternoon, but because of flight schedules, this was the best option for the money. It is nice to have a day in between traveling and the beginning of the conference to rest and do a little work at the hotel.

September moments (clockwise from top left):

1. First day of preschool for Elizabeth!
2. Back to homeschool with my crew
3. Boat ride to the Isla de los Pajaros
4. Mom and Dad enjoying the lazy river with Stephen
5. Fun in the pool
6. "Back to routine" means back to piano lessons and practice. My mom gave the boys several lessons while she was here.

A Year in the Life: May, 2018

I spend the first few days of May working on expense reports. I am trying to get everything ready to file our taxes by the end of the month before we get slammed with summer groups.

On May 4th, Jillian arrives to spend the next three and a half weeks with us. She is a high school senior and the daughter of a family friend, and will be doing her senior project here in Ecuador. Her first week here, we take her to see some of the local sites like the Equator monuments in both Cayambe and Quito. She goes to church with us the first Sunday to Pisulí. Starting the Monday after she arrives, she takes a couple of hours of Spanish classes each weekday. She knows how to play the ukulele and starts teaching the boys how to play using a couple of ukuleles she brought with her from the States. She even cooks dinner for us one night!

In addition to my normal weekly activities (homeschool, teaching English classes), I also do some planning for upcoming groups (bills and menus) and work on a family newsletter. On Friday, I help supervise the setup for the camp's annual Clothing Sale. The pre-sale for camp employees is on Friday afternoon.

The Clothing Sale is a big success. This is our second year to do this, and it helps clear out our inventory before filling the closet back up with more donated items from all the summer groups. We advertise the sale to the families of the kids in the After School Program, and sell the clothes for $1-2 per item. All proceeds benefit the After School Program. The Clothing Sale has been hugely popular -- the families like that they get to shop for and purchase things that they need, and they like knowing that they are helping to support the program that their children participate in all year.

Sunday, May 13th is Mother's Day. We attend church at Urcuquí, a new church plant. Rusty has been coaching the evangelist there, and he invited Rusty to preach on this day. After the service, Rusty treats us all to lunch at Puerto Lago, one of my favorite restaurants, right on the shores of San Pablo Lake. The pepper steak is to die for!

Jillian is planning to major in marine science at university, so her mother has arranged for her to spend a few days in the Galápagos with Rusty and me! Thanks to the generosity of several friends, we are also able to take our friends Jake and Tanya Wilson along. They will be leaving Ecuador soon and this trip is a sort of group goodbye and going-away present for them. The Marcums have agreed to keep our kids for 5 days while we are away, so the day before we fly out, we get them packed up and drive them into Quito to drop them off. They are excited to spend the week with their cousins.

On May 15th, we head to the airport for our flight to the Galápagos. We fly to Guayaquil, then to San Cristóbal island. We are staying on this island, so after we land, we go find our hotel. Then we have lunch and spend the rest of the day exploring. We find an interpretive center and do some hiking and walking on the beach. The views are breathtaking!

The next day, we take a tour of the highlands. The guide takes us to a freshwater lake, the largest in the entire archipelago, then to a tortoise conservation center. We end the morning with some playtime at a very pretty beach. After lunch, we walk on another beach where the waves are just enormous. Then, some of us want to snorkel, so we rent gear and find a quiet and calm cove where we can see some underwater life.

The following day, we take a "360 tour" by boat around the island. The boat stops off at different points so we can snorkel, enjoy the beaches, or take photos of birds and landscapes. Lunch is included. Our last stop of the day is the Leon Dormido (Sleeping Lion), a huge rock of an island divided by a channel. The snorkeling in the channel is supposed to be some of the best in the Galápagos. Unfortunately, the water is rough, the sky is cloudy, and visibility is poor, so we don't see much.

Our last day in the Galápagos, we decide to take a ferry to the island of Santa Cruz. We visit the Charles Darwin Research Center, then take a long hike to an absolutely beautiful and pristine beach, Tortuga Bay. After lunch, we take another ferry back to San Cristóbal island. We watch a beautiful sunset and have delicious burgers for dinner.

It's time to head home after an amazing few days. We are tired and sun-burnt, but carrying precious memories of time spent with friends exploring this beautiful corner of God's creation. We have breakfast, pack, and then head to the airport. We arrive back in Quito by mid-afternoon, go to pick up the kids and then head home.

The next day is Sunday. We go to church at Cayambe, then take Jillian to the Condor park, and to the artisan's market in Otavalo. She does a little shopping. We have yummy pie at the Pie Shoppe, right off the market square.

The first group of the summer is just a couple of days away. I am busy shopping, ordering food, organizing employee schedules, and making sure the cabins are prepped for their arrival. The group from Madison Academy arrives on May 22nd, marking the official start of our summer at Camp Bellevue!

Jake and Tanya are running the Madison group; however, they are collaborating with us on a couple of projects. The group is putting in a cement floor for a neighbor's house. They are also doing several days of literacy activities for the After School Program. They are a hard-working group and we really enjoy them. Jillian jumps right in to help with some of their work projects. Midway through Madison's time at the camp, another group arrives.

Somehow, in the midst of all that is going on with the groups, we manage to find a night to sneak away to meet up with the Marcums in Quito and see "Solo: a Star Wars Story" in the theater together. We are all big Star Wars fans (all except Josh, and we are doing our best to convert him), and we have enjoyed seeing the new movies together as they are released.

Josh's cousin Carson is in Ecuador for a few days to take pictures and shoot some video footage of the different Operation Ecuador ministries. He is putting together the annual video that we will show at the Operation Ecuador summit in October. See the final video here. He comes out to the camp and spend several hours taking photos and videos of all the different things going on. He also interviews Rusty and me.

Jillian has just a few days left in Ecuador before she heads home. She has planned an art project for the kids in the After School Program. With her help, each class makes a handprint art poster. We plan to display these in a couple of weeks at our end-of-school parent night. On her last day, Rusty takes her and Stephen to Mindo. They enjoy zip-lining and the butterfly farm. He drops her off at the airport later that evening for her flight home.

On the last day of May, we serve a special snack to the kids in the After School Program in honor of International Children's Day, which is tomorrow, June 1st. The kids love the taxo popsicles we made for them! Taxo is an Ecuadorian fruit kind of like a passion fruit, and it grows in abundance at the camp in a "vine tunnel" that Rusty had put in behind our house.

May is over, but the summer has barely begun!

May moments (clockwise from top left):

1. "360 Tour" around San Cristóbal island with Jake, Tanya, and Jillian!
2. Galápagos sea lion
3. Happy Mother's Day -- Rusty bought me this pretty cake!
4. At the Mitad del Mundo (Middle of the World)
5. Rusty and I at Tortuga Bay -- whitest sands I've ever seen, apart from Kenya's gorgeous coast!
6. Galápagos tortoises
7. Jillian and Stephen at the butterfly farm in Mindo
8. The group from Madison Academy helped put in a cement floor in this house belonging to one of our neighbors.

A Year in the Life: March, 2018

March has arrived -- and spring break groups are just around the corner. Rusty and I spend the first day of March doing a big shopping trip for all the groups that will be staying at the camp over the next two weeks. Grocery shopping for groups is a pretty involved process. I make about 6 different lists -- one for the baker who delivers the bread we need fresh each day, one for the fruit lady, who brings us fresh fruit like papaya and pineapple from the coast, one for the vegetable man, who delivers fresh veggies to the camp in his pickup truck, one for meat, one for chicken -- these 2 are orders which get placed at the beginning of the week for pickup on Thursday (red meat discount day) or Friday (chicken discount day) -- and then the list for everything else that I have to buy at the grocery store in town.

Our first groups are coming out of Kumanii (Operation Ecuador's jungle ministry) after a week-long project there. They pass through the camp on their way to the airport. We sometimes feed these groups dinner and give them a place to shower and repack their bags before heading home (because who wants to get on a plane covered in sweat, sunscreen, and bug repellent?).

A group of students from Harding University arrives next for their spring break project. We are collaborating with Jake and Tanya Wilson (directors at the Hacienda of Hope Christian Academy) on some of their work projects. Rusty helps coordinate a roof-replacement project for a neighbor that the students work on throughout the week. They also spend time each afternoon helping at the camp's after-school program. They lead Bible lessons and fun hands-on science lessons with the kids. They are a great group, and several are from Central America and speak Spanish, which helps.

I stay busy running the kitchen -- we are serving the group breakfast and dinner each day, and they eat lunch at the school -- and keeping things running smoothly at the after-school program. Midway through Harding's time with us, two more spring break groups arrive, from LCU and Lipscomb University. We are only in charge of housing and feeding these groups; their work projects are being coordinated by the children's home. Still it is a lot to juggle -- for one night, all three groups are sharing space at the camp.

Harding heads home on Saturday. The following Sunday, the camp cooks a big dinner for both LCU and Lipscomb and all the kids, staff, and volunteers for the children's home, so they can all share a meal together. After dinner, they roast s'mores down at the firepit and have a devo. The last few days of the spring break groups are a bit easier. We are cooking just breakfast each morning, so I have time during the day for school with the boys (they had last week off while Harding was here) and teaching my English classes.

Alex attends the homeschool teen retreat over a weekend in mid-March. It is his first year -- since he turned 12, he is finally able to participate in the teen activities planned by a family in our homeschool group. He has a great time at El Refugio, an adventure camp just north of Quito. Meanwhile, I spend the weekend doing food prep and packing for our family vacation next week.

On Sunday, we leave for our vacation. We pick Alex up from the retreat, then head down to Machachi, arriving in time for their afternoon service. It is our first time to visit this new church; Rusty has been coaching and mentoring the young evangelist there. From Machachi, we head down to Baños. It is a long trip. We have a late dinner after we arrive, then head to our hotel.

Baños is beautiful! We spend the day exploring. We are thinking about bringing the Family Mission Trip here for their "fun day" at the end of their time with us in July, so we visit a few travel agencies and gather information on the various activities available and approximate costs. We also take the kids to a "Dinosaur Park," and after lunch we drive part of the "Route of the Waterfalls," stopping along the way to take photos and do a bit of hiking.

The next morning, we hit the thermal pools for which "Baños" is named. Then we head back to our hotel to get dressed, pack and have breakfast. We leave about mid-morning and drive the rest of the way to Atacames, a town on the coast of Ecuador, where we will be spending the rest of our vacation.

We try to take a little vacation time twice a year. Usually, we go in early May before things get too crazy-busy at the camp, and again in September, where we can breathe a big sigh of relief after the summer is over! This year, we are unable to take vacation time in May, so we have decided to come in March instead. For several years now, we have been renting our friends' condo for about a week at a time. It is a beach-front condo in a nice resort with a pool complex. Since we can come during the low season, we don't have to fight crowds of people and we often have the pools to ourselves. We spend the week in a lazy rhythm of playing on the beach, swimming in the pools, reading, playing board games, and watching movies. One day, we take the kids to a nearby water park with slides and a lazy river. They really enjoy that!

Our beach vacation time is soon over, and we head back to Tabacundo at the tail end of March. We arrive home to a fridge that is not working (hoo-ray), and lots to do to get ready for our Passover dinner and Easter, coming up in a just a couple of days.

Celebrating Passover has become one of our family's most meaningful Easter traditions. You can read more about why, as Christians, we choose to celebrate this Jewish holiday here. This year, the guest list includes several friends and my sister and her family. We have nearly 20 people in our home for the dinner and service. The Marcums stay the night afterwards. Passover and a sleepover -- a great way to wrap up the month of March!

March moments (clockwise from top left):

1. Harding spring break mission team in front of the house they helped roof.
2. Kids program science activity -- ice cream in a bag. A science experiment you can eat!
3. Ben loves to help in the kitchen.
4. Harding spring break mission -- the roof project in process
5. Rusty preaching at the Machachi Church of Christ
6. Baños -- this waterfall is called the "Pailón del Diablo" (Devil's Cauldron).
7. Beach vacation
8. The "haggadah" (order of service) for our Passover dinner

Furlough 2014-15: Fun Stats

To wrap up this series on our first furlough, I thought I would share some fun stats. I kept a running list on my phone while we were traveling and would update it periodically. Here, then, is Furlough 2014-15 by the numbers:

• Miles flown - 10,073
• Miles driven - 7,825 (This was from Dec. 1 when we left on our road trip until we returned to Ecuador, so it doesn't include the driving we did for nearly 2 weeks in the Dallas / Ft. Worth area or the 3.5 weeks in the Pacific Northwest. We estimate we drove over 9,000 miles if you include the miles driven during those weeks.)
• Beds slept in - 21
• Hotels stayed in - 4 (It really amazes me how we can do so much traveling, and yet not have to stay in hotels very often. We have lots of wonderful family and friends who host us and feed us during our travels.)
• States visited - 21
• Canadian provinces visited - 2
• Churches visited - 9
• Presentations done - 7
• Other speaking engagements - 11
• Homes visited - 31
• Meals shared in restaurants - 21 (This includes meals we ate with friends or family in restaurants, not the fast food restaurants we stopped at when traveling. If I counted those, this number would be a lot higher! And as much as we crave Taco Bell, Sonic, and Chick Fil-A when we are overseas, I think it's safe to say that we had had our fill of fast food by the time we returned to Ecuador!)
• Meet and Greets - 4
• Church meals or potlucks - 7
• Indian buffets - 6 (We miss good Indian food!)
• Relatives seen - 18 (We enjoyed in-person visits with Uncle Willie, Uncle Ken, Dave & Kaye, Rebecca, Ronda, Robbie, Johnny, Candace and Cory, Uncle Ken & Aunt Rae, Glenn, Kemmy & Paul, Austin, and my parents!)
• Pounds gained - Well, let's just say we don't call it the "furlough fifteen" for nothing!

Furlough 2014-15: The Great Road Trip (Detroit to Nashville to Seattle)

From Nashville, we had planned to travel south to Florida to visit a church there that sponsors a youth camp each summer at Camp Bellevue, and then take the southern route west across the United States, through Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona, and then north through California and Oregon before ending up back in Seattle. We planned to visit churches, friends, and family along the way, and also the Grand Canyon (which the kids and I have never seen). Everyone getting so sick changed all that, though, and in the end, we decided to cancel most of our remaining appointments and just head back to Seattle by the most direct route.

Like the first segment of The Great Road Trip (Seattle to Detroit), I will document this portion of our trip day by day below, with pictures and commentary interspersed.

Day 10 (Dec. 27, 2014) -- Livonia, MI to Nashville, TN -- We then stayed about 10 days in Nashville (see previous post).

Day 11 (Jan. 8, 2015) -- Nashville to Memphis, TN -- Thank you to our friends at the Park Avenue Church of Christ for the gift of a hotel room on this night. By this time, I was feeling much worse, while everyone else in the family was finally doing some better.

Day 12 (Jan. 9, 2015) -- Memphis, TN to Oklahoma City, OK -- We stayed three nights at the missionary house here, right next door to our friends, the Lj's, and just across the street from Oklahoma Christian University. We got to see so many dear friends from our Japan days, spend some time with Rusty's nephew Robbie, then a student at OC, and his then-girlfriend (now-wife) Cat, attend church at The Springs, do laundry, and rest. By the time we left, we were all finally on the mend! Read my post here about how much this unexpected and serendipitous time meant to me.

Elizabeth meets her cousin Robbie

Cousins

Chai and Dominion with Cat and Robbie

Day 13 (Jan. 12, 2015) -- Oklahoma City, OK to Limon, CO -- We drove all day and got a hotel in Limon for the night.

Day 14 (Jan. 13, 2015) -- Limon, CO to Ogden, UT -- After another long day of driving, we got a hotel in Ogden. The boys were well enough at this point to go swimming in the hotel pool, which they were super excited about.

Amazing how sitting all day in a car can wear you out!

Day 15 (Jan. 14, 2015) -- Ogden, UT to Portland, OR -- After our third long day in the car, we finally made it back to the Pacific Northwest! We stayed two nights with Rusty's sister before driving the final leg back to Seattle.

At the former Cascade College in Portland, our alma mater

Day 16 (Jan. 16, 2015) -- Portland, OR to Seattle, WA -- We completed our crazy circle around the United States, arriving back in Seattle with a few days to get ourselves packed up before our return to Ecuador the following week.

Coming up: fun furlough stats!

Furlough 2014-15: Nashville, TN

Two days after Christmas, we loaded up the car again, said goodbye to my parents, and headed south. Destination: Nashville, TN, the location of one of our main supporting congregations, the Hillsboro Church of Christ. We spent about ten days there, reconnecting with supporters and friends. We were also able to hit McKay's, a favorite used bookstore and a highlight of any visit to Nashville.

Unfortunately, we all managed to get sick while we were in Nashville, a combination of run-down immune systems after over two months on the road, and a nasty cold virus that was going around that time of year. It started with Rusty, who completely lost his voice, not a great thing to happen to a missionary trying to report on his work! Then, Ben and Elizabeth got sick, and finally, the older two boys and me. Elizabeth got it the worst, and actually spent several hours at the hospital for steroids and breathing treatments one afternoon. We are so thankful for the compassion and understanding of our church family, both at Hillsboro and globally, during this time (see my post about this here).

Here are a few highlights of our time in Nashville (before the sickies consumed us!):

The Hillsboro Church of Christ

Catching up with my childhood friend, Rebekah

Catching up with friends from our Thyatira, Mississippi days, Jeff and Angie Stacks

Family Mission Trip reunion at the Hall's house -- such a fun evening!

Isn't this Ecuadorian flag cake beautiful?!

Furlough 2014-15: Livonia, MI

We spent Christmas, 2014 in Michigan with my parents. Our time there didn't feel long enough (it never does), but we were able to pack in quite a few special experiences and make some fun memories, including:

Helping Nyanya decorate her tree

Decorating Christmas cookies

Playing board games

Putting together the gingerbread house

Watching the Christmas train go around the tree

Lamb dinner with the Burtons (aka Grandma and Grandpa "B"). This picture is so special to me now because Grandpa "B" is no longer with us.

Visiting the Hands-On Museum in Ann Arbor

Story-time -- including lots of time looking at Nyanya's "bird book"

Visiting Great Nyanya (my dad's mom)

And Great Grandmother (my mom's mom). Both of my grandmothers have also since passed away.

Watching the model trains at the Henry Ford Museum

Taking a picture with Santa (the best Santa, in my opinion -- his beard is even real!)

Crafts, including our homemade ornament project for 2014, plus several crafts Nyanya had for the boys to do

This was Elizabeth's first Christmas, and she received her very special hand-dmade stocking from Nyanya

Joyous Christmas Day!

Christmas Day feast -- turkey dinner and all the trimmings!

Thank you, Nyanya and Babu, for making this Christmas such a fun and special time! We love you!

Furlough 2014-15: The Great Road Trip (Seattle to Detroit)

On the first day of December, 2014, we left Seattle after nearly a month in the Pacific Northwest and headed East on our Great Road Trip. I will document the Seattle to Detroit portion of our trip day by day below, with commentary and photos interspersed.

Day 1 (Dec. 1, 2014) -- Seattle, WA to Coeur d'Alene, ID -- We stayed the night in a Holiday Inn, then got up and started driving again the next day.

Road trip!

Open road

Day 2 (Dec. 2, 2014) -- Coeur d'Alene, ID to Billings, MT -- We stayed 2 nights with our friends Craig and Jeri Ford in Billings, and enjoyed our visit with them and their church.

Lookout Pass (Idaho)

6 of the 7 Ford and Campbell children

We spent a morning at Scheels. The kids had so much fun taking all these silly pictures.

It's gonna eat you!

Be vewy, vewy quiet.

There was even a ferris wheel inside the store! How fun!

Day 3 (Dec. 4, 2014) -- Billings, MT to Moosomin, Saskatchewan -- We stayed 3 nights with Rusty's Uncle Ken and Aunt Rae. On Sunday morning, Dec. 7th, we met with the church in Manson, which supports us, and gave a report on our work. We enjoyed a potluck lunch with the members after the service.

Elizabeth and Uncle Ken

Elizabeth and Aunt Rae

One day, while we were there, the Christmas train came to town.

The boys got to see Santa.

They got to play in the snow.

Benjie thought the snow was too cold!

Watching the train go by.

With Uncle Ken and Aunt Rae outside the community center where the Manson Church meets.

Day 4 (Dec. 7, 2014) -- Moosomin, SK to Winnipeg, Manitoba -- We gave a presentation to the Central Church of Christ in Winnipeg about our work, enjoyed a soup supper afterwards, and stayed the night with a family from the church.

We had breakfast with Rusty's cousin Kemmy and her family the next morning.

Day 5 (Dec. 8, 2014) -- Winnipeg, MB to Hudson, WI -- We stayed the night with Dale and Vicky Hawley and enjoyed a brief visit with them.

Day 6 (Dec. 9, 2014) -- Hudson, WI to Bolingbrook, IL -- We stayed two nights with our friends Adam and Christina Mearse and got to meet with folks at the Naperville Church of Christ about our work.

On our way to Illinois, we passed through Wisconsin Dells, where we had lunch and spent some time playing at one of the indoor amusement parks.

Day 7 (Dec. 11, 2014) -- Bolingbrook, IL to Livonia, MI -- We stayed one night with my parents, left the older boys there the next day to spend some time with their grandparents, and took off for Pennsylvania with Benjamin and Elizabeth.

Day 8 (Dec. 12, 2014) -- Livonia, MI to Somerset, PA -- We stayed three nights with our friends the Hintons. The church in Somerset supports our family, so we met with them on Sunday morning and gave a report on our work. My friend Michelle drove up from Virginia with her family to see us and we got to spend some time together.

Michelle and I have been friends for 35 years!

Day 9 (Dec. 15, 2014) -- Somerset, PA to Livonia, MI -- We traveled back to Livonia and parked ourselves at my parents house until after Christmas! Whew!

Next up -- Christmas in Michigan!

Furlough 2014-15: The Pacific Northwest

After our time in Ft. Worth, we flew to Seattle and were in the Pacific Northwest for  almost the entire month of November. We spent the majority of our time in Seattle with the Bellevue Church of Christ, but we were able to take a few days and head down to Portland to spend Thanksgiving with Ronda.

We were present for the Bellevue church's Missions Sunday on our first Sunday there, which was very special. We also visited almost all of the home groups during our time with Bellevue, shared meals with different members, had meetings with the elders and missions committee, and got to do some shopping and explore a little of Seattle. We had decided, for various reasons, to change our residency to Washington state, so we  also had a few "paperwork" errands to take care of during our time there. We registered to vote and got our WA state driver's licenses. I was continually amazed at how easy and efficient government offices were in the States in comparison to Ecuador! It's all a matter of perspective, folks! After getting all that taken care of, we were able to go to the public library and get library cards. The kids loved the library, and we definitely made good use of it during our time there!

The church had arranged for a short-term rental house for us during our time there, which was a VERY big blessing! It was nice to have a place of our own to come home to at the end of the day, and it meant we could have friends over for dinner or even to stay the night. We reconnected with several different friends and relatives during our time in Washington and of course Oregon!

Here are pictures of the highlights of our time in the PNW:

I got to reconnect with my friend Abby, a fellow MK from Kenya! It had been over 20 years since we had seen each other.

Game night with the young adult group at Bellevue Church of Christ

Our former teammate, Jordan, happened to be back from Angola on her furlough at the same time as us. She flew all the way to Seattle to spend a few days with us. We explored downtown Seattle together.

Highlights of our day in downtown Seattle included a ride on the Great Wheel with an awesome view of the Puget Sound, and a visit to the original Starbucks and Pike Place market.

Elizabeth met her Auntie Ronda for the first time.

We took the ferry to Whidbey Island one day...

...to welcome cousin Johnny home from his Navy deployment! We are so proud of him.

We spent a very cold day at the zoo!

We paid a visit to Cousins Dave and Kaye who live north of Seattle, about an hour from the Canadian border.

We got to attend the Dickens Carolers pre-season Christmas concert, hosted by the Bellevue Church of Christ.

While in Portland, we got to have lunch with my cousin Candace and her son Cory.

We celebrated Thanksgiving with Auntie Ronda in Portland. The next day, we had Christmas with her!