Our sweet new nephew Porter
Cousin Timmy - Paige - Noah
Girls in Okoboji with Mom/Grandma
Lisa and Britt
Erik, Nik and Gabriel- they are coming soon to Haiti to get their daughter!!!!
Leaving is bittersweet. We all want to go home but it is hard (especially for me) to say goodbye for such a long time. I don't anticipate being back for a year. My nephew will be walking the next time I see him. :( Goodbyes are hard.
Friday night Family party ... Uncle Rick/Aunt Dianne & Cousins Nikki/Aaron my sister/BIL and newphews all came for dinner. We laughed and mocked and Aaron did many great imitations and then it came time to go ... so we prayed together and cried and hugged. And cried and hugged.
As a parting gift I attempted to burn my mother's house down. Lisa had given me three books to read (one Oprah book club two non-Oprah book club) and like an idiot I left them outside one night. The night it rained three inches. So I put the books in the oven at 150 degrees. At bedtime I turned the oven off. This morning my mom pre-heated the oven to 375, and .... thankfully she went to put something in the oven shortly after that or she would have found flaming books. They are crispy on the outside now and wet on the inside. sorry lisa!
Thank you Mom and Dad, Matt and Tina, Pals family Cousins and Aunts and Uncles, Porter family Cousins and Aunts and Uncles, Grandma Porter, Rene's Bible Study, New Joy Ladies, Julia, Lisa, Jody, Tom, Erik, Nik, Nancy, Brit, Erin, Megan, Jenny, Greg, Britta, Karen and all the nice people at the Advance Family Dental, Marcia, Jen, Kris and Jill, & Dr.Stauffer.
Thank you for taking time to see us and hang out with us and make us feel so supported. It is great to be surrounded by people who "get" us and make us feel held close, cared for and loved. Your prayers, kindness and concern leave us without words to properly thank you. There is no way I would want to be in Haiti without our major group of backers, covering us with prayer.
Headed South - Tara, Britt, Paige & Noah
