Archive for the 'Old Posts (2001-2005)' Category
- I’m Back
So here I am, I’m back. Not sure what to write about. Obviously much has happened in the past year, and much is happening now: We moved back to Spain 4 weeks ago and have spent time with friends in Madrid, Valencia, Sevilla and now in Cádiz. I know it sounds great – to be [...]
- More Photos
Click the more button below and you can see, Josiah was recently visited by three of his grandparents. Grandpa Rob couldn’t make it, but Josiah got to know Grandma Cindy, Grandpa Ralston and Gramma Pamma. The grandparents were a big help to us and loved getting to know their new grandson.
- Recent Photos
A big smile for Gramma Pamma! Josiah’s “I’m an American!” – aka passport photo pose. Hmm . . . I wanted to upload more photos but am having a bit of a problem doing so, and I’m really tired so this is it for now, I’ll try again tomorrow.
- Sleep?!
It’s late, but I can’t sleep. Samuel and I were able to go out on a date tonight, thanks to my mom who stayed home with Josiah. It was really nice to be able to get out, and to have a reason to take a shower and put on makeup. Looking nice always makes me [...]
- My Birth Story
Josiah’s due date was yesterday – he’s finally 40 weeks! He had a check-up yesterday and is growing really well. He weighed 6# 8oz (2950gm) which is a normal size for a newborn. He’s gained 2# already, and it shows! I finally finished writing down the experience I had in the hospital. Maybe now I [...]
- The Many Faces of Josiah
- Finally Home!
Josiah left the hospital on Sunday, June 12. We were ecstatic ~ as you can see by the smiles on our faces! He doesn’t even really fit in his carseat! We have to use a lot of padding around him. Samuel couldn’t wait to get home, and lie on the couch with Josiah on his [...]
- 35 week surprise
Exactly one week ago at this time I had been at the hospital for 11 hours wondering when they would let me go home, and resigning myself to the fact that I would have to spend the night for observation. I hadn’t been given any information about what, exactly, was being observed since the contractions [...]
- Rabat
April 25 – May 2 The second leg of our journey was spent in the capital city of Rabat. From Tanger we traveled south along the coast to Rabat. Here we spent several days serving with a very energetic South American worker. He and his family have been there for over 10 years loving the [...]
- 33 weeks and back to Madrid
We arrived back “home” yesterday evening. It was a good feeling to enter the familiarity of our room after having slept in eight different beds over the past month. The trip back was moderately uncomfortable as my feet have been swollen for the past two weeks, and sitting on the bus for 6 hours made [...]
- Back to Spain
Ah, finally back on Spanish soil! After 24 hours of traveling, we have arrived at our final destination for the next two weeks: Rincon de la Victoria, Malaga. A beautiful costal town in the south of Spain. We are tired and very dirty, and looking forward to washing ourselves and our clothes very soon. I´ll [...]
- Orientation in Malaga
We arrived in Torremolinos, Malaga this afternoon after a comfortable 6-hour bus ride. The bus was actually very nice and more spacious than a plane – though a lot more turbulent. We’ll be here until Thursday when we leave for Morocco. We’re here for orientation about Moroccan culture. We will be staying at the YWAM [...]
- 28 weeks, and off to Morocco!
We saw the doctor again last week Thursday. Everything still looks fine – including my weight (yipee!); the doctor said I’ve been “very good” in that regard. Spaniards tend to recommend less weight gain than in the U.S. – though not a lot, maybe 5 pounds less. So I was happy to be doing well [...]
- A Week of Service
This week we had a break from our usual routine. It was a week of outreach around town and we were very busy! On Monday we split into two groups, half of us cleaned the streets, sidewalks and parks in the neighborhood and the other half went to a local church to make sandwiches to [...]
- Sevilla
Last weekend we had the great privilege of spending a few days with new friends in Sevilla – in the south of Spain. It was a great time of retreat, encouragement and inspiration for us. The city is much smaller than Madrid, but quite busy. I think the population is about 1 million. It is [...]
- 26 weeks
We saw the doctor again last Wednesday. Everything continues to look good. I’m pleased with my weight gain so far – thanks to the five flights of stairs I climb several times a day and lots of fresh salads here! We got to watch Bean for about 5 minutes. The doc focused on his face [...]
- Childbirth Classes have Begun!
On Friday, Samuel and I walked into town to attend our first Childbirth Class. The room was almost full when we arrived, and a few more people wandered in after us. There were about 12 women, and about half had a friend or husband with them. Samuel was one of three men in attendance and [...]
- Happy 60 Years Old, Dad!!
Today, March 7, is my Dad’s 60th birthday! And since I can’t be with him in person to celebrate, and the card I sent will probably take another few days to get there, I thought this would be a good place to offer tribute to my Dad, Robin E. Wallace. Yes, I was named after [...]
- Contractions and dreams
Last night I got up to use the bathroom and I definitely felt a contraction! My belly was very hard. When I got back into bed I thought I felt another one, then fell asleep concerned about it which led to a very strange dream. In the dream I think I was having a lot [...]
- 22 weeks and Swedish Pancakes
22 weeks and Swedish Pancakes Random new “symptom” or result of pregnancy hormones. Today I noticed a light brown outline above the left side of my upper lip. These little “freckles” sometimes appear after I’ve been in the sun in the summer – but now it appears as though I have a fine line of [...]
- Nothing can be easy …
Samuel and I went to register for Childbirth Classes today. Today’s part of the process was relatively easy, but the fact that there is even a process involved has to tell you something. I write this not so much that I think the details will be that entertaining to anyone else, but more to chronicle [...]
- 21 weeks 2 days
The debut of the belly pictures! We finally took a few pictures today, and hope to make it at least a monthly routine in order to catalog the growth of my belly. If stretch marks appear, however, we may need to do a little editing of the pictures (thank God for Photoshop!).
- A Glimpse of our baby …
A Glimpse of our baby . . . In my last post I said I’d share the first ultrasound picture of our little “bean” – I had intended to, but didn’t have it until now. So finally, here it is . . . Baby Bean at 9 weeks 5 days (December 7, 2004)! We do [...]
- It’s a …
BOY!! We went to the Obstetrician on Monday for a routine visit and ultrasound and were given a very clear picture of (as our doctor put it) “the third leg.” Samuel is very happy, he was hoping for a boy. I had started out hoping for a girl, and also not wanting to know the [...]
- First day at DTS
We arrived at the Youth With a Mission base today where we will be doing a 6 month “Discipleship Training School”. We’re all still settling in. There are 19 students from all over the world including France, Spain, Portugal, Peru, Sweden, Canada and England, the U.S., and Melilla (a Spanish enclave in Morocco). We’re living [...]
- Back in Madrid
Whew – it’s been awhile! Well, we arrived back in Madrid yesterday and have spent much of the day with our friends April and Kelly and new friends Kris and Scott in the city today. We will go to the school (YWAM) to settle in tomorrow. I am now 19 weeks 1 day; and I’m [...]
- 17 weeks 2 days
Whew – after that long post I wanted to give a little space before writing again, but I don’t want to get behind . . . We were able to get in to see a doctor at a city clinic last week. Everyone was very nice and the visit went well. It was really exciting [...]
- An Announcement
After nearly two months of absence from writing, I have a BIG announcement to make . . . I am pregnant!! We were surprised and a bit overwhelmed to learn on November 2 that we’re expecting a baby around July 7, 2005. We found an English-speaking Spanish doctor and had our first visit, including ultrasound, [...]
- No Comment
The past few weeks I’ve been inundated with spam blogs! Every other day or so I’ll get about 60 spams throughout my blog in the comment section for online gambling or pharmacy. It takes a long, tedious time to erase all of them so I’ve asked Samuel to block comments from my site for now. [...]
- Worry
I have a confession. . . I tend to worry about a lot of things. I wouldn’t call myself a chronic worrier or anxiety-ridden (except for some times when I’m riding in a car); I’m sure that probably a great number of people worry at the same level I do. But that’s not necessarily a [...]
- One Year
Yesterday marked one year of living in Spain. Today Samuel and I went into the city to go to “El Rastro.” It is a huge street market held every Sunday – full of clothes, hats, jewelry, CDs, DVDs, baskets. . . even kitchen sinks! We’ve known of it for almost a year – though it [...]
- Life In Madrid
Last night while Samuel and I were out walking the dog, we ran into the security guard who patrols the neighborhood all night on foot. Samuel has met him a few times, he helped us one very early morning when we were trying to tell the taxi service from which we had ordered a taxi [...]
- Community
After many of our friends left recently, I was feeling a lot of loneliness and have been longing for people with whom I could develop good friendships. It’s a difficult culture here among English speakers. Most of those here long-term have been planted here by their companies – they have one or two kids and [...]
- The Weekend
I don’t have anything too profound to write about, but thought I’d jot a few things that have happened lately. We’re half way through our one month of Spanish classes. We really enjoy them and we’ve been getting lots of personal attention. Sometimes we’re the only ones in the class. The daily commute is tiring [...]
- Coming Home
We’ll be flying home one month from today – 31 days from now. We are very excited, and yet are experiencing a lot of emotions regarding our time at home. We will have been in Madrid for just over a year by the time we’re home again. Sometimes as I imagine it, the imagination feels [...]
- A Full Month
It’s been a full and good month! So much going on that I haven’t had time to write about it – but I will try to do so now. On June 12, we spent the day in the small village of Fuensalida, which is south of Madrid near Toledo. It is the hometown of our [...]
- Los “Adios”
As the school year comes to an end, we find ourselves having to say “adios” to more and more people whom we’ve built friendships with and have grown to love. On Friday we attended a “farewell” party for our friends Karen and Warren Batts. Warren has accepted a managerial position in a new office that [...]
- A Weekend Away
This past weekend we enjoyed a couple of days out of the city and in the mountains 90 km north of Madrid. Despite a couple of rain showers, it was beautiful! It was such a relief to be able to smell sweet, fresh air and get away from the noise and air pollution of the [...]
- Los Recien Casados
Well, the wedding fever has mostly died down. It was a very extravagant wedding, a bit dampened by the rain. As the prince and his family were walking from the palace to the Almudena Cathedral, it started to rain. And it was pouring by the time the bride was to walk down the long red [...]
- La Boda Real
On Saturday, the Crown Prince Felipe will be married to Doña Letizia Ortiz. The whole city has been anticipating this event since their engagement was announced on October 31, 2003. They will be married at the Catedral Almudena which is a adjacent to the Royal Palace. It is a relatively small cathedral as cathedrals go [...]
- The Frustration of Pain
I’ve been experiencing a lot of foot pain recently and it’s really frustrating. I’m 99% sure that the problem is plantar fasciitis – a common problem that causes sharp pain in the heel and sometimes the arch of the foot. I’m sure it is because of all of the walking I do here on hard, [...]
- Real Men Make Quiche
I want to take this opportunity to recognize my husband – as well as document what he did in the annals of history! I must start by confessing that I am not much of a cook. Occasionally, I’ll get inspired and actually bake something – or cook something that requires more than just boiling water [...]
- Good News About Injustice
I am currently reading this book by Gary Haugen. He is the founder and director of International Justice Mission.. As I had mentioned previously on this site, I’ve been feeling led more and more toward a pursuit of seeking justice, and after reviewing the IJM site, I felt compelled to read this book. Stories of [...]
- Pascua
I seem to have strayed from my previous habit of keeping up with my website. IÂ’ll try to do better. . . ItÂ’s been a good week +. Last week (April 1- 5), we spent in Barcelona on the Northeast coast of Spain. It is a beautiful city with much to see! Too much, in [...]
- Faces from Home
Faces from Home It’s been several weeks since my last post. It has not been for want of material , but more for not knowing what to write or how to put it in to words. I will say that the past few weeks have been great. We’ve had very encouraging conversations with friends and [...]
- Manifestación
As many of you have probably read, last night over two million people filled the streets of central Madrid a few blocks from where we live. They joined together in the rain to demonstrate in solidarity against terrorism. The gathering was a well-advertised event. Posters encouraging people to come out hung everywhere throughout the province [...]
- A Day to Remember
I was just wishing my students a good weekend when I got a call from Samuel asking me if I was o.k. “Sure,” I said, wondering the reason behind the sudden, early-morning inquiry into my well-being. “Did you hear about what happened?” “No! What?!” “Four bombs exploded on trains this morning, over thirty people are [...]
- Have you ever been afraid?
Ten years ago I was in a car accident. The car I was in was totaled after a head-on collision with another car on a very icy road. I remember being strapped to the backboard with my neck in a brace. I was unable to move and I was scared. I remember distinctly the desire, [...]
- Snow
Well, my fears have been realized and I have to admit that the Spaniards were right about the weather forecast: it has gotten colder! In fact, I am looking out the window right now at falling snow! It seems to have gotten heavier over the past ten minutes – but the melt time is still [...]
- Toledo Valentine
We had been invited by Samuel’s friend, Raúl, to join him on an evening storytelling tour of Toledo on Valentine’s Day. We thought it sounded interesting, so we signed up. But since Raúl and friends weren’t planning to go until the evening, we decided to make more of a day of it and took a [...]
- What’s Up?
So much. I don’t want to say “too much,” because, really, I do have a lot of free time. I have certainly been successful at filling it – maybe not always in the most balanced way, but I am very grateful to have time that I’ve never really had before. I have enjoyed being able [...]
- The World Is My Neighbor
I started my “Spanish for Immigrants†class this week. There are 19 students in the class from all over the world. Yesterday the class was very conversational and we were able to learn a little bit about one another. I learned that there is a man from Iran, two women from Morocco and a woman [...]
- Justice
What is Justice, exactly? And how does one truly seek it and promote it? This theme of Justice has been repeating itself in my life lately: in discussions, books, articles I read, noomas, and the online sermons I hear from my home church. God is Just, and we are to seek to be like Him. [...]
- A list of things
What I love about life in Madrid (in no particular order and non-exhaustive): The weather. It is the middle of January and it was 60 degrees and sunny today! The plants: most of the trees are non-deciduous and stay green all the time. The grass has also been green since end of September and flowers [...]
- Ideas and dreams
ideas and dreams Over the past several weeks, Samuel and I have had many discussions about our future. These talks seemed to stem from a meeting we had with a British business owner who has resided in Spain for 18 years. We sought her advice in regards to our English Immersion Weekend business plan. She [...]
- . . . dreams
If you didn’t read the previous entry from January 19, to do so may help you understand where I’m coming from as I write this. As I had mentioned, I had been feeling a bit uneasy about our previous course: namely, to pursue our business venture of Volao Communications. It was not only because of [...]
- Our Nine Mile Hike
On Saturday, January 10, we joined one of Samuel’s students and the hiking group he’s a part of on a 9-mile hike! It was a beautiful, sunny day. The weather was perfect – in the 60′s. It was a relaxing walk through the foothills about 40 Km north of Madrid. The hike brought us to [...]
- Todo el Mundo les gusta una Cabalgata
The following are some images from La Cabalgata de los Reyes (the parade of the Kings), taken January 5. Unfortunately, many of them were quite blurred due to the movement and the darkness. We joined half a million others to watch the parade and catch some of the 15,000 pounds of candy that was thrown [...]
- Nochevieja
Prepping for the party and posing with Isabelle and Tama. We did make it down to Sol – or at least within 20 meters of it! The crowds were thick and there were some crushing moments, but the police did well to control the crowds. We weren’t able to see anything, though later learned there [...]
- New Year’s Eve in Madrid
It’s 5 hours till 2004! Samuel and I have been sick for the past four days and are trying to mentally, physically and emotionally prepare ourselves to walk to Puerta Del Sol where thousands of others will ring in the New Year. The gathering is comparable to Times Square on New Year’s Eve. My guess [...]
- Spanish Men
I had heard that Spanish men would be more forward than American men. I was told to expect to hear random men make comments – most of which, I figured, I could easily ignore due to my lack of knowledge of the language. Until last week, however, I hadn’t noticed. I was walking to the [...]
- Celebrating Christmas
Although the beautiful, sunny, 50-ish degree days and lack of snow make it difficult to believe it is Christmas, we have believed the calendar and streets full of Christmas lights and have forged ahead with celebrating Christmas. First was the Christmas program at our church, Mountainview International. Samuel and I were both involved in the [...]
- Thank You
I want to say “thank you” to all you – friends and family – who have made comments on my website and who have expressed well wishes and prayers for my family and me as we recently lost my grandpa. I appreciate knowing how much I am loved and also, how much love was felt [...]
- Goodbye, Grandpa
Mom just called to tell me that Grandpa Tom died at 11pm last night Wisconsin time – 6 a.m. this morning, Madrid time. This picture was taken at the end of July 2003. It was the last day I saw my grandpa. My parents and my uncle are also in the picture. I want to [...]
- Soon
I just read an email from my mom that was sent four hours ago. In it she told me that my Grandpa has been unresponsive for two days and is exhibiting signs that he will die within a few days. Shortly before I read that email I got a call from my friend April who [...]
- A day in Sol
We finally had another sunny day, so I went for a walk through Puerta de Sol – considered to be “the center” of Madrid – although you wouldn’t think so by looking at the map, this is where “everything is happening.” The famous “Tio Pepe” sign. The bear and the strawberry tree (I’ve never seen [...]
- Our Flat
The living room. Tama and Segu on their favorite couch. One of Samuel’s pet peeves is having someone read over his shoulder though he doesn’t seem to mind when Tama is the one reading over his shoulder! Tama likes to hang out in the kitchen, too!
- Thanksgiving In Madrid
We enjoyed a Thanksgiving Dinner on Saturday, November 29, at the home of Troy and Heather Cady. Forty “international” guests were in attendance including friends from England, Finland and Spain. Heather cooked a great meal, and we even had a few homemade, from-the-pumkin-not-a-can pumpkin pies (it’s easier to find a pumpkin than a can of [...]
- Grandpa Tom
My Grandpa Tom, my dad’s dad, is dying of cancer. He was diagnosed about a year ago, and I knew before I left for Spain, that my visit with him in July was going to be the last time I would see him here. My mom has been keeping me updated. He is in Home [...]
- Career
I was talking with my mom the other day and came to a realization about myself. I’ve been frustrated with my new teaching “career.” That is truly what it is – a career, a profession; and yet, I don’t want it to be. Ten years ago I chose Nursing as my career – profession. In [...]
- Zero Tolerance
Last night I had to kick another kid out of class. Yes, another one – out of the same class. The first one to leave had been causing trouble since the first day: hitting kids, throwing things, tearing up paper. . . but the last straw was when I turned around just in time to [...]
- The latest
I really miss nursing – not my job at GVHP so much, but the medicine, the comfort with the knowledge I have, and the opportunity to learn more. I fear that I will forget it all! I do not know if there will be any opportunities for me to use my skills in that area [...]
- Christmas Wish List
Samuel suggested that I put a “wish list” up here in case anyone wanted to send anything. So here it is: “Nooma” DVD 5 and 6 (DVDs featuring the pastor of our home church). Brownie mixes. American measuring cups Photographs of friends and family. CDs from our collection at home (Over The Rhine, Let the [...]
- Recent entries
Hi, I’ve been busy again. I just posted three new entries (not including this one). The first of the three is entitled “City Life”. Enjoy, and feel free to leave comments! Buen Provecho!
- The Train, etc.
Well I am happy to say that the train/bus route went very well today! There were plenty of open seats throughout my journey. The bus ride from the station to the office took only six minutes, and I did not get nauseated! The train is a much more favorable means of transportation here because most [...]
- Breathing
Lots of things travel through my head, especially as I make my way through the seas of other travelers all going in different directions. I wonder, “who stopped walking on the left side of the escalator, and why?†“Why do these people insist on polluting my air?†“Why doesn’t anyone smile?†“Why do the Metros [...]
- City Life
Ah, the city life. The other day I had a fleeting moment of panic as I found myself in a bottleneck of people trying to shove their way on to a bus. It was my first trip to a new teaching assignment outside the city. The director was going with me to show me the [...]
- The “Easy” Day
Today is Friday. I had been looking forward to my class today because it was to be a “video day.†I wasn’t completely clear about what that meant – only that Julio had told me last week that every other Friday I would / could / or should show a video (a little confusion due [...]
- Life as a TEFL teacher
We graduated from our TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) one week ago. After we returned from our trip to Mallorca on Wednesday, the madness of interviewing began. We had both received calls from the same places while we were in Mallorca. Fortunately, our mobile service reached there, and so we were able to [...]
- Holiday in Mallorca
We finally got away from the big, busy, often-smelly, very loud city of Madrid! Samuel and I finished our TEFL course (to teach English) on Friday, and on Sunday we took advantage of some really cheap flights and hotel and flew to the island of Mallorca of the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean. Sounds [...]
- Quick Note
Hi. It’s been awhile, but I just posted three new “blogs”. I thought I should mention that so you don’t miss anything! Hopefully more will come soon. Spain affords much to write about. Disfrute!
- TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language)
Two more days left of TEFL class. It has been an interesting experience to be back in school again. A lot of this stuff seems familiar – like something I learned once upon a time in Junior high. Some of it, however, is brand new. Does anyone other than an English major know what a [...]
- Cats
We live with cats. Three of them. We did know ahead of time that they were part of the deal. But they seemed so well behaved when we came to check the place out. And the only odor I noticed on our initial visits was the sweet aroma of incense. Our flatmate – the owner [...]
- Spain Photos
Birthday Dinner with Kelly, April, Sarah and Samuel At Retiro Park
- Bowling For Columbine
Last night we went to see “Bowling for Columbine” with one of our new Spanish friends and two of her friends. If you’ve seen the movie, you know that it paints a critical picture of our country. It was the first time we had seen the movie – and the fact that we were watching [...]
- Thanks
Thanks to all the birthday well-wishers. We had fun celebrating with April and Kelly and plan to extend the celebration today at an Italian Restaurant that was recommended by a local. Thanks for the nice sign Jacob (and Tanya)!
- More Spain
Even Spanish time seems to slip by slyly as i realize it’s been eleven days since the last post. Samuel suggested that I just try to write about the past day or so, not try to catch up on eleven days; but there are several things I want to remember about the past eleven days, [...]
- Birthday Gift
I’m experimenting with my birthday present from Samuel. Here is a picture of Emma and Maggie on 4th of July, 2003. Hopefully, there will be more to come very soon . . .
- Getting familiar
So it’s been a few days since my last entry. . . on Thursday night we ventured out again in search of the “Feria” (street Festival). It was not difficult to find since the closer we got the more crowded it became. We first came upon a street full of people and food and drink [...]
- Diversión con extranjeros
Last night we finally did something social. One of the German students in my class organized a group of 8 people to go out. We were the only Americans with 2 Brazilians, 1 Chinese, 1 Dutch, 1 French and the German. We were intially going to go to Plaza Mayor which is a large outdoor [...]
- Yo no sé mucho
I realized today that I am definitely in the wrong class when the instructor said something about homework and then suddenly everyone pulled out notebook papers with writing all over it! I totally missed that! I did do homework – I did what I thought I heard the assignment was, but obviously was way off. [...]
- First Day of School
We never did get to the museum yesterday, or the street-fair for that matter. I think we slept until 1:30 or 2 pm. I don’t know if it’s still jet-lag or the heat, or if it’s just the Madrileño lifestyle. Probably the lack of having anything we HAVE to do plays into it also. Samuel [...]
- Sore Throat
Ugh, I feel miserable. All night I slept with a wet washcloth over my nose and mouth to try to humidify the air I was breathing. It hurt my throat just to breath. I was more concerned about the pain than suffocating. April IM’d us from Amsterdam and suggested a large Meijer – type store [...]
- On Our Own
April left this morning for Holland, so we’re on our own now! She left us a great list of resources and another couple we can call who are very gracious and would be happy to have us over to dinner sometime next week. It is now 3:30pm and we haven’t left the house yet, we [...]
- Trying to Cool Down
Today we took the metro to the bus which then took us to a NW suburb where another couple from Mountainview Church live. They are actually in Holland (Europe) right now, but another couple from the church is dog – sitting there. Their names are Warren and Karen. They are both British and work in [...]
- Bienvenidos a Madrid!
We arrived this morning and were greeted at the airport by April. She helped us get a taxi, and somehow we arranged to get 3 large suitcases, a guitar, a small suitcase, 2 computer bags and 3 people in the car with the driver. We almost had to split up, which would have been very [...]
- Small World
The other night while at April and Kelly’s, April told me that the previous night they had hung out with a friend of theirs from Holland (Europe, that is) who was visiting some friends who were visiting a friend who lives in Spain. The visiting friends and the friend in Spain were all from Grand [...]
- 5-year plan
Today I was asked, “So what do you think you will do when you return from Spain?” Actually, I’ve been asked this question several times, but for some reason, his morning I started thinking about it more seriously. I’m one who has always had a “5-year plan”. Graduate, get a job, get married, buy a [...]
- Why Spain?
Why Spain? Why am I even planning to leave? What do I hope to gain from this move? These are questions I’ve pondered – mostly on a surface level, with a few moments of depth. Not to say that it is for shallow reasons that I go, just that I haven’t made the time to [...]
- More Providence
We have been hoping and searching for a contact in Spain as well as a community of which we can be a part in Madrid. We had spoken with several wonderful people who know people in Madrid, but had yet to make the direct connection. . . A few weeks ago I was browsing a [...]
- The emotional toll of leaving …
We’re still planning to move to Spain. Very exciting, as well as overwhelming and scary. We returned from our week-long family vacation to Orlando two days ago. It’s been emotionally difficult. Probably for several reasons: First being that in Orlando it is 80 degrees and beautiful and full of fun and relaxation with my family; [...]
- Providence
Journal of Spain January 2, 2003 One positive aspect of our meeting with Keith last month, was that he did give us the name of someone who had lived in Spain for 6 months and served with the ministry in Barcelona. His name is Chris. He was on our list of people to contact. Contact [...]
- Getting started
Journal of Spain December 12, 2002 The long-awaited day arrived and we finally met with Keith to discuss our move to Spain. It was beneficial, but not great. We both left feeling a bit let down – like a wet blanket was thrown on the dream that was burning inside of us. I felt my [...]
- Our Great Adventure
So here it is, the beginning of our big adventure. Samuel and I have decided to move to Spain! Our purpose in going is to learn the language, learn about ourselves, learn about other people and see what God wants to change in us that perhaps we cannot see while being so rooted in our [...]
- Tips on planning a trip to IKEA
One of the most time-consuming endeavors as newlyweds has been to furnish our house. We had sold a majority of my (Robyn’s) furniture 2 weeks before we got married, and other than a small couch, 2 chairs and a whole lot of boxes, we didn’t have much to sit on. We decided that we would [...]
- My Wedding Horror Story
It was thirteen days before the wedding. The previous two days had been spent selling as much as possible at our moving sale, and this day had been spent moving everything that hadn’t sold or had not yet been moved. Our friends Roy and Amanda heroically came to our rescue and lent their hands, mini-van, [...]