No Christmas at our House

This Christmas came and went so fast. I don't really mind though since we weren't all together. Our two oldest children are now living Stateside and we only have our 17 year old here with us. This is her last year and it was tougher than I thought it would be.

In general I'm not a very emotional person. I actually try very hard not to be a crier. I know it's all healthy and we should let emotions out but somewhere along the way I equated crying with weakness. I know it's not weakness and I never feel that way when others cry but when I cry I feel out of control and so I do my best not to if I can help it.

Anyhow, we were all busy getting ready for Christmas dinner and then while standing at the sink I realized this was my last year with my daughter. I hadn't thought that deeply into it until now and before I knew it I was crying. Are you kidding me! I hate crying! Here I was on Christmas, the happiest day of the year and I was whimpering an trying to figure out how to stop it. There I sit realizing I wasn't doing so well with this impending empty nest after all. Evidently, because of the spill of tears, my daughter's leaving was harder on me than I realized.

So the crying wasn't fun, but with all the consoling we came to a conclusion. This is our last Christmas here!! I mean, who wants to wake up to Christmas morning without children anyhow. What's Christmas morning without kids tearing up paper and squealing with delite over the hoped-for gift? The Christmas morning part of our American tradition of Christmas is for children. So what do you do if you're used to having children around and all of the sudden they leave? You travel!! We decided yesterday while drying tears that maybe things need to change now. Since all the other parts of our life are changing we might as well change the Christmas traditions around here too. So we're planning to save up and take a small trip for Christmas somewhere here in Europe. We're so close to everything and it will be nice to be away for Christmas next year. No cooking Christmas dinner for two or having to wake up Christmas morning to an empty house.

Don't get me wrong, we will celebrate the true meaning of Christmas, the birth of our dear Lord Jesus at Christmas and all year long. But, I'm super excited about our future trips. I love my husband way too much and enjoy every moment we spend together so the idea of traveling and experiencing Christmas together is amazing.

So here's my short list! It's actually a list of Christmas markets around Europe. We've seen the Vienna Christmas markets and they were amazing. So why not see more.

1. Paris, France

2. Cologne, Germany

 3. Prague, Czech Republic

If you loved these you can see a list of the top 10 Christmas markets around Europe here at Europe's Best Destinations.

Anyhow, how all that crying got me fantasy trips around Europe, I'm not sure but I'm glad it did. I'm still going to miss my kids like crazy but it'll be much more bearable while having a ball than it would be otherwise.

Bring on Christmas 2015!!! I'm ready!

Found, one blog!

Do you have any idea how long it's been since I last posted on my blog? It has been so long that I actually had to go back and look at my last post. It's been 5 full months since I even visited my blog much last posted. I'm sure many of you thought I abandoned my beloved Home Away From Home but I didn't. Okay, so maybe it could be considered short-term abandonment but I'm back!!! I've come back to stake my claim to what is rightly mine and begin a new relationship with my blog and earn back some of the lost months.

Ready or not...

...life is changing!

I have always heard about empty nest and all the growing pangs that go along with little chicks leaving the nest and I thought it would be a cinch when the time came but I have to tell you, it's a booger!!

We saw Cody leave 3 years ago at 19 and that was difficult. I honestly got through it by just not thinking about it and I was pretty successful. Then two years later when Josh left at 18 it was much harder. I think it was because he was the last boy in the house. When he left we had to do away with the boy's room cause there were no more boys in the house and that was a reality check for sure. We redid the larger boy's room and moved Hannah in there leaving a completely empty bedroom. It wasn't long till we realized that this family house was a bit too large for our little family of 3. 

Also for the first time in our ministry here we are going to be living in a different city. We have lived and worked in this city for 13 years, since we arrived in Croatia. As much as I love this city and the friends we've made I'm ready for a change. We no longer work in the first church plant and we're exclusively working in the new church in a neighboring city. The new city is at least 3 times larger than than our city here which means lots of shopping opportunities. 

I am really not the sort of girl that resists change. I actually welcome change and need it every couple years it seems to keep from getting bored. Being a missionary has worked out well. Between furloughs and work we have managed to move 5 times in 13 years. I know that seems crazy but it's just the way it has worked out. I know God knew in advance what our life would hold on the mission field 'cause as a child my family moved more than 30 times by high school. I didn't understand it or like it then but I can see how it's prepared me for life here. 

Anyhow, ready or not it's time to move again. This move is different because we are seriously downsizing. The house we are renting is basically a house with the top floor made into an apartment and the bottom is a garage and some storage rooms. It's different than anything we've lived in before. For one thing, it's one story, which is amazing. Can I please stop here and interject: I hate stairs! Every house we have lived in has been at least two stories and a few three. I'm so excited about living on one floor. I'm keeping in mind that the grass is always greener on the other side and maybe a one story isn't gonna be as cool as I think but I'm up for giving it a try. Oh wait, no stairs?....there goes my only means of exercise! So by the first week of January we should be completely moved into our new house and new life. 

Life is changing whether I'm ready or not. We're now a family or 3 for now anyhow. It won't be long and our 16 year old daughter will be old enough to fly the coop and head off to the US to Bible college. So then, I'm sure I'll be back making a post about life as a twosome. 

Life is changing for us...ready or not. 

They're slowly leaving the nest.

So as you have guessed from the activity on my blog, I'm back home. Being back home means that life slows down enough for me to even think about blogging.
Our short 2 month furlough was a whirlwind. We were in 25 churches and got to spend tons of time with family and friends. We also got to watch our second son Joshua graduate from high school. Then we said goodbye to him on Tuesday as we flew out of Dallas and left him behind.

I can't even tell you how hard it was to leave Josh. It was so much different leaving him than it was leaving our oldest son Cody. I've thought about it many times in the last few days and I think it has to do with Josh being our last boy in the house. Here we are with only a daughter. It's so strange having only Johnny's clothes in the wash, I mean all the boys socks are his. I don't have to look at the size in the jeans to figure out who they belong to, they're all his cause he's the only male in the house. It's strange and I'm defiantly feeling "empty nest" even thought I still have Hannah. 

We had a great time seeing good friends, 

and adorable nieces whom we adore. 

I loved being with my boys, both of them. I cherished the time with Josh knowing we would soon be leaving him. He's doing wonderful though, he has a plan for his future and is preparing for Bible college in the fall. 

It's been a very hard two years here in Croatia without Cody and I loved being with him while in the States. It's crazy to look at your son and see a man. I'm so proud of him and my prayer for him is that he'll make the Lord proud of him. 

Our life is changing whether I'm ready for it or not. Here we are the 3 of us watching The King and I in our slowly emptying home. I better get ready cause I only have a few more years and they'll all be gone. Since I can't do anything about it, guess I'll just have to give it to the Lord.  

Gypsy Christmas in Croatia and Stuff

We were so blessed to get to spend some time with our good friends, the Madonna Family in Sterling Heights, this past month. 

We love these folks and Mrs. Madonna is one of my all-time favorite preacher's wives. She's one of the sweetest ladies I know. 

Anyhow, Covenant Baptist Church in Sterling Heights participated in the Gypsy Christmas and loaded us down with filled shoe boxes.  

Many of our Gypsy children have never received a Christmas present before and the one we give out will be the only present they get for Christmas. It's my favorite time of the year. I love those children and I delight in seeing their smiles as they open the small gifts. 

  

Josh and Hannah were in charge of fitting them all in our little trailer. Luckily they all fit. 

We are looking forward to a wonderful Christmas this year. We're taking a container back filled with Bibles and other things. We're so happy to have some room in the container to bring some personal items and lots of stuff for our Gypsy Christmas project. 

We have a great group from Bible Baptist Church in Rendon, TX, who decided to knit scarves and hats for our Gypsies. They along with several other churches have knit, as of right now:

37 pairs of gloves

1 shawl

1 poncho

1 pair of socks

31 headbands or earmuffs

10 blankets

854 hats

1,560 scarves

They call their project, Wrap Croatia for Christ. Pretty awesome! I'm so glad that the ladies at Bible Baptist had the vision to make a difference for little children they have never seen. It gets very cold in Croatia and many times the Gypsy children aren't dressed warmly. I'm gonna have so much fun wrapping those little children for all the ladies who took the time to make a difference. 

On a side note, we're almost finished with our 3 month trip. I'm tickled because a week from Thursday we head back to Texas and guess who I get to see...CODY!!! I have never been away from our oldest son Cody for more than a few days and he has been in Texas at Bible college while we've been on the road. 

As we travel and people find out that our son is staying behind for Bible college I hear all sorts of reports. From, "oh no, it'll be the worst time of your life." to " I cried every day and I still cry after all these years." 

Very seldom do I meet a mother that is okay with her children being gone. I can understand for sure, I love my kids way too much but I'm a realist. I know for them to serve the Lord and do His will they have to eventually get out. I'm happy Cody is in Bible college and doing well, it's the Lord's will that boys become men and that's how it happens. 

Sometimes I feel a little guilty that I am doing so well without him but them I realize that it's probably God's grace being poured out more abundantly in my time of need. I'm okay with it, thank the LORD!

On a second side note (he he) we are getting ready to pack up and head home. We will be back in Texas around the 15th and then pack up our container on the 1st of Nov. and then we'll be flying home on November 29th. I'm so excited! I can't even tell you how I'm looking forward to going home. Not only going home but we get to see all of our Croatian church family and friends.  Anyhow, God sure is good to let us serve Him in Croatia, we're privileged.