Here we are, hitting the road...again.

As I write this Jim is packing the final things into our car. Today we start the first part of our drive to Elgin, IL for our mission training with International Teams. We plan to spend the night at my sister's in Eau Claire, WI and then will finish the final 4.5 hour drive tomorrow.

As a side note, I must mention that I am struck by how patient, loving, and hard-working my husband is. The amount of times he has loaded and unloaded that car over the last 5 months is remarkable. He is always ready and willing even though I know on the inside he doesn't look forward to it. He is the master of packing - if anyone needs to hire a consultant sometime, he is your man. I am grateful to the Lord for his steadfastness throughout this journey...I clearly would not be as sane or healthy without him. But I digress...

The next week and a half will include settling in to our apartment (did I mention we actually get to stay in the same apt for 3 whole months?!?!), setting up our IL insurance, going to a doctor's appointment, and finishing up our assignments for training. Our first sessions for training start on Jan 18, therefore we'll have some time to get ourselves situated.

As we look forward to stepping into this next part of our journey we are full of excitement about the unknown that lies ahead. In just 6 weeks we will have completed our training, have a newborn baby in our lives (we'll also be trying to figure out how we can get a birth certificate, social security card, and passport in time for our departure from the States), and coordinating who/where our last pieces of luggage will be left to be sent down to Ecuador with short-term mission teams. In some ways I felt like we were just getting the hang of all this transition, but really the adventure is just beginning, isn't it? Thankfully God is going before us and that we don't have to just rely on ourselves to figure it all out - Praise Him!!

So, here's to the beginning of the next chapter and thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your prayers and support - we are humbled by how God continues to use each of you in our lives for His Glory and Goodness!