Almost a year ago, we took advantage of some free tickets that Air Asia airlines was giving away and booked ourselves a trip to Vientiane, Laos. It's been a year of anticipation, and the event has come and gone. Here are some recaps of the highlights of our trip:
After grabbing a quick lunch at the Penang airport, we went and sat at our gate for about an hour. The kids were pretty excited about the planes coming & going, which was a reminder to David and I of how we must have been at their ages. Also a reminder of the fact that they haven't grown up in airports, and this is a major event in their young lives.
After grabbing a quick lunch at the Penang airport, we went and sat at our gate for about an hour. The kids were pretty excited about the planes coming & going, which was a reminder to David and I of how we must have been at their ages. Also a reminder of the fact that they haven't grown up in airports, and this is a major event in their young lives.
Our flight lasted only 50 minutes ... and then we were in KL (Kuala Lumpur). Pretty speedy, compared to the 5-hour drive time it would have taken. Once there, we gathered our luggage and then tried to figure out where exactly we were going and how we were going to get there. We ended up taking a bus (1 hour drive) to KL Sentral station and then a taxi (1/2 hour drive) to our hotel.
We chose the hotel because it seemed incredibly cheap.... Once we got to our room, we realized just how cheap it was! There was a Queen-sized bed, and that's about it. We had decided to only get one room, which I think will not happen ever again. Four of us crammed into one bed with walls that were paper-thin. The kids were finally able to fall asleep around 10 ... but David & I barely got more than 1/2 an hour of sleep between us both. We had to catch a taxi the next morning at 4:15 so we'd be at the bus station to catch our 4:45 bus to the airport. We were all wide awake by 3:00 in the morning!! What an awful night
Bliss, bliss, joyful bliss! I have now discovered a "new" passion - Digital Scrapbooking! Because of the weight and humidity out here, I did not bring any of my precious scrapbooking supplies when we moved. When I got out, I discovered the world of digiscrapping ... and I am hooked 100%. Have fun checking out my humble beginnings:
The beautiful couple
David & Cheryl Waters, with Bethany Thomas
Keeping the kids still during the Ceremony
Wedding Party
Bride & Groom with the Ring Bearer & Flower Girl (Bride's nephew & niece)
Bride's family
This weekend is the annual Rhody Festival in our community. Our festivities started with the "Kiddie Parade", in which Andrew's preschool was featured. What that means is that we get Andrew (and the last 2 years it was Carly who was involved) dressed up according to whatever theme the preschool chooses, arrive at the gathering site 45 minutes before the parade is to begin, stand around while the kids begin to get impatient, and then FINALLY slowly walk 1/2 a mile with several hundred other kids, all between the ages of 0 and 10! I'm sure you can begin to imagine the chaos an event like this creates :) This is a big deal in our town, and after 3 years of participating with one child or the other, I have come to the realization that the parade is for the kids and the parents ... however, with the parents walking with their kids, the spectator crowd is rather sparse. I kept laughing to myself as I was marching along behind the preschool kids, thinking that those who really wanted to watch the event were actually participating in it. I guess that says a lot for our town. We like parades - not to watch them, but to walk in them, and convince ourselves that others are watching us. We even have a Halloween parade, where the main stretch through town is closed off for the afternoon so that anyone in costume (and even those who aren't) get to parade down the road and express their artistic creations. Ok, enough said ... on to the pictures
So, we are moving to Malaysia in exactly 2 months! (July 16 is our "D-day") Here's a brief history of how this came about ...
It was a warm day in October of 1976... Ok, maybe too far back! Moving forward 20-something years... Before God brought us together, David and I have felt called to serve at an international/boarding school. After we married, we continued to seek His calling, wondering when we would go and where. In February 2008, I received an email about the need for a High School Counselor at Dalat International School (DIS) in Penang, Malaysia. Remembering David's recent discouragment about whether we would ever be called to the same place, I put the idea on the "back burner". Meanwhile, God was at work on David's heart in preparation for this opportunity: sewing peace and an open heart where one had not been before. When I told him about the email, David was ready to go ... and I was very shocked. We began to pray and seek God's will concerning this opportunity.
As the days went on, we watched door after door open up, as God pushed us along the path He was paving for us. We continue to watch and wait as we seek the perfect path He has laid out for our family. On March 28, we received an email offering Bethany the position of HS Counselor at DIS! Praise the Lord for His faithfulness! We continue to seek His guidance as far as David is concerned. At this point, he will be helping at the school where help is needed (ie. substituting) and helping the kids adjust to a new environment and culture.
Please keep us in your prayers as we pack, plan, and continue on in our day-to-day lives and jobs. Next week, David's parents and sister will be visiting with us to help us pack and to say good-bye. The kids get out of school mid-June and my sister will be getting married at the end of June. What a busy summer we have ahead!!
It was a warm day in October of 1976... Ok, maybe too far back! Moving forward 20-something years... Before God brought us together, David and I have felt called to serve at an international/boarding school. After we married, we continued to seek His calling, wondering when we would go and where. In February 2008, I received an email about the need for a High School Counselor at Dalat International School (DIS) in Penang, Malaysia. Remembering David's recent discouragment about whether we would ever be called to the same place, I put the idea on the "back burner". Meanwhile, God was at work on David's heart in preparation for this opportunity: sewing peace and an open heart where one had not been before. When I told him about the email, David was ready to go ... and I was very shocked. We began to pray and seek God's will concerning this opportunity.
As the days went on, we watched door after door open up, as God pushed us along the path He was paving for us. We continue to watch and wait as we seek the perfect path He has laid out for our family. On March 28, we received an email offering Bethany the position of HS Counselor at DIS! Praise the Lord for His faithfulness! We continue to seek His guidance as far as David is concerned. At this point, he will be helping at the school where help is needed (ie. substituting) and helping the kids adjust to a new environment and culture.
Please keep us in your prayers as we pack, plan, and continue on in our day-to-day lives and jobs. Next week, David's parents and sister will be visiting with us to help us pack and to say good-bye. The kids get out of school mid-June and my sister will be getting married at the end of June. What a busy summer we have ahead!!
And here I am, once again attempting to create a form of communication, an easier way for some to find out what paths our lives are taking us down. Stay tuned ... it's late tonight. The big family update will come shortly :)
