Wrap it up

This is a sad post because it is our wrap it up post which means that our trip has come to an end. What an amazing journey we have been on!  We are back in Alabama, in our air conditioning, where things are far less expensive and cars drive on the right side of the road.  While we are excited to be back together and to be reunited with our family and friends, we are already missing those we formed strong bonds with back in Antigua.

Things that we missed about America:
our friends and family
our church
our couch
the cheaper prices
the ease of fast food
our small van (we drove a 15 passenger in Antigua through those crazy streets!)


Things we miss about Antigua:
the BREEZE!!!!  It's hotter here for sure!
our back porch view of the mountains and the bay
the Villa church members
our kids in the community
meat patties
fritters and dumplings
the slower pace of life
the time we got to spend with our family
the time we spent daily teaching others about God

I have only driven on the wrong side of the road 3 times.  Will has only hit the windshield wipers instead of the blinker EVERY TIME he's driven!!  Even though we missed the ease of fast food, we haven't really craved anything like we thought we would.  We got used to eating over there and kind of miss it.  It was easier and not as involved as we tend to make our meals here.  I miss saying good night to the church members (that's how they say hello at night).  I miss everyone at church trying all their tricks to get Walker to come to them.  I miss Walker giving Big Ups (knuckles) to everyone that asked.  He still does it here and we are not changing the name of the trick!!  I miss hearing Kan-niajah yelling for Wiiiiilllll every time she spotted him and then saying "come to chuch (church)". And he would walk over and get that sweet baby (she is 2) and hold her as long as she wanted him to. I miss the girls counting dogs on the way into town (450 in 4 days) and not missing having a dvd player in the van.  I miss hearing Brother Dion lead Empty Mansion at church and You Can't Get to Heaven on Roller Skates.  Can we sing those here please???!!  I miss having Sandra being motherly and emailing me at night to make sure I got home.  I miss Daisy and Rosie bringing us goodies All. Summer.  Long!!  I miss all the kids picking fruits from the trees in their yards and introducing us to sooo many new things.  I miss hearing "where's baby Walker" when we were driving through the streets.  That boy is famous there!  He and the girls were the bait that drew the kids in. Otherwise we would have just looked like some scary white folks that kidnapped random kids in a big white van but because of our kids and our connection with Villa Primary and Villa Church of Christ, we got some credibility through the streets in the Villa and Point area.  I miss the Villa teens and college kids playing with us in the afternoons and getting to know some of the community kids better.  I miss hearing Brother Bernard preaching each Sunday morning and his words connecting with us on our level.  I miss not having cell phone service anywhere except at home or church so our car rides were full of meaningful conversations instead of texts and emails.  I miss the days I spent with my girls at the pool and the friendships I made with Silvanie, Patience and Earl that ran the pool and the tennis center.  I miss the sunsets we witnessed from the ocean and the helicopter pad at the top of a mountain that displayed God's beauty and handiwork.  I am thankful for the fact that we had so many family and friends visit us there and work alongside us.  The money you spent and the time you sacrificed does not go unnoticed.  I miss gaining 3 extra college kids the last few weeks.  Paden, Hannah and Anna were our live in extra children (John and Scarlett and Brother Victor and Mrs. Daisy housed some of them too) and it was so fun to get to know them better and be around some young souls.  They even babysat twice so we could enjoy an adult only dinner with Adolfo and Shantelle and then another night with John and Scarlett and our big kids cooked dinner for us one night!  It was delicious and we ate on it for 3 days!  There are so many other things that we grew to love in Antigua and it will forever hold a special place in our hearts.  We are already planning on going on the big trip again next year...how could we not??!! We miss you Villa!

There were so many things done for us and so many prayers lifted up on our behalf and we could never express the amount of thanks that would be appropriate but I'm going to try to mention some of the things done.  Some of these things we know who did them, some we do not.  We know tons of people prayed because I have never felt God's presence like I did during the planning, preparation and execution of this trip.  Several different guys mowed our yard weekly, our neighbor Robin got our mail and dealt will all of our bills, our mailman, Mr. Willis, delivered the mail to Robin's so she didn't have to stop and get it everyday, Mark and Gena brought us tons of groceries the first weekend they visited, Lee Flynn, brought us baby food, goggles and OREOS!!, my mom, brother and sister-in law, Will's parents and sister brought us tons of goodies and food when they came, Kenny and Scarlett donated Will's coffee for the summer, Jared worked on our tv and checked some things in Will's office, Ann Marie handled my summer Wee Swap drop offs, Will's dad jumped off our dead van when we got home, my dad bought us a battery for our dead truck when we got home, Jack handled the SonSeekers' stuff, our house was pressure washed by Kevin Foust while we were gone, friends brought me dinner to Wee Swap, friends stocked our pantry and made us welcome home signs and Jeff and Anisa drove me and Walker home from the airport.

My husband was so sweet in his last blog post and I want to take a minute to brag on him for a second.  Some of you may not know that we have been separated for the last 2 weeks and 2 days.  Me and Walker left Antigua on July 18th and came home in time for me to work at Wee Swap, the children's consignment sale that I work with twice a year.  It is a very busy job that I do and I usually work around 12-13 hours for several days in a row without leaving the building or seeing my family much.  At the time we were booking flights, it made sense that Will and the girls would stay the 16 extra days and continue the work there while me and Walker came home and I worked and got Will's parents and my mom to keep Walker.  At the airport, though, I was really regretting that decision when I was saying goodbye to my girls and to Will.  The girls were arguing and fighting at the airport so it made it a little easier!  JK!!  We came on home and Will and the girls and Paden stayed for the extra time and loved on the kids a little longer.  It was probably a good decision even though it was so hard to be away.  I got a lot more done than normal and it was nice not having to mentally worry about the girls and childcare and all that is involved with having my family home.  Will and P-daddy, as the girls call Paden, handled those little girls like champs!  Will is an amazing father and a very present dad.  He is involved in so many aspects of their lives that other dads aren't and I don't think they even realize how lucky they are to have him.  They had their moments while they were still there in Antigua just like we have our moments here.  Honestly, I think I had it easier with a 15 month old that doesn't talk back and naps a lot! P-daddy probably doesn't want children for a long time now but I'm so thankful that he was able to come and stay and experience what John Oubre got to see and love.  He is a really cool guy and it was so good getting to know him more.  And know we know how good he is at frying plantains so we'll be requesting that from him!

By the way, we LOVE talking about our time there and the many things that God did while we were there.  But we are usually aware socially and can tell when people care to hear it and don't care as much so we most likely won't bring it up.  BUT we would invite any and all questions and we promise we will watch for social cues and quit talking when you become uninterested!  One of the hardest parts of mission work is re-entry into your reality.  It is hard when you have experienced something so powerful and amazing and don't feel like people care about what you've experienced. "How was it?" is the question we get most often and although we will smile and say "GREAT", you can't sum up 3 months with these people and this country in a one sentence answer so we are grateful for interest in our trip.  Please continue to pray for our family because readjusting has been more difficult than I could have imagined...especially for our girls.

We are so eternally grateful for the John Oubre 4 Antigua fund that made it possible for us to go and spread the good news.  We heard from Mark & Sherri Henderson often and they were so encouraging to us and to the work we were doing.  Mark repeatedly stressed the importance of loving on these children and that is exactly what we did.  We are meeting with them soon to catch them up on the trip. If you have ever considering donating to this great cause, now is the time.  It took a lot of money to house and feed our family of 5 so the fund needs to be replenished!  Now we are prayerful for the next person(s) that will feel the calling to go to Antigua and continue the work.  You can go to www.johnoubre4antigua.org to visit the website, read more about the foundation and to donate.

Here are some pictures of the last few weeks for Will and the girls and Paden in Antigua and me and Walker at home.

Our last picture together in Antigua

Callan, Bonnie, Ava and Lizzie saying goodbye in the airport

My sweet sign!

Part of the junk food my friends had waiting for me!

Kiarra, Callan, Lizzie and Shade at VBS with the Texas group

A post Antiguan slumber party with my big girls

"Helping" mommy at Wee Swap

Paden and Erick at camp

Lizzie and daddy enjoyed one last Castaways breakfast

Callan at camp with the Villa members

What a funny trio they make!  Love these guys!

Playing Legos in the aiport

Paden and Kenny coming back to Alabama!

Selfies in the airport

Baby Walker!

They loved each other for this moment at least

Flying home

Worn out!

Reunited with Mark Henderson

He missed his daddy

1:00 am picture taking time

1:30 am family selfie!

Let's go to sleep at 1:00 am after being out of the country for 3 months and then get up and go to school.  Pray for us!  Ready for a good year of 1st and 2nd grade.

We are trying to duplicate our favorite passion fruit juice.  Close but not as good

These were ok but they can't beat the ones at Patty Hut!

                                                                  3 2 1 Go!!!

You have GOT to be kidding!!??!!

12 weeks is almost over??  You've GOT to be kidding me!!??

I really, honestly, can't believe that 3 months has come and gone.  It seems like yesterday that we were scurrying around the house trying to get packed and get out the door to leave town.  As our trip winds down and the girls and I get ready to pack up next week and be reunited with Melodie and Walker, I am reminded how much I love my wife and kids.  Absence makes the heart grow fonder seems to be true.  I can't wait to hug my wife and hold my son.
As I get older I remember back to being younger and hearing people say how time flies and you'll blink and you're kids will be graduating high school.  That thought is really one that you can't understand until you get a little older and have a little more life experience.  Well, I am still relatively young (at least I think), but I am starting to see that that statement is absolutely true.  I feel like I blinked and my oldest is 8.  I feel like I turned around and my middle one is almost 7.  I feel like I sneezed and my youngest is almost 15 months old.  And the time on this trip to Antigua follows that same trend.  It has flown by.
I always say that most of us live in a 5 or 10 mile bubble.  Think about it, for the majority of our lives, I mean, probably 90% of our lives, most of us live in a 5 or 10 mile bubble.  School, church, Wal-mart, Target, ball fields, restaurants, gas stations, banks, whatever else it is that we do to consume our time, money and energy, for most of us that is all encompassed in our bubble.  This was the first time (other than a 4 month stint in Nashville right after college, before love brought me back to my bubble) I have lived outside of my bubble.  I have adjusted, my kids have adjusted, and before she left, my wife had adjusted to life in a new bubble.  And think about this, our new found bubble here, well, the whole island is just over 100 square miles, so basically is 10 miles by 10 miles.  So this whole island is the size of a "bubble".  Our lives for the last 3 months have been in this bubble called Antigua.  It is truly an amazing 108 square miles.  We have experienced things that we never thought we would experience.  Witnessed things we would never experience in our Florence bubble.  We have met people and grown to love people that we would have never had the chance to if we would have stayed in our normal 10 mile bubble.  I would do it all over again tomorrow.  I think my family has realized that we can make it in whatever bubble we find ourselves as long as we are together.
So, how is life treating the girls and me here without Melodie and Walker?  It is different.  It is not ideal.  But, it is working.  I have a new found respect for single parents.  I am working here as we have mentioned before I think.  Making phone calls and sending emails to customers and prospective customers back on the mainland.  So washing dishes, washing clothes, sweeping sandy floors, brushing hair and fixing ponytails, cooking, cleaning, handling emotional meltdowns, playing referee for 2 sisters who are best friends  90% of the time and then at each other's throats the other 10%.  AND doing all of this while working and keeping up with that too...it has been a challenge, but actually has been really great.  Getting to lay in bed at bedtime and talk to my girls about who we spent time with that day, what we learned from different experiences that day, getting to take them to the beach in the late afternoons to watch the sunset, getting to minister to kids in the Villa and Point areas together...it has been really rewarding.  These little girls have been vital to this work and have really been adapting to every situation so well.
Here's the thing...when it was time for Melodie to leave almost 13 days ago, we were both saying, "Why in the world did we plan things this way?"  It was very hard, especially for her, to leave this place anyway, and then you lump on top of that the fact that she was leaving the girls and me...it made it very difficult to leave.  But I kept saying and she kept agreeing that we planned the trip this way for very good reasons...and as the time has gone by, I know now at least one reason for His plan for the girls and me staying a little longer.  I shared with the church here as I was teaching Wednesday that I really miss my wife and son.  I miss them a lot!!  When she left I struggled with her leaving, but I honestly wasn't ready to leave and she was jealous that I was getting to stay.  I didn't want to be separated from her and Walker, but a little part of me was glad to get to be here 16 more days.  But now I see...it is going to be a little easier to go back to the States because my best friend is there waiting on me.  That makes it a little easier to say goodbye.  It is true, I wish she could just come back here and we could keep this thing going, but that is not possible right now for many different reasons.  If we would've both been leaving at the same time, I think the emotions would have been overwhelming.  God knew!  He knew that by me (and the girls) longing to see Melodie and Walker that the emotions of leaving here, while still difficult to wade through, will be a little more manageable because we are going home to reunite our family.  God is good and He knows just what I need, oh yes, he knows just what I need.  He satisfies and...I'll stop now.
What have we been doing?  Well, Paden is here and we have been spending our mornings and early afternoons here at the condo while I work.  Then in the afternoons we are going up to the church building and playing with the kiddos.  The kiddos that we have grown to love so much.  We have had many swings and changes in the group that shows up each day, but each day has given us a chance to talk to our kids and with the smaller groups that we have been having since our big CrossPoint came it has actually given me a chance to have some really good one on one conversations with the kids and even some of their parents.  God knew!

So here are some pictures from the last 12 days...

We had Subway for the 1st and only time while here.  It wasn't as good as home.

 On Paden's 21st Birthday we spent a few hours on a catamaran ride, snorkling and having lunch.  The group that was here from Texas invited us.  It was a really fun day.  

FaceTime is great!  I miss my wife!  They miss their mother!

 Paden had a little time with my favorite 2 year old!

 Our wonderful neighbors have been gone for a while now, but the girls loved having lunch on their porch.  We miss Steve and Joan!

 I think Melodie and Ka-nihja were glad to see each other!!

Paden has really been great with these kids.  John O. would be proud of him.  

All of the kids love Uncle Paden!

 Melodie has been deep in the weeds this week with WeeSwap! (Which, for your info, opened to the public today!  Go shop at WeeSwap!!)

 Paden has fallen in love with one of my favorite things here!  Meat Patties!!!

 Really going to miss these sunsets.

 But, seriously, I miss my little son more.  I can't wait to hold him and play with him.  The girls are missing him too!  He is a stud by the way!

 While I was working the other day the girls got bored.  They entertain themselves great most of the time.  This is what walked down the stairs.  It was hilarious!

 Paden has to deal with something I don't....hair.  So he had to stop and get a little trim after dinner.

 Mark Killen has been saying he has wanted to go to a movie in Antigua for 6 years and has never had the chance.  Well, we checked it out for him.  The theater is actually very nice and far less expensive than back home.  For example, a large drink was only $3 here.  What is it $8.75 at home?  The movie was just ok.  But it was a nice treat for these little troopers.

The men and the boys of the Villa Church of Christ have been working diligently to finish up some major summer projects on the building.  It has been awesome to watch how hard they work and they work as a team so well.  The building is really coming along.  Here are a few pictures from the last week or so.

This weekend into next Tuesday is Carnival here on the island.  It is a huge party they have at this time every year.  It began in 1834 as a celebration of emancipation from slavery.  In order to get out of town and away from all of the negative aspects (lots of debauchery and wild partying) of Carnival, the youth of the Villa church go to Bible camp every year.  They left yesterday.  I am excited to go the camp today and see what it's all about.  It is really a great thing that they do and 4 of our Villa community kids got invited to go this year.  Please pray for Rahkeem, Jamaiy, Kiara, and Erick as they spend time with the church kids.  Pray that their hearts will be drawn to the church and to Christ this weekend!

See you guys very soon!