Spring Break is here!!

We are off from school for a week and a half. Bucharest will be a crazy place because they are hosting the NATO summit here where 26 heads of states will be meeting, so we are escaping the country to Budapest, Hungary. Please pray as we take the night train (12 hours) with our little kiddos. We are looking forward to our first vacation as a family of four. We will update you when we get back!

Trust

This past week Hannah was very ill with a high fever and no other symptoms. We feared again that she had a kidney infection like she did earlier this year. Unfortunately, the doctors we usually go to were in the U.S. this month and this made finding out what was wrong with her even more difficult. But God provided as he always does, as another doctor friend of ours made a house call to check on her and helped us interface with a lab so we could get her tested. Her test came back negative and it seems that maybe she just has a virus or something. As I write this her fever is almost normal and we think she is recovering well.

No one likes it when their very young child is sick, but in a foreign country with a lack of acceptable medical care it makes it even tougher on a crazy, cautious Mom like myself. I felt "out of control" this week as I was worried about Hannah. I think some of it also had to do with that another American had just airlifted their toddler to Austria for medical care and I was imagining the same thing happening to Hannah.

But upon further reflection and while I was praying for her, I started to ask myself the question. "Do I trust God in this situation?" Do I trust him with my child's life, with the possibility that everything won't turn out ok? If Hannah was sick and we were in the U.S. I would say, "of course I trust God" but really meaning I trust God and then the terrific doctors and medical facilities as God's back up. In reality, in both situations-here and in the U.S. God is ultimately in control of what happens to my children. Just in the U.S., I think I have more control than I really do.

I believe one of the reasons God has called me to this life living in a place where I often feel out of control is that he wants me to have complete dependence and trust in him. He is constantly using situations and circumstances to mold me into the woman of God he wants me to be. Here in Bucharest, I am stripped of all my natural comforts of "home" and have no choice but to rely on God. Although this is not a "fun" process, I am thankful that God continues to pursue me in this way and not just let me live in dependence on "self"

I currently am reading a book called "Ruthless Trust" by Brennan Manning. He writes, "Ruthless Trust ultimately comes down to this: faith in the person of Jesus and hope in his promise. In spite of all disconcerting appearances, we stare down death without nervousness....ruthless trust is an unerring sense, way deep down, that beneath the surface agitation, boredom, and insecurity of life, it's gonna be all right. Ill winds may blow, more character defects may surface, sickness may visit, and friends will surely die; but a stubborn irrefutable certainty persists that God is with us and loves us in our struggle to be faithful."

Pray for me that I continue to trust God in every circumstance.

Samuel turns 3!!

Is it really possible that my "baby" is 3 years old? We had a wonderful party on Sammy's actual birthday: March 1st. He had 5 little friends over. The party theme was Disney's "Cars". Samuel loves the movie and plays with his cars daily. I attempted to make a race track cake and with Eric's help, it turned out ok-Samuel really loved his cake so I was pleased. We made "cars" out of boxes and the kids raced around. We had races with their favorite race cars and listened to the Cars soundtrack. Then we went inside for lunch-macaroni and cheese from the states!!! and watched the movie Cars. It was a great day!

On a deeper level, I had many thoughts. This is Samuel's second birthday celebrated in Romania-and this was much better emotionally for me than last year. Last year I was very focused on the fact that our family could not be there and it was hard on me. This year I focused on the fabulous friends that God has given us and the fact that they love to celebrate with us. In our missionary training they told us that our transition would be almost complete once we were on the second year of celebrations-second Christmas, second birthday celebration and I think that rings true for me. I have transitioned into living here-I still grieve that my family cannot be an integral part of celebrations like this, but it is no longer my focus. This life is God's choice for me so I need to look for the blessings that He brings- like friends to celebrate with.

High School Valentine's Day Banquet

We had so much fun being the chaperones for the high school Valentine's Day Banquet! The students did a great job of planning it! We had dinner at a cute little Italian place not far from the school and we ate some terrific pasta as well as played games such as Taboo and a pictionary type game. Eric and I just love investing in the student's lives and learning more about each of their individual personalities. Plus, it was a fun way to spend Valentine's Day!