We are one month into year two of our commitment with Solid Rock.  A lot of people have asked if our time here has been what we were expecting.

As a mom…

When Jeff and I sat down with Joe and Shannon in April 2013, Braegan was only 2 months old.  As a new mom there were a lot of questions running through my head about how we would raise a child in a different country.  Then I reminded myself that there are happy children in the Dominican Republic currently, and we would be fine.  There were questions about language barriers, safety, vaccinations, etc…  It was a huge step of faith for us.  Braegan was 7 months when we arrived in San Juan last fall, and since the second we got here she has been thriving.  The groups love her, the Dominicans love her, and of course we couldn’t be prouder parents.  Group members tell us all the time how smart Braegan is.  I believe some of it has do with my education background and setting higher expectations on her than most 20 month old children have, and also the fact that she is taking in a wide range of experiences that most children her age do not witness.  I know that I will be able to look back on this time with her and not have any regrets that I missed out on spending time with her.

Being silly together!

 

As a wife…

I am thankful that I get to be beside Jeff and support him each and every day.  Him and Braegan have recently taken on the responsibility of caring for 6 fish, and they love it.  I’m so proud of everything he has learned in the past year in regards to construction, learning a new language, and raising a family outside of the United States.  He has always been a quick learner.  SRI will be breaking ground on the new clinic land on November 18th, and I know things will pick up as Jeff works with the many construction teams we will have coming to work on it.  It will be exciting to watch and experience the progress as the REVOLUTION comes to San Juan.

Loving life together!

 

As a missionary…

This is probably where I have had the hardest time in the last year.  Satan is always on attack, but I believe even more so when we are truly following God’s call on our life.  There have been and are days when I feel lonely, missing people and experiences back home.  I have more quiet time than I want on some days, but I know it is God’s way of speaking to me.  My days are not as structured as they were when I was teaching elementary school, and sometimes I feel very unproductive….this is hard.  Currently, I am wrapping up the VBS curriculum for next summer.  It was exciting to see how God used all of our preparation this past summer with the high school teams that came down.

VBS

 

Another struggle I face with living here is my hesitance to speak Spanish.  I can sit in and listen to conversations and follow what is being said, but I only contribute with a head nod or a one word answer.  I believe this holds me back from getting more involved, and I really want to continue to work on this.

 

Jeff and I are so thankful for how God provides for us daily through words of encouragement, finances and prayers from friends and family in the states, a cool breeze on a hot day, the beauty of his creation all around us, and the list goes on.