Catching up with Logan

I had the pleasant surprise of being met at the airport by not only my parents (and Larry and Paulette Tucker, who were gracious to chauffeur us around), but also my sister Elizabeth and nephew Logan. You may remember that Logan was only about three weeks old when I left America last summer. It has been fun to watch him grow and change on the web cam this year, but of course nothing really compares to getting to see him in person. I didn’t know that they would be able to come to the airport, but I was REALLY excited to see them there. Logan is so cute and happy and lovable!!  These are some pictures with Logan taken over a few days after I got back.  


In the van on the way home from the airport…


On the swings at the park


Playing on the slide together


Logan and granddaddy riding the lawn mower


Liz and Logan

Moving

We’re planning to be back in the US for at least a year, and if and when we return to East Asia, we will most likely not be in the same place where we were previously assigned. Knowing that information led us to the somewhat difficult but necessary decision to either sell or move all of our belongings. I don’t know of anyone who enjoys moving, and this was a somewhat stressful time for us. The Lord was gracious to us though, as always, and allowed us to get everything done before we left… even in spite of me severely spraining my ankle three days before we left. We had very mixed emotions as we left. We were very excited about getting back to the US and seeing our families (AND GETTING MARRIED!!!, which we are still very excited about), and yet sad about leaving a place and friends that we love very much and also consider our home. I have some great pictures with friends, but I won't post those in the interest of security.

Those of you who know me well know that I can be a little bit of a neat freak… you can imagine how I was feeling around the time I took these pictures of the moving/packing chaos :)

More Engagement Pictures...

These are some pictures that our friend Lee Ann took for us at a park in our city (We are very grateful!!).  Okay, there are really a lot more than this, but I look goofy in some of them and I don't want to embarass Wendy by posting pictures of her fiance looking goofy online :)

Earthquake Pictures

It’s been a while now since I first traveled to Sichuan to work with victims of the May 12 earthquake. In fact, I feel like I am worlds away right now. The past month has been filled with change and transition, and I am feeling overwhelmed in a different way now  I am finally somewhat “adjusted” to being back in the States and wanted to take a minute to post some of the pictures that I took when I was in the earthquake affected areas last month. Please continue to pray for the victims of this earthquake. I read in a recent article that 2 million people are now displaced and jobless, parents are still mourning the loss of children and families are trying to pick up the pieces of what remains. Pray that the Gospel would reach many of these people, and that the Lord would reveal Himself to people in this area in such a way that they could no longer deny His existence, sovereignty and love for them. Pray especially that many would come to KNOW Him and come to have a personal relationship with Him.



This picture is from a park beside the complex where we stayed for a couple of nights in Chengdu. Although there was not widespread visible exterior damage in Chengdu, many people were afraid to return to their homes. This fear was compounded by frequent news reports forecasting future earthquakes and aftershocks.  



A group from a new refugee camp that was ecstatic to see us, and eager to talk about their experiences in the quake.  



Andy and I with a local high school student who spoke great English.  



A building collapsed on top on this huge dump truck.



More collapsed buildings…



Me with some of the kids from the camp where we spent the night  



Andy holding woks that we bought to donate to the refugee camp