Goodness....Time really does go a lot slower when you're not working, hot all the time, packing and sorting, and not really able to fill your time properly. This has been the longest week. But, it ended on a pretty good note. After taking down lots of names for the rummage sale, we finally made some deliveries yesterday and made quite a bit of blessing :) Enough that it'll probably pay for our boxes to get shipped! Yay! :) So, this rummage sale, so far, has been very successful, and I'm so thankful.

We've tackled every room in some form or another except for the kitchen and the bathroom, but thankfully we still have lots of time. The suitcases are still slowly filling up, but we have a 4th box to fill as well, so whatever we don't have room for will get tossed in there the last week we're here. So far, so good.

Am I still bummed out occasionally? Yeah, I am. But He reminds me that we are not attached to the material, that life changes, and we have to be ready for the next big thing. My husband does a good job of reminding me of that, too, (in a nice way of course, because at times, it's hard for both of us), and I know that we'll get through it. His grace is sufficient.

I'm not sure how much I'll be online in the next week or so... We leave early tomorrow morning to do a summer English camp in nearby Yangzhou (so close, the train tickets were only 17 kuai), and we'll be back on the 26th. Thankfully, unlike last year, we'll be with other people...Don and Bryant are going as well...so it should be a good experience. And I've heard Crazy English camps tend to be a bit insane :) so we'll see how we feel when we get back.

Be blessed.

packing up...

Well, it comes and goes in spurts....the packing that is. We weren't really blessed with a lot of air conditioning in our apartment, so it definitely takes its toll on us. The heat has been pretty bad since we started our vacation, and that causes us to be a bit slow in the packing. Good thing we still have lots of time! Yesterday I sent out an "online rummage sale" to our NICF friends, and I've already gotten several responses... but unfortunately many people are wanting the same things :p First come, first serve, I told them. And since I got 2 emails this morning, it just came on the luck of the draw which one I opened first. It's great that people are being so helpful and are interested in our things :) Does make me a bit sad. Packing up 5 years of memories can be hard at times. Thankful for His grace.

the second bedroom, our "storage room"...it's a mess, and very hot to stay in for too long. now it's full of sorted bags, our suitcases that are quickly filling up, and boxes that we'll be using as people start to buy stuff from us

2 boxes that will, hopefully, soon be shipped to the US. want to try to get together one more box.

**edit** Yeah, so I after I took those photos...it's only been 3 hours since then, but we got a lot done. Big burst of energy today I guess, but I'm left wondering how in the world we're going to get everything to the US. I really don't want to spend a ton of money to ship stuff, but at this point, we may just have to. We're already on box 3, and after seeing what probably won't fit in suitcases...I'm not encouraged. (and we still have to try to pack even more in) How in the world do airlines expect people to fit their entire lives in 2 suitcases when they've lived overseas so long? It's really not fair that we have to have the same luggage allotment as other people who are "just traveling". Any suggestions on what would we should do? Or should we just bite the bullet and ship as much as we can?

welcome back, Catie :)

It's been almost 2 months since I've been able to access the blog regularly, but I think I'm finally back :) After trying some proxy sites yesterday that didn't work too well, Raul got a tip from a friend at NICF about a program that works like a toolbar where you can type in a website and bam! no problems :) So we're now able to access anything and everything that we haven't been able to, even sites that were blocked way back when! (anyone remember my old xanga blog?) Living here has been a pain lately, I must say, but we're finding ways to make it work. And, like I mentioned yesterday...makes us all the more ready to go to the States.

It's probably better we didn't have much access the past 2 months, because we were so so busy with the visa, finishing school, and starting our summer. So if you don't keep up with us on facebook, or you haven't talked to my Mom for the past 2 months (I think everyone falls into those 2 categories?), here's the lowdown on what's been happening.

The rest of May: getting Raul's visa appointment, mad dashes to and fro to finish paperwork.

Better part of June: finishing paperwork, 2 trips to Shanghai for Raul to get a medical exam then pick up the results, nights and weekends spent organizing folders of paperwork, making a photo scrapbook of our relationship, gathering reference letters and other evidence of our relationship, not to mention writing final exams, preparing review work for the whole week we'd be in Guangzhou for the interview, and having meetings at school about various topics. Yeah...it was a very busy time.

June 20: Flew to Guangzhou for a week.
June 22: Got the visa!!! After sitting in Starbucks from 7am - 12pm, waiting for news from Raul who was across the street at the consulate...we got the good news that he got his visa, and I was finally going home!!
June 25: Picked up the visa and got so excited we nearly cried! Got stuck in a nasty thunderstorm 10 minutes after...
June 27: Flew back to Nanjing.
June 29 and 30: Helped students review, gave exams, got a little sad with our students about leaving.
July 1: My last QT with my students, crying in front of them, last English faculty meeting, packing up 3 years of memories at NEIS
July 2: Final lunch with students and faculty. Picked up plane tickets to the US!!!

And from then on...it's been rest, interspersed with moments of packing. It's just too hot to pack and sort for long periods of time when you don't have air conditioning (just in the bedroom). Some have asked why we're not leaving until August 26th if we already have a visa. There's a lot of reasons. One, we wanted to work a bit. We'll be doing an English camp in Yangzhou next week. Two, we need the time to pack, sort, give things away, sell things, and box things up to ship home. It's too hot to do all that in a week. Three, we can' t say goodbye to Nanjing that quick. I've been here 5 years, Raul for 2 1/2, and it's just not easy to say goodbye. Four, it gives us time to see some people for the last time who have gone home for the summer and will be back before we leave (except for the Mwenyas :( ). Five, and one of the biggest reasons we chose the 26th, 2 Filipino friends are getting married in the middle of August. We've been asked to be sponsors (a traditional Filipino role in a wedding) and I've been asked to sing. So there ya go.

As for what we'll be doing when we get stateside...my parents are meeting us in Chicago. We'll probably collapse and sleep for a few days :) Dad's fellowship is hosting something for us on our first Sunday back. We'll go see American Idol in Indy the following week (yeeehaw!), rest the next week (I need to do some serious shopping somewhere in there), then the 19th my family is throwing a belated wedding reception for us. Really looking forward to that...can't even tell ya :) Then the next weekend will be the festival in Fairmount (good times), then... we'll, homecoming at IWU, then... hopefully having a job by then. We could use your thoughts, guys. A lot of adjustment, change, and reverse culture shock to look forward to and pr over. But we trust that our Father is in control. He's gotten us this far, and He hasn't let us down once. So we know He'll take care of finances, job situation, and every other little detail that needs to work out when we move back.

We appreciate so much all of you and your pr's and support during the past several months, and we know we couldn't have made it this far without you.

And if you'll be at the Chicago O'Hare airport on August 26th, feel free to be a part of the welcoming party :)

Long overdue...

Well, at the moment, I've found a proxy server that would allow me to sign into blogspot and actually do something. If you've been in contact with me lately, you know what an annoyance it's been over here with sites blocked left and right. So if you're reading this on facebook, know that we're still having trouble accessing facebook. It's teaching us a lot of patience (and why we look forward to leaving, I'll admit), but it's hard to be on vacation without our beloved time-waster.
Now that I know that (for now) I can access my blog again, I'll try to be in touch more. Be so much blessed... And lift up this nation...

end of a crazy week

I'm really glad that this week is coming to end...I'm not going to lie. This has been an up-down week with Raul's visa, and it's still not over. Just keep us in your thoughts... He's not finished with us yet.

If there's anything that I've learned through this process, it's that you can never, ever, count Him out. He's able to do more than we can ever expect or imagine. And just when we and some others feel like we're coming to another obstacle, He helps us overcome and shows us a way out.

But as a result of this up-down week, both us haven't been feeling too well (the up-down weather has contributed to that), and we both feel like the world is just spinning so fast. Yesterday I found myself really unable to concentrate on class work because the visa just kept running through my mind "we have this to do and this to do"...Ahhhh. Too much.
And, I'm leading worship this weekend. I developed a weird sore throat something or other this morning, on top of the allergy junk, and I'm just pr'ying it'll go away by tomorrow afternoon.

Please keep us in your thoughts.

Happy Mother's Day!

First of all, happy Mom's Day to my wonderful mom and mom-in-law :) We both love you so much!!

Second, if you're interested in what we did this weekend, check out the album on facebook...it explains everything.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=74892&id=517369511&l=62ada4d33a

An added note, if you're interested... The powerpoint presentation that was shared yesterday while we were at the Word printing press is available for me to have a copy to take to the US. So, if you'd like for me and Raul to come and share at your school/fellowship when we (eventually) go home, drop me a line and let me know. We'd love to let more people know what's happening here.

onset of summer

Our first 90 degree weekend... :p Yeah, that's what I think of that. On the plus side, the dreaded Nanjing humidity hasn't set in yet, so you can't call it summer (it's only May people! stop saying summer's here!). So, we'll just say we're having a really beautiful, hot spring :) I'll admit I'm loving it, though...until I start sweating. Yuck.

Not much to blog about I guess (you know it's boring if I start talking about the weather). I'll just ask ya'll to keep our visa stuff in your thoughts. We're still a bit lost about Raul's China paperwork and needing some clarification. I just wish it would all fix itself. That would make our lives and this whole process so much easier.
Also keep my Chinese friend S in your thoughts. She attended our cell group last night, and she's still seeking... but is not quite there yet. I can see Him working in her...she just needs encouragement and answers to her questions.

Be blessed y'all.