The last blog post I wrote had to do with our time reconnecting with our church family and friends in North Raleigh. So much has happened since that time that I need to blog about...but, without all the excuses, it just became too hard to post pictures and such. So, I will just have to get to the pictures later when we have a computer and reliable internet and TIME. During the course of the last month, we have had 1 or 2 of those things, but never all three at once. :)
After Raleigh, we went on a road trip north to visit with our friends Joe and Christina. We were able to meet their little 2 week old daughter Charlotte. And, Ben was able to play with Abby. From there, we stopped off and saw my mother and stepfather at Panera for a quick "hi".
Then, we headed to Philadelphia with Caleb's high school friend Paul and his wife Mena. They have three kids and Ben really enjoyed playing with them. We have lots of pictures from our trip with them because they took us to New York and the Philadelphia Battleship and Aquarium and Hard Rock Cafe. Lots of pictures....I promise to post them one day.
From there we went to Baltimore to see my mom and stepfather and my brother Andrew- who has grown so much. This is when the most obvious culture shock set in for me. I couldn't believe how big he got over the past 2+ years and so mature and fun to be around. We also got to see Kirk, our dog before we left for PNG. It was great to see him, but great to leave him in that happy dog-people home again. We just cannot think about having a dog anytime soon with our lifestyle and the unknowns...
From there we went back to Joe and Christina's house. Ben really liked seeing Abby again.
Then, it was on to Emerald Isle for a beach trip with my dad, stepmother, two brothers, two aunts, three uncles, cousin and his son. THIS WAS SUCH A GREAT TRIP. I was able to reconnect with my family! Ben had a cousin a couple of months older than him and it was a blast. My family took care of us and made us feel so loved. We went to the beach every day, played mini-golf (Ben got 2 or 3 holes in one), ate lots of ice cream, went bowling and talked, talked and talked some more. Thank you Uncle Frank, Aunt Juju, Uncle David, Aunt Diane, Uncle Ron, Brian, Jackson, Dad, Jill, Philip and Scott for the memories. We will always remember our time with you all then!
From Emerald Isle, we traveled to my dad's house in Wilmington. We stayed there for a week while my parents were on vacation. This was the first place we actually unpacked. It was so nice.....We used their community pool, watched a ton of Olympics and slept really well.....all of us, especially little Mel. She likes having her own room.
Then, we went to Charlotte for Caleb's sister Alanna's wedding. We got to stay with Abby (one of my favorite high school kids that I knew in PNG) while all the extended family was in town for the wedding. The wedding was so beautiful. I have pictures of that, too....one day! We didn't really get to meet much of her husband Andrew....as they were busy...haha....but we were able to get to know Caleb's brothers' wives. Casey married Lauren and they are planning to exchange their vows in Charleston, SC in October. Carson married Alana. Carson is going to be deployed in September. Their exchanging of vows will likely be later on when he returns from overseas. We were also able to spend a lot of time with Caleb's grandfather and grandmother who are now living in NC. We saw Sharon (Ray and Glenda's daughter) which was so much fun! Most of Caleb's extended family made it to the wedding so it was a perfect place to reconnect with all of them.
When the wedding was over, we moved in with Caleb's parents for two weeks....the longest place that we had lived up until this point. Ben was able to play with his cousins Alex and Emory and Mel was able to play with her cousin Evie. I thoroughly enjoyed chatting with my sister-in-law Jill. She and Cam have been married 2 years longer than Caleb and I, so it felt just like old times catching up again. We had a Thai night while we were there....and we cooked Chiang Mai Noodle Soup, Shrimp Green Curry and Mango & Sticky Rice for dessert. Everything turned out so well...but it made me miss my PNG Bible Study group!
At the end of our stay in Charlotte, we were able to see my brother off to college....which was SO cool. He has matured SO much and I just loved seeing him ready for school. If you had asked me before if I thought he would be ready, I wouldn't have known how to answer that. But, seeing him at UNCC, I was proud to be his big sister. :) From UNCC, we headed to Word and Stef's house. Word was Caleb's housemate from college....and you may remember Word and Stef sent THE BEST PACKAGES IN THE WORLD to us while we were in PNG. :)
From there, we headed to Raleigh and stayed with Joe and Amy and their son John. Ben and John are total BFF's. Throughout all the traveling before, Ben would mention John and ask where he was and say how much he missed him. It was great to go to our church again....I will comment about that later on in a different post. I LOVE all the changes that happened to our church while we were away.
After two nights in Raleigh, we moved in with friends living in Fuquay-Varina, NC. We plan to be here for 3 weeks...it is where we currently live. They have two daughters- Maddie and Camryn. Kelli is pregnant with Twins and due in December. I have REALLY enjoyed cooking for them. It is fun to have a kitchen where I can try out all their fun appliances and pampered chef items. The first week we were here, Caleb went to Colorado and so Kelli and I packed up the kids and headed to her family's beach house. Her parents and grandparents where there and I just loved spending time with them. They are such amazing people who have a real heart for missions. And, their beach house is named Seaside Sanctuary....and this is what it has always been every time I have been there. Some of my fondest memories are in that beach house. Ben took some of his first steps there when he was little.
Now, we are still with Kelli and Brandon. Since we are only about 45 minutes from North Raleigh, we have been able to go back to our church every Sunday. Last Sunday we stayed with our friends Corey and Jill. This Sunday, we plan to stay at Joe and Amy's house again. What can I say, we can just feel the love from everyone. :)
From here, we travel to Orlando for de-briefing with our mission agency. Then, it is unclear about what is next for us. Caleb has some job possibilities in Colorado and Virginia. Nothing has panned out just yet....which is nerve-wracking in and of itself. This is another post that I hope to write soon.
So, there you have it....a recap. Now, I can just go back and post pictures and funny stories when we have the time, a computer and internet. But, for now, at least I feel like I can move on and begin posting about what it has been like. Transition sucks...there is just no better way to put it. More to come about all that....
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