Botanical Gardens

We had a wonderful day at the botanical gardens here in PoA. We took a picnic lunch, spread out our blanket under the trees, and had a great day. This was the first picnic for the little boys and they did great. They sat on the blanket and ate their lunch and once they were done, they did get up, but they stayed right with us and came back when we called. It was a nice change being in the open spaces. There are days when the bars on the windows and the gate around the property seem to close in on us, so to be able to roam free and have plenty of space to walk was just a nice change. We even walked through their natural science museum and all the kids enjoyed that. We ended the day with some ice cream to cool off with. This is the day that the Lord has made! And we rejoiced and were glad in it!

Coming to an end!

We are wrapping up our two month long family visit from Pawpaw and Nana. I can honestly say that it has been a great time just having family close again. It has been a lot of fun showing them the town, taking them to some of our favorite restaurants and my personal favorite...showing them the mountains and the beautiful city of Gramado. It was neat for us to see them experience all the firsts of a new culture. There have been many things that we have gotten used to in our year in Brazil, and they have reminded us that they are not what we experience from where we are from. I think one of the biggest things has been the overwhelming size of the city we live in. Coming from Olive Branch, Mississippi, which is growing by leaps and bounds but only has a population of about 35,000 to PoA with its surrounding area it is somewhere around 3 to 4 million. So this has been overwhelming for them to say the least. They never got used to the driving or just riding in their case. Nana was constantly gasping for breath as another motorist cut us off in traffic or a motorcyclist buzzed in between cars with barely enough room to fit. We have gotten used to, but they never did.

The babies have especially gotten used to them being here. They wake up in the mornings or from their naps and at least one of them starts looking for Pawpaw. Every night before they go to bed, they have to give Pawpaw and Nana kisses. I'm sure that the babies will notice their absence, and I am even more sure that the grandparents will feel some separation anxiety.

So, as our time comes to an end with them here with us, I would like to ask for you all to pray for us, we will miss them terribly, but also pray for traveling mercies for them. It is a long trip traveling from here to there. They will leave PoA at 7:30 Monday evening and not arrive in Memphis until 12:40 Tuesday afternoon. Please keep them in your prayers!

Thank you for your partnership in prayer with us. We cherish you all!