We just wanted to share with you a typical Friday here at the Missionary training center.

We have already made so many new friendships in our time here, but please be praying for us. We would ask for wisdom as we juggle the many responsibilities and demands on our time.

Things that are not in the pictures are: work detail, where students maintain the training center. Whether it's snow-removal, cutting grass, landscaping or plumbing, we do it.

Another thing would be the "ministry practicum," which is simply practicing what we preach . . . or practicing preaching. In this way, we at the MTC get involved in community outreach.

Don't forget the 3 little kids, and the homework, and dishes and laundry. Life doesn't slow down, and we don't expect it to for awhile . . .

I'm writing this from our office, which is the safest place in our house in the event of a tornado.

We've had a huge variety of weather here in Roach since we arrived to the campus a little over a week ago: temperatures ranging from the teens all the way up to 70 degrees yesterday. We've had a snowstorm, and now . . . a tornado.

The kids enjoyed watching the snowstorm, but it was too cold for us to take them out. We haven't adjusted to the cold yet. The kids have NOT enjoyed being dragged out of bed at midnight and taken into the uncomfortable office where they proceeded to try to sleep on the rug.

God has been good to us, though: the tornado seems to be passed us now, even though we just heard some hail. Only time will tell what damage has been done. Yet we know that even if the worst should happen, God is still good. He has taken care of the here-after, and so even in the midst of the storm we can have peace.

Can you spot the Jaren on the shelf?  Our kids have done great throughout this move.  Sure, they are tired and misbehave more easily.  But overall, they've been cheerful. . . .

_. . . .and even helpful!  Jaren was so excited to get to load some of his own toys onto the moving truck!

_And Eliana did her part too.  She played nicely with her toys in the midst of chaos and took her naps when she was supposed to.

_Everything we own (except the van) is in this caravan.  It seems like a lot and a little all at the same time.  Elizabeth's dad should be arriving in Missouri tonight with it all and be unloading it tomorrow, while we enjoy a relaxing week with Jamin's parents.

So last night, packing had come to a standstill due to a shortage of boxes.

Knowing that Walmart stocks at night, I gave them a call to see if they could save some boxes for us so we could pick them up in the morning. I was greeted with a "Merry Christmas" and after my request was told, "we don't save boxes, hon," but was then told they stock from 10:30 to 12 at night, and if we came around midnight that we could get the boxes straight from the stockers.

With my father-in-law here, we left the kids and made a crazy midnight run to Walmart, achieving our goal and able to resume packing.

The only problem is that waking up early on Sunday morning to go to church is VERY difficult when you only get 4 hours of interrupted sleep with all 3 kids waking us up at different times of the night, but considering how much chaos they're enduring, they are doing very well.

Amazingly . . . we had enough time to get ready, AND write a blog post in the morning!

One of my goals before I left Compass was to obtain my Inspection Authorization, which in simple terms allows me to do more than just an A&P (airframe & powerplant) mechanic.

Unfortunately, it's not a simple process. As with any certification, it takes studying, and then a lot of paperwork.

I had to drive to Charlotte yesterday with a letter from the guys at Compass, meet with someone from the FAA, and get permission to even take the test.  Then I had to call a testing center, and discovered that the 2 closest ones to the FAA's office did not offer the test for Inspection Authorization; the closest one with that test was 1.5 hours away.

_Wanting to get everything done in one day, I made the dash over to Winston-Salem's airport, took the test, and tried to make it back to the FAA's office for issuance of the certificate (you have to go back with the test results).  Unfortunately, the distance was too much for me to make it back to south-Charlotte in time, even though I would have arrived at 3:45. Why is that too late, you ask . . . because their office closes at 4, and paperwork always takes longer than 15 minutes.

So this morning I went back to the FAA's office in Charlotte, and left with a piece of paper that now gives me permission to perform annual inspections as well as inspect and approve for return to service planes after major repairs or alterations.

One of the guys there at Compass, after I had the certificate, quoted Spider-Man: "With great power comes great responsibility."

There's a lot of stress and liability we carry as mechanics, and we seek to perform our job to such a degree that others are confident that, to the best of our abilities and knowledge, the planes we return to service are in excellent, airworthy condition.

This is simply one more rating which I hope to see used for the Lord in mission aviation.

_ This is our last week in Shelby, NC, and so we’re furiously packing up our house. Although the rooms are a disaster, we still somehow managed to have company over, filling what little time is left with memories.

_ Our garage is also piling up with boxes, some waiting to be filled, others already packed. This doesn’t even count all the stuff already packed in our trailer.

It's a rough week, with obligations and hopes pulling us every direction: urgent needs like packing up, as well as work obligations, and then all the things we hope to get done, as well.

This year we were blessed with an opportunity to visit 9 different chapels in Florida and Georgia, with whom we were able to share the missionary work that we are pursuing.

We were also able to visit the New Tribes Mission headquarters in Sanford, FL, seeing all the people that work behind-the-scenes allowing missionaries to do what God has called them to do.

Some people work to keep the financial aspects of our ministry running smoothly: freeing us from having to do the bulk of government paperwork.

Others are there on the computer side, providing I.T. support for all the NTM missionaries.

Even others are there simply to help edit newsletters and updates.

We also got a chance to talk with Michael Stroh, who is with New Tribes Mission, and is also the Executive Director of IAMA. The International Association of Missionary Aviation (IAMA) is an organization dedicated to increasing the effectiveness of mission aviation by providing networking and promoting cooperation between organizations.

It was great talking with him, because not only did we have common friends (like my flight instructors in NC), but he and his family provided answers to questions we had regarding where we hope to serve overseas.

After our visit to Sanford, and a short stop at SeaWorld (after so many hours in the car, we have to do SOMETHING fun for the kids!), we were on our way down to Miami to visit even more chapels.

By this point we had gotten used to all 5 of us sleeping in one room, so our next stop in Miami was no big deal with all of us in a small 2 bedroom house, where 1 bedroom was our hostess' room.

Unfortunately the next morning we woke up and Eliana, our 2-month old, was covered in small bites and tiny red bugs swarmed the sheets of her makeshift bed.

The day, which was originally going to be relaxing, ended up with a complete disassembly of the room to try to help out our elderly hostess get rid of these pesky bugs (which we determined must be some type of flea). We did multiple loads of laundry, went to a church an hour away, and amidst all that, were generously offered another place to stay: with a family just down the road.

It turned out to be from the Lord, because this family, with 6 children, were a huge encouragement, opening up their house to us even as they were preparing to leave on vacation, and helping us in so many ways.

They are an example to us in multiple ways: in generosity, in parenting, in flexibility, in discipline, and more.

We went on to visit two more local churches: one in the Tampa area and one at the retirement community, Park of the Palms.  On Friday, we drove all the way home, reflecting on God's goodness in protecting us from sickness or accidents and in giving us so many new godly friends who have been of immense encouragement.

We have a new prayer card!  If you'd like one, please send us an email to JaminandElizabeth@gmail.com or leave us a comment on our Contact page with your address, and we'll send you one!  (P.S. If you're already on our hard copy mailing list, you should be getting one soon anyway.)  If you just can't wait to get one in the mail, you can also download it and print it yourself!

First of all, I'd like to say, I have the most amazing husband ever.

I mean, just look at him.  Isn't he handsome? ;)  A newborn baby is the best adornment for anyone, but especially fathers.

Today was one of our last Sundays at home here in Charlotte before heading to NTM missionary training in Missouri.  We will sorely miss our friends and brothers and sisters in Christ at Believers Bible Chapel!

Jean and his girlfriend Norah gave Eliana this beautiful dress.  (P.S. We love the range of nationalities and ethnicities represented in this local body of believers, as this picture shows with a Haitian in the foreground and Indians in the background.  We also have people from Dominican Republic, Peru, Argentina, China, and others who have lived in the Congo, Columbia, and more...it's late and I'm sure I'm leaving someone out)

This is how Jaren likes to sing when the song leader asks us to stand.

I'm going to miss friends like Julie.  We looked so lovely today in our purples, we had to get a picture!

Then, we went to the Reeses house to bring them lunch because they just had their third baby girl a week ago.

We kept our expectations low, but we hoped to get a decent family photo today for an updated prayer card.  Mark is an amateur wizard at photography, so he quickly set up his equipment in the yard.

Esther and Jaren look on. . .

And then get bored . . .

V e r y bored . . .

Meanwhile, I calm Eliana . . .

. . . we all get situated . . .

. . . and shooting begins.

A couple of my favorite outtakes:

We DID get one we think will work.  And we'll work on posting a finished product soon.  Until then....we'll keep you in suspense!

The two daddies do such a great job with their kids.  Bekah and I feel very blessed with the husbands God has given us and the fathers He's given to our children.  (Yes, the babies were both crying in this picture.  It takes a true man to hold a crying baby!)

After lunch and spending part of the afternoon with Mark and Bekah, we headed up the road to IKEA for a quick chance to spend a $25 coupon we got in the mail!  Jamin patiently endured the stares of shoppers in the parking lot as he tried to comfort a loud, hungry baby while I picked up our items inside.

Then he drove us to Michael's because I'd mentioned I would need to go there eventually for a few things.  This is a bold move for him: I can spend 45 minutes in a craft store, even if I've only come in for one thing.

Jaren was awake by the time we got there, so everybody came in with me (usually a safe way to get me to hurry up and just get what I came for).  Esther had to go potty.  Jamin thought Jaren was with me; I thought Jaren was with him.  Soon we hear: "Would the mother of Jaren please come to the registers."  Well, that'll get me to the registers fast!  He was fine and very calm.  Just asked a random lady in the Christmas ornament aisle if she knew where his Mommy and Daddy were.  We're glad to be able to learn the importance of tag teaming in such an unalarming fashion!

So, IKEA, Michael's, and then I mentioned there was a Krispy Kreme in the same parking lot.  One of those with the conveyor belts that you can watch the donuts being made.  Jamin said no at least 3 times, but still with a slight twinkle in his eye, so I knew I just had to keep working on him.  He definitely has a soft spot in his heart for donuts.  And I think he was just holding out to seem even more magnanimous. :)

And so, we had donuts for supper.

It's been such a fun, full day with adventures to remember.  There's so much housework and laundry and packing to be done for our trip and thankyous to write and babies to hold and fights to be broken up.  But I had to take the time to record a day like today, so we can remember it for years to come.

This is what my kids' rooms look like after a playdate. . . . . 

I just got back from a regional Ladies' Missionary Conference where I was given the opportunity to share a 5-minute update on where we are in the process of preparing for a career in missionary aviation.  One of the prayer requests I shared with the ladies is for help specifically during our upcoming move to New Tribes Mission's Missionary Training Center.  This move has evoked a lot of stress for me, not only because I feel overwhelmed with two preschoolers and a newborn. 

Now more than ever I feel weighed down with "stuff."  Naturally, with five people in a house, there are simply more people with more needs--clothes, dishes, toys, personal belongings.  But even so, I know we are blessed with TOO much.  What a wonderful problem to have, right?  The stressful part is knowing WHAT things are unnecessary and anticipating how long it's going to take to make each and every little decision.  (Did you ever notice how much less time it takes to pack your bag when you're coming back from a trip, as opposed to how long it took to pack it before you left?)

Downsizing my own belongings, though still taking some time, would not be incredibly stressful.  I can gauge pretty well what I haven't worn in a year and what I won't probably ever look at again.  But how do I go about purging all of the kids' clothes and toys?  What is the standard?  What questions should I ask myself as I sort?  There are things they don't play with now but might love in a few months as their imaginations expand.  There are clothes they haven't worn much while they fit, but what if I have another child in a different season or who seems to rip and wear everything out?

I know I just have to dig in and start sorting.  And probably sort it all a second time, getting rid of even more.  I LOVE the light and airy feeling you get when there are empty drawers and the Goodwill box is full.  I love feeling as though something has been accomplished.  But that's the thing: once you finish purging, it's almost always time to start again!

I found some great tips at this site about how to rotate your children's toys and books so you can have fewer and enjoy them more.  I'm really thankful for the opportunity to move frequently and often reevaluate the things we have and their relative unimportance.  I want to hold loosely to every material blessing and cherish instead the living beings in my life and give them what they need the most: love, correction, teaching in the way of righteousness, peace in our home, joy in my heart, a passionate relationship with my Lord and Savior.