Adventures with Mom and Dad

We had such a good time with Mom and Dad Windall here. They spoiled us sooo much. They brought us heaps of yummy food (and other stuff) from America. You just don't know what you miss until you can;t get it anymore :) We were so glad they were able to come and visit and see a little bit of our life.

One of our highlights was a huge duststorm that came through on Wednesday morning. (Being that we are al extreme weather junkies...we loved it, unlike the rest of Australia ;) All night Tuesday we experienced tropical storm strength winds and woke up to a red glow in the sky. Apparently, since we couldn't get to the outback, the outback came to us. The winds had blown in heaps of dust from the central of Australia out to the coast. It lasted about half the day and then we all just drove around with red cars and had to dust the red out of every crevice of our house. (Good thing mom and dad were here to help).

I think we may have tired them out a bit. There aren't many sleep in days when you have to see all the beauty and keep busy with the responsibilities of life. Dad had to find time in between the many beautiful sites. And we let him have a comfy chair at home so he could sit on the porch when he had time.

Mom loved all of the birds and we stopped quite a bit to get pics of all of the colorful birds. The problem with this one was I was so overwhelmed with getting the photo, I forgot to put the car in park so as mom was getting out of the car and I took my foot off the brake the car started to run over moms foot...oops!!! Fortunately dad was there to help--Sorry mom!!! At least we got the pic.Aside from the birds, mom and dad found some other Aussie friends. Dad spoiled his letting him eat right out of the bag. Good thing mom stepped in and made him share with the other two, making sure they all got a bit to eat.Dad got to cook his fair share of BBQ's while visiting us...At this one in particular, his job wasto make sure the meat didn't jump off the barbie...:) Yum!!! Well that is a quick look at our adventures with mom and dad. We saw so many amazing sites and ate lots of yummy food and had heaps of fun. Guess you will have to come and check it out for yourself...

Spring in Oz

Behold the Emerald City!!! Finally the gray of winter is passing and the green of Spring is emerging.  More than ever we are experiencing the new life that spring brings. (No, we are not pregnant) There is energy in the air that is unmistakable.  In the life of our church it seems as if each week new people are coming out of hibernation and bringing excitement into the house.  Our street team continues to make new relationships as the enticing air breaks the barriers of sealed doors and windows.  Most of all we feel God working in our lives growing us and pruning us to fulfill his plan in our life.  Oh, and I cannot forget to mention the emerging spider I witnessed crawling across our carpet.  It was all black and its body was the size of the top two sections of my pinky.  He died from blunt force trauma.  They ruled his death a homicide.  

We continue to love our home.  Right now, I am typing from under a clothes line strung across our apartment.  I washed 5 loads of laundry in 25 minutes today (there are some perks to using a laundromat), now they must air dry before mom and dad arrive.  Speaking of, we are so excited for mom and dad Windall to get here in about 30 hours.  It is always a new adventure when we have company and so much fun to hear their perspective of our new world. 

We trust that everybody at home is well.  We are so grateful that our friends and family have supported us on this amazing adventure.  Everyday we wake up with a new appreciation for this opportunity.  It is hard to believe we have been here for 8 months already.  We have learned and experienced so much it is as if 3 life times have been crammed into just a few short months.  So much is hard to share because words just cannot capture how God works.  Expect the unexplainable so that God may be glorified in your circumstances.

Greatness...

We have finally reached the first day of Spring and can feel the excitement in the air that comes along with the warm sun and cool winds.  It is as if we are finally coming out of hibernation.  :) This past week has been really great.  To start with, Matt and I have been leading a Team for the City Care ministry we are a part of called Street Teams.  We just had a whole new lot of students join us, and they are amazing.  The ministry focuses on people that need to see God's unconditional love in action.  Our new team members have caught onto that vision and embraced it. It is so cool to see how God uses us in the lives of other people to make a huge impact.  This past week, the church had 300 loaves of bread donated that we were able to take and distribute amongst our community.  Some commented that God made a big impression with only a few loaves when he fed the multitudes..imagine what he can do with 300 loaves :).  Well, our team saw amazing breakthroughs as neighbors that had been hiding behind closed doors suddenly emerged to see what we were up to.  Sometimes we don't know if we make a difference in their lives but this week we God showed us that He is performing a great work in the community we serve. We had one guy (who has demonstrated a bit of drug use) tell us that he is now volunteering at a food bank/drug rehab center. He said he is over living on drugs. 

I guess you can say we are a bit excited about our Street Teams.  

So then there is our beautiful Methusalah (aka "Meth").  It is time for renewing the registration (already can you believe it. ) The thing is Meth had to be inspected before the process could be completed to insure road safety.  Being that Meth is a bit older we were uncertain as to possible imperfections that one might find needing to be fixed.  But, Meth passed a very short test with flying colors.  

Then Matt is the best server in Sydney.  In a country that does not typically tip their servers, Matt managed to come home with a $192 tip.  His managers were stunned (and a bit jealous :).

His wife went shopping :0.

What is there to say but GOD IS GOOD!!

We are so shocked that September is already here.  It seems like just yesterday we were telling people about the application process with a bit of hesitation.  What an impossible dream, but we will give it a go...and go we did.  We have learned so much on this short journey, lessons that we will cherish for a lifetime.  

For now, we are enjoying springtime in our new home.  Humans are not the only creatures emerging from the winter.  Tonight I killed my first roach...yes, they are bigger in Australia.  We have learned a lot about grace and forgiveness, but that is one trespasser I cannot forgive.  Anyhow, as I will conclude my rambling with this thought.  Are you trusting God for the impossible, or only expecting rational? Our God is out of this world and is not limited by that which can be explained in our world.  Allow him to work the irrational solution in your life so that His Glory can be revealed.

It's about time!!!

Yes I know...It is about time for an update...the problem I am having is where to begin...So I guess we will just start where I left off. 

Kristen...

It was so good to have Kristen with us for 3 weeks.  She challenged us to explore parts of Australia we had not yet gone too.  We got lost (a lot) and found even better places, or scary dark roads made out of gravel that were marked as a major road on the map...She and Tiff went on a 3 day road trip and slept on beach front property (in the car :) Along with the rest of the Australian backpackers (we decided there was a code amongst all travelers that we would all look out for each other, and enjoyed a good nights rest).  I was so glad Kristen could join in for the first night of Hillsong Conference which leads to the next major event of our life of the past 6 weeks. 

Hillsong Conference.....

was amazing.  Hillsong hosted a little over 20,000 church leaders from around the world for four days of leadership training, empowerment, and encouragement.  We were thrilled to hear from some great Americans including Louie Giglio and Chris Tomlin...:)  If you ever get a chance to come to conference, you should definitely come.  It is so encouraging and uplifting.    Matt served as a leader on the catering team (They were responsible for feeding lunch and dinner to 4,000 volunteers.)  And Tiffany volunteered on the team for new christians.  Conference is pretty full on.  Matt would be at the Arena from 7 am till abot 1030 pm.  Which brings us to our next major event. 

Moving...

   So while K was here Matt found an advert for a great furnished place that cost half of what we had been paying.  So he called right away and we fell in love with the place the first time we saw it.  The homeowners are so kind and giving and it just happens that Matt is in class with the owners brother.  So Saturday after conference, we loaded up the car and moved across town to the aforementioned luxury home :)

School holiday...

   Then came school holiday which isn't much of a holiday when you are working as much as you can....so we will skip this week and talk a bit about work...

Jobs....

   Matt is doing so well at Outback.  For a culture that does not tip, they sure are easily persuaded to do so by an American.  Matt is making a good hourly wage as well as an average of $40 in tips....he has been known to come home with $93 and $78 of tips.  It is amazing how God uses people even without there knowing.  Tiffany had decided she should find some more steady work and began working for a house cleaning agency (key phrase here is that Tiffany decided) .  So I have been doing that for about 6 weeks.  It is not my favorite thing to do, but helps pay the bills.  Well about 3 weeks ago, our homeowners asked if I would be interested in watching their son when she goes back to work full time.  Long story short, the only conflict I had were the cleaning jobs.  So again I learn that I need to stick to God's plan...since he can future and I can't.  I quit the cleaning jobs, I should never have taken anyhow...Back to watching the baby...so I will watch him two days a week in exchange for rent and a bit of cash that will exceed the rent amount.  Basically, we are now getting paid to live in our home...Bet there isn't a mortgage like that in America :).  

XANDER....and his mum and dad

   We of course cannot forget this major event.  Matt and I were so thrilled to have Mel, B and the Xander-man with us for 11 days.  We got to do so much.  We got to be with jet-lag Xander, happy Xander, and teething Xander. :)  We went to many of our wonderful beaches, enjoyed an interesting opera, and were blessed with beautiful weather.  Our good Aussie friends Craig and Sarah were gone while Mel and B were here so we were able to use their house which was a huge blessing to have separate rooms for all.  Xander was so flexible the whole time.  He had naps in his pram, in the car, and rarely in a bed.  

Well they left last Saturday...and here I am a week later finally getting a moment to update.  Matt and I decided to sleep in on Monday before we embarked on another very busy week.  Matt has fully started his second semester now.  He has been reassigned to a different extension service on Sunday mornings in Burwood which is closer to the city (and closer to the beaches :)  This service is all in English and they have two services.  We are really excited about this change and look forward to getting to know the people at the service.  Today was the beginning of our second semester with street Teams and we have quite a few new students joining our team that bring a lot of new excitement to our community.   Matt has been given a lot of responsibilities through the college which is keeping him busy and challenging him to grow more as a servant leader.  He is learning so much and leading effective teams.  This has been such an amazing experience for us.  We look forward to each new day to see what God has in store.  It is always a surprise, and never disappointing.  

We've Moved

So word is getting out that we have moved Yeah!!! I just thought I would make a quick list of the things you appreciate after sharing a house with 7 adults (6 girls and Matt).

10. Leaving the house and returning to it looking the same as it did when you left.

9. A bathroom that is 10 steps past the cars in the garage.

8. Coming home to an empty house

7. A bed in your living room

6. A leather couch in your bedroom.

5. You can see your kitchen from your bedroom/living room

4. Hot plates for a stove.

3. Empty shelves in the refrigerator/freezer

2. 275 sq. feet of unshared, personal living space

1. Going to VISIT the girls and having them over for girls night :)

We are so blessed.  God totally orchestrated this living arrangement for us and to Him be ALL the glory.  We are saving $440 dollars a month as well as utilities!! I had told a friend the exact amount of what we wanted to pay (the amount we are now paying) and laughed.  (Oh, but you did laugh Sarai).  I admit it.  I thought it was impossible.  I forgot that nothing is impossible for the mighty God we serve!!!

A week with KK

Here is a quick look at what we have been up to:

-breakfast in bed

-Street Teams and dinner at outback in the outback with the best server "down under"

-Chinese church, Parklea Markets, Church 

-Wentworth Falls (4 hr hike) and the Three Sisters**Kristen runs down the path and sprains her ankle :) 

-Rest the ankle and go to Windsor and the drive-in movies--the 3 of us got to cuddle up in the boot of our car

-Head for Hunter Valley and end up on Cronulla Beaches and Botany Bay**oops!! Tiff went the wrong direction on the Westlink

-Stop by IKEA for a quick walk-about--Kristen discovers great cheap material for window coverings

-Work a bit so we can keep going out (got another job cleaning homes :)

-Tim tam slam** don't cry over spilled milk on the bed spread, just wash it

-Another Tim Tam Slam :)

-Street Teams until noon, eat a quick lunch, drive to Bondi for a lovely stroll along the coast**broken passenger mirror, fixed mirror, lost gloves, found gloves, slow taxi back to the car

-Go to Saturday night city church**only 20 minutes late

-Head off for a nice dinner at Darling Harbour, enjoy Macca's with singing and fireworks

-Now off to English Services after a lazy morning and breakfast

She's Heeeere!!!

KK has been here 3 whole days now.  how much excitement she has brought to our lives.  she is a bit sick for now, but soon the true kk will return and we will be overwhelmed with action :).  For now we have been taking it easy, sleeping with the blue hot water bottle is her favorite :).  Old school in America is apparently new and exciting "down under". We will keep you posted on our adventures to come...hopefully tomorrow we will go down for a Wollongong tour...as for now...it is bedtime. (after I massage kristen's neck.  she has a way of talking me into things)