So much has happened since my last post. I do still plan to backtrack and catch up on posting pictures of our adventures from last November forward, but for now, I'll do a quick update on the last few months.
I'm pretty sure that everyone who reads this is aware that we received orders to move to Germany several months back. The spring was a whirlwind of trying to finish school and compile portfolios for each of the children (as we planned to put them into the international school near our new duty station), traveling around the U.K. as much as possible, spending every spare moment with our English friends-who-became-family, and trying to streamline the moving process as much as possible. I pretty much failed at the last one, but looking back, if something had to take a back seat, I'm glad that was it. I can purge and do sorting on this end; and even though it will make settling in a little more demanding, I have no regrets about the way we spent our time.
You'll all be happy to know that, even though we traveled through Calais on our way to Deutschland, we didn't encounter any problems or delays, and we didn't see anything that indicated cause for concern. Obviously, there ARE issues there, but God was gracious and gave us a very smooth, easy trip.
Our first impressions of Germany are really positive! We have been so touched by the friendly and accommodating nature everyone has exuded here. Although Germans, very generally of course, are a little less hug-your-neck, bless-your-heart, make-small-talk sorts of people than the stereotypical United States Southerner, no one has been unkind or rude. They have all been exceedingly patient with us in restaurants, shops, and grocery stores even though we're basically murdering their language; in fact, many are excited to practice their English and seem to prefer honing their own vocabulary, even if it's harder for them.
The food here is SO delicious. I like potatoes, but I didn't know there were so many ways to fix them! Same with cabbage. And schnitzel? And roasts? And sausages? Ohhhh...drool! I can tell that German Cuisine and I are going to get along splendidly. (However, I'm going to have to rekindle my relationship with Exercise.)
We finally found a house after three weeks of house hunting and a lot of disappointments. God was faithful to help us with our perspective throughout the process, and He protected us from discouragement. This isn't to say there were never moments when our hearts were a bit heavy, but they were moments...in particular, I find this amazing because wallowing has been a tough habit for me to shake, and this was a little victory in that department. Right now, we are in a holding pattern in the guest house while we wait for our new landlord to build a kitchen and get all the cleaning and repainting done to make it move-in ready. I can't wait to share pictures with you all!
We have visited two churches since our arrival here...and they are the only two protestant, English speaking churches we've been able to find anywhere within an hour's radius. We have conducted extensive searches of German-speaking and Dutch-speaking congregations, but have found that the area is very dry even in that sense. The protestant churches we've found, in order to have enough people to meet regularly, are a combination of all the protestant denominations, from Anglican to Baptist to Pentecostal to Presbyterian... Every one that I've found (and been able to either translate their web page or communicate with their pastor) is not, theologically, a place where we could join. The differences are pretty vast. This has been a sobering realization and has left us with a lot of questions about what the next three (or more) years will look like for our family. BUT...God knows. He has prepared the way for us, He will never leave us all alone, and He will equip us to grow and thrive and serve...it just seems like that will look much different than any place we've ever lived before.
Thank you, from the very depths of my heart, to all of you who have been lifting our family in prayer. God is answering them through the peace He's giving each of us, through His protection, through His provision, and we are so grateful. I'm looking forward, as we get more settled and our lives here begin to take shape, to sharing more about His goodness to us.
In the meantime, I'll try to catch up on almost a year's worth of pictures and adventures. *nervous, crazed giggle*
