I'm Not Sure About This

I feel like a little kid!

It is only 50 sleeps until my family comes to visit all the way from Canberra, Australia to Winnipeg, Canada. I am so excited.  I love my family so much and I hate how far I now live from them.  However, despite the distance, I have also realised this year (in particular) how close we have all remained.  I know that not everyone is that lucky.  They truly love and support me.



             (This picture was taken 12 years ago at Australia's Wonderland)

I was reading an email from my youngest sister yesterday that she wrote me just after Jamie & I had lost our baby.  She is only 14 and yet it still makes me cry when I think about it.  She was able to get at the heart of issue better than most adults have been able to you.  Mind you, Caity has never been afraid to say what she thinks. 

This trip is going to be full of firsts for my family:

• First time they come to Winnipeg
• First time they see where we live
• First time meeting my in-laws
  
• First time they experience a white Christmas
• First time they feel there nose hairs freeze
• First time they see snow drifts
• First time to experience the most dreaded -40 temperature.

I can't wait!

As of tomorrow Jamie and I will have been married for four years (depending from which wedding you count, we married each other 3 times but that is another story).  I knew when I got married that it would be 'until death do us part'.  However I never could have imagined all that we would do in four short years.

 
We have travelled the world together.  In addition to being an international marriage (I'm an Aussie married to a Canadian/American), we are also missionaries and so get to see a lot of places, both together and apart.  My favourite was definately showing Jamie my home and exploring it together.  I don't think Jamie could totally understand me until he saw where I am from and the culture that helped make me who I am.  Australia is an amazing country I strongly encourage visiting it.

We have started a YWAM base together- a ministry that, while always challenging, is something I love very much.  I have never felt happier doing anything else.  We have a great team and when I look at where we are going it is very exciting.

We have bought a house together- I never thought we would own a house this early in our marriage.  And more importantly it feels like HOME.  I wondered whether Canada would ever be home.  I knew it was where I would be living, but that is very different to it being home.
We got a dog together.  We love our Dino.  Sure, we know he is not human, but he is as close to a baby as we have right now.  He is full of character and personality. 

And together we are looking to start a family, whether it is a biological child or an adopted  one.  While starting family a lot harder than we expected I know that when we finally have our baby it will be another journey that we get to go through together.

I know it is only four years and that is not long in the big picture, but I look forward to going into the next stage of our marriage together.  Jamie, I love you more now than the day I married you.

I know it has been a while since I have blogged.  For just under three weeks in September I was busy with Mission Adventures.  We saw over 130 people aged 14-24 come through our doors.  The first team was from Crystal City, MB and, while it was only a small team, it was both a lot of fun but also a time of really exploring both the problems as well as the community in the inner city.  It was chance get past some some of the stereotypes and generalities that are to often mistaken as the whole truth.

The next 3 teams were from Canadian Mennonite University's program called Outtatown.  While these teams were a lot of fun I felt like we had only brushed the surface of what we do when they left (they were only here for 2-3 days each).  With our older teams I love to go deeper into the issue, but I felt that the time restrictions were really hard.

Before the last team had left Jamie and I began our first holiday (alone as a couple) since we were married (thanks Amanda and Michelle covering for us after we left).  We began by going to Kerrobert to celebrate our with our good friends (as well as a lot of our YWAM family) Ange and Leigh on there wedding day.  It was such an amazing day, not only because Angela and I have gone through so much together and to see one her dreams come true in such a special  way was so exciting, but also because I know she is marrying a great guy.  I mean he is Australian after all. Hee Hee...

We then went on to Edmonton for a much needed break.  I don't think we realised how much we needed to get away .  We spent 4 days shopping (YEAH), swimming & water sliding, and hanging out with the seals and penguins (definately a highlight).  But more importantly hanging out with each other. 

We come back ready to, not only jump back into work, but also looking forward to the future.

**I will share more on hopefully starting a family in my next blog.  I have got a lot of emails on whether we are pregnant these last few weeks and while the answer is, unfortunately, still no, I know a lot of you have been part of this journey this last few years so I will share where we are at soon.**