December 2019 & First Week of 2020!
Hello from Cacalote, Tututepec, Mexico. We are finally home!
As we were looking over the blog to see what we had shared last, we were stunned to think about what has happened in our lives in only a few short weeks. It feels like a year has passed!
Since our last update, we have safely and successfully reached and started to settle in here in Mexico. Our route down was St. Paul, MN, Kansas City, MO, Waco, TX, Laredo, TX, San Luis Potosi, Mexico, Oaxaca City, Mexico (sort of!) and then on home to Cacalote. The trip took a full 7 days!
There is so much we could say, and since a picture is worth a thousand words, we’ll post a bunch of those! Enjoy.
1 – Commissioning Service at Bethel. Our dear church family prayed over us and sent us on our way with blessing. We are taking their love and concern to the people here. So thankful for this partnership.
3 – Ben did a beautiful job using his Tetris skills to pack our things, as well as fit in many things for the clinic on the base and other missionaries.
5 – The last church we visited was also the first we had visited last fall. West Side Church in Kettle River has been a wonderfully supportive church.
7 – Hanging out in Waco, getting ready for another day of driving.
9 – We were gifted two beautiful hotel stays in Mexico during our journey down. We were pretty excited when we saw the pool!
11 – We spent a couple of unexpected nights in a small mountain town while we tried to sort out what to do about the car. Here we are searching out some breakfast.
13 – We made our way to the bus station with our toiletries and a couple of changes of clothes and hopped a bus to Cacalote area. 11 hours overnight in a bus over windy roads – not as bad as you’d think!
15 – Ben started Spanish school the day after we got home. We lost two days’ rest because of the car trouble. But he’s a great student!
17 – She knows she’s cute.
18 – Pretty comfy here already.
2 – Hannah received her ministry license at the same service.
4 – Then he threw in our bicycles and suddenly the trailer was full!
6 – Our first stop in Kansas City with our friends the Unruhs!
8 – Riding in style
10 – On a remote mountain highway, the computer decided the car had many mechanical errors! (It doesn’t.) But the safety features prevented us from going forward. Thankfully, a very kind man towed us and the trailer to the nearest toll stop.
12 – Some local mechanics worked on the car, but weren’t able to fix the electrical issue. We made it to the gas station, and this tow truck was sitting there as if he was just waiting for us. We rode in our car up top, and he towed the trailer behind! He took us to Oaxaca City, where the car and trailer remain for now awaiting more expert repair.
14 – The entrance to our house – a beautiful welcome. Sure felt good to walk through that door.
16 – Making friends with the neighbors over chess.
19 – Wesley hanging out on our front porch.
We have so much to be thankful for. Our trip and border crossing was mostly easy. Our home is comfortable. We’ve “landed” well. Thank the Lord!
We have some prayer requests as well. Please pray for the kids. Somewhere along the way they got what we think is strep. They are having a tough time recovering even with antibiotics and other meds. They are resilient but could use some prayer support! They start school on Monday.
Please also pray that our car would get fixed properly and we’d be able to get it and the trailer home soon. We’d love to have more clothes and the rest of our things to finish settling in!
Rich blessings to you. Thank you for being part of our lives!