Being grateful!

....and we moved again. Yes, we could have stayed in our first miracle home till January, but decided to move right after Christmas (to another miracle missionary house) so the kids could get adjusted before they had to go back to school. At first  though we were thinking of moving right before Christmas, but some very wise friends (also missionaries who had a period when they had to move a lot) spoke truth into our life's reminding us that Christmas is just not the same for the children in a brand new home. Very grateful for sound advice!
So we enjoyed Christmas in the environment we had gotten used to and moved afterwards with the help of our family. Now that is something new and wonderful...to have family help. Very Grateful to be surrounded by aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents! 
 
In the past month all our energy went into job searches and relocating our family. It is not easy and we need your prayer and support.

Ana: always seems to be going back into the habit of taking her diaper off with poop in it when she is in a unfamiliar new home. That means piles and piles of very dirty laundry almost daily for the first two weeks. We try to be on top of it and use this as a opportunity to continue to potty train her, but with two other kids, cooking, and doing other (move-in) routines, she will have a few unsupervised moments every day. We are waiting for a appointment with a Developmental Pediatrician to get help through a Behavioral Specialist. 
Lydia: is now full time at Ben Lippen. Our new home is much further away from both schools. Since we cannot get transportation for Ana, it is easier to pick up both girls around the same time so we do not have to pay a lot for gas. Lydia is trying so hard to be strong and happy and encouraging to all of us (beyond her years, really!) but her anxiety shows itself in nightmares and tears at school.
Caleb: is active! Very active. Just a fun little 2 year old, interested in everything, eating everything but the food on his plate, much more courageous then his mother and just happy and carefree. If we both find jobs we will have to find care for him.
 
Our time frame for Germany is now to be there some time in summer 2014. We are thankful for many new friends and people who are interested in the path God is leading us.
With this new time frame, we are now getting to the place where we urgently need jobs, since we do not want to live off our savings.
Richard: has two very exciting possibilities - we will know more by the end of January. 
Simone: Is looking to expand her teaching. There are several part-time jobs that have to be considered and decided on.
When times are different then what you expected them to be, when your dreams are put on hold, when God's answer is WAIT and you don't quite understand why, it is easy to start complaining. But over the past years of God revealing himself faithfully to me as a women and mother I know that focusing on the things he IS providing right now will immediately lift my spirits and I start living with a grateful spirit. I know that Emmanuel - GOD IS WITH US - is with us.
 
In the meantime we create a family routine that will become normal where ever in the world we are, serving our faithful God and trusting in his lead.

Grateful that the kids are content, love each other and are healthy.

(This is Lydia, hiding in Ana's sensory sock...)

Grateful for a successful surgery. (Permanent ear tubes and a hearing test which she passed with flying colors. No hearing loss!) 

 

Grateful that this did not happen to the trailer while we were traveling 3000 miles from CA to SC....

Grateful for going ice-skating in flip-flops, finding a snowman on the beach,

 

and taking pictures of our name on Street Road signs....

Grateful to spend time with family!

Grateful for going from no-shave November to this....

(no comment!)

Grateful for part-time work!

Grateful for a brand-new, fenced-in back yard to explore and a helmet that fits Caleb's head (found at the new house....)

 Grateful for free tickets to a very "exciting" basketball game!

Grateful for Chick-fil-a!!!!

And grateful for a personal interior designer.

Early November Update

Hi, from a much cooler Columbia, South Carolina. The leaves are turning all beautiful shades of wonderful colors. We are enjoying all the fall feelings and the fresh weather. School is great for both Girls. Ana goes to a special day class and her teachers are great. They love her and I was super impressed with the aid that picks her up everyday. He said after a few days "Ana is a joy to teach!" Wow what dedicated and loving people. I sat in for a little while on her class. It is amazing what they are getting Ana to do in class. After a while of me being there she got up out of her seat and walked over to me wrapped her arms around me gave me a big hug and said loudly "goodbye"! Everyone in the class laughed. It was as if she was saying, "dad this is my classroom you can go home now". It was pretty funny. I have had some great interactions with the kids as I have not been working, and been doing the main support raising. We have been playing at the local park lots which is a really nice park, and been playing out in the yard a lot. The leaves are falling everywhere and I am just going to wait till the end of November to rake anything, because every time I rake or blow the driveway it is just as bad as it was before I raked.

As you can see Caleb now knows how to climb the fence.  He is turning 2 on November 16th so We are grateful for his bubbly, happy, kind demeanor. He truly loves his sisters and they look out for him too. Lydia loves her school too She goes to Ben Lippen for half a day in K-4 class.  It is pretty good as well and she is learning a number a letter everyday. She is also learning how to do work and accomplish things by herself. She is a social butterfly and wants everyone to be involved in what she is doing. So this is tough to learn to do stuff by herself. 

 We spent Halloween out at my parents place and actually celebrated Reformation Day by talking politics and the great Lutheran Reformation. These subjects come easily in my family. The kids love to play out in the vast space that my parents have on their 11 acres of property. As you can see above the girls enjoyed the trampoline. And the picture below gives a little picture of how beautiful it is here with the leaves changing colors. We are grateful and thankful to The Lord for you as we approach Thanksgiving holidays. We are not just thankful to the god of turkey, and football on this approaching Holiday, but we are thankful to the God of the Universe who has sent His Son Jesus to free us from the penalty, curse, and power of our sins by his death on the cross for us. please join us in directing our thanksgiving toward Jesus! The author and perfecter of our faith! The only one worthy of such Thanksgiving.

A few prayer requests...

1. Praise for provision of the sale of our House in California!

2. Praise God with us that He has continued to meet our needs even though I (Richard) still search for ministry work (or any work for that matter).

3. Support raising would continue and that God would raise up monthly supporters.

4. For ministry opportunity and possibilities to be used for Christ while we are preparing to go to Germany

God bless you and thank you for supporting us through your gifts and prayers.

Richard for the Moore's 

Simone, Ana, Lydia, and Caleb

Little ones to Him belong. They are weak but HE is strong!"

We have to stop some times and just ponder that little truth. It is often a bit of a side thought....Oh, Yeah great, and by the way Jesus loves me...yay, yay, yay.
It actually needs to be my EVERYTHING! That the son of God, creator of the universe, who sacrificially gave up his companionship with God and died on the cross so we can live a life that has forgiveness, joy and peace beyond our own comprehension is just that....beyond our comprehension.

We have a lot going on right now.

Richard is getting ready for the last House Boat Camp with the Generation 24/7 Ministry and I am basically keeping the kids entertained as well as selling one big furniture item after another. We got a few moving bids from big companies like Allied, United, and Mayflower, and have decided that it is too expensive to move anything more then just the basics. So we are only taken books we cannot replace and clothing. We have not decided yet if we should ship everything directly to Germany (where there is very little storage opportunity without having to pay a lot) or take it all to South Carolina and then ship it from there. - Please pray for peace of mind and clear understanding on what we need to do.
 
And so I come back to "Yes, Jesus loves me".

Richard and I where sitting down to watch the movie "Lincoln" last night. (It was a bit slow and I personally fell asleep after 5 minutes, but that is what I do with every movie, so don't let that be the indicator of how good the movie was...). Ana sleeps next door to the TV room and suddenly we heard her singing.
We turned the TV off and just listened. All was dark and silent and we heard her voice forming a melody and creating words. It was clearly the song verses and chorus of "Yes Jesus loves mEEEE". Not just is she saying words she also hit the melody pretty accurately. It does not seem like anything big, but we as her parents who have been praying for her to know God, and to know that she is deeply loved and wanted by the creator of the universe this was a special moment beyond description. So long we have waited to hear words and a voice from her and now the very first sentences she is forming are geared towards her God and King. If we are rejoicing over this worship we are experiencing how much is God and the Angels rejoicing! In German we call it "Jauchzet"!

 And as so many things with our kids, we are reminded about the real truth and the actual importance of life in the moments when everything is easy and reduced to simple truths.


 "...little ones to Him belong. They are weak but HE is strong!"

What's going on right now...Prayer request!

So whats going on right now at the Moore House? 

We just came back from a Joni and friends Camp at Mission Springs.

 It was one more week of gloriously awesome and beautiful fellowship. An example of heaven on earth. A picture of inclusion, caring and servant hood. We were spoiled beyond measure by the STM's (short term missionaries) who watched our children. They loved them and made this week unforgettable for us. Lydia is now old enough to understand how special this time is and was in tears when we drove away missing her friend Jenny. Ana did not understand anymore why she started hearing words like: "stay here..." or "no you can't just role on the floor anywhere you go", when mommy and daddy took over.. Lindsey was the person who cared for Ana. Ana was free to go from  ball pit to swing to water game to jump house.... And Lindsey followed her around and let her have the time of her life.
And our little Caleb was in love with his STM Liana and ended up showering her with kisses and hugs and even fell asleep in her arms or while she was pushing the stroller.
I don't have words! "THANK YOU" is coming from the deepest part of our heart.

For those of you with special needs kids or parents..you should truly consider going to one of these family camps! There is nothing like it out there!
http://www.joniandfriends.org/family-retreats/

Today we are back home. 

Richard is working the afternoon at a wedding and I have the kids by myself. It is pretty calm but Ana did have a poop accident, fortunately contained to her room but never the less, very smelly. I don't know how to get that carpet clean again. She has gotten into the habit of taking her diaper off after a bowel movement and then.....I don't need to say more.... I just can't be around her every second...and most of the time she does very well....until something like this happens.
It makes me sad, because I know she does it because she can't stand the feeling of a full diaper (don't blame her...) but can't communicate or call me to help her. As easy as she is often these moments are very difficult!

Also, I am trying to sell our furniture on Craigslist. Right now it is our large wardrobe (PAX from IKEA), a large red corner sleeper sofa (EKTORP from IKEA), and a living room table from the 70's. We had our first garage sale and I made the mistake of keeping some stuff here to sell at the next garage sale. And now it is driving me crazy because it is cluttering up the already very cluttery (I know....cluttered is the word I should use by I like "cluttery") living room...

So that is where we are right now....

Lydia is about to help me make dinner...mashed potatoes and hotdogs....All the ways hotdogs are used in our house are quite remarkable and Caleb has figured out how to turn the microwave on and off and on and off....always with a scream of delight ("YEAHY"), thank you very much! And Ana is mad because I locked her out of her room since the carpet is full of .... you know what.
I really don't know how to clean it. I sprayed it with Oxi-clean spray and am washing the linens and the cover and the pillow...yup all had a distinct coloring....And then she got into the jar of peanut butter...but that is a story for another day....





If you would pray for us at this time of transition: 

- Pray for a week without stress
- Pray that our furniture can be sold for a descent prize.
- We are going to Chicago on Sunday the 23rd of June till the 29th of June, for a Missionary training week. Pray for a safe trip and kids that are sleeping ok in a (again) new environment. Oh, and I so hope the beds are not too hard....but that is minor since I realized that if you are exhausted you start to sleep anywhere....
- Please pray for me since I am leading worship during this week.
- I am grateful that Caleb is eating a bigger verity of food. Makes life a bit easier.

Prayer request May 13, 2013

We are so grateful for your prayers. Let me give you some updates.

- our family is getting ready to enjoy a Joni and Friends camp the second week of June. Please pray for safe travel and health. We are asking that all the volunteers feel especially blessed and encouraged by our Lord.
- we then will travel again to Chicago at the end of June to meet with other Missionary Candidates at Teach Beyond. Our whole family is flying and we are excited to meet people we've been talking with for a long time. We are still praying for funds to come in so we can purchase our plane tickets.
- July will be the month for Richards last House boat camp. The Family will join him till Wednesday and then come back home. We are praying for safe travels as well as safety for the kids at camp.
- We are thinking about putting our house on the market in mid August. We are praying for a quick and satisfying sale.

Thank you for your prayers.
The Moores.

The "not quite here" - and the "almost gone" - life

I was able to learn about a blog written by a Missionary to an Asian country. The title of the blog is "Stressed-out Missionary". In her blog she writes about the turmoil and ups and downs of culture shock. What I really appreciated was her honesty about anger. I struggle with anger. Often I am angry at myself for not being able to keep up with housework a little better, or not having time to hang out with friends. I am angry to have to stay at home and I am angry to have to leave home to go to work. Most of all I am sometimes angry that things are not easy. I do not want to stand on the path of patience and endurance. I want things for once to be quick and easy... and I am scared of the reality of fundraising. 

Yes it is hitting home. Support raising is a exhausting emotional roller-coster. I am constantly praying to not loose friends over this but that might have already happened. We are starting our family on such a new path! To do that step fully I have to start saying goodby to those parts of my life that have been a wonderful constant companion...like the places I work, the students I teach, the hours I invested to prepare for worship at Creekside, the hours I sang with my good friend Maranatha, leading worship at women's bible studies, or the most recent women's retreat, the hours I spend on the Freeways I 580, or I 880. The moments spend at the small Safeway Store on Bancroft and Dutton....all is coming to an end.

So we are getting to know a whole new life. The life of a "not quite here anymore" and the "almost gone" life. Even though I am an adventurous person I do like to plan. I like to know that there are friends waiting on the other side, and even though I know there are new friends I am not ready to let go and not ready to invest in a different form of friendship.

Having written all this, I have to say I had to smile while I read the blog "Stressed-out Missionary". I laughed out loud when I read that she threw her bike in the sand and screamed at her kids....Really? Missionaries do that?
Yes, and Missionary candidates do that too. We are not extra holy....maybe we are sometimes extra hole-ie...our brain that is....because we have too much going on and we forget that we are not alone in this. I am so very grateful for the support that has already come in, and is continuously coming in. I am grateful for the encouragement that we see through the friends that are sticking around. I am grateful for the closeness this new adventure has brought to our small family of 5. And I am grateful for the prayer support that is lifting us up when we just threw our bike in the sand and screamed at our children.

"For this reason, since the day YOU heard about us, please don't stop praying for us. Please continually ask God to fill us with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives..." Colossians 1:9
"We want to live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,  being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that we may have great endurance and patience." Colossians 1:11

One of my biggest wishes for myself and my family during this time of support raising is, that we may remain thankful and joyful just like it says in Colossians 1. That we can build on the knowledge that in our weakness HE, our wonderful father, is strong. That we are not walking this path alone but leaning on his everlasting arms. We do not have to do this out of our own strength. This is not coming from a overdeveloped sense of adventure, but out of a calling that there is more to do for us and our family; that this is not the end but the beginning.

PRAYER REQUESTS MAY 2016

Dear friends, we covet your prayers for our family today.

Prayer requests for May 2016
1. Praise for an encouraging time at Acts 29  Church Planting Conference and great contact to Church planters in Germany
2. There is an urgent need for more monthly supporters. our salary was cut 25% due to fewer monthly supporters! (GIVE HERE)
3. For more Gospel opportunities for Richard & Simone with the sports and music clubs
4. Praise that Simone has plenty of extra work on the side, but pray for balance and energy
5. Please pray that Richard would have success in writing the youth ministry and church planters training program coming up in 2017
6. Pray for Richard that he remains diligent in language, and for more donations to that end
7. Praise that the kids feel more and more at home in Germany
8. Praise God for a new home that meets our needs and is less expensive!
9. Praise for help with Ana in after school program.
10. Please pray we would receive communication device for Ana from our insurance

RESPOND WITH YOUR PRAYER REQUESTS WE WOULD LOVE TO PRAY FOR YOU!

Her vomit included blueberries!

Today Lydia and Caleb slept at the same time. From 12:30 to 2:30. That is very rare and I enjoyed every minute of it. Ana is at school till 2:30 and will be put on the bus to arrive home at 4:00. Around that time Richard will come home and I leave for work.

That is our routine.
Every week is the same.....but not.
On Tuesday last week Richard and I got the tragic news of the death of our friend Randy Woodell. His funeral was yesterday.
On Tuesday, after Richard left to be we his wife Gail in San Fransisco, Ana's teacher called me to pick her up since she was vomiting. She continued to vomit in my car. Her vomit included blueberries. Since she vomited unto Caleb's seat he was delighted to pick up some blueberries to eat. I was screaming, Lydia whom I had told to hold one of Caleb's hands (so he could not pick up any vomited blueberries) was screaming, Caleb was screaming.....Ana was singing: "Yes Jesus loves me...." since she was feeling much better after,
as you know,
vomiting in my car,
and was now able to continue singing along the kids music CD that was still running.....
So that's were we are....

Her vomit included blueberries! Why do I now find that funny. Almost uplifting.

It's because we can know for sure what we feed our children will be digested and sometimes it will show in what they sing or say. What we feed ourselves everyday will come forth one day in those moments we did not think we will see it again.

I know this is kind of macabre, but sometimes you have to make the best out of a bad situation. And I am thankful that only I got the stomach flu this weekend, and not Caleb, even though he did eat the blueberries. I am going to trust that even if the situation looks dark and dreary, I am uplifted by little "Yes Jesus loves me's" .

Grieving!

A very dear friend and father of my sister-in-law Randy Woodell passed away suddenly on Tuesday morning while on vacation in San Francisco. His dear wife Gail was here with him. Richard was able to go and be with her until her two kids arrived in San Francisco. We were grateful to have the opportunity to be part of their lives and grieve the loss of a wonderful, deep, thoughtful, and caring man, Husband, Father, and Grandfather. I can't imagine the depth of loss my sister (in-law) must be feeling, and am at a loss of words. Please pray for the wife, children and grandchildren.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.”
Hebrews 13:5b
"Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."
Matthew 5:4
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
Romans 8:11
"If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you"
Revelation 21:4
“And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away."
Matthew 11:28
“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart may fail,but God is the strength of my heart,and my portion for ever.
Psalm 23
1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
     he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he restores my soul.
     He guides me in paths of righteousness
     for his name's sake.
4 Even though I walk
     through the valley of the shadow of death,
     I will fear no evil,
     for you are with me;
     your rod and your staff,
     they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me
     in the presence of my enemies.
     You anoint my head with oil;
     my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and love will follow me
     all the days of my life,
     and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
John 14:1-2
"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.”
1 Thessalonians 4:17-18
“Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.”

Resting in Him
I do not understand, dear Lord,
         Why this has come, nor see
Why days are dark and night so long,
         And clouds o’ershadow me.
Dost thou not understand, My child,
         Why clouds o’ercast the sky?
That without rain no rainbow bright
         Could be, and flowers would die?
So in thy life, My precious one,
         Shall I send only sun
To wither, scorch what dormant lies;
         And little raindrops shun?
Come lay thy weary head and rest
         Upon my breast—nor pine.
This is from Me; I know what’s best
         Thy beauty to refine.
Just trust Me when the paths unknown
         I lead—perchance with pain.
Lean hard, My child, take thou My hand;
         Someday I’ll make it plain.
There may be mountains rough and steep,
         There may be valleys lone,
There may be jagged rocks or thorns,
         But thou art ne’er alone.
For I’ll go with thee every step;
         Thy grief and pain I’ll share.
So lean the harder, child of Mine,
         I’ve placed the burden there.
Dear Lord, I may not understand
         The way Thou leadest me;
Suffice to know that Thou, O God,
         Thy path ahead doeth see.
         -- Carnell K. Wilmoth

Pray us to Germany

Lydia and Ana playing

Ana enjoys playing in Granny Gails car

the life saving double stroller

Lydia loves her carrots

It is a new week. I am getting the kids dressed and fed. Richard started Strep throat on Wednesday last week and is still really tired, mainly because he could not rest really over the weekend. He spoke at a men's breakfast on Saturday and had church on Sunday. I had to work on Friday (I teach at a music Studio in Livermore) and we had a recital for our adult students on Saturday afternoon. Once again a weekend is gone. We did have our first "Pray us to Germany" prayer meeting. So grateful for those friends who were able to come and pray with us. It was so encouragement to hear others formulate words asking our big God to create a way for us to go.

 I wanted to share our main prayer requests.

• We are at 16% of our fundraising efforts. We are praying that everybody who has promised and said they would support us especially monthly would find a way to send their pledges in.

• We have started going to small groups and sharing our vision and if interested, our needs. Please pray that we will find more people who are interested in becoming part of our team.
• With Richard being sick we sometimes loose focus of our priorities. Please continue to pray to find appropriate time for everything without neglecting the needs of our children.
• Simone will be sharing about our new Ministry in Germany, at her WOW bible study on Wednesday.
• Richard will be out at night a lot, connecting to all the different small groups at Creekside. He will have to cover all the groups before they go on summer break at the end of May.
• Simone will be leading worship for a women's retreat at the end of April (26.-28.)

Thank you for your support and your prayers. We trust that God will give you peace and joy for this new week.

God bless you!

The Privilege of Raising a Child With Special Needs...

My brother came to visit. He had gone to Peru to check out a possibility for himself and his family to work at a hospital in a small village in the Andes mountains. Samuel is a anesthesiologist but his heart has always been beating for missions. As we talked through his thoughts on Peru I reflected on our path that led us to finally follow God's calling to go to Germany. Just like Samuel we always had a passion for Missions. We knew that there would be a day we would go. We started going, stepping out in small steps through our English Camps we started at Creekside Community Church. Every time we saw the need in Germany our heart was aching. 
I personally grew up on the mission field. My parents were missionaries to the Chuuk Islands in Micronesia. We stayed on one of the outer island called Polowat. My memories of missions work and living in a foreign country are filled with wonder and amazement. When we returned to Germany I knew God was calling me, but I also had the feeling he was calling me to a "first world country". I kind of felt bad about that for going to a first world country. It looked like I wanted the comfort and security of all the fancy things these kind of societies can offer.
Well,
and then we had Ana.
We know a wonderful family who was prepping to go to Africa. They were expecting their 4th child and were excited to go as bible translators to a remote place. Their 4th child had Down Syndrome. She also had a severe heart problem and with a deep feeling of failure and a huge amount of questions like: "WHY GOD, WHY!" they had to give up their dream of being missionaries in a third world country.
Having said this, are we not in God's will if we plan for something, convinced God is leading, and then stand still and have to do something else....
No,
everything that God does is a perfect way of leading us to the actual goal he has for us. Now we look back and understand why I/we have been called to a first world country. Even though we need all the medical support and educational advances a first world can provide for our special needs child, she also is opening doors we could never have dreamed of.
Children in general open doors we could never have dreamed of. We are excited to live and reach out to the community we are going to be part of just because we are a family with small children...just because God has granted us the privilege to raise a child with special needs.
Germany is a very success driven country. Many things they do they do very well. Imperfection is a sign of failure and an automatic disadvantage.
And again,
what a privilege to live as a family who embraces their child with special needs. To show that we love her because GOD MADE HER! He made our family to fit together and live for his glory. Lydia and Caleb will be little lights in a dark world because they love their sister. Yes, there will be an awareness that will come, but by God's grace we will all grow in our appreciation for his ways. 
Please pray for our children. Pray for my brother who is contemplating going into missions, pray for those families who are struggling to accept their child with special needs...pray for continuous joy.

Do everything whole heartedly!!! Tut alles mit Leib und Seele....!

Colossians 3:23-24 23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Was ihr auch tut, tut es mit Leib und Seele, so als wäre es für den Herrn und nicht für Menschen, im Wissen, dass ihr dafür vom Herrn das Erbe empfangen werdet. Dient Christus, dem Herrn! Kolosser 3,23-24 .

An Upward Journey

So, here we are. At the beginning of a new journey. I was told and encouraged by a good friend Kathy Greer to start blogging about what is going on in our lives and that is my plan from now on. I always wondered why people blog. Often I thought that bloggers really only think they are important and want to focus everyone's attention towards themselves. That is probably true for at least 80% of the bloggers out there. But then I started following blogs that where different. And this is how I understood them to be different. Everything they wrote was reflecting something beyond themselves. Some where blogging to shine light on a cause. In fact most of the blogs I am following are families talking about their special needs child and in so they are including and informing a community of like minded families. The blogs I personally find most uplifting are just that....uplifting....they lift our attention upwards. Upward means to me they include a loving overall power, maker, creator and savior who lives "up" in heaven, but mostly is their everyday lives. He is consistently a part of their sorrows and their joys. And that is where I can connect. That is what I want to reflect. Yes, it will be our family we are going to talk about in this blog but our family would not be our family without God and his son Jesus...so yes, we cannot but include him.
We believe God has made our family. He has given us 3 beautiful children. Funny, rambunctious 1 year old Caleb William (lovingly called Beebab by Ana),  beautiful, curly headed 4 year old Didi Hadassa (also called Lydia), and 6 year old Ana Katharina who God, in his wisdom, decided to give an extra chromosome.
Then there is Richard, head of our household and head of the Youth ministry department at Creekside Community Church and myself, Simone.
All of us are being called to go to Germany as Missionaries. Yes, all of us. We are one unit. Every one of us will form and guide our decisions we are going to make while preparing to leave California.
We are looking back on the path we have come and stand in awe and amazement how God has built and formed us and we are looking ahead in awe and amazement to welcome the new path and adventure he has planned for us....
Stay tuned!