Monday, July 25, 2011

The BBQ

Last week we were invited by the Miller's (a very sweet couple we met at church) to their 300 acre farm for a BBQ on Saturday. It was such a great time to get away from the city (about 40 minutes by car) and all the things that need to be done here. The weather was beautiful! Unlike most days in Scotland, it didn't rain or get cloudy AT ALL! I think we all got a bit sunburned for we definitely didn't plan on the weather being so great. It was also a great gathering to meet some new people. I met a few single young people. One girl is a medic (medical student) in Dundee on rotation from Germany. I really enjoyed talking with her. The kids were able to ride/drive a tractor and car out in the field. John Spencer and I played some football (soccer to most of you!) and croquette. Mrs. Miller is a wonderful cook. She actually made the rolls (hot dog and hamburger) for our meet. THey were yummy! For dessert, we ate fresh raspberries (picked right off of their farm) with fresh cream. They were delicious! Next year for my birthday, i might say my favorite cake is fresh raspberries and cream! Then towards the end of the day, we had a competition known as the obstacle course. Big kids could do it too! So Scott, John Spencer and I participated. John Spencer made it into the finals. You jumped over a fence like thing, crawled under something like a limbo rope, spun around 7 times with your head on a broomstick, then tried to squirt the can off of the post with your water gun. There were a few water fights, as you can imagine. We had a brilliant time!















Friday, July 22, 2011

We officially have an address!

I praise God for his provision! Yesterday we viewed the house and today we were approved, signed the lease and got the keys! The house is brilliant with a nice front garden (that means yard) and enough room inside for hosting students. It needs a wee bit of esthetic work. My room, for example, has a bear border all the way around, thus I will be doing some painting. There is no closet (which is common here) so I will be purchasing a wardrobe. I anticipate learning and experiencing more that God, like Aslan, is not safe but he is good!

This now means that we can get a bank account, get insurance for a car, get a cell phone, register the kids for school, etc, etc, etc. Here are a few pics!

Our new home!

The kids in the front garden.

I am happy to be moving forward with getting settled. Scott, in the background, is working on getting us into our new home... 5 locks and about 15 keys to choose from!

The bear border!

For those of you dentists out there!

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Found a Home!

Today we looked at a few more houses and we found our home! It is a bit further out than we initially wanted, but we were encouraged by the student leaders here to find a house that bests suits the family and the students will show up! There is a park across the street and it has enough bedrooms for us all. I am so relieved. It is not a done deal, but we are in the process of making it one! Thanks for praying for this! If it all works out, we aren't sure how long it will take before we can move in. So in the meantime, we have been and will continue to stay at the home of an American family here in Dundee. They actually arrived 5 weeks before us, have a new born, have shown us amazing hospitality and have given us many tips on the logistics of moving here! This has been a perfect set-up, for they have three kids that are now great friends and playmates of Sophia and John Spencer.

The kids were sitting on the bouncy balls but no one was looking at the camera. So I told them to hold onto the ears (of the bouncy balls). They thought i meant each other's ears...this is what ensued.

Scott and Jennifer looking up more housing options. We are very relieved that the search is over!




Wednesday, July 20, 2011

House Hunting


Yesterday was a successful day in that we saw three properties. From 12:30 until 18:30 (6:30pm for those who need the translation!), we walked and road the bus all around town meeting up with people who showed us our possible future home. The kids did great! Although none of them will work for us, we have a better idea of what we are looking for and we hope to see a few more places today. I am encouraged and know that God will provide. Here are a few picks from the day. There was a park near by one property and the kids and Scott had some fun before we met up with the agent!

There was a park near by one property and had some fun before we met up with the agent! The kids hopped on the teeter-totter. But they wouldn't teeter. So Scott hopped on to help!


Monday, July 18, 2011

A Trip to Tesco



On our walk to Tesco to check things out as well as to buy dinner, we saw a rainbow! I was reminded of God's promise to Noah and his promises we find in his Word today! This was perfect timing to reminded of His promises of provision as we are still looking for housing, a car, etc. It's amazing how so much hinges upon having that address. One can't get a weeks bus pass without a utility bill. So once we have an address we can get a car, bank account, phone, etc. Please pray that He would provide housing in the right location with the right number of rooms in his timing and that I would be patient to wait on Him. Just as He has been faithful in the past, I wait in anticipation to see how he provides in the future! Oh, and below is the picnic dinner we had this evening. If you were wondering, like we were, Tesco is a mix between a Publix/Stop&Shop and a Walmart. It has three aisles of breads. Quite overwhelming!

Pictures on day of arrival



Team Dundee in the Edinburgh airport...we are alive and well.

Some of our bags and Miss Angie in the background making sure no one tried to take them!

Saturday, July 16, 2011

We Departed...We Arrived!

WE DEPARTED AND WE ARRIVED! (sorry no pictures at the moment... camera cord is in a bag that is still packed away).

So the actual journey to Dundee was quite adventurous! On July 13 (the day of departure), We were called about 2:30 pm from the airline saying that our original flight (leaving Charleston at 6:00) was delayed and we needed to get to the airport ASAP to catch the 4:30 pm flight to catch the connecting flight out of Newark to Dundee. As one could imagine, the last two hours before moving out of the country is filled with last minute things. So this news caused an immediate burst of perspiration. I was with Donna at the time, so we stopped what we were doing and rushed to the house where all 24 bags were weighed the night before, and loaded up her car with 13 of those bags and headed to the airport to start the check-in process. We were greeted by a very nice lady from the airline and she proceeded to help me check in the bags. The Stadalasky's, as well as David and Angie (who traveled with us to help with the move) soon arrived and checked inwe relatively painlessly. We headed through security. Donna came up to me quickly (somewhere in the check-in process) with tears in her eyes telling me that she had to leave right away because they were going to tow her car. That was sad and made the leaving real in my mind. The weight of all the stress heading into the actual day of leaving was alleviated when we all made it through security. Anything I wanted to/could do states-side was done. That was relieving! I praise God for his provision during that afternoon and in getting us and all of our bags on the airplane.

To make a long story short... we ended up staying the night in Newark, New Jersey because of weather delays. Although we really wanted to be leaving the country that evening, the layover ended up being a blessing. I took a much needed nap the next day before we flew out.

The exciting day we had been waiting for for over 2 years finally came! We arrived at 8 am on Friday, July 15 in Edinburgh, Scotland! We were all in one piece! Only one bag was missing! The kids (and adults) were in good spirits! At the rental car place, they said there would be no way to fit all of our luggage and 7 people into the two cars we rented (also the largest cars we could get). But we fit them all in! In addition, I had another moment of perspiration...I became the driver of the second (luggage) vehicle. At first, I was told it was going to be a MANUAL car. I don't know how to drive a manual car. But fortunately, (in God's providence), they had the same type of vehicle in an automatic. I stopped sweating for a little bit...but anticipated driving on the other side of the road! This wasn't too bad, except for navigating the round-abouts !!!!! Those can be tricky, particularly when you don't know where you are going exactly. That was the case when I lead the caravan out of the airport (just by nature of where my rental car was parked). I had an excellent navigator, David, who often reminded me to "Stay to the left!" I kept getting that pop song with the lyrics "to the left, to the left" in my head. It's still in my head. We arrived in Dundee (about 70 miles away) all in one piece! And I think I only violated a few traffic laws. There are different signs here than in the states! I praise God that all the bags and people fit into these two cars and we didn't have to make two trips...and we made it safely!