My kindergartener

Annie and Mrs. Sorensen on their first day of Kindergarten together.




My last, first day of Kindergarten! BOO HOO! I took pictures of every angle of her that I could get! ;o)




Getting out of the car. Daddy's bike was in there because he had to go to school after I dropped her off!

On her way to class.

Her door!

She is the sweetest thing!

She jumped right in and started to work!

This is what Annie was doing when I came to pick her up. She was HAPPY!!

She had a great day! The boys had a great day too but I didn't take any pictures of them. Maybe tomorrow! Thanks for praying!! Love, Missy and family

Annie started Kindergarten!

My baby is growin' up! I can't believe she is in Kindergarten! She was just born yesterday!! I am sure of it. I will post a bunch of pictures tonight. I just wanted you to be praying for her on her first day. Jerod, Alex and I are starting today too. Wish us luck, oh, I don't believe in luck, so... pray! Love you! Missy

I know, I know, I know....

I know I haven't been on here for more than a week and I am really sorry. I am really trying to find time to post on here and to make it interesting, it just isn't happening! I miss all of you and my life is so crazy. Once we got back from camp we had a wonderful visit from some friends from our home church and that was a huge blessing! Then we welcomed my mother-in-law from Indiana for her first visit to Wake Forest. We had a great time with her and the kids were able to have some quality "Grandma" time. We loved it!

Greg has settled into a routine of going to class and reading, reading, reading. We haven't started home school yet, I am sure I am hearing many of you saying, "WHAT?" Well, we chose to use Annie's school's schedule and she doesn't start until the day after Labor Day. So, that is when we will start. Annie is so excited about starting Kindergarten! There are only 5 kids in the class and 3 of them are boys. It should be a very exciting year!! ;o) The boys and I are looking forward to home school this year. It should be nice having a lot of extra resources at our fingertips!

We continue to keep in touch with our friends in San Lorenzo. So far everything seems to be going well. Cesilia and her daughters (Don't know if you remember them?) haven't attended church since we left. This isn't surprising to us, but it is heart breaking. Please pray for them. I am definitely feeling less homesick and enjoying living in the US a little more. I love this time of year and the weather has been fantastic!!

I wish I could see each one of you and give you all hugs! I have been heavy hearted for a few people. Please pray for this precious woman named Lindsay. She lost her four month old baby last week. He just died in his sleep. She needs your prayers. You can click here http://thejonesfamily52009.blogspot.com/ to read her blog. It is sad and so heart breaking. I don't know her personally but I know she needs your prayers. Another lady in need of your prayers is Patrice. She has this precious little gift from God named Jonah. You just have to go to her website and meet him yourself. Anyway, these are some of the people I have met via Internet that need you! www.patriceandmattwilliams.blogspot.com
Then there is a little girl named Marnie. She is 4 and has been diagnosed with stage IV Anaplastic Wilm's Tumor, which is a rare form of childhood cancer. She and her parents are in serious need of prayer. I don't know her website address yet, but when I do, I will let you know. Please pray. So, I just felt compelled to ask all of you to pray for these prayer requests as these are some hurting people and you are some praying ones! Love to you all!! Missy

We're BACK!

That is Jerod on the left side of the log.

He was so proud!

Jerod during evening activities.

Alex and his counselor, Ross.

Can you say, "Crazy?"

Alex doing the "Jiho"

Annie doing her tumbling routine.

Annie teaching the "Jiho"

Jerod crying as he said good-bye to his friends, boo hoo!

Jerod's cabin.

Annie on her favorite horse, Little Red, how fitting?

Alex showing a little enthusiasm.

The view from Cheerio.

Me and my "Honey!"

Jerod celebrating his 13th birthday at Macadoos in Boone.

Jerod and his cousin, Marissa.

Mama Say and her nutty grandchildren!

Honey and MamaSay on her 65Th birthday.

Honey taking Mason and Alex on a 4 wheeler ride.

Now it is Annie and Jerod's turn.

Cousins by chance, friends by choice!

Our welcome home sign, how sweet!

Hi friends! I know it has been a while since I posted. I didn't have my computer and I didn't have Internet access where I was staying, so it was a little difficult to keep you updated. However, after I posted about Jerod things did start to change for him so I really appreciated all of your prayers! I must say we were all a little shocked and weren't ready for the language that 12 and 13 year old children are using today. So, we didn't prepare Jerod for the possibility of hearing bad language or dirty jokes once the lights were turned out at camp. This is in no way a reflection of the camp or the counselors, it is just the way SOME 12 and 13 year old children are when they aren't around adults and we just didn't know that. Anyway, Jerod just didn't know how to fit in with this group of kids and he felt bad about being around them. Once we worked through that, he was fine and had a really good time at camp and wants to go back next year if possible.

Alex on the other hand, had the time of his life and although he heard a few choice words he didn't mention it until Friday afternoon. He loved every aspect of camp and thought that his counselors hung the moon. He RAN everywhere and cheered about everything. I definitely think that some university has a future mascot on their hands, because this child has more enthusiasm/energy than I do and let me tell you that is A LOOOOOT!!! We can't say enough thank yous for the prayers that were said on our behalf!

It was brought to my attention on Wednesday that my children were getting an enormous amount of mail. Heehee! So I want to personally thank you all for sending mail to the boys! (and me too) They said they felt so special and they were so happy to be getting so much mail! So, MANY MANY thanks to you all!

After camp we drove to my parent's mountain house and spent the weekend with MamaSay and Honey (my parents) and my niece and nephew, Marissa and Mason. We celebrated Jerod's 13Th birthday and my mom's 65Th birthday. They share the same birthday and we had fun celebrating it together! We then headed back to Wake Forest where we are going to try to find some kind of routine. We were welcomed with this precious sign by one of our neighbors. What a nice thing to come home to! Greg's mom, "Grandma" will be arriving tomorrow and she will be spending a few days with us here. We can't wait to show her all around our big town! School will start soon, but for now we are enjoying family time. Love you all! Missy

Having a lot of fun!!

Hi everyone!! I am having a great time! Oh, my kids are having the time of their lives too! Alex was blessed with a counselor that has more energy than he does and it has been awesome to watch their whole cabin run everywhere! Jerod has had a little harder time fitting in because of his age. The boys in his cabin aren't into running everywhere they are more into being cool and some are saying things/words that make Jerod feel uncomfortable. So, if you think about it, please pray for Jerod. He is having fun, just on a different scale than Alex.

I will try and post some photos soon. I haven't had Internet access nor cell phone access so I am pretty isolated as far as communication goes. Annie and I have been working hard because they are short staffed because it is the last session and school has started in many areas. Thanks for remembering us. Pray we will all stay healthy as there is always a crud going around! Love to you all! Missy

Bloom where you're planted!

Since living in the US, we have made it a fun goal/challenge to find places where we can all eat for under $20. This was one of our biggest bargain finds since hitting the US! We bought all of that food, drinks too for the bargain price of $13! Arbies Freebies Wednesday helped! We were very proud of ourselves!!


Bloom where you are planted.

My roses!

Hi everyone! I know it has been a few days since I have posted. Sorry! I have been busy blooming! :o) After I decided to enjoy my every second here, God really started to move all around me. The precious new friends I have made just really saw how homesick I was and they really ministered to my needs. The friends that I have had for years and those that I have just met through this blog also started to minister to my heart! Thank you all for your sweet and encouraging emails! I was given this little blue vase that says, "Bloom where you are planted." That really spoke to my heart and I have decided to do just that! The next day I was talking to a new friend of mine and we were just getting to know each other better. She said she had lived here for a year and she and her husband only had one other couple that had become their friends in the year that they have been here. The next day I found these roses at my door, they were from this new friend. She was leaving on vacation and wanted me to enjoy her roses while she was gone. So, I guess I really do need to bloom where I am planted!

Jerod, Alex, Annie and I all leave for Camp Cheerio tomorrow. We are all very excited! I don't think I mentioned that I will be spending the week helping out around camp. I will try and make myself invisible to my children but Annie and I will be hanging out around camp all week. I will definitely have some really good pictures to post on here! Please send some mail! It will mean a lot to us all! :o) Jerod's 13th birthday is on Sunday the 23rd, so if any of you want to send a birthday wish, I know he would like that too! Please pray for Greg as he will be all alone this week and he will be starting school again for the first time in a long time! Thank you all for praying for us!! I love you!! Missy

Small change in camp address

Just a small change in the address for the boys while they are at camp. Their cabin name needs to be by their name. Thanks!! Love you all! Missy

Jerod Wood- Tuscarora
Camp Cheerio
1430 Camp Cheeri0 Road
Glade Valley, NC 28627-9731

Alex Wood- Sioux
Camp Cheerio
1430 Camp Cheerio Road
Glade Valley, NC 28627-9731