A long overdue post.

How are we doing? In short, we’re doing ok. Suddenly I (Keri) have found myself in a dichotomy of not knowing what next year will hold while at the same time completely resting in the belief that God will provide for us in His time and in His way. Last night as I was praying, I was thankful that I am not anxious – RARE for me! We are hoping to be able to stay here another year but our finances and support aren’t looking great at this point, but we’ll see. We are going home in June and hope to have a decision by then. I told David last night how it’s hard to know sometimes which direction God is working from – like are we not exercising enough faith that He will provide the support we need for another year when we both so strongly felt that we should stay or is it a God-thing that we happened to look at our finances the other night, which is leading us to explore other possibilities job-wise for next year that may not be available had we waited until the end of summer? Either way – we agree that the Lord has always provided for us and says in his Word that he will graciously give us all things, so we have no reason to expect otherwise even though we can’t see into the future. Of course, David feels the weight of it more than I do because he feels a responsibility to provide for his family. He came home the other day notably weighted down by it all and I tried to encourage him, and he said, “You worry about hotels burning down and planes crashing and I worry about not being able to provide for my family.” I reminded him that the things I worry about never happen anyway so his probably wouldn’t happen either. :)

Anyway. So pray for us in all of that, if you think about it.

Valdemossa/Mallorca

The next day we drove up to a couple little towns, Valdemossa and Soller. Valdemossa was by far my favorite. There is something about these little Spanish towns which have been there for hundreds of years and still look the same. We met the group for cafe con leches, then split up and met back again to travel on to Soller.

This is a view of Valdemossa as we approached.

The little cafe where we had our coffee.

Another quaint corner shop.

Rachel with a native-dressed Spanish doll.


There were orange and lemon trees everywhere. This was someone's backyard. Love it!

Valdemossa is also famous for being the place where Chopin spent a winter and composed some of his music. Here is his statue.

I never get tired of seeing these doorways with plants and flowers on the walls.

Mathis with a Spanish shield.

From there, we drove along a very winding narrow highway along the coast up to Soller.

Colorful police vehicles.


The great cathedral.

Mallorca Part 1

This past four-day weekend we had the opportunity to join some coworkers for a weekend trip to the Spanish island of Mallorca. I (Keri) was a bit apprehensive about going and almost backed out at the last minute, but once we got there I was so thankful we went. I didn't know how badly I had needed it until we got there. It was like any stress I had just melted away. We had good times of fellowship with our coworkers as well as some very quality "just us" family time, which is very rare for us with the revolving front door of our home - always someone coming and going. :) It was some much needed refreshment and we are so thankful for the Lord's provision for us to go. Here are a few pics.

The view from our room overlooking the Mediterranean.

The next day we went exploring around the town. There was a very old stairway that went from the beach to the top of the mountain, 500+ steps. Here we are stopping for a rest.

The view from the top. Such a beautiful day!

Mathis and his treasures.

Later we went into downtown Palma.

Rachel, Mathis with Silas.

"RCE business meeting" at Dunkin' Donuts.

The Plaza Mayor.

Rachel and Mathis chasing the pigeons.

This was a super-old enormous olive tree.

Valentine's Day

I've (Keri) always been a proponent of celebrating Valentine's Day as a family and this year was no exception. We planned a special lunch for after church including steak, twice baked potatoes, grilled asparagus and chocolate covered strawberries for dessert.




Valentine's place settings.

Lots of candles and hearts.

Everyone was given a Bible verse to read aloud about God's faithfulness and unending love towards us.

Fun times!

I'm homesick. Can I be honest? I'm (Keri) tired of living in transition. I've (we) have been living in transition since spring of 2007, when we first decided to move to Spain. For most of 2007 and 2008 we were mentally transitioning out of Chattanooga, and physically packing and moving from one house to another to another to another and finally landing here. I remember thinking how glad I was to be settled when we finally got here. And on the one hand, I am settled and our lives do have a pretty stable routine and I try to make the best of it. But on the other hand, I have subconsciously continued to live in a temporary mindset - knowing that we weren't going to stay here forever so why bother putting down any sort of roots? That is probably not a good thing. Looking at staying for a third year makes me a little weary emotionally. I'm not sure I can pinpoint what it is that would make me feel settled. I still long for freedom and familiarity. I long to stock up my pantry and craft closet and start projects without thinking I am going to have to pack it all up or leave it in another year. I long for date nights with David and for worship in English. I expect that these feelings will come and go. I suppose it is the case for everyone who has had to leave their home. We are hoping to come home again this summer, and as much as I am looking forward to that - I am also dreading it a bit because I know it will also be temporary. Transition is really hard...

We haven't been blogging much on here lately, but Keri has been blogging on her blog, www.my12stones.blogspot.com if you want to keep up with us.

A third year

Excerpt from our last newsletter:

When we were first interviewed by ECA for this position, they asked us for a two year minimum commitment, which we agreed to. As we approach the end of our second year, we have been wrestling with the decision of whether to go back to the U.S. after this school year or whether to stay and continue serving here. It has been a difficult decision, but as we prayed and waited and prayed and waited some more, we came to an agreement that we should leave the door open and commit at least through the next school year (2010-2011), and continue until the Lord shows us differently. One of the trademark characteristics of third-culture kids is a life full of constant change and transition and part of our ministry, we believe, is to provide a sense of stability and security for them. Staying here for an additional year will help them that much more. Because we are entirely supported financially through the sacrificial giving of friends, family and churches, we would ask that you please prayerfully consider giving us one time financial gift or making a monthly commitment to enable us in our work here.

And speaking of next year, ECA is in desperate need of teachers for next year, particularly middle and high school in almost all subjects. If you know anyone who might be interested in serving here for part of a year or more, please let us know or consult the website for more details. www.ecaspain.com We would add that we have been amazed at the diversity of qualified staff God has brought to ECA. There are several retired couples who have come for 6 months or a year (because they have retirement income they don’t have to raise financial support) and have worked as teachers, janitors, librarian, in the office, counselors, teachers aides, etc. You don’t have to be a certified teacher to help (although those are needed as well!) and it would be a great opportunity to serve the missionary community in and around Spain.