Antigua

I am sitting in Antigua, Guatemala, in a beautiful hotel overlooking this beautiful city.  It feels surreal...like I'm in a movie. I hear roosters and Spanish speakers...cars and fireworks (so. many. fireworks. and at the weirdest times of day.)

Kevin and Chloe are out on the town. Meeting up with some AIM folks and taking in the markets. Eli sleeps beside me...recovering from a rough tummy bug that visited all day yesterday and last night.  He is a trooper...and drinking Pedialite like it's his job.  He will recover.

There have been seasons of my life where I would sit here in the hotel all embittered that I am removed from the action...but today...with our weeks experiences behind us...there is no room for bitterness and immaturity like that.

I am grateful. I am blessed.

The Lord allowed us to come to Guatemala. As a family.
My 8 year old and 5 year old have encountered God in a way this week that few ever have the chance to do.
My eyes swell with tears when I think of how PROUD I have been of them.

The way Chloe just jumped right in...Making friends. Playing. Hearing from God all on her own. Loving. My heart is bursting.

And Eli...running and jumping. Bonking himself on the head with his water bottle to make the other kids laugh. Hands down, the coolest 5 year old. EVER.

They both have walked with such grace this week.  The schedule and pace have been insane, and they have embraced it all.  I have seen missions through their eyes as we have ministered as a family and I am filled with gratitude.

I don't have an official photo count...but it is safe to say that we have easily exceeded the 5,000 mark. So. Many. Pictures.

We will weed through them and select some of our faves to share with you...
But, not one of them will truly capture the beauty that this week has been.

Thank you for your prayers...we have felt them and they have undoubtedly been answered.
Gloria Dios.

C and E Heading to GUA

"God has been talking a lot to me about Guatemala. I feel like He has laid it on my heart that I should go there so that I can see how other people live."
- Chloe, age 8

This conversation took place a couple weeks ago at the dinner table. Chloe had heard us talking about a mission trip that was happening with our church. She knew that Daddy and Mommy were going...but she did not know that we had already decided to take her and her brother.

Granted, she has grown up around short-term missions...she has sat and listened to stories of all the great things God is doing in different parts of the world. But, for her to share that The Lord had been talking to her about Guatemala and that He was laying it on her heart to go...

Kev and I were blown. away.

It has always been the plan/dream to do missions together as a family. We have always shared our hearts for the nations with our kids. We sing worship songs before bed in the languages of places Kevin and I have been. We support a national missionary in India. We talk about the places some of "our people" are serving. We almost went to Haiti last summer as a family, but God closed the door.

So we are delighted and excited to be going AS A FAMILY on a mission trip to Guatemala April 12-22!! Our church has been partnering with a village there for the past 5 years to help support the people of the village to have a sustainable life free of the bondages of poverty through micro-loans and agricultural development.

We are expectant of what The Lord may have in store for us as a family! In order to make it possible, we need to have people praying for us. We ask for prayer for both Chloe and Eli to be excited and receptive to God's heart for the nations. We need prayer for open eyes to see the ministry opportunities The Lord will have for us as a family. We need wisdom in what areas to have the kids be a part of. We ask for specific prayer for Eli's food issues to be covered in grace and peace while there.

And of course we need to raise the finances required to make such a trip possible.
We need to raise $3,000 to cover Chloe and Eli's expenses for the trip. That number includes their travel, shots and medications and on ground expenses. If you are able and feel lead, all gifts can be sent to Chapel Hill Presbyterian Church and will be tax deductible.

Please mail checks to:
Chapel Hill Presbyterian Church
PO Box 829
Gig Harbor, WA 98335-0829
(Please include a note designating the check for Chloe and Eli Williams - Guatemala)

We are trusting the Lord to provide and are making some cuts on our end to try to fund as much of their trip as possible. We know that a step of faith this huge will require both sacrifice and commitment on our part. We desire to be obedient.

Thank you ahead of time for your prayers and support! I hope to document our trip on this little blog here...so stay tuned!

#hashtagginghelpsmecope

as a preface...
I am not on Twitter...I do not have Twitter... I do not Tweet...
I do not even know how to say that...
Whatever, this week, my brain was hash tagging like it was my job.

On Monday I braved a trip into Seattle. Alone.
Armed with hand written directions and a dumb phone. Not a smart one.
For some reason, I concluded that a trip into Seattle by myself to renew my passport was the least stressful options at my disposal. What. was. I. thinking?

I freaked out a little on Kevin Sunday night...
He pepped talked me. "You have traveled in foreign countries. You can totally do this."
Well, since I had no choice, I put on my big girl panties and decided to go for it.

The driving isn't what stresses me out...it's the parking. Or more accurately...the finding of parking. That stuff pushes me to the edge of appropriate word usage. And the pedestrians...and bicyclists...and busses...and one way streets...yeah. those are stressful too. So maybe the driving is stressful too.

But, Monday, I decided to try changing "this is crazy" to "this is an adventure."
And hash tagging was my coping mechanism.
Only I was texting them to a small handful of people instead of the world wide webs.

I was cracking myself up and found that while I was looking for humor...I actually really enjoyed my 'adventure.'

A sample of my hash tags:
(warning...there are A. LOT.)
#kickinitoldschool
#callmecrazy
#pleasepray
#mamasmakinithappen
#sunisshiningareyoukiddingme?
#ohheymountains
#dudethatsaskirt
#ifshecandothiswithatwoyearoldicandoitalone
#coolestcityEVER
#streetperformer
#pikeplacemarket
#aintnosunshinewhenshesgone
#knottinghillmoment
#fishstinks
#hoofinitinseattle
#justsaynotogymmembership
#thisiscardio
#needmoredeodorant
#whatwasshethinkingwiththoseheels?
#partysover
#whereisI5
#iamsolost
#seriouslywhereisI5?
#hashtagginghelpsmecope

Family Colors

We, like so many other families, have assigned colors to one another in our family. Daddy is orange, Mommy is green, Chloe is pink and Eli is blue.

I have noticed that our sweet Eli makes sure that each family members color is represented on the majority of his art projects.

Today's example is below.

We named him Elijah Hooper Williams.
Elijah means "the Lord is God".
Hooper is my maiden name...a way to carry on the Hooper Family name.
So we like to think that together his names mean,
"The Lord is God of my family."

What a joy to see in big and small ways, just how important his family is to him...he shows that he is thinking of each of us when he includes our color.
Love him.

Love Her Heart

Chloe has had some friends donate their hair to Locks of Love in the past. She was inspired and has been waiting a very long time to grow her hair long enough to donate it.

Today was the day! She was so ready she could hardly contain her excitement! She had planned to surprise her classmates tomorrow with her new short hair..which she will still do...but she 'confessed' to telling several of her girlfriends today...but she DID NOT tell any of the boys. :)

Chlo,
You have waited and waited for this day. Daddy and I love to see your heart of compassion lived out...you want to help someone else who needs a wig, and we think that is precious. It blesses us to see you loving others...even people you don't know. That's God's Light shining through you and nothing could make us more proud. You are a gift.

Love you the mostest,
Mommy and Daddy

Be Still My Heart

In a fleeting, random moment...
In the middle of dinner prep and homework...
Eli reaches toward me and cups my face...
Eyes endearing...

"I love sharing this life with you."

Can I Get A Witness??

Christmas just happened like a month ago...right??
We, probably like you, may have gone a little overboard on gifts...with the help of super generous Grandparents, respectively.
So...our kids rooms are stuffed to the brim with awesome toys...bright and shiny new toys.

Want to know what they choose to play with???
8 out of 10 times...
Garbage.
Our kids play with garbage.
Items I am confident were thrown into the recycling bin yesterday, somehow sprout legs and jump into the creative arms of our children.
Most recently they have transformed into homes for stuffed animals and legos. Cereal boxes have become castles inhabited by flat royal people sketched on paper.

And I mostly love it...in fact, I 85% love it...
I just have to get used to my kitchen (because that is also where they choose to play... not in their toy stuffed rooms) being strewn with garbage.