Brad says:
A year! Wow!! It seems like just yesterday we were dropped off on the curb with all our belongings (see picture below)! How do you summarise a year in a single entry? Where do you start? end? I suppose one interesting fact is that Jillian has now lived more days in the UK than in the US. She has grown so much. Looking back at the pictures outside King's College (also below), I am reminded how little she was: she was cuddly, cute, laughed alot, but you were never sure if she understood what was going on. Now, she follows along in conversations, repeats words back and loves to read (ok, have Mommy and Daddy read to her) and play games. She is curious about the world, and when she sees something new, walks over pointing and repeating "What's that?" (except drop all the hard 'T's) She remembers people's names (ok, just 8-9), is a good organizer (lining up all her toys in neat columns and rows ... obsessive compulsive?!?), and loves to imitate her Mommy.
And what a Mommy she has! She has grown so much these past 12 months (no pun intended). When we first walked into our bare flat, we were shocked. We cried, we doubted what we were doing here, and in short, we were ready to leave. But Lauren has done a tremendous job making this flat a home. Despite the rules banning painting or wall-paper, Lauren has transformed every room into a home. She has been so resourceful with our limited means, been diligent to find deals, and to save us SO much money by forgoing a car, and walking everywhere, even when 38.5 weeks pregnant! WOW! She amazes me, and I have such a world of respect for her. But most importantly, she has learned so much about what it means to depend on the Lord. She has been so committed to her girl's Bible study and her own daily time with the Lord. I knew I was marrying wisely, but I never knew how lucky I truly was until we came here.
And what can I say about myself? Not much really. I have grown too. We have to depend on God for our future. Sometimes I feel like He gives us glimpses of where we might be in 5-10 years, and in some ways, we are enduring the hardships now (I know, some of you are thinking Germany, Italy, and the UK are not hardships ... and you are right .... it is just the days in between) for the hope set before us. But I think in large measure I have begun to re-evalueate what we really want. Certainly one of our biggest dreams is to have a house some day, but will we be satisfied then? In some ways yes. But everyone here does with less: smaller homes, small ovens, small cars. I know that we have been changed. But how much? for how long? Will we always be "scarred" by our time here? Will I always say "car park" or la-bor-a-try instead of lab-or-tory? Will the issues that concern us be more international than local? I am not sure.
And of course, we are excited about our new baby girl!!!
Beyond the four of us, there are the many friendships we have begun. Mostly we have met these people through our incredible, Christ-focused Church: Eden Baptist. Every Sunday is full of encouragment and genuine worship. We are thrilled to support a Body of Believers that is mission minded and keen to fill our hearts, bodies and minds with the Love of Christ. I think leaving Eden will be the hardest part of leaving England. (There is a catchy phrase in there somewhere, I just am not sure where.)
I do know that this year has been crazy: tears to joy and back again. We will have such mixed emotions when it comes time to leave. For now, I pray and hope that this year is as good as the last. That we will live the next 12 months passionatly and purposefully.
The classic picture of Cambridge! The punt with the lone woman and man poling; King's College soaring in the background; clear blue sky, bright sun. Thousands of tourists come to Cambridge every summer to get such a photo; Lauren got it one shot.
Where's my hair!!! Will Daniels had just given me a haircut in Germany the week before. Scarf: you never really wear it in Texas, but you can't live without one here.
My two girls!
At least she wansn't getting car sick back then!!! After 7 hours on the plane, pacing the aisles, she was ready for a nap.
Our first stop at a British store. Our kind driver stopped at a Tesco's (think Wal-mart) on the way to Cambridge. We bought grapes, shampoo, milk and hand soap. What a shopping list. We were so overwhelmed, we weren't sure what to get. But, at that time, grapes were Jillian's favorite snack. You might notice that Jillian looks like she is about to fall over sideways from exhaustion.
All our luggage, and our driver.
Sleepy little Jillian. She did ultimatly adjust to the new time zone very quickly. She was so tiny back then!
The master bedroom, how we found it. It had the crib with it too, which we quickly moved to the second bedroom.
The second bedroom. Amid our cries of horrow at the spartan nature of the apartment, we had the forsight to photograph everything as we found it for posterity's sake.
The living room. We have since moved things around a little. The bookshelves are still there, but now they are full of Jillian's toys.
Our kitchen, compete with mini-fridge for our family of four.
All that was then, this is now! We are thrilled about our newst addition, arriving in just a few days.
