Plans

Around May 2013, after committing to go on this mission trip, I really started having doubts as to if I was meant to go on this trip.  The first thing was an overlapping vacation at work.  Vacation scheduling was months away, yet a coworker & I chose the EXACT same two weeks.  Strike One.  Strike Two came when my cousin shared with me the dangers of traveling to Africa.  Politically, things are not good there.  I was beginning to be afraid.  Strike Three hit when Bill said his heart really wasn't in the mission trip, and he feared his headaches would prevent him from even enjoying any part of the trip.   Mind you...all three strikes came on the same day!!!  My first deposit wasn't due for several months, and I thought maybe it just wasn't meant to be.  I was then doubting my trip, my commitment and could I do this trip without Bill?

THEN, this verse--

it was in my devotion THAT very evening.  The devotion that accompanied it was amazing and spoke right to me.  It said 'How will you know the plans I have for you if you never step outside of your comfort zone"?  My name Shawnna could have been right behind the word ZONE.  I thought about this.  How will I ever know, if I never step outside of my idea  of "safe"? How could I back out and regret what might have been?  I read on in my devotion.  "Trust me...that is all I ask"  "Trust me to give you what you need when you need it, and to grow in my love for you".  Now, HOW do you say no to GOD when he prints those very words on a page the VERY day that you need them?  They would have been pointless any other day.  However, that is how I see God...always giving me exactly what I need, exactly when I need it.  He's like that...loves me and give me what I need, and right when I need it.  Always on time.

So I keep this picture...I am reminded that this will be me in Israel and Uganda...wandering along this path, seeking the adventure and lesson that is next for me...whatever His will might be.... 

Blessings....

FIFTEEN DAYS TO DEPARTURE!

I must admit, 18 months ago when I said "I'd love to go to Uganda" I never realized it would come so quickly!!  It seemed so far away, and I often wondered if I would meet my fundraising goal.  I have met that goal, had all my shots, and been blessed beyond my wildest dreams!! 

Five years ago, if you'd have said "Lets go to a country that we have to get shots to enter, take medicine while we are there, can't drink the water, get it in your eyes, or ears, and need to worry about getting little bugs that lay their eggs in your toes..." I would have said NO WAY! 

HOWEVER, the excitement I felt while our pastor was in Uganda last time ( I was blog posting while he was there for our church to follow along), and the tugging God put on my heart was all it took!  Now I am FIFTEEN DAYS away from departure.  I have been blessed with funds for the cost of my trip, blessed with funds for my shots, a suitcase for travel, and the list goes on!!  I have started filling the suitcase..I've had a laundry basket filled with "stuff" for weeks, and as I think of things I drop it in, and check one more thing off the list. I am now wondering, Do I have enough, do I have too much, have I forgotten something?  My mind is a flurry of activity (yes, more than usual).  It's hard not to get sucked into daydreaming of my trip and sharing the excitement with the group I am blessed to be going with.   

Aside from the excitement is the nerves.  First, I worry about home...will Bill eat, will he suffer with migraines worse than his everyday migraines, will they keep up on things around here, will everyone be alive when I return?  There are two teenagers in our home!!  I ask for your prayers not only for our team going, but for all our families here at home.  My kids are bigger, but one of our gals has little ones at home, and I know it will be tougher for her!!  The other worry is traveling to foreign countries...airports and customs....language barriers...traditions and cultural differences...you name it, I've thought about it.(AND if I haven't, don't give me more to think about)!  I know God is faithful and will take care of this.  I pray for his peace through this...and for the adventure of a lifetime.

I will post our schedule soon so you can follow along.  Please continue to pray for us as we pack, complete shots, and wrap up things at home!  

Found this video on a friends page, she's headed to Uganda as well...check this out...worth the watch, and it's where we are headed.  Hope to meet Peter!


Click to Follow the Link 

Blessings until next time!
 

UGANDA BOUND

Coming SOON!!

Shawnna is headed to Uganda.  I am reviving the site I have so badly neglected to bring you updates as I am able while in Israel and Uganda.

My trip begins in 30 days.  Here I will be posting our itinerary, our pictures, and our stories as we have internet access.

Our layover in Isreal will be 7 days instead of 7 hours.  We were blessed with off season prices, and it was an opportunity that didn't cost us much more than if we'd just headed to Uganda.  I consider it a blessing to be able to walk where Jesus walked, and I'm sure I will never read my bible the same again!

I will be updating over the next few days, and into the weekend.  Make sure to let me know if you'd like to be added to the "email me when you update list"!!  shawnna.richards@yahoo.com will be the email I use while on the trip. 

I do want to take the time to thank everyone who has supported me, whether financially, through encouragement, love or prayer, it's been a blessing.  It's been amazing to see God unfold his will for me to go on this trip by his provision.

Vacation

It's hard to believe we've been on vacation and back. What's harder to believe it that we've been so busy, that it has taken me MONTHS to get the blog done!  I think I was overwhelmed with so many pictures, and which ones to put in!!  

  What a great trip it was.  We spent some great time with our families, and had fun getting there.  We love road trips!!  We drove hard Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and through the night Sunday to arrive in Bowerston Ohio on Monday morning.  We all chatted on Sunday, around 8ish, that we would push as far as we could, in hopes to arrive Monday morning instead of Monday night.  The kids said they could sleep in the trailer or in the back seat, so it didn't matter to them.  Bill loves to drive at night and its nice driving with less traffic, plus the back seat is quiet too!  We can't complain, our kids have always been great travelers, and when we say we're going for the long haul, they are eager to get their things in the back seat to keep themselves busy, and enjoy the ride. You can see they don't have any trouble crashing in the truck! 

We pulled into Mom & Dad's lake property about 11am, just in time for lunch!  My sister and her family were already there, and my brother and his kids arrived about an hour later.  Lots of catching up and chatter for the first few hours.  Around 4, we headed to off to inquire (and ended up purchasing) a floating dock.  Mom & Dad's dock has been in poor shape since they bought the place, and it was a perfect mothers day/fathers day gift from their kids.  On Tuesday, Eric, Bill & Jason got to it...only to find it was not quite sturdy enough.  Plan B....take it off the barrels and support it in the water.  This however, takes more materials...so the project is on hold...and Wednesday is the family get together!  The guys get a makeshift dock together for the kids to get in & out of the water with.

Wednesday is a great day of visiting.  I love that everyone gets together, but so many people make for not being able to visit for a long period of time...but the hugs and just  being able to "be together" makes it worth it.  We'd never get to see everyone otherwise.  Two weeks still isn't a long enough vacation!  We celebrated my grandmother's 90th birthday and all the grand kids sang a song for my Grandfather, that his Mom used to sing to him as a child.  It was fun to do that together, and you could feel the love flowing out of everyone.  

 

Just a few great pictures from our day...cousins, uncles, and even crazier cousins (One's you should not leave your camera laying around loose!!) and a pure blessing of time spent together.

 

After everyone left...we set off fireworks, plus, Rachel & John (plus kids) stuck around, and we had a great extra visit!!  Too bad we couldn't stretch that over a few days, and have everyone camp down there.  Unfortunately, we'd have to have Dad bring in a porta  pottie!!

July 5th, we headed to Amish Country...we had a great day, it was HOT, but we enjoyed the day together, and did some fun shopping.  Friday, we hung around the lake, while the guys finished up the dock.  The kids tested it out, and it works great!  Jason headed home, while we kept kids for another day....so they could join us on our adventure!

On Saturday, our last day together, we packed up, and headed to Old Man's Cave.  It was hot, (107) but we figured it would be cooler in the caves.  It was, but not by much, and although I love that area, we couldn't endure more than a few hours there.  The kids were melting, as were we adults.We headed back to the lake, just in time to catch the evening sun and it was an awesome time with the kids jumping off the new dock. 

 Sadly, our time was coming quickly to an end. Sunday was a flurry of packing up our trailers, sniffling as we said our goodbyes.  Tam, Eric & kids headed South, Bill & I along with Jason's kids headed North, and our kids stayed with Grandma & Papa for another week.

We had a good time on the way to Michigan...Jason's kids are so different than ours...maybe having three in the mix made it so different, but we had fun, and were sad to see them head back home.  

We arrived at Bill's Mom's in time for supper, and enjoyed a nice evening with Karen & Jeff, and the temperatures had dropped below 100 for the first time since we'd been there.  We enjoyed a fire, but still from a distance!  While there I was able to catch up with some great girlfriends, and we enjoyed seeing family, and sad that not everyone was able to make it.  

However, we enjoy what we can with the time we have.  It's always a blessing.  We were originally scheduled to leave on Friday, but our longtime friends, and my best friend growing up, Judi & Steve were celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary.  We were blessed to be there to celebrate. It only seemed right since we were there the day they got married.  We shared lots of dating time and early married years together, not to mention a few blenders.

Sadly, on Saturday morning, we packed up and headed West.  With no kids, our plan was to drive hard, although, the kids have never slowed us down....it was just different dynamics in the truck!  We drove until 2ish on the first day, and caught a few hours of sleep...it's great when you pull your bed behind you!  The second  night, we pulled over 3 hours from home, and slept a few hours, mostly because we were almost out of fuel, exhausted, and knew it would be better to pull down that heavy grade in the daylight, being our trailer was so loaded with Bill's Dad's tools and cabinets.  We arrived in Sweet Home at 7am on Monday and were happy to get home safely and into our own bed!  It was a long haul, but a great trip.  Thanks to all who made the effort to come out to see us.

 

Heading Cross Country

So excited...finally heading on vacation. Ryan was home from football camp by 5:30...and we literally picked him up off the bus, and loaded him in the truck. We headed over the pass, and stopped at Teen Challenge as it was the end of graduation. We took about 15 minutes...gave hugs, visited, and hit the road. We made it to Burns Oregon, and finally pulled off the road in a roadside rest at midnight...in the Stinkwater Pass. And no, we didn't smell anything. It was pretty though!  Here is what we woke to!!  We were on the road by 6am, and stopped around 10:30 (after losing an hour)  for breakfast. 

Lots of fun in the truck today.  Ryan cracked us up, first with his pillowcase over his head, holding a sign to people passing us (not that many mind you---except up the really steep hills) that said "Save Me"....then, as it finally cooled down (We got the summer we've been waiting for), he put his hand around the window from the outside like a puppet, and scare the crud out of me.  It was a great travel day....even with a small mishap.

Driving up a very steep grade....the road went to three lanes.  One guy passed us, and then pulled in front of us very quickly, slowed down, and started flagging us.....just as I caught smoke coming from the trailer tire out of my mirror.  We were right at a chain up area and we were able to pull off the road and not be just on the berm.  God sure did watch over us.  As shredded as that tire is...the rim is fine!!  Ryan and Bill had the tire changed, and were back on the road in a record 13 minutes.

Here is the rest of the tire!

 

And we were blessed with this beautiful Wyoming Sunset.  We called it a night and stopped at 9....in Rawling WYgot some dinner, I was dying for a shower, and headed to bed.  The plan is up VERY early, then a long day on the road tomorrow...so we can have a short day on Monday!  Thanks to all for the prayers.  God is listening!  He is so faithful.

Follow this to view the picture album

Time Passing So Quickly

Sunday, June 17th...and the last post was 40 days ago...the time it took Jesus in the desert, the time it rained on the ark...the time between Lent and Easter.  It seems that I can't keep up with this blog, with the busy life we lead!!  

News--BIG news.  Bill starts his new job with White's Electronics tomorrow morning!!  This is his third time interviewing and he has finally been hired...the first time her refused the offer (he was still at HP), the 2nd time, the company put a hiring freeze on after he was offered the position, and this time we figured was 'third time is a charm'--OR 'three strikes and you're out'!!  God blessed us and after three years and 3 months of being out of work (he did have two years of schooling under him during this time!) he is back to work.  He will still continue with the business on the side, and we will see where all of this leads us.  God has certainly always taken care of us.  This time will be no different.  

Since I started with the newest news...I'll work backwards. 

View of the golf course...and the kitchen part of the room...

View of Ocean from the room....
And of course...the room.....

Bill &I just returned home from a weekend away without kids.  Being funds have been tight, we've not had our usual 'weekend celebration' getaway's for Birthdays & Anniversaries.  This was the first in a long time, and was only made possible by a trade for a piece of restaurant equipment.  Let's say we made out with the better end of the deal!!  We had a room on the coast for two  nights...a king suite, which consisted of bedroom, two bathrooms, kitchen/living room, fireplace, balcony, all overlooking a golf course, with ocean view.  The ocean was on the other side of the road, but still a beautiful place.  To top it off, we had two dinner vouchers for the hotel restaurant...and the place was wonderful!!  Dinner the first night was 12.90, and the second 23.00...including a glass of wine both  nights for me. We had smoked prime rib the first night, and it was so incredible, I had it again last night.  Bill had crab last night..fresh from a boat yesterday morning, right out of the tank in front of our table.  We couldn't have been more blessed.  It was a great weekend, not only did we celebrate our 24th wedding anniversary, Bills birthday, but also Bill's new job.  It was a great weekend, full of sunshine, and just a great time of being together.


I've just been busy with work....heading in at 5am, and returning around 6....makes for a long day, but finally feel like we are making some headway...will see what the next few weeks brings.  Love that I have two weeks off...but worried what will await me when we return!

Arch rock

Hughes House...one of my favorite historical houses on the coast.

Ryan finished school last week, and started football the week before.  He has also finished drivers ed...and needs to get his driving test before he can get his license.  He's got plenty of hours down....just a matter of the "test".  

Kristin is still finishing home school....the beauty of home school...if you're busy...you keep plugging along until you're finished.  She is done with just about everything but math & science.  We started both new math and science mid year....and we're happy with the new stuff.  She is still working for the neighbor...learning how to be a farm girl.  She is loving the job, and feels guilty getting paid.  She also has been working from some friends, watching their five kids.  She's great with them....and what makes it better...she loves them to pieces, and they love her!

Bill has been busy getting the yard ready for the new driveway.  We put a drive to the barn last month...and this month, the county approved a driveway from the north side of the property.  Once they came out, and saw how we've had to put our trailer in the drive the last 19th years...they said...wow...you need a better access!!  So, we've moved the chicken coop, reset all the fencing, Bill has dropped 4 trees, (two more to go...but waiting for the cable company, since there are branches broken from the snow storm over the lines) , moved propane lines, and has been swamped getting things ready so he can return to work.  He will work 6:30 to 3:00...so he will still have the afternoons to get some things done before we head off for Michigan in 2 weeks.

Last weekend...Bill & I attended the Gayle Erwin Jesus Style conference.  What a great weekend.  This is one of the most animated men telling the Jesus story like I've never heard it before.  It's a must...if you can't see him live....listen to his teachings online.  HOWEVER, the face and animation is part of the package!!

After the conference...Charlie came home for Saturday night before heading to his own conference...he brought Jason from TC with him as well...we enjoyed having them both...and nice to have Charlie home, even if it was for a short time.


Two weeks until we depart.  Thankfully, our good friend is coming to stay with dogs, kitties and chickens....we'd be lost without you Jen!!   I of course will blog when time allows!!  You know with all  of us together (Tammy & Jason, as well as their families will be there) there will be lots of pictures!!


Until next time...