What a summer!

I'm a BAD blogger! By the looks of my posts, you would think we had a quiet, uneventful summer after our trip to the States ... but that is SOOOOO not the case! We've been super busy. Here's a few highlights:

Crocodile Dock. VBS went GREAT at RB. Directing VBS was a new challenge for me and has kept me on my toes since May. But August 3-7 was AWESOME! We had amazing community support ... with nearly 60 volunteers ministering to 74 children. It was especially great to see so many dads come out and pitch in (this is why we chose to do it in the evening!). What a blessing for the kids! We prayed with LOTS of kids to recieve Christ ... and baptized two of them on the Sunday after VBS. Tiring, YES! Worth every minute? YES, YES, YES. We give God ALL the glory for this huge success.

Strasbourg, France. Last weekend, we headed out for an overnight adventure in Strasbourg, about 1 1/2 hours from Stuttgart. Loved the sights of this quaint area in France. Notre Dame Cathedral was a highlight for me. The kids loved the boat tour and mini-train ride through the streets of this old and historic city. Of course, we ate some good food! Still amazes me that we have been given this awesome opportunity to see the world ... and introduce our children to it. Next trip: camping trip in Jungfrau, Switerland. Can't wait!!!

Last but certainly not least, Greg was able to baptize Ashley on Sunday, August 9. Such an emotional experience for us ... and a privilege beyond words for Greg! She was one of eight baptized that night. Ashley accepted Christ on Mother's Day, 2007, while her daddy was in Afghanistan. What an honor for me to pray a salvation prayer with my little girl! At that time, we decided she would wait for her daddy to baptize her. To see her publicly declare her relationship with Jesus Christ was awesome for us.

The fall holds much in store! We're looking forward to a couple of trips, a visit from Greg's parents, a leadership appreciation banquet for our chapel congregation and lots more growth at our chapel services. We continue to thank the Lord for putting us in Stuttgart, Germany for "such a time as this."

Pretty Cool ...

Yesterday, I had kind of a different experience. I took Alexis, Shane and a couple of kids from our church to the bowling alley. Nothing special about that (except we had a really good time!) ... until I stepped outside to get reception on my cell phone to call Greg. I noticed an MP (Military Police) at the end of the road stopping traffic. Before I even had a chance to investigate what was going on, I heard this tremendous sound and looked up to see a Chinook landing in the field right across the street from where I was standing!!! I was trying to leave a message on Greg's cell phone ... but it was so loud I couldn't even hear myself talking and my hair felt like it was going to blow off my head! It was pretty exciting. A crowd was starting to gather outside the bowling alley (including my wide-eyed son) as two Blackhawk helicopters landed beside the Chinook.

Now, why this made such a great impression on me is hard to understand. I mean, I guess it is not every day that those kind of planes land across the street from the family-friendly bowling alley. But I think it has something to do with the fact that this is how my husband traveled for more than a year of his life ... kind of in the same way you and I jump in the car! He never stayed at his "home base" for more than a couple of weeks at a time before he would be off again, flying around Afghanistan to different smaller bases to minister to soldiers. And he had lots of really interesting experiences while flying, including "going down" in a Chinook that had some mechanical problems (thankfully, they landed in the sand, no one was hurt -- not even a scratch) ... flying through tremendous rain and wind storms ... and times when the gunner in the plane had to do his thing in defense of our country and this war against terror.

So, while I watched these massive machines reach the ground, I guess I was just struck with the reality of what continues on in Afghanistan ... and the fact that my husband was a part of it. I was instantly grateful to the Lord for HIS protection over Greg's life. No matter how big and strong those "war planes" are ... GOD is bigger and stronger!

Pretty cool day at the bowling alley, huh??? Made up for the fact that I had to share all of my bowling turns with my 3 year old ... he probably did better than I would have done anyway!

(The pictures were an aftersight ... just to prove what I saw!!! Wish I could have snapped a pic when those big ol' things were still in the air coming down. It was pretty amazing!)

A Vacation to Remember

Our trip to the States was, well, AWESOME! I'm sure this blog could turn into a mini-novel, so I'm going to do my best to keep it short. The flight from Stuttgart was mostly uneventful. The only problem: it was LONG! After the 11 hour flight, more than 4 hour layover in Atlanta, and another hour flight to Lynchburg, VA ... the kids were a mess! Thankfully, it was 11:00 pm when we got to the hotel, so everyone went right to sleep. The rest of our time there was spent with family (my sister, Cami and her family) and friends (the "gang" from our days at Falwell Ministries). We loved every minute! Greg especially loved his Father's Day lunch at the local BBQ restaurant. The kids loved time with cousins Claire and Ella McBride and we ALL enjoyed Cold Stone Creamery!!! Greg and I love Lynchburg, it is place filled with great memories for both of us. We were glad Greg's job took us there for a few days.

After Lynchburg, we headed to the mountains of Asheville, NC to the Scenic Wolf Resort to stay a week with my family. What a blast!!! There was a great pool for the kids and the house was perfect for just sitting around and talking (and eating, of course!) A highlight of our week was dinner at "The Fiddlin' Pig" ... food was good, company was GREAT -- but it was AWESOME when the dancers pulled my Alexis and Collyn's Addysn onto the dance floor, they were so cute!!! Then, Ashley, Ava, Alivia and Shane got their chance to dance, too. It is priceless to see the cousins playing together and getting to know each other. My family has always been -- and will always be -- incredibly special to me. Our time together was amazing.

We stayed in Asheville at Collyn and Billy's house a few extra days to meet with my wonderful friend Jennifer Ramsey from our Fort Stewart/Richmond Hill days. She and I literally pulled one another through the deployments of our husbands (we did it by LAUGHING ... A LOT!). Our children are the best of friends ... and it was such a blessing for us to get to see them this summer!!!! We had a great few days.

Ended our trip in WV with the McVeys. Couldn't have asked for a better ending ... except that it made it REALLY hard for all of us to leave! Greg, his brother Dustin and I spent a day "in the trees" on a brand new zipline -- what a blast! The girls and I had great shopping day with Nanny and Aunt Kim ... and we enjoyed lots of trips to the Ansted Dairy King. The Fourth of July picnic with Greg's family gave him the opportunity to see many family members who we hadn't seen since before his deployment to Afghanistan. And Greg was able to share with his home church about our ministry and his time in the war zone. What a special time for us! I could go on and on! Oh! I forgot to mention about our "date day" ... when Greg's parents watched the kids for several hours so Greg and I could spend a day together. Amazing. We went out to eat (Olive Garden, yum), to Target (like Heaven!), to see a movie, and ended it all off with ice cream from Maggie Moos (do you all sense a theme of our trip -- the McVeys love ice cream!) It was a great day for Greg and me ... uninterrupted hours to talk, laugh and enjoy each other -- THANKS NANNY AND GRANDDAD!

Our return trip to Stuttgart was tough. Flew from Charleston, WV to Atlanta ... where our 4 hour layover turned into 6. Then, 9 hours on the plane to Stuttgart. Unfortunately, no one was able to sleep a whole lot. And we're still feeling the affects of jetlag. But it was worth it! We loved every minute of our trip and are incredibly grateful to both of our families for making it possible for us to spend time with them this summer.

Side note: While in the States, our church family in Gaffney, SC experienced a horrible tragedy. One of our precious members was gunned down in her home along with her daughter. Our hearts and prayers go out to our friends who are undoubtedly still dealing with this senseless loss. Thankfully, Ms. Hazel Linder is in Heaven with Jesus! We will see her again someday.

USA 2009

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Schools out!!!

Summer vacation has begun! Thursday was the last day of school for our kids ... and boy, did we party!!! The moms in the "neighborhood" got together and planned a celebration cookout, complete with hot dogs and ice cream ... and water games ... and kick ball. Of course, the weather did not cooperate. It was REALLY windy and in-between bursts of sunshine, the sky would darken and the rain would fall.

But that didn't stop this group of dedicated moms! Greg opened the Chapel Annex for us and we moved our party inside. It was a lot of fun. Living on post is a new experience for us. And it is great! The kids have made lots of great friends -- and there is never a lack of kids to play with. I'm also thankful for a group of really creative and fun moms ... they love to plan a good party! In fact, we had ANOTHER cook-out Friday night, to say goodbye to a couple of families moving back to the States, a birthday party at the craft center on Saturday -- and another birthday party at the bowling alley tonight. FUN!

The picture was taken at our celebration on Thursday during one of those bursts of sunshine.

Lost in Translation

Okay, so one night last week we decided to go the little restaurant here on post for dinner. It had just opened under new management ... and not a soul on the new staff speaks a word of English. We ordered Schnitzel for Shane and Donor Kebaps (kind of like a gyro) for the rest of us. When Greg's plate came out, it was covered in a large salad, pile of french fries and meat ... which we were expecting to be inside of some type of bread. Mine was. Ashley's was. Lexi's was. But not Greg's. So, he tried to explain. The waitress was clueless. But the cook came out (no, we were not making a scene ... it is a very small place. We were the only ones there at the time ... and we weren't upset at all, just trying to be understood.) Anyway, the cook was like, "oh, oh, ok!" He seemed to get it. We were happy. He disappeared into the kitchen with Greg's plate.

When he came back out a few minutes later, the meat was inside the bread, just like the rest of ours. However, we quickly noticed that the plate was empty and hanging out of his sandwich was EVERYTHING from the plate. Cucumbers ... tomatoes and lettuce ... AND FRENCH FRIES. We waited until the cook was gone before we just cracked up!!! And we've laughed about it ever since! I'm just sorry I didn't have my camera to take a picture of this very interesting concoction ... which, by the way, my husband DID consume!!! (After picking off the fries)

Sometimes, you just have to LAUGH.

A name came to mind last week. In fact, it often does. And although I can't tell you the name, I can share with you why this person ... someone I never had the opportunity to meet face-to-face ... made such a lasting impact.

It was Greg's first week of work as an Army Chaplain. He had just joined us in Richmond Hill, GA after being away for 3 months of training. He had also just received word that he would be deployed to Afghanistan in just 8 weeks, 3 of which would be spent on the "field" in training. To say the least, we were reeling. Desperately trying to deal with the overwhelming emotion. Those were some incredibly difficult days. And then, I heard her name.

Greg got a call one evening that one of his soldiers, deployed with a Military Police unit to Iraq, had been killed in a roadside attack. She was young. A newlywed. And it was his responsibility to do the death notification. He had to knock on a door and tell a young guy that his bride would not return home to him. My heart broke for the husband ... and for my husband, too. I thought about this girl and the sacrifice she had made for her country. It was like something out of a war movie -- except that is was real. And we were in the middle of it.

That week was like a fog to me. While trying my hardest to keep my morale up for the sake of my husband and children, I really wanted to just stay in bed. Greg did an amazing job. His training and genuine love and compassion for people came shining through. He ministered more than was required to the young widower and to the girl's hurting family. I helped him prepare what he would say at her memorial service and I remember how painful it was for me to type each word. When the day of the memorial service finally arrived, I was mentally exhausted and physically sick. Now, looking back, I think it was God's grace that I had a tremendous cold and no babysitter for Shane on that morning. I don't think it would have done a bit of good to see the emotionally fragile Chaplain's wife weeping uncontrollably at the memorial service. It was hard enough to listen to Greg recount the details!

Today, nearly 3 years later, it is still difficult to think back to the events of that week. Just days after the memorial service, Greg left for his field training. Not long after that, he was gone for 15 months to Afghanistan. I also know, looking back, that what happened in those first few days really impacted our ministry. Today, Greg is more respected by other soldiers because he has "been there, done that." We are both more sympathetic to the hurts and pains of soldiers and their family members. Sadly, there were more memorial services for Greg while he was in Afghanistan. And many opportunities to counsel with soldiers who were dealing with heartbreak, depression, even thoughts of suicide. Today, as I remember the name of the brave soldier who died in our first week of service as an Army Chaplain, I can also say I am thankful for what God took us through ... and how He did not leave us alone to suffer. We are more equipped to serve Him, and more assured of His constant presence and love. And I know I will never forget that name!