I wanted to blog last night after our trip here, but after meeting Sam and Mala for dinner and getting the kids in bed I was exhausted.  For that reason and many more we will just start fresh this morning!

I have no idea what day it is or what time it is and frankly it's all a little confusing.  I haven't reset the watch on my wrist so I'll know what time it is in Arkansas still, but my brain for the life of me can't remember if the time on my watch i;/s p.m. or a.m.  I am sorry if in fact I did text you in the a.m.  I got a few out before Jason noticed and said you realize what you are doing?  

Okay going to give you an Anita Renfroe song version of the last 3 days.  If you haven't ever heard her "mom" song google it :)  You can thank me later.  Basically this is all going to run together.  It may or may not be in chronological order, or even be complete sentences but I don't want to forget any of it.  Just try to follow along. 

We, (Jason), realized the night before we left that the extra bags over our allotted two per person (I'll do the math-16-because I want my brain to start functioning soon) was going to be $200 per bag.  We had 6 extra.  We, (Jason), also realized the morning we left that our flight was at 2:30 not 3:30.  Bummer.  The ladies at the AA counter only charged us $510 for our extra bags….we were given a gift of $500 the night before.  Remember that's when we found out about the extra charge.  God was answering our prayers before we even knew the prayer.  WAIT. WAIT. WAIT.  STOP THE MUSIC.

I want to make sure I get this out clearly:  I am so blessed!!  No really.  The friends and family that showed up at the airport, the encouraging words and notes people gave me, the ones who I know wanted to be there and couldn't, every single prayer and tear didn't go unnoticed.  It will be a constant picture in my mind that will never be forgotten.  This is when I want to stand up at the pulpit and tell the church body "If you don't feel connected, it's not because it's not available.  It's because you haven't plugged yourself in somewhere!"  Now back to the song.

People, traveling/moving with 6 children across the world will never, for this family anyway,  look like this graceful goodbye with only a baby doll and a few rollie bags.  We barely made it to the top of the escalator/elevator and our stroller toppled over and all the car seats and bags when flying across the floor.  Lets just say by the 4th flight, and that happening oh say 5-2,000 more times, we had that baby down.  I wish I had tally marked the "looks" and "comments" we got going through the airports.  It was very comical ask Roland Weber. :)  He was coming off the plane we were going on and he was just laughing and laughing.  In a good way.  It was making me laugh that he was so tickled.  God knew I needed that, too.  Well, here goes some highlights of the trip: Mia threw some fits, at one point a man in the row in front of us looked at his neighbor and said well this isn't going to work.  Ruthie couldn't keep her feet down and pushed and kicked the whole way there.  I figured I should offer a pedicure to go along with the vibrating chair, but I'm not sure the peeps she sat behind would've found that amusing.  Kreyton, sound asleep, almost took out the flight attendants knees when he stretched his legs straight out in the isle at the exact moment He walked by.  This didn't seem to appear to be amusing to said flight attendant either…why am I the only one laughing here.  Oh I know, because if not I would've been rocking on the toilet in the back of the plane.  The rest of the boys seemed to be doing okay.  On one flight Gav was sitting/sleeping by/on/all over me and I tried to wake him to reposition my legs so the blood would flow again and he just laughed and smiled, in his sleep.  For crying out loud…the only laugh I get and he was incoherent.  Lets just say we were ushered (rushed) to the front of a couple lines and NO ONE yelled "they are cutting" or "excuse me the lines back here." Go figure.  ???  One security line I had to actual taste the baby food in the diaper bag.  Luckily it was blueberries and pears….if I had even thought I would have licked it and grabbed my throat immediately but again….I was laughing because I thought this isn't really happening.  I am not sticking my nasty finger in baby food and licking it, in the middle of the London airport, with 10 million viewers watching on….  Now mind you by the time we arrived in Malawi on Sunday (we left on Friday) I am pretty sure that not only did we look like "carneys" but we smelled like them.  No offense.  I was never more thankful to see dry land and a shower except for the time we went 4 days without a shower in the mountains of Honduras :) That about sums up the trip except a few more fits, crying, laughing, and being able to share what God was up to with on lookers, innocent bystanders, and a few flight attendants.  I may or may not have left out some contents of this story to protect the victims, your ears and dreams at night.   

Other than Mia dropping a glass at dinner (no plastic kids size drinks with lids) and it shattering in a million and one pieces all over the floor, I would say that has been the extent of our trip.  We stayed at the American Bible College last night because we have to get supplies today for Esther's House (EH) and it would've been dark by the time we got there anyway.  So we haven't actually made it there or our house yet, but Lord willing this evening.  Tomorrow at the latest.  

Prayers at this point:  The rest of our baggage shows up, my head "junk" will clear up (my throat feels like razor blades, but hey better a razor blade on the inside than the out) we all catch up on our sleep, God ordains our time and meetings before Josh and Kristin have to return to the states, and that most importantly people will see Jesus in and through us! 

Stayed tuned….there's lots more to come.

Lacey