So, I sat down tonight with one task and one task only…to post on our blog. I must admit that I have had the intention of putting up a new post since December, but couldn’t find the time. However, I did stumble upon my sister-in-laws blog (which was also at a standstill until recently) and felt that if SHE can find the time to make a blog entry with a 2 year old and an infant…surely I can do the same – thanks for the motivation Courtney ☺
As many of you know, we spent Christmas and New Years in the U.S. For the first week, Rob and I were in Tacoma with his whole family (including 5 nieces and nephews – 2 and under) and had a WONDERFUL time. The Lord has blessed us with two church bodies here in Munich, but it was so special to be able to attend Faith’s Christmas Eve service with the Rayburn clan. Sadly, hymns aren’t sung too often over here…so being able to listen to our favorite Christmas hymns and other choral arrangements was a real blessing (especially having the opportunity to hear Courtney sing the Magnificat – it was beautiful!). The second part of our trip to the U.S. was spent in Florida. Unbeknownst to Rob and me, both of my sisters (and brother-in-law) were able to come down to Florida during our stay so that the whole family could be together. In addition to being able to see all of my family, Rob and I were also able to connect with Amy and Andrew Allen (friends from Covenant Seminary). It was so nice to be able to spend time with our family and friends relaxing in the “warmer” weather before coming back to snow!
One thing you should know if you travel from the U.S. to Germany is that it takes around a week to get over jet lag. (Just a side note – right before Christmas I signed a contract with a private day care center to be a Native English speaking teacher). Since I was unaware that it took so long to recover from jet lag, I scheduled my first day of work to start 3 days after returning from the U.S. To say that my 1st day of work was difficult would be an understatement. Lets just say that jet lag = No Sleep = Tylenol PM = Not hearing alarm = Waking up at 8:18 and needing to be at work by 9 (with a 30 min commute) = Not Ideal = RUNNING out the door → Having incorrect directions from the website = walking 15 min the wrong way = Slight breakdown and getting to work 20 min. late. I think that sums it up… Haha.
The good news is that the Director was very understanding (regarding my/the computers lack of navigational skills) and was happy that I made it into work. All in all, I really enjoy working at the day care center. There are two other German-speaking teachers in our classroom and we have around 12 children. As I mentioned before, I am the Native English-speaking teacher so I can only speak English to the kids. I’m actually surprised at how much English they understand and how much German I am picking up as I hear them ask the same questions every day. I’m sure that I will have some good stories working with 1 and 2 year olds, so I will keep you posted ☺
Lastly, Rob and I went to Landstuhl, Germany last weekend so that he could preach at Trinity Reformed Church (a mission church of the PCA). I must admit that I was somewhat intimidated by this weekend as it was my first “preacher’s wife” scenario. Upon arriving Saturday night, we were taken out for dinner with one of the elders and another couple from the church. Any nervousness that I might have had going into the weekend was certainly gone by the time we finished dinner – we had such a lovely time. The next day Rob preached a wonderful sermon from Habakkuk, we had lunch and then returned to Munich.
Some of my favorite moments:
Walking home one night from work as it is snowing…feeling the snow crunch beneath my feet, smelling the wood burning fires and hearing the church “gong” in the background. You can’t really get that in the states ☺
Rob telling Markus (an elder from the FEG church that picked us up from the airport) that we would be bringing back 6 pieces of luggage. Now that might not seem interesting until you realize the German/ English differences when writing 6. Since 6 sounds like “zex” in German and the “s” is pronounced like a “z”, Rob wrote that we would be bring back sex luggage instead of “sechs.” Switching from language to language really does a number on you…and makes life a little more humorous ☺
Growing in our love and appreciation for the unity of the church. Being able to go to the U.S., Munich, Landstuhl and commune with believers is such an incredible gift that the Lord has given the church.
***Updated pictures coming in a few days ***
Miles to Heaven 
