Reflections of 2008

We have had a great year all in all!

In the beginning of 2008, we were getting used to the idea that we were going to be moving far away. Shawn had just found out about 6 weeks prior that Kelloggs would like to send him overseas to England to do R & D there. It was actually on Christmas day last year that we broke the news to the kids. There was a mixed reaction, but generally a sense of excitement.

Braaten turned 10 in January - double digits!! That's a milestone birthday. That means in just a few days, she'll be turning 11! Wow!

The next few months were filled with preparations for the big move. We had a house to prepare to sell, two kitties to find a new home for, a dog to find a temporary home for, and trips back home to say goodbye to family and friends. 

In April, I took my dear friend, Sarah, back home to NJ with me to meet friends and family there. She really wanted to see where I grew up and also to enjoy the Big Apple. We had a grand time. We even went to see The Lion King on Broadway with my sister, Denise. Denise also took us on a whirlwind tour of NYC in her car. She can drive with the best of them! I would even venture to say that if she aspired to be a NYC cab driver, she would be one of the best!

Later we parked our car and walked through a part of Central Park. Having grown up so close to New York, you would not have guessed that it was my first time visiting the park. It was beautiful and I loved every minute of it. 

In May, we had movers come to our house to pack everything up - some went to storage, some was packed  to be sent by "air" shipment and the rest was packed up into "sea" storage. The air freight would get to us in a couple of weeks and the sea container would reach England in 6 weeks or more. It took the movers 5 whole days to sort everything out. That's a long time!

Once that was all done, we stayed at the Holiday Inn in Battle Creek for 4 or 5 days until we hopped on a plane to Manchester. That week was filled with difficult goodbyes, but we made it through. Austin had a baseball game and said farewell to all of his friends that he'd been playing sports with for 4 or 5 years. That was really hard for me to see. I was the one crying as the boys were running around the bases all together, while jumping on each other's backs and falling down. They were really sweet. 

I've been blogging since about August as you have probably read, and God has seen us through every aspect of this journey. 

He is my strength and my song. Without Christ, I believe this journey would have been so much more difficult. Actually, without Him, I would be nothing. Shawn and I rely upon Him to see us through. We want to do His will and walk in His ways.

That's my prayer for 2009, that we would do as it says in Matthew 6:33 - "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." 

God Bless!