Happy Holidays

Hi all! We are very much enjoying our time here in the states. It is wonderful to see family and friends in the blessed Christmas season. This will likely be my last blog posting for a little while. We will return to Belize on Janurary 3, 2009, and will start back blogging then.

Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous new year to you all!
j/h/l/a

Home again!

Yes, the rumors are true, we are home. Sorry for being a bit secretive about it but we wanted to surprise some of our family and being that so many of us are very connected (which is a good thing), we had to keep most everyone in the dark to make the surprises possible. Well, it worked. We were able to show up at Church Alive and surprise Jeremy and Renee and their kids and we also shocked Sarah and her family last evening. It was really fun! We love being back home! The temperature is definitely a big adjustment though! The temps in Belize when we left were getting into the upper 80's to low 90's during the day and needless to say it is not quite that warm here! It is a nice change.

We are going to do our best to see as many of you as possible before we leave again (Jan 3). We has a great time at Church Alive this past Sunday an we are looking forward to worshipping with our friends and family at Restoration this Sunday. We will be traveling to Texas sometime next week to see some more of my family and to see Anna graduate from college!

We had intended on working a good bit to make some more money over the month but I am not sure how God is going ot work it all out. I was planning on working out of state but nothing worked out so God may be telling us to stay around family/friends this season and rest. God is a great provider and sometimes we need to beef up our spiritual and relational bank accounts as much or more than we need to our actual accounts with money.

Can't wait to see you all!

Thankful hearts

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! Needless so say this thanksgiving has been very different from any other we have experienced. Thanksgiving is not a Belizean thing, but because there are quite a few Americans who live here, they know some things about it. Because there are several American students and volunteers including us, and 3 British students, the Belizean staff here at Hillside wanted to share in a part of our culture by having a Thanksgiving dinner with all of the staff, students and volunteers. But because of our schedule, yesterday was better to get everyone there. We ate at a local resturant that overlooks the ocean. We ate some traditional turkey, ham, stuffing, cranberry sauce, with some local flare consisting of beans and rice and potato salad. We then enjoyed a variety of American, British and Belizean deserts. Although we missed being with our family at home, it was a really nice, neat experience.

I cannot and don't want to stop being thankful for all the things God has blessed all of us with. I hope you all have taken the time to tell first and foremost God, and then all of those you love how thankful you are for them. I am and will continue to be thankful for all of your friendships.

Tree house

We moved into the tree house that is located on the clinic compound today. I can't believe that we moved here a little over 2 months ago with only 4 bags and 2 backpacks and it took us TWO, that was 2 van FULL trips to bring everything we have accumulated! Absolutely unbelievable!... Anyways, the place is quite a mess right now but we are (well really Hannah is) working on it so it will be like home again really soon. I'll try to post some pics of it soon!

New opportunities

Hi all. Thank you to all who have kept me updated on your life. The web has its many evils but it also has its many positive parts too, especially keeping us all in touch.

Recently Hillside has been going through some leadership restructuring and Hannah and I have been offered the position as Clinical Directors for Hillside Health Care Clinic. They are also very interested in us extending the length of our commitment. We accepted the position but we told the board that we are no position right now to make a decision on whether or not we could stay longer than we have already planned.

We will oversee all clinical/medical aspects of the operation and well as continuing to serve the sick and poor of Belize hands on. Although this will certainly give us more responsibilities, it will also give us new opportunities to serve and bless others. Please pray for us as we transition into this position. Please also pray that Giod will open doors for us to share Jesus in new effective ways.

New video

Hi All. Check out the newest vid. It is a brief look into our ministry and life here!

Where do I start?

Sorry for there being such a gap between my last blog and now... we have be very, very, very busy. Too busy really. A lot has occurred in the past days so let me quickly catch you guys up. Roynel and the other little boy (Vicente) were able to get their surgeries this past Monday and I hear they are both doing well. I will try to get some after surgery pictures up when I can. We have been very busy this week, the whole Hillside team is really. This weekend is the dedication of Abby's house, our new dorm that will house all students and short term volunteers that come here. Abby Brinkman was a medical student that was here 3 years ago and was killed in a tragic swimming/boating accident one weekend. Her parents have raised funds to build this dorm in her honor. So for the dedication, most of the Hillside Board members and many guests from the states are coming in this weekend. This week nursing students from the states also came in and all their activities comsume ALOT of my time. This is all on top of the other responsibilities we have. Needless to say, we have been at times overwhelmed this week. I think (hope) things will calm a bit after next week. Lets see, what else. I know there is much more to tell you about but I am running short on time so this will have to do for now. We will likely be moving into the "tree house" on the clinic compound next week so we may have a little more internet availability.

So, what's up in your world? I would love you to reply to this post and let me know how you are and what all is going on...

Update on Roynel

Hi all! Remember the sweet little 5 mo (that has a cleft lip) whose picture is a few posts back? Well, we all found him today and have arranged to him to be evaluated in a town north of us this Sunday by a team of American specialist (with possible surgery early next week)! We are very excited! We are going to try to find another little one tomorrow in a very remote village to see if we can arrange the same for him. Please pray for their safety not only in travel but also during the operations if they occur.

Starting my 30’s and looking back at my 20’s

As most of you know this past Wednesday I turned the big 30. The day started with some fresh homemade cinnamon rolls delivered to our door by the neighborhood baker “Mr. Hugh” that Hannah had him make just for me! The rest was a wonderful day filled with many well wishes including a small clinic birthday party with lunch and cake. Then we had a great meal of homemade chicken nuggets and fries and COKE that we all enjoyed very much! Hannah and the kids also made me some really sweet cards and gave me some super sweet Belizean made chocolate. We finished the night with birthday-cupcakes and Belizean ice cream! It was a really great day, very special! Thank you to all who sent the many happy birthday emails, myspace comments/messages and the one person I got to talk to on Skype (you know who you are).

I have always (well at least for the past 10 years) have somewhat dreaded this birthday because I would be leaving my 20’s “the young age”. But as I look back on the past 10 years, although they have been fantastic, I know the next 10 in my 30’s are going to be equally great if not even better. Here are just a few things that have happened to me in the past 10 years (in my 20’s) not in a particular or exact chronological order:

I traveled to Chile for a medical mission trip

I got engaged to my best friend and love Hannah

I traveled to Kyrgystan (with Hannah) on a medical mission trip

I (with Hannah) spent a few days in London, England

I graduated from Nursing School

I got married to my best friend and love Hannah

I got my first nursing job (and met one of my best friends Chris)

I saw Hannah graduate from nursing school

My first child Lilyan Rain was born

We bought our first house

My first son Aidan Nathanael was born

I graduated from Nurse Practitioner School

I got my first NP job and met a lot of new friends (hi to all at RPC!)

I went on my first cruise

We sold our first house

I lived with my in laws for 3 months (which by the way was really great)

I moved with my family to another country! (where we are now meeting awesome people from all around the world and trying to heal hurts with the love of Jesus)

I would be remiss if I did not mention a few (or actually a lot more) highlight of the past 10 years. To Hannah, you have truly been THE highlight of my 20’s. You have loved me and been the “light in my gray” for every day of my last 10 years. I am who I am because you have been who you are to me; a beautiful, intelligent, compassionate, loving, encouraging, fun, (and hot and sexy) woman. You have helped me and been faithfully at my side through almost every significant stages of my life. You have gracefully and lovingly mothered my beautiful children and most importantly you have been my friend. I love you so much more…

Lily and Aidan have changed my life for the better in so many ways and I pray I that I have done and will continue to do the same for them. I love being a daddy to them. I am torn between looking forward to seeing them grow in the next 10 years and longing for them to stay my little babies… I love you both so much!

It has been such a joy, privilege and honor: seeing my older sister Sarah and her husband have 5 of her 6 wonderful children (Micah was born outside of this 10 year period) and seen them grow up so much as a sweet family. To see Naomi get married to a really cool guy Matthew (who by the way is awesome at ping pong), graduate from college as a teacher, see their first child Ava born, see Matthew graduate from college as a teacher, and to see them grow as a family. To watch Anna grow up into a lovely fun to be around woman (and who is about to graduate from college as a teacher too this December), and to see Bethany mature from my little baby sister into a smart, talented young lady. During all this, seeing my parents not only continue to nurture and love us kids but also take under their parenting wings so many foster children who they have helped and continue to help in ways they will never know this side of Heaven (I love you Mom and Dad).

I have to spend some time on whom I often refer to as “Hannah’s family”, although I definitely claim them as my own. My entire 20’s were around Hannah’s parents Cindy and Debo. I often wondered why they allowed me to “see” Hannah at first, maybe they saw something in me that I did not, but I am very grateful they did not count me out. These 2 people have accepted me into their wonderful family as one of their own. They have been there when my great parents could not and they have endlessly encouraged and supported me (and us as a family). To see Rachel’s family grow has been awesome, and to see her graduate from nursing school was also great. Jeremy and Renee… where do I begin. Although they were married before my 20’s, seeing their 3 great kids born and their family grow and to get to know them both and become like brother and sister has been so awesome and special. Jonah has also grown SO much in the past 10 years into a funny, intelligent young man.

During the entire years of my 20’s, I had the great privilege of being a part of a new and growing church. I grew more with Jesus because the influences of this church (particularly Bro. Freddie and Aunt Deb) than any one single thing in my life. I have best friends due in large part to people I met and lived life with there for so long. I cherish the years I was fortunate enough to lead the all many wonderful loving people there in worship. I will never forget those times… I would like to start naming the names (Allen, Larry) of all the people who have touched my life but it will take way too long and I know I would forget someone and feel bad. So to all of you who were ever in my cell group, on the servant team, or worship team (which by the way covers a LOT of people), and to ALL the other folks, you’re the best. (I also cannot forget to mention my Cornerstone friends who I met in my teens and missed for most of my 20’s: Joel, Dara and the rest of the clan; I miss you guys)!

On a sad note, I saw 2 very special people in my 20’s who I loved very much to go on to be with Jesus, my Nanny and my nephew Josiah. I miss you both.

Last but truly first, the years of my 20’s have been truly blessed by my Father and Friend Jesus Christ. I cannot imagine where I would be and how much I would have messed up all of the above great things in my life if it were not for His great grace and mercies on my life. I love you Lord and I commit the next 10 yrs into your hands.

So to all of you in my life, I look forward to what is in store for us all in my 30’s!

I love you all,

james

hi and prayer update

Hope all is well you all of you this weekend. We are good. Tomorrow after church we are going to be going to Big Falls (a small village near PG) to a lodge for a swim (if the weather permits) and dinner with some friends as a part of my birthday celebration. It should be really nice.

An update from my last blog: Avelina safely made it to and from Belize City this week. She was able to get the tests that we needed. Praise God that she does NOT have a brain tumor and her lab work was 100% normal!!! It looks like she had a non life threatening condition that will not require further treatment! I told her that many of my friends in the states would be praying for her and when I saw her yesterday she told me, "your friend's prayers must work"! Thank you all.

I am still working in getting Roynel where he needs to be... keep praying.

Pray continually

These are some new friends of ours who need your prayers. The little one is Roynel. This precious 5 month old little boy has several congenital defects. I am worried that he might also have a defect in his heart. I am trying to get him to see some specialists. Pray that I can find some and get him to them in a timely manner. Also pray that we gains weight.















This beautiful lady is Avelina. She has symptoms that strongly suggest a tumor in the base of her brain. She is actually traveling to Belize city as I write this for some crucial tests. (Thank You God for helping us to raise funds to pay for the tests). Pray that God would heal her by providing the funds to treat her condition.

TS 16... gone without damage

The tropical storm (# 16) passed us up to the south for the most part without damaging winds. It did produce a LOT of rain (like 10 inches in 24 hours) so some of the low lying areas and those near rivers had some flooding but nothing serious. Most of our mobile clinics that go to very remote areas of southern Belize had to be canceled last week due to impassable roads. Thank you all for the prayers.

new video and tropical depression

Hi everyone! Check out the newest vid from the polson production co. You'll love it, no doubt! Apparently there is a tropical depression (named # 16 I think) that is headed toward us. It should make landfall Friday morning possibly as a tropical storm and is likely going to produce lots of flooding and potentially some high winds. Please pray for the safety of the people of the area.

Rest for the weary

We spent this past weekend in Placencia, a small peninsula north of us. We had not planned on taking a break this soon but since Monday was a holiday we took advantage of the long weekend. Another reason we chose to go now is that there are two key personnel (natives of Belize) of the clinic and one long term volunteer that are all leaving the clinic within the next few weeks. We knew the one volunteer was leaving (we are taking on her responsibilities), but we just found out about the head nurse and clinic manager were leaving for other jobs. Anyways, we figured that things were about to become even more busy and ever harder for us to get away so we jumped at this opportunity. We had a really great time. No technology (well except out ipods), no stress, just plenty of God’s beautiful nature and our sweet family. Some student nurses and another volunteer family also stayed near by for the weekend. We really rested and got re-energized for our mission here!

Check out our vid about it!

This week Hannah is back to her clinic responsibilities and I am learning how to coordinate the student nurse portion of the clinic. The head nurse who is leaving does this now, so I suppose I will take this on too until she is replaced. Next week we will pretty much “be on our own” so to speak. I think we are ready…

Too busy to blog!

You know I have been busy if I have gone this long and not emailed or blogged! Last week was very, very busy with the HOPE event that I told you about on my last blog. We left early in the morning and usually got home at supper. I did not spend any time at the clinic last week so I was unable to email anyone or blog. Sorry about that. I really miss communicating with you guys when I can’t do it. So if I don’t blog or reply to an email, I promise it is not because I don’t love you! I am just really busy trying to be the best heart, hands and feet for Jesus that I can (or the internet is down)!

This past weekend and what’s up in our world

Hi there. Hope and pray all is well with you and yours. Sorry it has been a while since my last blog. We did not have internet access this past weekend and yesterday we were out of town all day. Let’s see, Saturday we did our big weekend shopping in the market (in the rain) and around town. It rained just about all day so the rest of the day we just chilled (well really more like sweated) at home. Sunday we slept late (8 am) and went back to the same church we went last week. Once we got there, the pastor approached me and officially asked if I would be interested in helping them by working with some of the “members” in developing a worship team (more or less) and by leading the worship/music when I could until a Belizean leader is ready or becomes available. I told him that I would be interested (thinking I would start next week) and he said “great, let me show you my guitar and our song book!” Apparently a visiting missionary gave him a guitar (a pretty nice one at that) sometime ago but he cannot play. He told me “I have the heart (for worship music), but no gift”. Anyways, Hannah and I picked out a few songs that we knew and we both led the congregation of ~ 20 in 4 songs. It was like old times in early Restoration days (almost like in cell group). It was fun. Everyone was very receptive and thankful. I think it will take some time for them to learn a different style of singing/worship. It had been quite some time since I had played for any extended period of time so my fingers hurt! I need to build up my calluses again.

Like I said, yesterday we were out of town all day. We left Punta Gorda at 5:00am to travel to Belize City (for some nursing licensing business) which is a ~5 hour drive by car and ~8-9 hour drive by bus. Fortunately one of the clinic’s Land Rovers needed servicing so we were able to kill 2 birds with one stone! We got back home about 7:00 pm ate a bowl of cereal and all went to bed. We were pooped!

We then got up early this morning and started our week here in PG. This week is going to be a bit different because Hillside is partnering with an organization called H.O.P.E (helping older people equally) in a week long health fair for every elderly person in PG and the surrounding area. Hannah and I will share our time with this HOPE event and our other clinic duties. Other than being very busy, we are all good. There is a visiting physician and her family from Alaska that have 2 kids (one of them a daughter that is very close to Lily’s age) so the kids have had a good time playing with them.

Family ministry

Hannah and I are very excited that Lily and Aidan are able to "help" us in ministering to the people of Belize. I think they have touched as many lives here as we have! When Hannah and I are not working together, one of the kids go with each of us. Lily and Aidan have already stolen the hearts of the clinic staff, patients and students!

Church in Belize

Yesterday we attended Christian Life Center in a little village outside PG. It is a small mission church started by some folks from North Carolina. They have a new Belizean pastor named Gideon. It was a neat experience. They are "looking" for someone to lead the music so who knows...

new video

We finally got a new video up yesterday. We'll try to get another one up soon!

My thought on cold showers

As I was showering last night my mind began to meander a bit. Hannah and I have discussed many times in the past what we would miss the most if we were to move to a developing country with lets say less than the normal comforts of home that we have come accustomed to. Hannah’s answer was without doubt air-conditioning, every time. Mine however after careful thought, was a hot shower. I love a really hot steamy shower. The hotter, the better. Well, we are here with neither (or very little) of the things we said believed we would miss the most. However, the interesting thing is that the things we thought we would miss the most are not what we miss the most after all! Not by a long shot. We miss the wonderful relationships we have with you, our family and friends.

Anyways, so as I was saying, here I am taking a cold shower (which by the way feels very nice when you are as hot as we are), and really not missing the hot water all that much, instead I was wondering what all of you were doing and wishing I could be there to do what ever you were doing with you (as long as whatever you are doing was appropriate for me to be doing with you [you get the point]). So I guess what I am saying is that whatever you say you believe to be true has to be tested to prove the accuracy of that truth. Hannah and I believed that God called us to serve in this manner, but you never really know until you test it. God may have told you something or planted something in your heart and you think or even believe it is what God wants you to do now in your life. If so, I encourage you to test it. God is a Big God. There are many references in scripture about testing God, faith etc. You see, now I know for sure what I miss the most. I could have gone my whole life “believing” that I would miss a steamy shower more than your company, but you know, I would not have known that unless I tested what I thought I believed. One of my favorite songs is Sanctuary: “Lord prepare me, to be a sanctuary, pure and holy, tried and true; with thanksgiving, I’ll be a living, sanctuary for you”. Trials and tests bring refinement, truth and clarity to life, so come on and give what’s in your heart a try; you may just find what you are looking for!

new pics

Hi All! Check out the new pics in the slideshow!

from my heart to yours

As I blogged yesterday, we are still alive and well. Sorry for not blogging sooner than this. The clinic depends on satellite for internet, and many things such as bad weather (common here), etc can affect connectivity. This was the case at the end of last week. Also, this weekend Belize celebrated its 27^th year of independence from British government. This obviously is a very big holiday here (the biggest in Belize) so everything including internet café’s were shut down through Monday. We joined in the celebration by going to their independence parade on Sunday. It was a great cultural experience.

I am looking forward to being able to blog more often to share with you all what God is doing in and through us here in Belize. As I have shared with some of you before, we will be moving onto the clinic grounds as soon as the construction on the new dorm is complete (maybe in a month or so). Living on the clinic compound is going to be a good thing in many ways. We often feel a bit disconnected from the community we are serving and serving with living outside town and 7 miles from the clinic. Living near the clinic will also help Hannah and I be able to “work” and care for Lily and Aidan at the same time, all the while allowing Lily and Aidan participate in caring for the sick and poor of southern Belize alongside us. Being that the clinic has internet access, as unreliable it can be at times, I will have more time to be able to blog and keep us with you guys.

I can honestly say most if not all of you reading this take for-granted the freedom and access you enjoy to be able to talk, whether it is by phone or in person to your friends and family whenever you want. I know Hannah and I took it for-granted UNTIL now. I am very grateful for being able to “talk” to you here and through emails and other arenas such as myspace, facebook, and the very occasional phone call. It really, really helps us, much more than you will ever know.

I know most if not all of my blogs since we have been here in Belize have been “informational” which is all well and good, but I really want to go a step further. I want to be able to share with you what God is saying to me and Hannah, and to receive feedback on what God is saying and doing in your life. Being here has “made” Hannah and I depend on God in ways we have not before. I say “made” because dependence on anything beyond our self is not human nature, but it is God natured. Out of this dependence, I am praying that God will speak to me and “change” areas of my life that need changing, strengthen areas that I am weak in, and tear down walls that I have built that are keeping me from being in the center of God’s will and purpose of my life.

We pray every night for you and your families. Please do the same for us. Being in an environment that is so different (and uncomfortable) than what we are use to, we are fighting the “survival” mentality (just make it through the next 12 months) and running and striving toward the “striving” (passionately seeking all that God wants to teach us and how he wants to use us while we’re here) mentality. I will tell you, this is a struggle for us daily and your prayers are coveted. Pray for our safety (although we do not feel necessarily unsafe, we all the time do net feel completely safe). Pray for our health (both physical and emotional). As some of you well know, homesickness can be worse than the flu! Most importantly, pray that we would be used. That we would be the heart, hands and feet of Jesus to each and every Belizean we come in contact with.

I will try to post more pictures soon!

Still doing good in Belize...

Our internet at the clinic has been down for the past 5 days so hence not blogging/answering emails in a while. I have a lot to blog but no time right now. We are in an internet cafe now so we don't have much time! Hope all is well with all of you. We are very busy getting oriented to the kinds of "work" we will be doing. I will blog much more later and post more pics soon! We love you all!

Adjusting to a new culture

We are quickly approaching our first week here in Belize. We knew life here was going to be different but I can honestly say we were not 100% (maybe 45%) prepared for what we were going to experience. Fortunately, the staff here at Hillside have been very gracious and have allowed us this week (while our licenses' are being processed) to take it all in slowly, find our way around town and get the hang of market/shopping.

Yesterday we all went to a senior citizen function in town with a organization that Hillside partners with, where Hillside students taught about healthy living. We will start a more steady work schedule next week. It looks like among many things, I am going to be taking over the home visit program which is being coordinated by a very Godly FNP that has been here for the past year but who is leaving mid October. I will have more details on exactly what Hannah and I will be doing at a later date.

Our power has been out for the past 24 hours but should be back on very soon. Fortunately (I believe due to Lily's prayers) the weather has been a bit cooler at night!

Pics

Ready to fly!

Awesome scenes from the plane

Our home (at least for now)

Our sweet ride

Waving hi to passer-byes

We found that frozen towels help with the heat!

aka "PG"

This is about 1 mile from where we are living in PG

Many one car bridges here

Road to clinic (very bumpy)

The clinic (gray build is new dorm construction)


The "tree house" at the clinic (our future home)

Offices/conference room

The PG market

Grocery store

Downtown PG

Hello from Belize!!!

We made it safely to Belize late Saturday evening. Everything (flights and drive to PG) went very well. Thanks to all for your prayers!!! Sorry for taking so long to let all know we're ok. We just got to the clinic that has internet access today. We are staying in a house in town that is ~ 7 miles from the clinic grounds. It is VERY VERY VERY HOT and humid! It stormed pretty good last night and it is raining even as I write.

I think (actually I am sure we are) experiencing "culture shock." It is going to take us a while to get use to no ac and no TV. We are soo spoiled! Please pray for us. We toured the clinic and did some preliminary orientation. We are about to try to find our way back to and around town. we are out of food so we are about to experience the market. I will post some more pictures later on this week.
j/h/l/a


Ready to fly!

Merry Christmas...?

Yes, you heard it correctly. This past weekend we had an early Yates family christmas for the kids complete with tree and lights! Although it was a little different and certainly not cold, we all had a really special time.

Hillsong United

WOW! Hannah and I had such an awesome experience this weekend. I think God used this weekend to speak into us and to fire us up for this coming year! It is such a cool thing to worship passionately with 6,000+ people who are fired up about God and His plan. We sang so loudly and worshiped so hard that I nearly lost my voice and Hannah could hardly get out of bed the next morning! We also heard some really powerful and timely words from God from Brian and Joel Houston, Phil Dooley, and others!



One thing I love about Hillsong United is their focus on the inseparable connection between worship and justice. As many of you know, this is the heart of my family. To worship God with all that we are , not only with songs, but also with action. The action in our heart is to provide health care to those who do not have access to it. Our prayer is that Jesus would be seen and be lifted high through our words and actions.



I realized just how much I miss "leading" the church in worship musically this weekend. Boy do I miss it! I pray that one day I will have the opportunity to do it again. Although I know that God has called me to be a worship "leader", I realize that for now, the stage on which I lead has changed. My prayer is that I continue to lead the church in worship as we are His hands and feet in foreign lands. Though we might be many miles apart, you too will be His hands and feet so that our hearts and hands might me raised together in praise and adoration to the One Great God!

It's official...

Well, we have purchased airline tickets to Belize so it is pretty much official that we are going. We fly out EARLY September 13 from Jackson. We are very busy trying to plan/figure out what all we need to take/pack etc. Please pray for us in the next few weeks b/c it is going to be hectic!

Texas family

We made it safely to south east Texas late Tuesday night after a very long 2 day drive from California. It is really good to spend some time with my parents and youngest sister Bethany. Lily and Aidan are also really enjoying seeing their nana-puddin and grand-dad. Today we visited my "papa" Keefer who is in poor health. I think he might have known it was me, but either way it was good for us to see him.




Hannah and I will be traveling to Houston in the morning to attend a Hillsong United Worship conference over the weekend. It will be good for Hannah and I to have a little time to ourselves! We are looking forward to participating in some awesome worship and soaking up some relevant teaching. It should be a LOT if fun!

Fun at the zoo/heading home

Well, it's really hard to believe that it had been 6 weeks since we've been here in Long Beach! Time has really flown by. Yesterday was my last day of my contract. God really opened up opportunities for me to work many more hours that expected which really helped us raise more funds for the next year in Belize which we are very thankful for, but it really took it toll on all of us. So to have a little fun, we all went to the L.A. zoo today. We had a really great time on our last day in sunny southern California. As you can see, Lily was a bit shocked about a certain "part" of the chimp exhibit. :)

















Aidan telling us just how tiny this baby "deer" was (he then went on to tell us that uncle Jeremy "shoots deer").

We head back toward Mississippi bright and early in the morning so please pray for our travel safety. We will make a few stops in the next week or so including spending some time with my family in Texas and attending a Hillsong United Worship/Missions conference. We should be back in Mississippi late August/early September.

Back together again!

Hannah and the kids safely made it back to California this past Sunday and I am SOOOO glad! I missed them terribly. Isn't is funny how we always take some of the most important things (like family, friends etc) for-granted UNTIL they're not there anymore! Why do we do this? Is it human nature? Whatever the reason, I am so grateful for and in love with Hannah and our babes Lily and Aidan, and I am forever thankful to God for bringing them back to me! When we are together as a family, wherever we are, it feels like home!

shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, shake your building?

I experienced my first earthquake this morning. By the time it registered in my head that an earthquake was occurring it was over. It measured 5.4 and lasted ~15 seconds. We also felt 4-5 smaller after shocks. This was the largest quake in quite some time in the L.A area. Thankfully I am ok and there was minimal damage in the Long Beach area. Yet another thing on my ever growing list of things that are different in California.

"We love Josiah..."

As most of you know, Josiah, our 12 year old nephew went to see Jesus Tuesday. Our entire family misses him so much. JoJo was such a big part of the whole family. We traveled back to Mississippi to be with our family and for the funeral on Tuesday and I flew back to Long Beach alone Sunday night for work. Hannah and I would like to say thank you so much to all of those who prayed, called, sent myspace messages, brought food, came to visitation/funeral, etc. We really felt your love.

Aidan's birthday

3:01pm 3 years ago yesterday our sweet "big boy" Aidan was born. We had a party for him at a park per his request and ate hot dogs for supper (also his request). He asked several times about "my friends" which was kinda sad (because we are here in California alone) but we had a good time anyway. See video bar for a short clip.

First day on the job

Today was my (James) first day at my new job at Long Beach's Miller Children's Hospital in their Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). As with any "new" thing, it was a bit stressful, but I made it ok. It is a very BIG and BUSY place. I won't be bored to say the least.

Hannah and the kids also spent their first full day in Long Beach. They filled their day by checking out the hotel amenities, the surrounding area, and organizing our "home". Lily and Aidan played well together, so that helped. Thanks everyone for your prayers for safe travel etc. They worked!!!

July 4th in San Diego

We're enjoying some fun time with family in San Diego. We arrived here around lunch today. We had a BBQ/cookout where we swam and hungout. We then watched a great fireworks display. I was reminded today of just how I appreciate the awesome job our military does everyday both here and abroad. Hannah has 2 cousins Daniel and Lance who are in the military. Lance is on active duty and is in Iraq right now. He will be home this fall. He like many many other brave men and women are protecting us today in other countries away from their homes and families while we are celebrating the independence of our great country. God bless America!

Cool in California

We made it to Sacramento last night (after 16 hours in the car) where I got my California RN license this morning. We decided to change plans a bit and traveled to BEAUTIFUL (and very cool as in cold) San Francisco where we saw some sights and took in some local cuisine. We then traveled down hwy 1 which follows the pacific coastline to Monterey CA where we'll get some much needed rest. We probably have not encountered temperature above 70 degrees today (ranging from 50-70 in the daytime)! We had to breakout our jackets! We'll head to Long Beach tomorrow.


Aidan being goofy trying to pass the time in the car.


You know your bored when you fall asleep picking your nose!


Two beautiful sights!


View from our tour boat.


View from the car on hwy 1.

Monday drive....

Well, we made it safely to our next stop, Gallup, NM. We left at 4:30 am from east TX and arrived here (west NM) ~16 hrs later. Besides Aidan's bout with car-sickness (several times), we actually had a really nice trip. New Mexico is very beautiful!


This was the scene for 75% of the trip (everyone asleep but me).


This is what our car looked like before Hannah "repacked". This car was actually traveling on the interstate!!! CRAZY!

Ping-Pong Padawan

For those of you who are not up on your star-war lingo, a "padawan" is a person who is chosen to train under a Jedi Knight/Master. This weekend, I was chosen to train in the advanced art of ping-pong (aka table tennis), under the master Matthew Quick (my brother-in-law). We had a blast! I won like maybe 3-4 times out of ... uh like 30 matches or so. Not bad for a young padawan like myself. We also played "doubles" with Naomi and Anna. They have been training with the master for some time now so their skills are pretty sweet. I had a great time... thanks Table Tennis Master Matthew.

First leg sucessful

Well, we made the first leg of our trip to Long Beach, CA safely to Naomi and Matthew's {and Anna and Ava} home in Hallsville, TX. We arrived here ~10pm last night. We have already had a great time spending time with family. We will leave out toward the next stop of our trek early Monday morning...

Last day at the clinic...

I cannot believe it has been a year since I started as a Nurse Practitioner at Richland Primary Care! I have learned so much since starting and have gained so many great friendships. This past week has been full of sweet goodbyes, many with tears from both staff and patients alike. I will never forget this experience. Thank you to all the staff at Richland Primary Care!!!

Care-free dancing

Bro. Freddie presented some great teaching and insight yesterday on how "worry" will kill your joy. This was a very timely word for me as God has been dealing with me about this over the past few weeks. I have been carrying a lot of "stress" for the past many months and I have essentially handed Satan my joy. One of Lily and my favorite songs is the "Cinderella Song" by Steven Curtis Chapman. We love to dance together and sing to the top of our voices. The opening lines goes: "she swings and she sways, to whatever song plays, without a care in the world; and I'm sitting here wearing the weight of the world on my shoulders". I can relate to this so much. So many people (myself included) allow the cares of this world to steal "our joy for today". I want to be 100% present to my family and friends, but this is not possible when I "worry" about the past and/or future. The funny thing is that we named Lily with inspiration from the passage from Matthew 6 "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these".

I was thinking on these things on my drive to work this morning and an old song from my childhood came to mind; "I cast all my cares upon You, I lay all of my burdens, down at Your feet, and anytime I don't know, what to do, I will cast all my cares upon You". I commit and I hope you will also, to cast my cares upon Him, for he cares for me (us), and dance care-free and enjoy the blessings of God today, "...for all too soon, the clock will strike midnight, and she'll be gone."

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own (Matthew 6:34 NIV)".