THREE!!!!!

If you have been reading my blog since we moved, or for any length of time you perhaps know what this title is about. You can look back here and here and even here to see where I have chronicled the time stamps of this journey we are on.  

Today is a big milestone for us.  We have now lived overseas for 3 whole years.  I think at the outset of this adventure I wasn't sure we would make it this long.  There have been lots of difficult days, but also many days of triumph.  There have been days of longing for family and "home" and days where we have felt we wouldn't want to be anywhere else but here in Asia.   We have truly been blessed to live here and have one of the most amazing experiences of our lives. 

We have made amazing friends and relationships here, more than we ever dreamed.  We have learned a lot about ourselves and seen so many ways we can grow and change to follow our Lord even more.

I want to say "thank you" to those of you who have continued to support us and love and encourage us through prayers, emails, and encouraging words.  Our family has been a constant support to us and has encouraged us in so many ways, from packages, to phone calls, to sending pictures, to actually coming to see us!  We have been so blessed over the last 3 years to have so many visitors as well. Our TN friends are always welcome in our home....we are so blessed to have so many new TN friends and relationships!!  Christmas teams from OH and MO were soooo fun and my kids still talk about the amazing performances we were able to do together! :)  As I relflect on all the events and fun from the last 3 years I am overwhelmed with the Father's faithfulness not just to us, but to the people we serve.  

So now that 3 years is behind us, we continue to count....for we are not through here, only just beginning.  However, we are about to take a break and come home for 6 months.  So for a little while, we are going to be counting down the days until we go home!  July 1 is coming soon!!

Suprise Visit to the USA!!

I was truly blessed at the beginning of this month to make a quick trip to Oklahoma!  My brother, Ryan, and I were given the opportunity to travel home and help my mom celebrate her 60th birthday.  We had a wonderful time seeing people and catching up with so many loved ones.  It was truly amazing to be in Oklahoma again, but sad to not share it with Rob and the kids.

Here are Ryan and I leaving our city, you can see the characters of our city between our heads, can you read it?

 Here we are....almost to TX!!! We documented every leg of our trip...we are a little awkward.

 Hooray for seeing Dad!!! He faithfully picked his wayward children up from DFW airport and brought us back up I-35 for a familiar passage back into OKLAHOMA!!  By the way, Ryan did take a picture of the OK sign as we entered....but he is yet to send it to me.   I was sad Rob wasn't with me, so I called him and was talking with him so we could enter OK together.....kind of.

 Suprising my mom!!! And she was suprised, never expecting us to come from Asia to her birthday party.

 My family....those who were present.  Back row: me, Ryan.  Front Row: Grandma Veta, Mom, Reagan, Heather. 2 cute kids: Reese and Ty

 My other family....more were present, just not in the picture (Rikki and Tom).  Bob and Donna Olmstead, me, 4 cute nieces: Ashley, Abigail, Ainsley, and Audrey.

 Me and my Grandma.  Yea for seeing and spending a short time with her!!  (and Ty hangin' out with his great-grandma)

 The birthday girl and her cake

 I don't think I have ever participated in a family event where I didn't sing. So, in keeping with traditions, the Wagoner kids sang/played the guitar together.  I will tell you that Reagan and I started out sharing a microphone but that didn't last long.  Let's just say we don't share well.....and he was breathing Chili's salsa breath on me. Brothers......

We are really looking forward to our time home the second half of this year and know we will love seeing and spending lots of time catching up with so many friends and loved ones. I am so thankful for the time I got to spend at home, but really missed Rob, Hannah, and Hudson!!

Calzone Party

I will never have a recipe/food blog.  But today, I am going to talk about food.

I am soooo thankful for those who do have food blogs. Obviously, the Pioneer Woman is one of my favorite places to find excellent recipes, but my most frequented cooking blog is from a girl who lives in this country and buys everything from a market like I do.....and makes it without a box or a can.  As you can imagine, that can prove challenging. I have always been the "I'll bring the paper goods" kind of girl.  And as my college roommates can attest, I only knew how to cook in the microwave. Moving overseas has forced me to learn how to REALLY cook.  I enjoy finding everything I need in the market and then making sauces and breads and all sorts of good things from scratch.  Lots of excellent tips have also come from my good friend B who lives in this town with me and has several more years of cooking experience.

Tonight we are having one of our favorite meals. Calzones. And we are having some local friends over, so it will be a PARTY.  This is such a great party meal becasue everyone gets to put together their own calzone just the way they like it and requires little preparation.   All you have to do is make the dough and put out all the special toppings in bowls, allow each guest to role out their own dough and top their own calzone.....and then you bake.  Very fun and very easy!!  Tonight we are having chicken, pepperoni, green peppers, onions, mushrooms, sausage,  and cheese. 

Let me just say after a week of living in the countryside we are ALL ready for a little (or maybe a big) CALZONE. 

What is your favorite "meal for a crowd"?  (I always need new ideas!)

In the Country

The last week of our lives was spent out in the countryside with some wonderful people from Tennessee.  We always love when our Tennessee friends visit!  Especially when my brother, Reagan, is among them. 

Living in the countryside is always an adventure.  It is not for the faint of heart.  There are fleas/bugs/unknown biting things in the covers (just ask a few of my family members). There are very dirty floors.  There are no western toilets and your shower just flows into the toilet.....causing you to not be particularly thrilled to take a shower.  The bathroom smells like the choir tour bus after 14 days of touring. The key to your room sometimes works, sometimes doesn't.  There are loud noises from trucks, dogs, pigs, trucks, horns, trucks....ALL DAY AND NIGHT! 

However, there is a very sweet lady who runs the "hotel" and has been there for all of the last 3 years that we have been there.  She is kind to us and we have become friends with her. She always comments how amazing it has been to watch our language improve and has told us we are her first friends that are foreigners.  We got to talk about many wonderful things with her this last week.  She makes it all worth while. 

Open Letter

Dear Mr. Sunshine,

You haven't made an appearance in weeks.
Every shoe is soaked and muddy.
It has rained for days.
It is cold again, in and out of the house.

I know in a few months we will be sweaty and hot, but for now, please come out.
We miss you,
O Fam

Village Driver

Tonight was my night to travel out and visit with some girls in a small town.  I stayed later than normal, way after the last bus had already departed.  One of my friends has a new home and wanted to make dinner, meaning I would be late.  My plan was to take a taxi for the hour drive home. Upon arrival this afternoon, I walked to the center of town where taxis hang out.  I scoped out the drivers and found a lady....I didn't want to drive back after dark with a man I had never met.  She agreed with me on a price and that she would pick me up after dinner and take me home.
A little before 8pm I called her, and 15 minutes later I was in her car.  I knew it was going to be interesting after the first 5 minutes in the car.  Here are a few of my highlights:

1. The driver's husband came along for the drive.  Apparently both are drivers.....and the hour drive might require the 2nd driver, at least that's what they said. 

2. When I called Rob to tell him I was on my home, the driver's husband leaned forward and said,
man: "Wow, I didn't know you could make calls to another country from your phone." 
me: "What?!?!"
man:  "You just called a foreign country and it was so fast and clear." 
me: "Oh no I didn't. I called my husband who is in the next town. We live here."  
man: "But you were speaking English....."   
In other words, as logic would require, a phone call where English is spoken has to be going to another country.

3. On a cold dark, rainy night, it is imperative to use the defrost feature in the car. My driver and her husband spent half of the time trying to figure it out. Finally they rolled the windows down, so then we were all cold, but the driver could see out the windows.....at least the last 1/2 hour.

4. The best part of the evening was when we were about to go through the toll gate to get onto the highway and I discovered something.  My driver was having her first highway driving experience......on a dark, cold, rainy night.....WITH ME IN THE CAR!   Several times I thought about demanding to drive. Especially when the husband was halfway in the front seat with us trying to get the defrost to work and she was weaving all over the road.......I was pretty sure I wouldn't make it home.  Thankfully I made it safely, and she felt good about her new experience.

And yes, they really are villagers who took me to the big city tonight......for the first time.  Boy do I know how to pick 'em.

My Best Friend

This week I had a very bad horrible rotten terrible awful day. And then the next day was also bad.  No details are needed but dissapointment, frustration, and sadness showed their ugly faces this week.  Through it all, my very best friend and helpmate was there with me.  I can't tell you how thankful I am to have someone who is always on my side, always looking out for my best interests, always willing to sit in the darkness, hold my hand, and cry with me.  Someone who is my biggest fan, my greatest encourager, and my wise counselor.

And someone who loves me enough to take me away to the "Big City" for pizza and a movie for a day, leaving homeschooling, children, and daily life behind (thanks Ryan for staying with the kids).  I am truly blessed to have such a wonderful husband, a very best friend.   Through him I have felt the Father's love, encouragement, counsel, and guidance this week. How could I ask for more?