17 Weeks

Baby Zhen Zhu is about the size of an avocado or turnip. Soon we hope to find out if that little bump is a Zhen Judy or a Zhen Jude. :)

Renovations

“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He’s doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently he starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is he up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of—throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.”

George MacDonald, quoted by C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity, p. 174

A Trip to the Zoo

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Let's Go Fishing

During our retreat the other week, we walked through a fisherman's wharf.

Cell Leaders Retreat

At the beginning of the month, we had a day trip outside Taipei with three of our favorite people--Erich, Kelley, and Robin.

Erich and Kelley are the friends who helped us get settled in Taiwan (which included letting us live with them, helping us find an apartment/jobs/food/Chinese teacher/friends...pretty much everything!) Robin was one of our first Taiwanese friends, and we love his sense of humor.


Erich and Kelley are also our G12 cell group leaders. Our church has 3000 members, so this is a simple explanation of the authority structure:

Head pastors --> Zone pastors (shepherd 12 main cell leaders) --> G12 Cell Leaders (shepherd 12 cell leaders) --> Cell Leaders (shepherd 5-12 cell members) --> Cell Group Members

Kalan, Robin, and I are cell leaders, so from time to time we meet with Erich and Kelley to share, pray, and cast vision for the upcoming season.


This month we went to a nearby beach and enjoyed some fresh seafood as part of our retreat.


^selecting our fish...yum!


^fresh squid...I must say, it's really grown on me during our time in Taiwan!


We ended the day with a trip to an orphanage in Luodong, where we had an opportunity to help care for some babies. It was an awesome day...we are so thankful for these friends and the ways we get to serve and grow together.

Happy (Belated) Easter!

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A Baby Story Begins

Baby Spencer is on the way!

We found out the good news on February 6th (happy birthday, Kalan!) and couldn't be more excited.

When my family came to visit in March, we were able to share our joy with them-- in person! (What a blessing!)




Here are some quick answers to FAQs:

When are you due? October 8th.
Are you having the baby in Taiwan? Yes. We enjoy excellent health care here. The baby will be an American citizen.
Will you continue teaching? I will stay home full-time next year. Kalan will continue teaching.
Will you find out if it's a boy or a girl? Yes. In the meantime, we have a nickname: Zhen Zhu (Chinese for "precious pearl").
How are you feeling? I had bad morning sickness for several weeks, but now that I'm in the second trimester I'm feeling much better!
When are you coming back to America? Summer 2013, Lord willing.

Thanks for all your support as we start this new season of life!