A Red and Turquoise Kitchen

Just a few photos of our lovely kitchen after it was all set up. Well, mostly... We are still missing a few things that we will need but we are getting them slowly but surely. Everything has a place but it may not be where we keep it forever. We are so blessed with this beautiful space to cook. We are so pleased with our color choices- the red and turquoise are classic but nice and bright. Steven is even tolerant of the few pink pieces that sneaked their way in... :) Our pantry is well stocked after a nice welcoming Sunday which included a pantry shower! Now I just have to get the hang of working with an electric stove and nice stainless steel pots and pans- luxuries we never had in the DR.

The flowers were a welcome gift that the Ladies Group at church presented us with.

Here you can see some of our favorite appliances including a dishwasher!

Here we are cooking our first real homemade dinner- Spaghetti, courtesy of a wonderful congregation!

You can see the pantry door back in the right corner.

Dinner is ready!

HOME

Everyone asks, "Are you settled in yet?" We always answer, "We're getting there," or "We're working on it." But the simple answer is no, we are not. We have gotten a lot done since we first got here (or rather Steve's dad got a lot done when they arrived with our moving van). Here are a few pictures to show our progress.

After unpacking the boxes that came in our car. The floor was just covered in packing materials.

Our first dinner at home- from the Target deli.

Our bedroom, complete with air mattress and tv trays.

The kitchen. Fairly empty but as organized as possible.

The other kitchen counter.

Our new mattress! We still have no other furniture in our bedroom but the bed is so comfy!

After Steve's parents arrived with the moving truck. It was like starting over only with a LOT more stuff than last time when we unpacked just our little car.

The guest bedroom furniture is old and it is a very small room but it is already pretty cozy. Come visit and you will stay here!

Our bedroom- filled once more with boxes.

Things have gotten better since these last pictures. As we get the house set up, I'll post pictures of the different rooms so you can get a good idea of what our house really looks like. We'll also want to fill you in soon on the new jobs and our excitement over calling a new pastor. As always, we love your comments. They inspire us to keep writing.

A Whole New World

God has blessed us so greatly! I cannot say that enough. Last June we returned from Santiago, Dominican Republic where we taught in a bilingual school. If you missed the stories of all those adventures, you should really go back and check out the previous blogs. Some crazy stuff happens when you spend a year overseas.

On July 23, not so long after getting home to the Midwest, Steven and I got married- finally! The wedding was the happiest and most beautiful of days! My brother, Seth, shared an excellent message from God's Word based on the text we chose- Ephesians 3:16-19. Everything was perfect and our fantastic photographer captured it all brilliantly. Here is just a taste of her excellent work!
The wedding was followed by a short but sweet honeymoon. We stayed at a bed and breakfast in Whitewater, but the highlights were wine tasting, a sunset lake tour cruise in Lake Geneva, and dinner at a 20's themed house-turned-restaurant with jazzed-up broadway tunes playing on the piano.
We went back to my parents' house, got a good night's sleep, filled up the car, and started the drive to Arizona. The scenery was beautiful! It took us 4 days, with stops in Omaha, Denver, and Albuquerque before finally reaching HOME. Life has been a whirlwind since- as if all that wasn't enough! We will continue to post pictures of our home and school and write about all the exciting things happening here. Welcome back!