The Other Island: Trip 2

January 16, 2018

After the first trip, Payton and I both felt like our perspective was lopsided. At that time, we only had two potential future ministry options on the table (we now have a few more back in the mix). We had seen one, but knew little of the other. It felt odd to try to decide […]

Whatsa dasawisma? Part I

September 9, 2015

It took me the better part of 4 months to actually hear the word(s) “dasa wisma.” The fact that it is also shortened to “da’wis,” didn’t help. But seeing as how the word had definitley floated around in countless neighbourhood conversations, I can’t believe it never even registered at all (more on this later)! This got […]

Celebrate with Cake?

June 18, 2015

C is for convinced!–I’m truly convinced that people here “take the cake” when it comes to hosting big events, especially weddings…well, except that they don’t always serve actual cake, which does knock off a few points. We had the honor of being invited to two weddings in the same weekend not too long ago. They were […]

Belly Buttons

May 31, 2015

B is for Belly Button…well, and for my belly in general. You might start thinking, “Really, all she seems to talk about is being pregnant.” Well, actually, I talk about it probably every day, multiple times. Here, it’s like a giant magnetic sign that says, “Look at me! If you didn’t already notice that I’m […]

Fresh Air

July 31, 2014

All of Colorado air smells fresh, but the higher you go and the further you remove yourself from cars, the closer you get to vanilla pines, which means everything smells amazing. I’d bottle the scent and pack a few for Asia if I had the space. So, I was very thankful that we were invited […]

Up in the Woods

July 8, 2013

Just this past Monday as we were finally winding our way up the pass and into the mountains when we saw something that made our breath catch in our throats. It was the sight of a thin trail of smoke coming from the trees. This was the second time I’d seen something like it this […]

Popsicles and Bees

June 14, 2013

Payton’s brother Austin made a visit out to us at the MTC after he got back from Afghanistan! Everything was crazy as the semester came to an end, but he was able to jump right in. He got to check out our TPR (langauge-learning) class and see what life on campus looks like. But, one […]

The Pollen Dance

April 28, 2013

The most spectacular thing I’ve experienced this month was getting up close and personal with a new hive of bees. But, by far, the best part wasn’t hunting down the queen or looking for brood, but watching the bees dance to tell the other bees exactly where there was pollen to be found. It was […]

Strange Things

November 26, 2012

Yes, there is a perfectly good reason why I have paper taped to my nose, and you get a gold star if you can tell me why… Yep, I’m making sure that my [p], [t], and [k] aren’t aspirated–no puffs of air! Not everyone in Phonetics tapes paper to their face, mostly, I just thought […]

Spring Break in North Carolina

April 19, 2012