A Month and a Half In

Scenery from God's Creation

How to compress the the last month or so into a readable post?

Praises - 
1. We have past the one month anniversary! Many more years to go!

2. I have been able to get all of the things I've needed to turned in on time at school.

3. Classes are going OK. And the second year students are a great bunch and a lot of fun.

4. Been able to meet the new children of two friends in the last month as well. Tiny little miracles.  

5. Was able to send Anne down to Bangkok to take the next step in getting a decent job in a good company. Still waiting on the results of that.

Cal and I

6. My friend Cal rented bikes for the two of us so that we could take one last bike trip together before he heads back to America for a while.

7. We went 500 miles in two days and off-roading on street bike and both came back safe and sound. And we got to see some of the most beautiful countryside because we didn't turn around. So worth it.

8. We have been inviting my students out to the house on Friday nights to unwind from the week, cook and eat together and play games. Only had to big nights so far, but they were a blast.

9. Said students are very excited about the idea of doing some service projects together, which will open the doors for some great opportunities.

10. Sent a quick message out to some friends here about opportunities for some teams to come join in at the university and help us continue to build relationships with the students and got an overwhelming response.

11. Three girls from a School of Worship and Music (with YWAM) are coming to English club on Wednesday to do music, and then coming to hang out with us on Friday as well!

Events -
Well, like I mentioned above, every Friday we are having student over for a game and fun night.

Will be working with teams to come in for English club and then to do events at the house on the Fridays following.

Anne is still looking for a job.

Had two good friends leave this past Sunday for America, most likely for at least 2 years.

Mid term tests will be in two weeks. I'm about as nervous as my students.

Other News - 
Things are going well. We are getting by, and super excited about the game night. Right now it's the highlight of our week each week. We are also wondering about what job should Anne do. She has a couple of options and so we are looking into which one will be the best fit for her and for where we are currently.

We both are adjusting to married life. Learning how to give and take. It's been fun. School is consuming most of my time. It has been much more of an adjustment than I thought it would be getting back into teaching. I have forgotten so much more than I realized. And relearning how much fitting into mold annoys me. But it's worth it to be able to take care of Anne and the majority of my responsibilities each month. All my bills are paid for, but still figuring out how to transition into paying all of my student loan bills myself.

Anyways. That's where things stand now.

Prayer Requests -  
1. Anne's job. A job that will help us meet the last of our financial needs, but also fits her in terms of her personality and that will allow her to chase down the dreams God has given her.

2. Game night. Please be praying that this fun night will lead to opportunities to share with our students why we have the hope we have.

3. Energy. Preparing everything, trying to stay on top of grading and lesson plans, and things needed for class/English club/school responsibilities/game night/being a goo husband/being involved with the church/etc. I've got a full plate and I need the energy to get through it each day and week.

4. Time management skills and focus. These two need to increase because I need to manage my time much better, but I also need to be able to focus on the task at hand in order to do what I have made time to do.

5. Anne and I to continue to grow as one, and to keep God and his plans and the center of our lives.

Thank you all. We love you and are praying that we can come home and see you soon!