First Mission Complete!

Hello everyone!!!

So sorry that it has taken me so long to write an update...
we have been very busy!!! Our team arrived last Monday night
without any complications. What precious people! They jumped
straight into the work they came here to do despite jet lag,
language barrier, and stress from traveling for more than 36
hours straight. Wednesday we spent the whole day from 9-6 at
the church doing a dental, optical, and general medical clinic.
It was the coolest thing ever to give a 70 year old woman her
first pair of glasses so that she could see better than she
had in three decades! I also got to use a squatty potty for the
very first time. Sounds fun, right? LOL okay not really. ;)

Thursday was our day with the babies. What a precious time
that was! Each and every one of those kids were so responsive
to the love we gave them. It was amazing to see their little faces
light up with smiles when we picked them up and kissed them.
Love is truly a universal language. Friday we were again at
the church. We spent time just praying for the members and talking
with them. (they thought i could speak Chinese just because I knew
a few sentences.... kinda funny!)  Friday night was our last night with
the team, and what a blessed time it was!! We had dinner at the
hotel and got to give them each their awards for the week. Even
though we only spent four days with them, we all felt like
family by the end of the week. It was a great experience.
I spent the whole day again on Saturday at the orphanage with
the babies! (I promise I will post pictures as soon as I can)
It was a great day, and I miss those precious little ones so much already!

Please pray for our all of us here. Some family emergencies came up,
and now my friend and her father are having to go home early. They
leave early Monday morning. Please pray for safe travel for them, and
a supernatural grace for Kim and I to handle the college team that
is coming for two weeks. There are 15 of them, and that is a big
group for us to handle by ourselves. They will mostly be helping
out with us at the orphanage, and I have been put in charge of
the team that will be in the infant care unit! They arrive august 11th,
so please pray that we would have everything prepared when they
get here!!

I've learned so much these past three weeks that I have been here. God
is using a new teaching method with me this summer, and it has certainly
been an interesting process. In America, I'm used to making plans. I always
know what I'm doing, where I'm going, and when I'm gonna be there. In China,
I have been thrown into a culture that I was completely caught off guard by.
It's the exact opposite. We never know what we're going to be doing, or when,
until a few moments before we have to be ready to jump right into it. I have
been learning that a lot of times, that's how our lives are with God.
We can plan and plan all we want, but God sometimes expects us to
do the unexpected. I marvel at the way He weaves one event after another
together so that things that might seem YEARS into the future can
start falling into place even now.

Again,sorry that it took so long to do an update. My mom has told
me that she was getting a lot of questions about me lately. I shall look
to post another update as soon as there are more things to talk about.

Love you all!

Update Numero Dos

Hello friends!!!
This is my last update before I leave to spend time with
the precious babies at the Geiju orphanage for a WEEK! Since
we are going to be working eighteen hour days, I am hoping
that I will be able to update at least once while I am there,
but the pictures will have to come later. We are gonna be SWAMPED.
The team arrives tonight, and we are going to be leaving in the
early morning to drive to Geiju. The road is long and can be
dangerous, so please pray for our safety. We are beyond excited;
me especially, because I finally get to see the place that my sister
spent the first 21 months of her life.:)

This past week has been less than easy. With everyone jet lagging,
we have all been cranky and are still figuring out how to function all
together as one family without killing each other. It's a learning
process. I know that while a lot of it may not be pleasant, it is
necessary, and in the end I will grow from it.

A few prayer points:
- My visa, unlike the family I'm traveling with,
was only issued for thirty days. Please pray that
we can get it renewed without any problems from the
government.

- Our schedule for Geiju is still up in the air even
though we are going to arrive less than 24 hours from now.
Pray for the right doors to be opened, and the wrong doors
to be shut.

- Supernatural grace for the team as they are flying in tonight
(having traveled more than thirty hours)to be able to do the
medical work they came to do.

- for our family to be at peace with each other even when there is
conflict or disagreement.

- For my family back in the states to be at peace while I'm
gone. I know they miss me. ;)

Thank you all so much for the love and support that
you have shown me. It means so much to me. I love you guys!!!

Hopefully another update will be coming your way soon.

Blessings,
Hannah

WE MADE IT!!!

Hannah's mom posting for Hannah here who has no facebook and no access to blogspot! Here's the update:

Greetings friends! I am happy to announce to you that i am
in Ch*na safe and sound and loving every moment of it!!:)
Thank you for your continued prayers and support; it is
greatly appreciated by all five of us. We have spent almost
one week together already!! My how the time is flying! I arrived
with absolutely no problems on Tuesday afternoon in MN and immediately
jumped into helping pack up the last of their things to move.
The next morning was moving day and thanks to some sweet friends,
we got everything moved to the new house within a matter of only
about three hours. The next day we spent finishing up some
final preparations for our trip, and resting. Our international
flights also went extremely smooth and nothing was lost so PTL!!
We are now here in Yunn*n and I am loving it!! We are all having
a difficult time getting on the right schedule. We all fell asleep
at 6 pm last night and woke up at 2!!! Needless to say, this time
adjustment hasn't been as easy for me this time as it was last, so please
pray that we would all get on schedule soon! My transition into
the family has gone extremely well, and for that I am so thankful!!
I ask that you would continue to lift us up and ask that
there would be a spirit of peace over the household for the next seven
weeks that we're here. I'm sitting on the ledge of the window
(don't WORRY mom! It's all glassed in!!!! :P) looking out over the
mountains and I can't help smiling because I'm finally back "home" again.
The people here are beautiful, and the land and the parks and gardens are
such a sight for sore eyes. I love it all; even the parts that
other people consider dirty. So far my favorite experience has been
taking little Mia out to the lake inside our compound to feed the fish
in the pond! We got to get so close to the waters' edge that the fish
were splashing us as they hungrily gobbled up the bagel we brought along
for them. We have a few more days to rest and get adjusted before our
first team comes in! I am so excited to go to the orphanage. Pray for us
that we would connect with the right people, and that we would all
have the wisdom to know when to speak. I will write more soon, and please
feel free to email me at kiddo13ster@gmail.comif you want to know anything else.
I love and miss you all and appreciate so much your continued
prayers and support.

Much love,
Hannah

Last pre-China update!!!!

Hello all!!! I'm officially about to begin my trek to China tomorrow (friday) at about 11:30 in the morning. I am so excited to finally be going!!! We have been busy here in MN getting everything moved into the new house, but we are so excited to be finally on our way in the mornings!! I know that there are exciting things for me on this trip! The family and I have meshed together SO well! We are all having fun and I love being with them. They are like my second family and having time to draw even closer with them this summer is such a wonderful opportunity. Thanks to all you who kept me in your prayers during my flights! I had an unHEARD of easy time. No delays, no plane issues, no baggage problems, it was completely flawless and not stressful at all. Thank you thank you thank you for being behind me 100%!!!! :) We will fly straight from MN to Tokyo, then catching a late flight to Beijing, spending the night, and arriving to Yunnan on the fourth of July! What an awesome way to spend independence day! This excites me! I love being the intern this summer! Haha. Well, more updates are to come soon! The next one will be from China!!!

Love and blessings to all,
Hannah