God's Plan

A couple days ago, at church it was 4th semester Sunday, and all of the 4th semester students that wanted to give their testimony about what God has done for them while being on the island spoke. Most of the people that spoke were our friends so it was really sad because they are leaving. Now the good part is that they are going back to the US and I guess it is good that we are moving as well but it really made me think about the last 8 months of living on this island. God has plans for all us. Whether it is to be a Dr., a homemaker, a school teacher, a successful business man, whatever it is if you let God take control of your life, it is what God has intended for you. We have learned that God's plan may not be our ideal plan but it is His plan and when we trust and obey his plan for us we will be where he wants us to be. Now 8 months ago I don't think I truly understood what it means to trust God, but God knows how to bring you to your knees. We have learned a lot while being away from home. We have learned to depend on each other and depend on God. I truly believe that God's intention for bringing us to this island was to help us learn to grow as a couple and to learn to depend on each other. I honestly think that moving away was the best thing for Christopher and I as a couple. We depend on each other more now than we ever have because all we really have here is each other. I mean don't get me wrong we have made a lot of friends who are like our family away from home, but when it comes down to it its just the two of us. So through all the trials and tribulations we have gone through while being on this island. We are thankful we have been able to have this opportunity because it has only made us stronger people.

With Thanksgiving quickly approaching we are preparing for a very large feast. It is going to be a little different from our usual family get together. We are going to be spending Thanksgiving with about 80 of our friends here. We are all going to get together at Ralna and Craig's house. They have a fairly big house so we are excited for this fun event. But the best part about Thanksgiving being here is that we are even closer to coming home. We will be home in 3 weeks from Friday. Yay! But Christopher is going to be really busy between now and then so please keep him in your prayers as he begins his 9 exams in 10 days. Which begins December 4.

Tick...Tick...Tick...

Time is flying by. It is almost the middle of November and we will be home in 38 days. We can't wait. We have been keeping busy here. Christopher just finished up his last test and did great again. To God be the glory great things he has done. We know that we could not have the success that Christopher does without his help. Begining December 4 Christopher has 9 exams between the 4th and the 18th. So please be praying for him as he prepares for those upcoming exams.

I have been keeping busy going to Birthday parties, going to craft fairs, cooking, playing bunco, and sewing our names on our Christmas stockings. Last weekend I went my friend Ralna's little boy's Birthday party. It was on the beach and we had so much fun. They cooked hot dogs and Ashley made the most adorable cakes. One was an alligator and the other was a pirate. William turned 8 and I think it was really fun for them. The kids found probably fifty hermit crabs. Now these are the same kind of hermit crabs that you find back at home that have painted shells, but these crabs are wild. It was pretty fun to see all the kids have such a great time.

Earlier in the day I went to the an arts and craft show that Ross was hosting. A bunch of artists from all around the island came and set up their stuff just like an arts and craft fair back at home. They had a lot of beautiful paintings that I would have died to have but they were so expensive. By expensive I mean between $600-$2000 USD. I guess for art, its not that expensive but it is a little out of our price range for now. They also had a bunch of wooden carvings made out of different wood and also out of coconut shells, all of which were pretty cool but I don't think I would have ever really liked it if I would have brought it home. It would have probably ended up being junk. So I ended up buying hand carved salad tongs. They are really neat. They have dominica carved on one side of the handle. I think it will be something that I will actually use when we get back home. But other than that I had a good time looking around at the arts and crafts fair.

Besides that I have been working on making our Christmas stockings. I am in the process of putting our names on them with sequins. I hope they turn out cute. We will see.

We are doing well. We are just counting down the days. We can't wait to be home for Christmas! We miss everyone back at home!

This is not normal...or is it?

We have been living in Dominica for six months now and everyday we are surprised by different things. Living in Dominica is not like living in the US if you haven't already understood that from my previous posts on the blog. Living here is truly an adventure. I just thought I would share some things with you that I don't necessarily think is normal but have become normal over the past six months of living here. 

1. Making your own sour cream
2. Making your own buttermilk to make your own sour cream
3. Being so intimidated by a bull that is blocking the road that you turn around and wait for someone who is driving to take you past the bull
4. Watching a huge shipment of frozen chicken being run over twice by a truck and then still being delivered to the prospective restaurant
5. Local men hissing at you like a snake instead of the typical whistle you hear from a construction worker
6. Being picked up by a plane and landing on a different island only to be told that they sent the wrong size plane and we have to go back and pick up the people we left 
7. Walking with your umbrella opened up out in front of you to keep dry from the horizontal rain
8. Buying eggs from the store only to find out that one of the eggs you bought actually has a chick inside
9. Going to eat at subway and ordering a footlong sandwich and not being able to make it two six inch meals when you pay for it because well of course its a footlong
10. Getting charged by a bull in the middle of a football game

We have now gotten to the point where these things are normal and although they sound absolutely outrageous it actually happens. These are the daily things that make us laugh here in Dominica. "Welcome to the JUNGLE!!!"

The Good...The Bad...The Ugly...

I will start with the good news first. Good news is we are moving to the Bahamas come January. After attending a meeting last week with the President of Ross University, we have decided that this will be the best decision for both living and educational reasons. The University is going to be very helpful in our move to the Bahamas in processing our Visas for the Bahamas, shipping our stuff, and also in other expenses of moving. We are very excited about this opportunity and are looking forward to this exciting new adventure. After moving to the Bahamas, Christopher and I will have lived in 4 places in our first year of marriage (Miami, Oklahoma City, Dominica, Bahamas). That includes 3 different countries and 2 different states. Thats pretty cool to say but so far Oklahoma still tops the list of the best place to live. 

And on with the Bad news... last friday night while Christopher was playing flag football he broke his hand. He dove after the other team to grab their flag and landed on his hand funny jamming it into the ground. We had to drive to Roseau Friday night, which is about an hour away,  to the hospital to have it x-rayed. The Roseau hospital is the only place on the entire island that has an x-ray machine. I suppose it is because Roseau is the capital and is a city and all of the other places with medical clinics are mainly just small villages. I think the worst part of the whole trip was the ride to the hospital because well we get really car sick when we drive around here because the roads are very whindy and there are a lot of pot holes that the drivers are dodging. But he broke his fourth metacarpal on his left hand. Here is Chris's x-ray. I know its not a great picture because I took it with the webcam on the computer, because my camera is broken, but you get the idea, his hand is definitely broken. 

So that is not so good news. But they put him in a cast. He has to leave it on for 6 weeks. We are going to have it looked at again when we get back to the States just to make sure that everything is healing okay. Christopher is not in any pain so that is a good thing but what a bummer. 

And the ugly. I started playing bunco with a bunch of girls on Wednesday nights and it has gotten pretty ugly. Haha! Not really but it is so fun and it is really funny how competitive a game it gets. We play for money and also a gift prize depending on what part of the game you win. But the winner gets $60, the one who has the most buncos gets $30, the loser gets their money back and the Traveler gets the gift prize. We have so much fun.

The winners for the game: Martina, Joy, Me, and Liz

Having so much fun: Ashley, Me, Chika, and Briana

The group back row to front: Ashley, Ralna, Aileen, Summer, Me, Chika, Tricia, Crystal, Briana, Sarah, Liz, Allison, Martina, and Joy

Hurricane Omar

Wednesday night and Thursday morning we got hit by part of Hurricane Omar. I don't think we got hit by the brunt of the storm but we did get a part of the Hurricane. We were warned by the US embassy that the Hurricane was coming and we were prepared with our 10 gallons of bottled water and extra food. Where we live is Hurricane safe. Now I

 am not sure really what that means because we still have windows but I think that just means that our building won't be blown down so we were safe. We had a little bit of water seeping through our doors 

but that was no big deal when you i put a town at the base of the doors. It was a pretty cool storm. It was thundering and lightening and earlier Wednesday night we were on campus and could hear the waves crashing up against the bank. It was pretty amazing to witness. Thursday morning Christopher woke up and walked to class and said that the river by our apartment was filled up to the road and it was moving really fast. After he got to campus they got an announcement from the Prime Minister of Dominica that had ordered all businesses and public places to be closed for the day and that all students must go home because the campus was going to be locked. I heard from one of my friends that in the town right next to 

ours that there were boats washed up into the roads. We ended up Thursday with the brownest water we have ever had here in Dominica and temporarily with no electricity and all day wit

h no cable. Here are a couple of pictures I got some of the pictures from my friend Ashley's blog of our pier that is by the school. This is where we go when we go to the beach, but not today. The last picture is at the bottom of the stairs that come from campus to the beach. But don't worry we are safe and sound. Yesterday was actually a really great day because Christopher and I got to stay at home all day together, something we don't get to do very often. So while you all are getting the snow days back at home, we get "Hurricane days" here in Dominica!

Crazy Hurricanes

In the town of Portsmouth right by our town. The locals said the only way to get the big boats off of the land is to hire a tug boat from Miami, which is really expensive. So there is a good chance these boats will never float again.

on the turn from Picard to Portsmouth

streets in Portsmouth, piles and piles of debris

In Portsmouth

The pier on a normal day from the water

Hurricane Omar takes over

The pier is demolished

Yikes!

One of the many washed up boats!

This is right below campus. The stairs lead from Campus to the beach.

Be Grateful

I began this blog to allow everyone back at home to have an insight into what we are experiencing here in Dominica but I have noticed that all I have really begun to tell you are the good side of things and the adventures we have had and that although we are thankful and grateful for this time that we have been able to spend here, I have really neglected to show or tell everyone how changed Christopher and I are as people and followers of our Lord and Savior.

We come from a country that has everything and until you have to do without those things that you may think you "have to have" it becomes a whole new perspective on life. Back at home many of you go to the mall or to a store and think man I have to have that shirt. Well you don't have to have it you want it and it is important for people to understand that life is so much more important than wanting things and living life wanting more.

I have learned that you should be so thankful for everything you have. From things such as a washer and dryer to going to to the grocer store and being able to pick up sour cream. We send out our laundry and honestly we have no idea where it is washed, where it is dried or anything. We trust its clean but there is no telling, it could have been taken down to the river and washed by hand in a river but I am grateful that I know one day I will be able to wash my clothes by myself and know for sure that they are clean because these people in Dominica may never get to experience what true really clean clothes are like. I often see many of the locals washing their clothes in the river by our house and its not an uncommon thing. Sour cream does not exist on this island if it does it is a very uncommon thing. Last week my friend gave me a recipe to make my own sour cream. So I am thankful that when we get back home I can buy my own but for now I'll continue to make it myself. Life is so easy in the US and if for some reason one day you wonder or are desiring more please thank again and be grateful for what you have.

Every day here is a struggle. Day in and day out we both wonder why we are here and both of us continually feel as though it was so that our Lord could change both of our hearts to truly understand that we are not in control of our lives just as it says in Proverbs 16:9 The mind of man plans his way but the Lord directs his steps.

Never in a million years could you have told Christopher or me that you will be moving 2,617 miles and 14 countries away from home. Because well if any of you know either us we are both quite the family people. But things don't always turn out like we plan, obviously because its our plan and not the plan of our Lord. I have often gotten the reaction "How do you do it?" or "You are stronger than me because I couldn't move to a place like that" Well let me tell you, its all about Trust! We trust that we are doing what God wants for our lives and although its not our ideal plan its His ideal plan for our lives. The bible teaches us that God is sovereign over both the "good' and the "bad" times in our lives.

Ecclesiastes 7:14 says When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future.

Isaiah 45:7 says I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things.

Lamentations 3:38 says Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that both calamities and good things come?

God controls both the good and the bad. God has not looked the other way or been caught by surprise when adversity strikes us. He is in control of that adversity, directing it to His glory and our good.

So I have realized that just as we must learn to obey God one choice at a time, we must also learn to trust God one circumstance at a time. I know that trusting God is not a matter of my feelings but of my will. and I never feel like trusting God when adversity strikes, but I can choose to do so even when I don't feel like it. That act of the will, though, must be based on belief, and belief must be based on truth. So that is why we are able to make it work here in Dominica. Not because its easy and not because its what we want but because we believe and our belief is based on truth.

I am grateful and very thankful we have been given the opportunity that we have to learn and to grow closer to our God through this experience. I didn't write this for everyone think that we are miserable here because we aren't, but we are challenged and changed everyday by this experience. I will never walk into another grocery store or another home without being so thankful for the abundance of food we have in the grocery stores and the hot water running out of the kitchen sink. But we trust that our God has us right where we are supposed to be at this point in our lives and we will continue to serve Him. So be thankful and grateful for what you have because not everyone in the world gets to experience the wonders of the US.

We are Thankful!

Mini 1 for the second semester is over and I am happy to say that we are very thankful for how well Christopher did. He has been studying so hard and we are so thankful that his hard work has paid off. But never a time to quit studying because he has a big Anatomy practical next Friday that he is beginning to prepare for. After the mini on Monday we went to the beach and just had a wonderful day relaxing and enjoying our time we had together for the afternoon and evening. Many of our friends were there as well just hanging out, snorkeling, swimming, playing frisbee, and grilling out on the beach. It was a lot of fun and then Monday night we went out for my Birthday to a place called Blue Bay. Christopher and I both had the grilled tuna and it was very good. We went with a lot of our friends and Ashley made me a wonderful Chocolate cake. She has become quite the cake expert here. I am so thankful for the friends I have made here. They have truly been a blessing to Christopher and I.

We are very excited about this weekend because we are going to be able to watch the OU/ Texas game. I think that if there was one thing this semester that both of us truly wanted (besides to come home) it would be that we get that game on TV because most of the time we get East Coast coverage. But I am excited to say that this weekend OU/Texas has national coverage! WooHoo!! It is so funny to us how the smallest things like a football game will make us so happy here. So remember don't take things for granted.

A little update on the Bahamas: Well they have given us word that the campus in the Bahamas has been accredited. Which basically means that the accreditors have gone to the campus in the Bahamas and made sure that the campus was in adequate condition for students to be there. So now it is completely our decision if we want to go because the campus will for sure open in January. So basically all we are waiting on now is for them to give us some more information on the cost of living and then I think we will make our decision. Hopefully we will be able to have an answer by the end of next week.

So we are very thankful for all of the opportunities that God has given us since we have been here. Please be praying for our decision about the Bahamas.