Heading Home

Today is the day of traveling home. This trip went by so fast and I am definitely going to miss Thailand, my amazing team, and the people.  The flight from Chaing Mai to Seoul was about 5 1/2 hours and I was able to sleep for about half of it!!! Yay!  The next flight will be in about 3 hours and last about 13 hours.  Then finally the drive from Chicago to my house.  By the time I am home I will have been traveling in some way for about 25 hours.  I am hope to sleep for part of the next flight so I can be feeling somewhat normal for Thanksgiving Day:). I am so excited for thanksgiving food... You don't even know!

As a team we did a "debriefing" time Wednesday afternoon at the hotel and it was a fascinating experience to hear each persons perspective of the trip.  We talked about highs and lows and just what we feel/sense God doing in us through the trip.  It was funny because all the lows were extremely minor and some people didn't even have a low.  There were many highs some of mine were:
How easy it was to come together as a team and the relationships that we built
Being able to sleep solid most nights that we were there, especially in less than ideal circumstances
Meeting all the wonderful people in Thailand and experiencing the culture.  (The Thai people are so friendly!)
The amazing worship times we had several of the mornings

I know it is going to take a little while to transition back into my "normal" life, and in some ways I hope I don't stay the same.  I was asked by our leader if the trip was what I was expecting since I have been hearing about it for so long, and my answer was "not at all".  Hearing about something and seeing photos and actually experiencing a trip and meeting those faces are two VERY different things.  There were many things that I was surprised by an others that I just wasn't picturing....if you want to know more I would love to share in person with anyone who is interested.  Overall though, the trip was amazing and I know I will go back to Thailand in the future:)

The Thing About Mountains

4:30am was when I woke up today
5:45 the team met in the lobby
6:03 we departed to drive to the first big camp
Today was a very long and busy day! The drive was about 4 hours through the mountains.  Now if you have driven through the mountains at all you know that it is very different than just driving on the highway. The roads are dirt, bumpy, and very curvy.  I have been hearing about these roads for many years but experiencing them was quite another thing.  You also have to know that I have NEVER been prone to motion sickness.  I am a roller coaster, swings, any ride at the fair/amusement park kind of girl so I definitely didn't think I would have any issues with this part of the trip.

It's funny because God has a way of keeping us humble:) I made it about 3 hours in when we stopped for a break and I had to ask someone for Dramamine!  I felt woozy the rest of the ride there and part of the ride back to the 3rd hotel we are staying in.  The people were great and the day was a success in many ways, but I definitely am a little bummed to know that I can get motion sick:(

At this point I have been up for over 14 hours with a lot of sunshine(a good thing), 85 degrees an very humid weather(seriously my hair is crazy), and doing physically exhausting things.  This trip is very exhausting, but it is very good and enjoyable too. I can't wait for sleep:)

Tomorrows driving may be worse, so please pray for me that I don't get sick and that we have safe travels.  Thanks so much!

Beginnings

Well our first day is coming to a close and we are all exhausted!  It seems the jet-lag fairy has delivered.  We arrived around 10:30pm  and arrived at the hotel around a little after midnight.  The hotel is amazing and has an incredible buffet breakfast, we have been told this is a 4 star hotel and our accommodations will be changing 2 more times in the next few days.  I am preparing myself for the 1 star place!

We spent the day shopping for the kids and packing goodie bags to take to the camps. We packed 149 bags to add to the ~200 that were packed prior to us getting here.  Tomorrow we will be purchasing the food for the camps and packing bags of that.  We will be going to 4 different camps over the next few days and seeing about 450-500 orphans/refugees.

The team is great and it is a smaller group(8 not including the leaders) but that means more time with the kids and easier traveling:). 5 are from a church in Nashville, two are from Colorado and myself.  We had a time of sharing and just getting to know each other which was great, the stories that we share are inspiring and I can't wait to see how the next few days go!

There isn't  much to post yet, but I wanted to give a quick update on what is going on because I honestly am not sure when the next time will be that I can post because of the inconsistent access:(. Bummer

So far there haven't been any issues or bugs/snakes(I know some of you will want to know that). Lol

Please pray for our leader, she is not feeling well and went to the Dr. this morning.
Pray for our journey tomorrow and Tuesday to and from CM since it is about a 7-8 hour drive. Also each camp is between 30min to 3 hours from the guest house where we will be staying, and most are winding roads.
Pray that we all stay healthy so we can serve the people 100%

Thanks so much!

The Perfect Timing

I am counting down the hours until I leave my house so naturally my house is a mess with stuff everywhere:). Not only am I packing for a 9 day trip in a foreign country that I don't know much about, where the weather is also a bit of a mystery(other than what I am seeing on Weatherbug), and I am actually not totally certain of the activities I will be embarking on while I am there; I am also still unpacking from moving 2 weeks ago!

As much as I have felt a bit crazy with everything going on kind of all at once, I actually think God had this all planned out.  You see, I am by nature a perfectionist which means a few things....

1) I make lists and expect myself to complete them in a timely manner

2) I am also a natural worrier

3) I tend to try and think of every possible outcome and attempt to plan for each of them

That being said, the reason I believe God has this timing planned is because of the amount of organizing and planning moving residence takes, I haven't had much time to think/worry about this trip.  Of course I have been "planning" for the trip since I knew I was going, but I haven't had a lot of random thinking time to drive myself nuts with "what ifs".  For that I am SO grateful.  I feel like I am going into this trip on a much better mindset than I was last year when I went to Beijing.

I still have a lot to do with packing and measuring/weighing luggage and running a few last minute errands tomorrow, but I am not worried about this trip...like AT ALL!  That in and of itself is an amazing feat for me:)

I am sure I will say this each post, but I really appreciate the love, support, and prayers I have felt from each of you through the past few months!

I covet your prayers the next 2 weeks also.  Please pray for rest(sleep), focus, and safety/ease in traveling.

Tammy

Clothing donations for the orphanage.

Less than 1 week

I can't believe it is less than one week until I will be boarding a plane to take me to Thailand!  It still doesn't seem real, but it's happening.

I cant tell you how much your support and love mean to me!  The past few months have been intense with my moving, getting a new job, being sick, walking with my parents through my Dad's surgery and radiation, and THAILAND!  Life seems like a whirlwind right now and I don't think that will stop until the new year, but even in all the chaos I know that God is walking with me through all of this and He has an ultimate goal for me(what it is, however, I have no idea).  

I am working on getting all the things I need for my trip and making sure that I have everything in order for Thanksgiving and events that come shortly after I return.  Preparations are coming along and every day I get closer to finally being able to say "I'm ready to go".  Saying I only have 2 workdays left until my trip is so crazy, but I am excited and looking forward to this new adventure:)

I can't wait to see how God is going to show up for me, the team, and the people we are going to serve!  There is just one week until I get to meet the precious faces that I have seen in photos for 11 years.  Just one week until I am trying new foods and experiencing a new culture.  Just one week until embarking on this incredible mission with God and allowing Him to lead me wherever He has in mind for me. 

My prayers are:
1) that God will work in and through me to show His love for the people in these camps.  
2) that I will be able to sleep on the plane and throughout the trip.  (Those of you know know me well, know this is a REAL prayer and potential issue!)
3) That God will direct me in knowing if long term missions is something he wants me to pursue.
4) That He will continue to provide the finances needed for this trip.

Wow, I leave in less than A WEEK!!!!  :)