This year Palm Sunday and Easter were new experiences for me. First of all this was the first time I have ever been out of the country for Holy week. Secondly I was able to have two Palm Sunday and Easter experiences this year. I got to have a Catholic experience and a Baptist Experience.
I started out Palm Sunday at the Catholic service. We missed the first 10 minutes so I don't know what happened, but we got there as everyone made a processional from the fellowship area to the sanctuary. Everyone received a palm leaf to carry with them. It was my second Catholic service and it was kind of cool because they sang a couple hymns that I recognized that we've sang in the Reformed church before! After the Catholic service I got dropped off at the Baptist church, where there were no Palm Branches at all. It was kind of interesting because to me the Baptist Palm Sunday service was a little bit more somber than the Catholic service. The focus of the service was on how Hosanna means save us and was more of a political statement than a celebratory parade. The Pastor's main text was Luke chapter 19 verses 28 - the end of the chapter. One statement he made that really struck me was God is a large God, yet he is also a personal God and touches each of us right where we're at.
For lunch I went with my Aunt and Uncle and cousins to the Px on base for lunch at the food court, and then we went and got grocceries. I spent the rest of the afternoon with them just relaxing.
In the evening they went to church for Awanas and I went with them and this time I went to the Adult Bible study. I'm here to try new experiences so I thought I'd try something new this time. They watched a video by Ray VanderLaan about the Easter story, and then had a discussion time. I got alot out of the video, and it was interesting. He mentions in the video that according to tradition Lambs were sacrificed at 3 Pm for Passover and that was the exact time of Jesus' Crucifixtion, and he was the ultimate passover lamb. Another thing I had never realized before is that Jesus came out of the Tomb and then the angel came and rolled the stone away! The other thing that struck me from the video is that it mentions that Jesus cries twice in the same week and it is deep sorrow. He cries at the death of Lazaurus and on his way to Jerusalem during the procession for Palm Sunday. This shows that Jesus feels our hurt! So, I have two questions for you: How does Jesus Cry for you? and Can you accept a King who Came as a Lamb?
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Monday, March 24, 2008
A Day in Mons
Belated Happy Easter Everyone!! :)
Last weekend on Friday night I spent the night at Kyle & Stephanie's house. My cousin Jenna was so excited because I was going to be sleeping in her room! They picked me up on base, and then we stopped by a little European Sandwich/ Pastry shop to get food for the kids. It was a cute little place, and the menu was in French. Stephanie said they have the best Paninis, so I'll have to try one sometime. Stephanie and I didn't get food because we went to a Creative Memories party at her friends house. It was fun to see the new scrapbooking product that Creative Memories has out now.
On Saturday Kyle, Jenna, Bryason and I went to Mons, which is the capital of the Province of where we are located. It was my first sightseeing I've done since arriving. Otherwise, I had only seen Belgium from driving to the different Bases, and going to church. Mons was like I would guess a typical European city to be. There were lots of cool old buidings and narrow cobblestone streets. Mons is built around a hill, so the center of Mons is on top of the hill. We parked the car and walked around the streets. We saw the Grand Place, and just explored some little side paths. We also went inside the Cathedral in Mons. We ended with lunch at a Donor Kebaps. (A Turkish sandwich place) I just had a turkey sandwich but it was delicious!
The Grand Place
We took this little path that ended up in a cool courtyard area
The Courtyard
The Cathedral
Inside the Cathedral
Me standing outside the Cathedral
Jenna (my 3 yr. old cousin) outside the Cathedral
Last weekend on Friday night I spent the night at Kyle & Stephanie's house. My cousin Jenna was so excited because I was going to be sleeping in her room! They picked me up on base, and then we stopped by a little European Sandwich/ Pastry shop to get food for the kids. It was a cute little place, and the menu was in French. Stephanie said they have the best Paninis, so I'll have to try one sometime. Stephanie and I didn't get food because we went to a Creative Memories party at her friends house. It was fun to see the new scrapbooking product that Creative Memories has out now.
On Saturday Kyle, Jenna, Bryason and I went to Mons, which is the capital of the Province of where we are located. It was my first sightseeing I've done since arriving. Otherwise, I had only seen Belgium from driving to the different Bases, and going to church. Mons was like I would guess a typical European city to be. There were lots of cool old buidings and narrow cobblestone streets. Mons is built around a hill, so the center of Mons is on top of the hill. We parked the car and walked around the streets. We saw the Grand Place, and just explored some little side paths. We also went inside the Cathedral in Mons. We ended with lunch at a Donor Kebaps. (A Turkish sandwich place) I just had a turkey sandwich but it was delicious!
The Grand Place
We took this little path that ended up in a cool courtyard area
The Courtyard
The Cathedral
Inside the Cathedral
Me standing outside the Cathedral
Jenna (my 3 yr. old cousin) outside the Cathedral
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Settling In
Hello and Good morning to those in the States! It is about 2:30 in the afternoon here as I write this. The youngest ones are down for a nap, so I have a little bit of down time myself. Things are going well here. I'm starting to settle into a little bit of a rountine now that I've been here for about 2 weeks. Last week Tuesday I was sick, so I pretty much just slept all day, but that's been the only day that's been a bad since since I arrived.
Thursday I went back to the Women's Bible study that I attended the week before. I'm excited because this week they are starting a new study, so I feel like I will be able to get a little bit more out of it. They were finishing up a study they had been doing for the last 6 weeks, and it didn't really pertain to me since it was about parenting. There was a potluck after the lesson time so that was enjoyable. During the eating time we shifted between different small groups to mingle with different people and we had a different discussion topic at each group.
Later in the afternoon after our groccery time I took the 3 oldest kids to a school park just a little ways from the house. We walked down there, which was fun because it gave me a chance to see a different part of town and get a closer look at things besides just driving past.
This is just down the block from the house.
The park that we went to
Jackson- the 3 yr. old
Jackson & Collin (7 1/2 yrs.)
The church at the end of our street
It has been nice to be able to have some warm enough temperatures to take the kids outside a couple times in the last week. Not to make everyone back in the midwest jealous, but signs of Spring are here in Belgium. It so exciting! Trees are budding and some flowers are starting bloom! The Wamplers have a big garden in their backyard, so it's going to be Beautiful when everything is in bloom! I can't wait!!!
Watch for more posts! They are coming soon!!
Thursday I went back to the Women's Bible study that I attended the week before. I'm excited because this week they are starting a new study, so I feel like I will be able to get a little bit more out of it. They were finishing up a study they had been doing for the last 6 weeks, and it didn't really pertain to me since it was about parenting. There was a potluck after the lesson time so that was enjoyable. During the eating time we shifted between different small groups to mingle with different people and we had a different discussion topic at each group.
Later in the afternoon after our groccery time I took the 3 oldest kids to a school park just a little ways from the house. We walked down there, which was fun because it gave me a chance to see a different part of town and get a closer look at things besides just driving past.
This is just down the block from the house.
The park that we went to
Jackson- the 3 yr. old
Jackson & Collin (7 1/2 yrs.)
The church at the end of our street
It has been nice to be able to have some warm enough temperatures to take the kids outside a couple times in the last week. Not to make everyone back in the midwest jealous, but signs of Spring are here in Belgium. It so exciting! Trees are budding and some flowers are starting bloom! The Wamplers have a big garden in their backyard, so it's going to be Beautiful when everything is in bloom! I can't wait!!!
Watch for more posts! They are coming soon!!
Monday, March 17, 2008
Pictures of My Room
These pictures are of my room, and please excuse the mess because I was still unpacking and settling in. The first 3 pictures are of the view from my bedroom window, looking out over the front of the house.
Observations
Hello! It is Monday morning here in Belgium. So, it is the middle of the night for you guys back home. I thought I would write a little about observations I've been making about Belgium since arriving, to give you a little better idea of what it is like. The landscape in Beligum seems very rural to me, kind of reminding me of Iowa in alot of ways. Between villages/towns there are many farms and fields. I've seen alot of sheep here, and horses. The landscape is more hilly than Iowa terrain though and the roads are not straight like those in Iowa. The roads wind all over the place, and they are much narrower than American streets. Much of the time they are only big enough for 1 car at certain points so you have to watch for on-coming traffic. There are also many trees around. The architecture here is amazing. Driving along you see many old homes that are very cool looking. Gas prices are just out of this world. They price the gas by liter and it's around 1.47 Euro, so you multiply that by 4 to get a gallon and then convert it to US Dollars and it equals like $8 and some cents!!! That is only for 1 gallon!! Most European cars are small, and most Americans that are here on the Airforce Base and Nato Base drive Mini Vans! That is a problem at the Base chapel parking lot, because that parking lot was not built for large vehicles! Toilets here seem to all flush from the top, either by pushing down a button or pulling a knob up. Belgium has amazing sandwiches at their restaurants, better than any Subway I've been to. I've only been in a couple restaurants, and they have been small, but the food is good, and most of the time cheaper than American restaurants. While driving around, most stores, restaurants and gas stations happen to be European, but every once in a while you'll see something familar, such as a Texaco Gas station, or a Shell gas Station. I've also seen a Dominos pizza just a little ways from where I'm living. I will keep posting observations as I make them and later today I will post some more about what I've been up to in the last week.
Monday, March 10, 2008
A short update
I have been in Belgium almost a week! Isn't that crazy? The week has been spent figuring out my role and adjusting to a new place. I have been able to see Kyle and Stephanie (my Aunt & Uncle) a couple times. Today was an extremely windy day, but I stayed in the house all day, so I didn't have to deal with it. Yesterday and today were the first rainy days I've had since arriving. On Saturday I was able to attend the baby shower for my Aunt, so that was fun to be a part of that. After the shower when we were on our way back to the house we needed a couple things for supper so we stopped at a Beligan groccery store. That was a cool experience. Everything was in French and we bought a loaf of fresh bread, and they had a slicer machine that we got to use ourselves. That was fun!
On Sunday I attended part of the Catholic service, since we were running late. And then right after that I got dropped off at my Aunt and Uncles church which is an International Baptist Church. Two totally different worship experiences. At the Baptist church we sang Praise Song, all of which I knew. But some of the songs we sang partly in French. That was cool! For those of you from Central Park, we sang Days of Elijah, which made me think of choir and you guys! :) It was a good worship experience, but I couldn't help but miss my weekly Sunday school class!
More to come soon!
Good night!
On Sunday I attended part of the Catholic service, since we were running late. And then right after that I got dropped off at my Aunt and Uncles church which is an International Baptist Church. Two totally different worship experiences. At the Baptist church we sang Praise Song, all of which I knew. But some of the songs we sang partly in French. That was cool! For those of you from Central Park, we sang Days of Elijah, which made me think of choir and you guys! :) It was a good worship experience, but I couldn't help but miss my weekly Sunday school class!
More to come soon!
Good night!
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Leaving
This post should really come before The Getting Acclimated post, but I got ahead of myself! Monday (the day before I left) I packed and ran errands all day. In the evening my phone rang and when I answered it was Ben. He was telling me he was driving back to Orange City from Sanborn. Then the door bell rang, and he said Hey, the door bell rang. I was like Oh, yeah Mom and Dad will get it! And it kept ringing and ringing, and he kept saying and it ringing and ringing! I was thinking boy, whoever at the door sure is impatient. In the mean time I'm not realizing he's calling every ring of the door bell. So my Mom answers the door and Ben was standing there and I screamed! I had No idea he was coming home to suprise me to say goodbye! It was really cool that he did that. I saw him at Christmas but had no clue then I would be leaving the country. He drove all the way 12 hours for me in one day and left the next day because of work. I'm glad I could spend a little time with him before my departure. He was able to come to the airport to see me off. I have those pictures posted above. Thanks Ben for coming home!! :)
Getting Acclimated
Hello Everyone!
I made it! I'm in Europe. I'm still wrapping my head around the idea of actually being here. I arrived in Belgium Wednesday morning at 7:OO AM. You guys back home were still sleeping as it was the middle of the night. Richard (the dad) and Emarie (the 12 yr old. and only girl) met me at the airport and then we took the train to a town probably about 10 minutes from the house. Wednesday was spent meeting the family and getting to know them a little bit. I got the full tour of the house (Which is huge by the way!) My room is wonderful! I will be posting pics of my room soon! I have had no time to do that yet. They kept me up all day so I could get on a regular sleeping schedule. I met their HUGE dog Buttercup in the middle of the afternoon and the dog practically ate me!! I'm not even kidding! That was probably the worst part of the whole first day! :) Otherwise I was tired, but good. They took me out to supper on the Shape Airforce base to the Shape Club. I kept myself awake till about quarter to 9:00 (Belgian time) and then was out! I slept really well for my first night.
Thursday was another full day. In the morning we went back to Base to a women's Bible study, that Kym (the Mom) attends every Thursday morning. It's called PWOC (Protestant Women of the Chapel) It was a mix of all different kinds of women from all various places, and different religious backgrounds. I'm excited to go to this Bible study and be able to be a part of a women's group. In the afternoon we went to the Base about 20 minutes from Shape to the PX and Commissary. They have a play area at the PX and a mini food court so we had lunch there. They have a place called Donor Kebabs (With Turkish food) so I tried that. It was very good. It was a pita filled with all sorts stuff (Cabbage, meat, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese.) Then we did some shopping at the PX and then more shopping (for grocceries) at the Commissary. We didn't get done will of that till 5:00! I had no idea of what time it was till we got in the car to come home. In the evening after the boys were in bed we had a girls night (Kym, Emarie and I). It was relaxing! They have Tivo hooked up to American shows so, we watched American Idol (From Tuesday and One Tree Hill)
So far I can tell it's going to be a growing experience in many ways (as I already knew) but I have a feeling I'm going to learn alot! Already faith wise, I know I'm going to be challenged. As I've been observing and figuring things out the last couple days, the family has an interesting mix of reglious backgrounds. I've been trying to figure out my roll here and I know God has placed me here and is going to use me! I think for Kym, I'm going to be a listener to things going through her mind. And my roll with the kids is to hopefully bring a quiet and peaceful spirit to the household.
Emarie is a very responsible 12 year old and I think she and I will form a good friendship. I know God is calling me to be an example for her, and be someone she can trust and l hopefully can teach her about Christ more and more. Collin (the 7 1/2 year old) is a day dreamer and off in his own little world. He seems to like to antagonize his sister. Jackson ( the 3 1/2 year old) now he's a handful! He's definitely a lively one! But he's cute! My prayer is to hopefully be a calming influence on him, because he is a CRAZY man! Brady (the baby and 18 months) is sweet, but likes to sometimes mimick the behavior of Jackson!
Well it's late and I need to head to bed, but I thought I should post something! I'll be back soon with more of my crazy new adventures!
I made it! I'm in Europe. I'm still wrapping my head around the idea of actually being here. I arrived in Belgium Wednesday morning at 7:OO AM. You guys back home were still sleeping as it was the middle of the night. Richard (the dad) and Emarie (the 12 yr old. and only girl) met me at the airport and then we took the train to a town probably about 10 minutes from the house. Wednesday was spent meeting the family and getting to know them a little bit. I got the full tour of the house (Which is huge by the way!) My room is wonderful! I will be posting pics of my room soon! I have had no time to do that yet. They kept me up all day so I could get on a regular sleeping schedule. I met their HUGE dog Buttercup in the middle of the afternoon and the dog practically ate me!! I'm not even kidding! That was probably the worst part of the whole first day! :) Otherwise I was tired, but good. They took me out to supper on the Shape Airforce base to the Shape Club. I kept myself awake till about quarter to 9:00 (Belgian time) and then was out! I slept really well for my first night.
Thursday was another full day. In the morning we went back to Base to a women's Bible study, that Kym (the Mom) attends every Thursday morning. It's called PWOC (Protestant Women of the Chapel) It was a mix of all different kinds of women from all various places, and different religious backgrounds. I'm excited to go to this Bible study and be able to be a part of a women's group. In the afternoon we went to the Base about 20 minutes from Shape to the PX and Commissary. They have a play area at the PX and a mini food court so we had lunch there. They have a place called Donor Kebabs (With Turkish food) so I tried that. It was very good. It was a pita filled with all sorts stuff (Cabbage, meat, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese.) Then we did some shopping at the PX and then more shopping (for grocceries) at the Commissary. We didn't get done will of that till 5:00! I had no idea of what time it was till we got in the car to come home. In the evening after the boys were in bed we had a girls night (Kym, Emarie and I). It was relaxing! They have Tivo hooked up to American shows so, we watched American Idol (From Tuesday and One Tree Hill)
So far I can tell it's going to be a growing experience in many ways (as I already knew) but I have a feeling I'm going to learn alot! Already faith wise, I know I'm going to be challenged. As I've been observing and figuring things out the last couple days, the family has an interesting mix of reglious backgrounds. I've been trying to figure out my roll here and I know God has placed me here and is going to use me! I think for Kym, I'm going to be a listener to things going through her mind. And my roll with the kids is to hopefully bring a quiet and peaceful spirit to the household.
Emarie is a very responsible 12 year old and I think she and I will form a good friendship. I know God is calling me to be an example for her, and be someone she can trust and l hopefully can teach her about Christ more and more. Collin (the 7 1/2 year old) is a day dreamer and off in his own little world. He seems to like to antagonize his sister. Jackson ( the 3 1/2 year old) now he's a handful! He's definitely a lively one! But he's cute! My prayer is to hopefully be a calming influence on him, because he is a CRAZY man! Brady (the baby and 18 months) is sweet, but likes to sometimes mimick the behavior of Jackson!
Well it's late and I need to head to bed, but I thought I should post something! I'll be back soon with more of my crazy new adventures!
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