Since we have been back in the US the kids have had a chance to try different foods. Sometimes it is a gift or sometimes it is something they want to try from a store.\u00a0 It’s been interesting to see them taste and try what is considered normal, but that which they have never had or don’t remember trying before.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Surprise! We like it! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
or<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Surprise! How is this a popular food here!?\u00a0 We don’t prefer this….or gross…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I have had some surprises too and some \u201cgetting used to things\u201d experiences of my own. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Surprise! I have not seen someone wear clothing like that before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Surprise! That place I liked is no longer there. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I have said things like this to the kids: \u201cSurprise!\u00a0 Welcome back to America where most people are always on time, or maybe early!\u201d and \u201cSurprise!\u00a0 The sun sets so late here your bedtimes are now much later!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes surprises are fun (like the fish Luis has been catching), but lately some of the surprises have been harder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Surprise!\u00a0 It’s time to start thinking about school!\u00a0 Thoughts of school have brought more feelings of loss and grief over not being able to return to Thailand as we had anticipated just 11 weeks ago.\u00a0 Normally, this would be the week where the goodbyes would start and the bags would be filled, but instead we are trying to muster the energy to say hello to new friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Lord has been gracious to start providing opportunities to meet friends, even though our emotional energy is running lower. Chris has come out of Round 3 chemo well and regained energy to restart more activity.\u00a0 His midpoint CT\/PET scan to determine progress thus far will be early morning, Saturday 7\/29.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To our surprise and delight we got an email from someone we do not know, offering us to stay in their furnished home while they live in one of their other locations.\u00a0 Wow, Amazing! But why are we surprised? The Lord heard your prayers and mine. Thank you to so many who looked, and prayed and advocated for this need!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While surprises can make life very interesting, we choose not to allow the surprises of life\u2019s race determine our joy, our peace, our purpose. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As best said by another favorite song Yet Not I<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n To this I hold, my hope is only Jesus<\/p>\n\n\n\n For my life is wholly bound to His<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh, how strange and divine, I can sing, “All is mine”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet not I, but through Christ in me<\/p>\n\n\n\n To this I hold, my hope is only Jesus<\/p>\n\n\n\n All the glory evermore to Him<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the race is complete, still my lips shall repeat<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Yet not I, but through Christ in me”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gal 2:20<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Since we have been back in the US the kids have had a chance to try different foods. Sometimes it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":171,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=170"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":175,"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170\/revisions\/175"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hirtfamily.net\/chris\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}