Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Family Gatherings

We've absolutely loved having the chance to reconnect with our families while on furlough! In Cambodia, something we really miss is celebrating holidays and birthdays together, so the celebrations, gatherings and reunions we've been a part of this summer have been extra-special.  Juliana and Kai are especially enjoying the opportunity to get to know their cousins, and we've all enjoyed fun times with many relatives on both sides of our families.



The Freed Family (with family friend Sarunas from Lithuania, in black t-shirt)

Aslan enjoys a warm day with MaMa Freed

Juliana helps PaPa Freed tend his flowerbeds


Aslan with Great-Grandma Susanna Umble

The Umble Family
 
Playing Uno with Uncle Barry (Freed)
Exploring a creek at a local park with Ryan's brothers and family
  
Celebrating MaMa Freed's August birthday and surprising Juliana and Kai with an off-season celebration of their December birthdays (since they usually don't get to celebrate with extended family)
- Bethany

Sharing about our Ministry


This summer, we've had the privilege of sharing about our past three years in Cambodia at nine different churches or gatherings.  The following are snapshots from our sharing at River of Life Worship Center in Lock Haven, PA in August. 
Bethany shares a slideshow especially for children about our home and lives in Cambodia


Ryan answers questions from Pastor Tom Seaman
 


Bethany and Aslan join Ryan in answering questions from an attentive audience


Bethany explains artifacts and information on Cambodia to interested listeners

- Bethany

Summer Furlough

I'll bet you thought we'd never write another blog post, didn't you?  Rather than falling off the face of the earth, we've been in Pennsylvania, USA, for the past four months, on missionary furlough.  We've been blessed to see many of you, reconnect with family and friends, make new memories in our homeland, and share in a handful of churches about our ministry in Cambodia.  It's been a much busier summer than we anticipated; after bouncing between three houses, making several trips and covering lots of miles in a borrowed minivan, we're looking forward to returning to our home and friends in Cambodia soon.  We're currently unsure of our exact leaving date due to our support not yet totaling 100%, (we're hopeful to leave on September 7), but we know that His ways (and timing!) are perfect!
Thanks so much to all of you who have invested in us, take an interest in our ministry, carry us in your prayers, and support us from afar - we couldn't do this without you!
Please enjoy the following posts of our summer in pictures, and let us know if you'd like to receive our quarterly ministry newsletter.