We are HERE!!!

All of our bags, plus another families and journeygirl's luggage! Can you believe we had to hall all of this around today! Not to mention the 7 blessings we had with us! Whom, by the way, were ALL perfect.

Our "life's belongings" all in one pile at the Taca desk!
Saying goodbye to our neighbor and friend, Estrella. Her name means "star" in Spanish and she is truly a shining light for the Lord. The kids adored her and we very sad to leave her.

Avery saying good-bye to her VERY best friend (and we hope future husband) in the ENTIRE world - Ezra. I have never seen 2 2 year olds love each other as much as these little ones do. It was very sad to pull them apart.
The graduates! The sun was in our eyes.
The graduates with the Peruvian Flag!

TODAY:

2 years ago this month we came to Peru on a vision trip to see if this is where God was calling us. And today....
we arrived safely in Lima around 3:30ish this afternoon (an hour behind Florida time) to start our new life as missionaries. It would be an understatement to say that God's hand was on us ALL day long as we traveled. Things could not have gone any smoother or better. And, to our surprise, ALL 50 pieces of luggage came in without one piece missing. CAN WE SAY MIRACLE????? We traveled with the McLambs who are our Mcfriends and with our new adopted journeyman Jessica. The kids have already started calling her Sissy. She will be in Peru with us for 2 years.

Also, while we were on the airplane, John surprised me and bought me a bottle of my very favorite perfume "duty-free." It's not called duty free, it was dute free. I ran out about 9 months ago and he saw it in the magazine and the airline sells it while we are in the air. Who knew? So he surprised me as we were about to land. It was such a nice thought! I love gifts and I love him! And now I will smell nice in this very polluted city.

I digress!

We arrived in Lima only to be greeted by at least 10 of our team members here in Lima, Peru. Everyone grabbed a luggage cart and a kid and took us to a little micro-bus they had rented to get us back to the mission house. We road home in style and oowed and awwed over every restaurant and store that we saw. LOOK OUT STARBUCKS!! To be greeted by such a big group of people who were so happy to see us and help us get settled was WONDERFUL! I just wanted to keep hugging them and tell them how happy I was to see them and I didn't even know some of them. Our kids had no problem getting to know their new "aunts" and "uncles." Even Avery was happy to be passed around as we were trying to bring our mountain of bags in the house.

A group of us went to McDonalds for supper and it was fun and yummy. We came back to the mission house to get settled in to our little furnished aparment. It's probably about 500ish or less square feet and we are all sleeping in one room. Honestly, I am so happy to have a place to lay my head that I feel like I could stay here awhile. All day, I have just felt that as long as "we" (my family) are together, then I can do anything or live anywhere. I just need them with me.

We still don't have a car and won't have one for a few days, but because we are in Latin America, John and I have learned not to be in a hurry for ANYTHING. Plus, once you know it will take a long time to get something, then you are not disappointed if it comes early.

God's presence and hand completely sustained me these past few days. Saying goodbye to Costa Rica and our friends and life there was certainly harder than I anticipated. I felt a gut-wrenching pain that I didn't feel when I left the states, but only because I know that most of these people I will never see again. UGH!! But so many moments I certainly knew that God was giving me strength to handle the wrenching pain in my heart.

We'll see what tomorrow holds. More then!