Tyndale Student Map... waiting for the faces and places of Matt's class!

This map of Tyndale students hangs in the cafeteria, with last year's students removed and awaiting the pictures from this year's new class! We've met about half of these folks and look forward to sharing their stories as we get to know them better. 

One man I sat with yesterday, Jonathan from Ghana, just graduated and is heading home tomorrow. He has a wife and two kids at home and is now torn between being excited to see his family and sad to leave his Tyndale family. Please pray for Matt's classmates as probably many of them are saying hard goodbyes this weekend as they have to leave their families at home. We are privileged to be able to stick together.

We're Here!!!

We are now in Amsterdam and are feeling that many of your prayers and ours have been answered. We arrived at the Amsterdam airport and I literally felt like we were crawling. I really feel like Satan was making one last all out assault on us to prevent us from getting here in the last few weeks, and especially days. Our weaknesses felt totally exposed!

But just moments after landing, we got a text from a woman associated with Tyndale that is a Christian taxi driver. She took us to campus where there were 3 very kind folks standing outside to usher us into our dorm room, and show us where they had dinner waiting for us. It felt like coming home, but better, as the kids actually ate without complaint!

We've been walking around and checking out playgrounds. Everything is very green with lots of ducks in little canals and ponds. Even though we are quite close to the airport, you hardly can hear the planes. I overheard Nora tell Anya that, "this is just like Tiskilwa, only better!" Anya has even been caught smiling, really big!

I'm sure we will have some major adjustments, but we are reminded of how God has provided a way for us and how He will continue to do so.

One last amazing detail, I was feeling a lot of anxiety about homeschooling after walking by a bunch of schools this morning. Then we just met a Tyndale professor who homeschooled his now college aged daughters while they were missionaries in Romania and believe it or not, his family used the same Sonlight curriculum we have been using the past 5 years. I was trying to figure out what we would do because the books would be too expensive to ship here. He has all the books and said we could use them!!!!! Huge relief!!!

God is good. This picture is in the dorms. I promise the next one will be scenic!

#1 Traveling tip with children: Bribery! "Desperate times call for desperate measures"

Last few days before getting to Amsterdam, bribing the girls with cookies! We've been in Italy and and France, learning a lot. The girls keep reminding me that this is summer, not homeschool. We'll be living in the dorms this summer so I'm excited to get to know Matt's classmates who will be from all over the world. God is good. I feel like a very little fish in a very big pond, but He is with me.

Our girls' first real castle and first European friends

Every little girl hears about castles, whether they are into it or not.  So to get to go to a real one is pretty cool.  Matt picked out this one for our little girls in Carcassonne, France.  Amazingly, although we had no reservations, we ended up at a really cool one room bed and breakfast overlooking this UNESCO World Heritage site. It was right in the middle of a vineyard so Matt was happy too!  

But by this point, castle or no castle, the kids were ready to meet some real kids! 

So we were blessed to meet these lovely British Girls, Lauren and Anna, who became fast friends after I struck up a conversation with their family in a museum and they hiked about a mile to the top of our castle overlook!
  

They proved their true Bristish blood by being so brave,
swimming with my girls in this VERY cold pool. 

 The next day their family made the hike again for Lauren's birthday
and shared  the most delicious birthday cake ever!!

The parents had a nice visit too!! 

Final Travel TIP for Today: It is much more fun to tour a cathedral /church
with someone else's' kids rather than your own!

Thankfully all four of them had a nice time in this lovely one!