SOOOOO Many Goodbyes...

This blog about the June happenings is also very long and a little sad...So many people have been a blessing to me over this year and many of us will be making changes for next year. It will be exciting how the Father uses each of us in a new way!

 This is Stephen and Anna Reyes!!! and BABY DECLAN:-) i had a blast with the baby shower for them and since we share a love for baseball and especially the Astros, baby Declan had to have a sports shower:-)

This was a fun game...Stephen and his best friend Ben had to compete for the title of "fastest bottle drinker"!!! It was awesome!!! Stephen was the winner!!!

 The Incredible organization I have been with this year had our year end debrief...We were each given a Zhong-Dee Award and as you can see, mine is very appropriate:-)  

 This is Lesley...she is an awesome friend who teaches in Huangshi! Also a souther girl:-) We have to stick together!!

 After the debrief a few...I mean 6 friends spent the night with me...as you can see from Chelsie sleeping in the window seat...it was a fun night:-)

 Next up was the Going away party for Bruce and Donna...our fearless small group leaders. They lead different group but we all came together for the party....this is our group! LiPing, Kirk, Ryan, mandi and me.

 We like to call ourselves "The Favorite Small group":-)

 Then I headed off to KTV with Nathan and my student Jeffrey and his friend! It was quite fun singing together one last time!

 Only in China will you find a women and her dogs like this...it was a very patriotic sight....lol I think:-)

 This time for my finals I treated all my students to tea and the new Mr. Mai's English Club close to our school! I wanted the students to know about this great place that is run by like minded friends!! So we took the 1 mi. trek together! It wasn't raining but the students use umbrellas to block the sun from their skin....it is very important to them that they don't get any tan. They laugh at me that i won't stand under the umbrella also...:-)

 Some chinese friends suprised Karen and I with a wonderful chinese meal at her house!! It was amazingly good:-) Then we all ate together!

 More students at Mr. Mai's for the final!! 

 My 2 sweet teacher friends, Eva and Linda, treated me to dinner and KTV as a last night together in Wuhan! They are so sweet and I will miss them so much!

 Bruce, Donna, Mandi and I went with LiPing to the Countryside to visit her family!

 They live in a little village and have all sort of fun stuff this country girl loves...like baby ducks!

 This is how they get water..this is a friend and LiPing's dad!

 Her mom showed us how she cooks...it was amazing!

 Some of my students who recently made decisions went with me to Chinese fellowship...I was teaching the Sunday school class in English this Sunday and had a great time being able to share so openly with them:-)

 This is the day I said goodbye to Chelsie...She has been such a sweet friend and I love her so much! i am excited about her new adventures in SC and can't wait to see her again...This was our last family photo...the Johnson, Black, Priest, Chandler Family:-) After traveling together for 3 weeks we will always be family:-)

 Happy Birthday to Jay and Joe....both had birthdays close together and both are crazy:-)

 The Birthday Boys...they took this for Nathan:-) It's the Mark look alike:-) Joe was happy to dress like Mark for the day!

 One of my students treated me to an orchestra concert by an American University Orchestra!!! i was thrilled!!! They are from NYC and sounded amazing!!

 This is my student "Winnie the Pooh"...he also plays the violin!

 Some of my other students treated me to HOT POT...this was the craziest hot pot I have ever had....WHOA!!!!

 More goodbyes....The Johnsons left to go home for the Summer and we had our "last supper" at McDonalds:-) It's tradition:-) I will  miss these 3 with all my heart! Much love!!!

 Last but certainly not least...my 3 Peng yo's(friends) that are so incredible! Mandi, Ryan, and Kirk...They left today. i spent the night with Mandi last night and went with them to the airport this morning, bright and early. They were some of the hardest to say goodbye to. They have really impacted my life and I will miss them...so happy they will be back in China and even though we will be living far away we will be friends forever:-) The taxi ride back home after i left the airport was not so fun...I'm pretty sure the driver had NO idea why I kept crying...LOL...I could see him glance back at me with a worried face every once in a while. Life is so precious...relationships that have come into my life this year were not like any I would have imagined but by the Grace of the Father I am overwhelmed to feel HIS love through so many people. He is Worthy and I am humbled by His never ending Faithfulness.