I've Missed This

It’s been a while. 189 days to be exact. I’m not really sure why I stopped posting to my blog. I think most of all it was lack of motivation. Yes, of course life has been hectic and busy, but it was more than that. I think I was putting pressure on myself to always come up with something interesting to post, and when I didn’t have anything exciting to write I would wonder “who in the world would want to read about the trivial details of my life and look at pictures of my kids over and over again?”

But I’m feeling that tug again…that desire to try and capture those special little “mundane” moments that happen in our day to day living. This is such a precious time. I have my first child knee deep in the waters of middle school,a head-strong tween daughter who still wants to hang out with me (but is now wanting me to take her shopping for cute outfits and lip gloss instead of asking me to play Polly Pockets) and I have the joy of still seeing life through the wonder and innocence of a 4 year old.It’s a wonderful whirlwind, this season of life that I’m in, and I don’t want to forget one moment. Before I know it, this house will be empty on the weekends as they’ll be out hangin’ with their friends, and Sarah will prefer to go shopping with her group of high school friends rather than with me. I want to look back on these busy days and smile at the wonderful memories we made along the way.

So here I am, right back where I started on June 7th 2007, just wanting to capture these special moments, not caring if this blog is interesting to anyone other than my family, and especially not worried if it makes for an interesting read. I’m excited to chronicle this journey of the Garland family, even if it’s just one post per month. (although I do hope to write one post per weekend, but I won’t say that out loud , as I don’t want to put too much pressure on myself. :] ) I even found a site where you can have your blog printed into a photo-album-like book...so excited to do that!

So, I’m feeling motivated again, and for all the right reasons. :) Throughout this week I will be cheating a little. I’ll be backdating posts and will be updating my blog with at least one post per March, April, May, June, July and August.

There were many wonderful memories made over the last 6 months and they’re worth digging back up. Plus, Olivia’s first day of school is just around the corner…you’ve just gotta have a blog for milestones like that.

Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. ~Philippians 1:6

Turning 12

On April 21, 1997 I held this little boy in my arms for the first time. I'll never forget, that same night, Jon and I praying over him and asking God to give us the wisdom we needed as parents. Today, 12 years later, we still pray for him at night. (and us) Although, I somehow think there's a little more desperation in our prayers now then there was 12 years ago. :) Isn't it amazing how you can love a moody, stubborn 12 year old just as much as you can love a sweet, adorable newborn?

He's our son and we are thankful God gave him to us.

We love you, Daniel!

For this child I prayed...So I have also dedicated him to the Lord; as long as he lives he is dedicated to the Lord. ~1 Samuel 1:27-28

A Lesson in Submission

My return flight from Bosnia and Herzegovina allowed for a day layover in Frankfurt, Germany. While planning my trip, I realized I would arrive in Frankfurt at 6:00 pm and my flight didn’t depart until late in the afternoon the following day. This was pretty exciting to me and I began searching online for the perfect, trendy hotel to stay in, right in the heart of the city. Well, I found the perfect hotel and my plan was to take a taxi from the airport to the hotel and then go exploring the downtown district of Frankfurt in the evening…it was all planned out and I was looking forward to it.

Howerver, just a few days before I departed on my trip my husband began to voice his concerns about this little “end-of-trip excursion” of mine. He was concerned for my safety, and just didn’t like the idea of me walking around Frankfurt by myself.

I was frustrated. I’m a very independent, stubborn person and I like to have my way. But at the same time, I totally understood where he was coming from, and tried to put myself in his shoes. So, because I love him, and would want him to do the same for me if the roles were reversed, I cancelled my reservation in my little, trendy downton hotel and booked a hotel that was right next door to the airport. Thus, producing these enticing photos of my stay in Germany.

Frankfurt Airport

Restaurant in Frankfurt

Authentic German Dinner

Authentic German ElevatorThere you have it folks! My grand tour of Germany.

Try not to be jealous.

Oh, P.S. I had a lovely layover in this beautiful airport in Slovenia. It was nestled in the mountains and felt like we were out in the middle of nowhere...and the espresso was out of this world!

March Madness, part 3

The country of Bosnia and Herzegovina is sharply divided by ethnic barriers. There are the serbs, the croats, and the bosniaks, each with their own dialect, religion and customs. People from these three regions rarely interact and there are major prejudices towards one another. The purpose of the Youth Leadership Program (very quick summary) was to take 6 students and 1 teacher from each of the three regions (Banja Luka, Tomislavgrad, Tuzla), bring them together and have them visit the U.S. for 4 weeks, where they attended a Civic Education Institute at Willamette, worked on community service projects together, visited high schools, lived with host families, and overall learned how we as Americans come from all different religious and ethnic backgrounds, but still volunteer and work together to make our communities a better place…basically learning the rights and roles of active citizenship.

Having said that, I think one of the most rewarding parts of my trip was the very first day of the Pre-Departure Orientation. Lejla (Program Officer from the Embassy) and I waited in the lobby of the hotel for the different groups to arrive. They were all traveling into Sarajevo from their various hometowns. The group from Banja Luka arrived first, as shown in this picture.

I have to admit I was nervous to meet these teenagers, not sure what they would think of me and how friendly they would be. But they were the most friendly, polite, wonderful kids! They immediately greeted me with huge smiles and hugs and we sat and chatted while waiting for the other groups to arrive. The group from Tuzla arrived next and it was so cool to see the kids from Banja Luka spring up from their chairs and rush over to greet these kids, who normally they wouldn’t interact with. It was amazing to see them introduce themselves without any inhibitions. The circle got larger and there was much laughter and boisterous conversations. Lastly, the group from Tomislavgrad arrived and it was the exact same thing…immediate welcoming and we all sat around the table in this huge group getting to know one another. And this is the best part. Take a look at these pictures. These were taken right outside my hotel room door in the hallway. This is what it was like every evening. Every single student in the hallway, playing UNO, talking and laughing until the hotel staff would come up and tell them to go to their rooms. You would never have known these kids had just met. You would never have known these kids were from three distinct and divided regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was an incredible thing to witness.

The daily sessions went well. I would cram each night, preparing for the next day’s sessions, and it always turned out better than I expected.
By the end of the trip, I was flat out exhausted, and couldn’t wait to get home to see my family. I will always cherish the memory of Olivia running up to me at the airport and hugging me as tightly as she could…ahh, I get teary-eyed just thinking about it. I had missed my kids so much, and it was hard to be so far away from them, and for such a long period of time. I also was able to surprise Sarah by picking her up at school the day I returned. It was so sweet to see her shocked, yet trying to maintain her cool composure while at school, reaction.

And…I get to do this all over again in March 2010. Actually, I don’t want to think about it just yet. Anyways, I’ll leave you with what very little pictures I took while in Sarajevo.

March Madness, part 2

(Boarding my flight from Munich to Sarajevo)

The flights from Chicago to Sarajevo went by quickly. I mostly worked like a mad ape on my laptop, fine-tuning my materials. One of the coolest moments came as I was working on my “culture-shock” presentation for the students, and was able to reflect on my experiences of traveling to Russia when I was 15. I was able to use my experience and relate to what these kids would be going through. I had been praying that God would prepare the way for me to bond with these high school students for His glory. That I would be able to connect with them and build relationships, which would open the door for me to share the truth of the gospel with them as the program progressed. Long story short, He answered that prayer.

Another cool little way God provided this was, while on my flight, the movie Twilight came on. This is a movie I would have never chosen to go see in the theatre or rent on DVD. I ignored it the first time it came on and kept working. The second time it played, I shut my laptop and decided to watch, merely for the purpose of resting of my brain. This movie ended up being a huge bridge for me to connect with the Bosnian girls. They were all HUGE Twilight fans and we were able to have many engaging conversations about the movie. :) It was clearly a “God thang” that he allowed me to see that movie before meeting the girls.

Anyways, arriving in Sarajevo, I was exhausted and prayed for strength and clarity of mind. Oh, and it was frrrreezing there! I snapped this picture out of the window of my taxi cab.I took a taxi to my hotel, dropped of my luggage and went straight to the Embassy…totally intimidating experience. The Program Officer, who I had been previously corresponding with, was one abrasive, type-A, aggressive lady. She was all business. Inside, I was shaking and having one of those “I just want to do laundry all day, every day again” moments, and on the outside I was putting on my most confident “don’t mess with me because I know what the hell I’m doing” faces. :)

I survived the meetings and traveled back to my hotel, thinking I was going to crash and get some much needed sleep. However, I found it impossible to go to sleep. (dang jet lag!) I ended up watching two entire movies in Bosnian with no English subtitles, before finally nodding off for a few hours sleep.
(The ever-exciting view out of my hotel window. Amazing that you can travel halfway across the world and look out your window, and still feel like you're in Salem.)

To be continued…
(Suspenseful, I know!)

March Madness, part 1

Looking back on the month of March it’s hard for me to remember much other than work. Unfortunately, I was immersed in it...or more like drowning in it. We (Willamette University) received a grant from the US State Department to administer the Youth Leadership Program with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The grant began in September 2008, and by March it was in full swing. Of course, as Program Manager, my wheels were turning 24/7 from recruiting host families, interviewing host families, tracking expenditures, preparing and submitting the quarterly grant reports, creating and constantly tweaking the program schedule, recruiting local non-profits to work with the students, recruiting Willamette professors to teach their sessions, and ironing out all the logistical kinks that come with administering a month long program. By the time March came, I was only 1 month away from the arrival of 18 students and 3 teachers from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

On March 8th, I headed over to Sarajevo to conduct the participants’ Pre-Departure Orientation. I was to arrive one day early to finalize my preparations. The next day was to be an all day meeting at the US Embassy in Sarajevo with our program officers, and the next day was to be the start of the 5 day long Pre-Departure Orientation, which would consist of all day sessions from 8 to 5. I was responsible for providing all the materials, and giving two 2-hour presentations daily. Since I was putting together 21 binders, each containing 60 pages of materials, (that I created, thank you very much!) I decided to pack the empty binders, and arrive 1 day early in Sarajevo, take my thumb drive to a print shop and print all the pages of materials and assemble the binders. This way I wouldn’t have to lug around all that printed material on the way over. And surely one full day was plenty of time to finalize the preparations.

Well, I arrived at the Portland airport for my departure and sure enough…my flight to Chicago was delayed. No big deal, right? Wrong! As I waited for hours upon hours at PDX I slowly began to realize that I was going to miss my connecting flight from Chicago to Munich which then connected me to Sarajevo. This ended up meaning I had to spend the night in Chicago because the next flight to Munich didn’t leave until the next day. Which meant I would arrive in Sarajevo a day late…I would literally go straight from the airport to my meetings at the Embassy. Aaacckk! There goes my prep day!

(A self portrait of my extremely frustrated self in my Chicago hotel room)

So, once I arrived in Chicago, instead of seeing the city, I spent most of the night and the next day in a Kinko’s shop, printing materials and assembling binders…it was great fun. This was one of those moments where the thought crossed my mind, “Why did I complain about the monotony of dishes and laundry when I was a stay at home mom? What I would give now to be home in my ugly sweats, no make-up, hair in a pony tail, and folding laundry on the couch while listening to the sound of my kids fighting with each other and my husband coming home asking what was for dinner.” I seriously would have sold my left arm for it.(This picture sums up everything I was able to see while in Chicago.)

(However, being stuck in a fancy hotel has its benefits...aka room service!)

To be continued...

Proud Mommy

I remember those moments when Daniel and Sarah were in Pre-School and they would be up on the big stage singing in their Christmas programs. I clearly remember sitting in the audience, with a lump in my throat, my eyes welling up with tears, and that feeling of being so proud of my kids overwhelming me. Well, for those of you who haven't had the joy of raising kids past the first grade yet, let me tell you that feeling never goes away.

My sweet Sarah decided she wanted to learn how to sew. Her grandma gave her a sewing machine for Christmas and I enrolled her in a sewing class. Last Monday when I picked her up from class, this is what she made:

Pajamas!!!

In case you're thinking I helped her, think again! I can barely sew a button on a shirt, and have no idea how to even thread a sewing machine. She did this all on her own.

Daniel...ahh Daniel, how do I say this? Well, something that has always bothered me is Daniel is quite often misunderstood by those around him. For some reason he comes across different to people than the person he really is; the person Jon and I know him to be. Daniel is compassionate and full of kindness. His soft heart prompted us to adopt this cat. Now, Jon and I DO NOT like cats. But due to Daniel's persistence and constant plea for justice and humanity, we took in this stray cat. Since then, this cat has become Daniel's best friend. She only likes to be in Daniel's room and always goes in and sleeps with him at night (I put her out in the garage after Daniel goes to sleep and then let her back inside in the morning before he wakes up. Shhh...don't tell. I love my clean carpet too much, and would probably kick this cat to the street if I ever found a wet spot on the carpet.)

Another proud mommy moment has been hearing the sounds of TobyMac boomin' from Daniel's room. TobyMac is his all time favorite, we listen to him on the way to school and any time we drive anywhere at all. Recently, Daniel even took one of his TobyMac CDs to school for his teacher to play during class free time! I can't tell you how happy it makes me to know my pre-teen son thinks Christian music is cool...Here's to hoping that never goes away!

Olivia, she is what fills with our home with laughter. Unlike Daniel and Sarah at her age, Olivia spends her week days with someone other than me. I think it must be hard for a four year old to spend a few days a week with Grandma and learn that you have to obey your Grandma too. But she has done wonderfully, and I'm so proud of her! I come home each week night to a big "MOMMYYY!", huge hug, and an ear to ear smile. She is such a sweet, loving girl and I'm just so proud of how well she's adjusted since I started working full time.

And yes, these mushy pride-filled feelings overflow to my husband as well. He had knee surgery on Feb. 9th and has been ordered to put no pressure on his bad knee for four weeks. That means his left foot stays off the ground at all times. I can't tell you how many evenings I would walk into the kitchen and see him on crutches, hopping around on one leg doing the dishes. I would come home from work and the laundry would be done...He's quite the amazing one-legged "housewife" I tell ya. I've been quite impressed.

And, whoa...hold the phone! Literally, as I'm typing this, Jon just hobbled in the front door with Daniel and lo and behold he has a triple grande skinny vanilla latte in hand...just for me. Sigh, I just love the weekend.

Blessings to you all!