We made it to Salem! We drove for 20 hours straight after starting on Saturday night around 9:30 and then stopping for the night in Cheyenne, Wyoming on Sunday night. Then we travelled for two more full days before arriving at the Ywam base in Salem. We ate almost everything out of our cooler and mostly only stopped for gas, diapee changes and potty breaks. Carson drove the whole way, an my (Kathy) job was to ask him every once in a while "are you okay" and to keep Dakota supplied w/ a dvd to watch and snacks to eat and apple juice to drink. She did very well, both Carson and I couldn't have been happier with how she travelled. She was even excited to get back into the jeep after stops b/c she knew she would get to watch a video. We cut her off the last 2 hours of travelling and have since hugely limited her watching time, but we were very thankful for the dvd player to help keep her entertained for the trip.
Carson and I already feel at home here and are trying to enjoy the 'down time' although we are sort of anxious to get into a routine, which will be starting on Sunday. We have met quite a few people on the base already, although we are the only ones from our school that are here so far, the rest will arrive throughout the weekend. They told us when we got here that Dakota would be the 'only' child in the CDTS, which has never happened before and even last year they had 11 or so children, which all went on a outreach to the Phillipines. Luckily though, she has a few other 2 year olds on the base to play with (they can teach each other how to share) and a few older kids as well. She met a little Korean boy named Injin and a little Brazilian girl named Rebecca last night at dinner, they are both 4. She also got to meet little Drew Beachy, who is the 2 year old son of Michael and Nikki Beachy, Michael being from our area. They started fighting immediately over a car and then later over crayons, but the next morning Dakota was asking to 'play Drew'.
We could use your thoughts and prayers regarding Dakota, this transition has been harder for her than we imagined and have had a difficult week. She has had quite a few 'meltdowns', aka temper tantrums, and just hasn't been herself. We are trying to be patient with her during this time of transition, yet also needing to provide structure and discipline for her as well. It is hard to find that balance.
Carson and I already feel at home here and are trying to enjoy the 'down time' although we are sort of anxious to get into a routine, which will be starting on Sunday. We have met quite a few people on the base already, although we are the only ones from our school that are here so far, the rest will arrive throughout the weekend. They told us when we got here that Dakota would be the 'only' child in the CDTS, which has never happened before and even last year they had 11 or so children, which all went on a outreach to the Phillipines. Luckily though, she has a few other 2 year olds on the base to play with (they can teach each other how to share) and a few older kids as well. She met a little Korean boy named Injin and a little Brazilian girl named Rebecca last night at dinner, they are both 4. She also got to meet little Drew Beachy, who is the 2 year old son of Michael and Nikki Beachy, Michael being from our area. They started fighting immediately over a car and then later over crayons, but the next morning Dakota was asking to 'play Drew'.
We could use your thoughts and prayers regarding Dakota, this transition has been harder for her than we imagined and have had a difficult week. She has had quite a few 'meltdowns', aka temper tantrums, and just hasn't been herself. We are trying to be patient with her during this time of transition, yet also needing to provide structure and discipline for her as well. It is hard to find that balance.
We are staying in a dorm called 'Harvest' and it was designed with families in mind. We have a large room for the 3 of us and then we will share a bathroom with a couple next door. We have a refrigerator in our room and just down the hall we have coin operated laundry facilities along with a microwave. There is a lounge in this dorm along with a t.v. room. There is a playground here as well for Dakota, where we will probably be a lot. The campus is 35 acres, and is a nice wooded area. I will try to post pictures of the campus as we take them. We have been so well received here and feel so at home and welcome, yet it is a big transition nonetheless, so please pray for us as we come to your minds that we would be open to receiving all that God has for us during this time.
Oh, we found out immediately when we got here that there is already 2 ladies designated to take care of Dakota, so we will not need to worry about that. Our school director's wife, Carol, will be watching her for the first 2 months and then an older lady named Mary who has spent 15 years or so in Uzbekistan will be watching her for the last month.
Lastly, the weather here is rainy and chilly, but everything is so green! We've been wearing our fleeces everyday that we've been here. I'm sure it will warm up soon.
Carson has been helping with a few building projects already, and the people here have been very thankful for his help. We don't know yet, but we are thinking that his work duties will be related to construction projects here on the base. All of his experiences in the past 2 1/2 years will really come in handy.
God is showing us that he just wants us to 'be' during this time, that the focus should be on our 'being' and not on our 'doing' and to keep our eyes open to what He wants to show us and what opportunities he wants to bring us. To look for Him throughout the day.
Oh, we discovered when we got here that we forgot a box that was filled with all of Dakota's books, my bible, and our address book. Carson's mom is going to send it to us if she can find it, so if you would like a postcard before we get our address book, please send us your address at hershy414@yahoo.com.
With love,
Carson +Kathy + Dakota
1 comment:
I was so excited to see this update! Thanks so much for sharing about the trip and your new life there. We miss you!
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