There's really no way to do justice to our 10 day trip to Israel in one blog post, even if it's long. We had a group of 20 people: 16 from our church in southern California, 1 from our "extended" church (our missionary) in Spain, 2 from northern California and 1 from Indiana. Our group contained people in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s. By the end of the trip (perhaps even sooner than that) we all felt like family.
For Andrew, this was his third time visiting Israel but first with his wife (we weren't married when we lived there in 2004, but we did start dating there) and church. He loved watching the rest of the group experience the "wow" moments so characteristic to a first trip to Israel. Actually, I loved that too. We also both really enjoyed being able to hold hands more since we weren't holding a child or two!
For me, the trip was confirmation that many of the things I learned when I lived in Israel haven't been lost completely, even after having two children! Actually, I thoroughly enjoyed the constant go-go-go pace and was very thankful at my husband's promptings to hike stairs to prepare. I was also thankful for some really excellent hiking boots and socks from my sister and her boyfriend. It made SUCH a difference to not have blisters on sore feet at the end of the day. I also loved being able to visit the moshav where we lived in 2004 and remember many of the "firsts" of our relationship.
If you're interested knowing in the places we actually visited, feel free to check out the blog we updated while in Israel. There are also pictures and a video or two you could watch.
The reason I haven't updated yet is because it turns out that returning from a trip 10 time zones away from your home is kind of challenging. Add to that a pre-schooler and a toddler that have been without Daddy & Mama for 11 days, a luncheon for 15 at our apartment, 3 weeks of jury duty (for Andrew), a flooded kitchen/dining room, a toilet overflowing all over the bathroom floor, Andrew officiating his first wedding (this Saturday), and Andrew finding out on Friday night that he needed to prepare a sermon for Sunday morning some time when he wasn't in his 9am-4pm Saturday class.... Andrew also is preparing for our church's annual business meeting in a week and finishing his semester. Welcome home!
Clearly I could go on more about the last paragraph, but I won't. If you're really interested, you can always email us :-)
Today was the first day since we returned that has felt "normal," whatever that means. It has proved to be a good day of reflection and remembering the goodness of the Lord, even in the midst of a busy schedule. I am overwhelmed with all the ways I have seen the Lord at work and feel incredibly blessed by my husband, children, family and church family. While I do want to go back to Israel, it's really good to be home.
