Here We Are

From some of our first conversations when we started dating, Patrick and I shared how we both felt like we were made to live overseas. We love learning about cultures, being a part of how God is working around the world, seeing things first-hand.

Fast-forward 3 years, and here we are, in Slovakia with our little boy. We didn't make a decision about where we would live until after we were married. All along, I thought (we both thought) that it would be East Asia. Then the Lord began leading towards Slovakia. Patrick felt confident about it before I did. Coming from the capital of a very large country, Slovakia would be too small for him, I thought. But he liked the idea of re-launching the Cru ministry in another capital, even though it was a significantly smaller one. And around that same time, we found out I was pregnant and were further convinced that Slovakia would be a good fit for our family. I would be spending more time in our home, and I was already comfortable in Slovakia and had a head-start on the language.

So we had a baby, spent some time in the States adjusting, then moved to Bratislava. We spent our first 2 weeks settling in to our new little apartment, and now we're in a tiny "resort" town on the other side of the country, preparing for 2 weeks of SpeakOut English camps. We're making new Slovak friends, helping the newly-arrived Americans learn about this place, listening to incredibly loud techno music blasting through the streets at night, and figuring out how to feed an almost 1-year old with the things we can find.

Last meal in America at the Dwarf House

 No air conditioning, so we bought a pool!

Samko is helping put some furniture together.

Speaking of Samuel, he is loving life! He has about 50 new best friends, and he just about jumps of out my arms with excitement every time he sees any one of them. This little extrovert baby is living the dream.