December Marches On

As I sit here this morning and look out at the gloomy sky, I remember quickly that I cannot be sitting here looking out at the gloomy sky! It's December and I have things to do.

It's time to write the annual letter
Time to make my hair look better
Time to wash the weekly clothes
Time to make another list, so here goes...

Wrap the gifts to look real merry
Paint my toes so they don't look scary
Address and stuff the Christmas cards
Decorate the house, the front and back yards...

Help the kids to do homework
Have dinner ready, maybe roast pork?
Plan an 11 year old birthday party
Shop for gifts, while looking sporty

Bake some cookies and Remember the needy
Stop and thank the Lord, do a good deedy
Help the Girl Scouts with fundraising
Remember that Christmas is about Jesus, so be praising!

Attend the annual "Holiday" gathering for the hubby's work
And wear the girdle so you don't look like a dork
Remember you've worked out all year for this dress
Try not to spill on yourself and look like a mess!

Tuck the girls into bed, Peel the hubby off the sofa
Remember we've got stuff to finish daily to meet the Christmas quota
Have a glass of wine and look real cheerful
Because if we don't get this done, someones getting an earful!

Merry Christmas!
Kelly

A Change Will Do Us Good

We survived these past 2 weeks, in great part to prayer & in great part to friends and family that have rallied around us. In the midst of Jean passing away, we tried to keep the girls going with their normal activities (Girl Scouts, School, Soccer, play dates, etc.) but it was quite the challenge. Taylor did not win her bid for election to President of her school, although her speech was fantastic! Little spats along the way with rivers of tears and emotion were easy to identify as being caused by other things. We have persevered.

In addition to being joined at the hip with the Burton family, Sammie and I finished our soccer season together and we've already had our team party. It was fun to coach my "Super Stars" and come to the realization that Sammie isn't ready to play a different sport in the spring. She earnestly wants to continue playing soccer and so I've signed up to be her coach again in the spring. Taylor's Team finished soccer just this past weekend, earning a top finishing spot (#1) in the league going into the playoffs, and finishing 2nd as a team in the season-ending tournament. Emotional as it was to finish in 2nd place, the team really pushed hard through 3 playoff games including a double-overtime ending! We were all exhausted, and the 90 degree weather didn't help to cool the emotion of the finish. As a parent I would have loved to see Taylor play a more forward position for more than the 1 quarter she played this weekend, however she's a stellar center-D (center defensive guard) and works amazingly with the goalie. It's easy to see why the coach chose to keep her there. Emotions ran high on the side lines, but we've all breathed a sigh of relief to put this season behind us. Taylor is already talking of spring soccer and is excited to try out for the Plus team at the conclusion of spring. Way to rebound T!

As if soccer wasn't enough, our girls ALSO participated in the annual talent show at their school. Taylor and her friend Ellie did a beautiful piano/violin duet to "Silent Night," and Sammie and her best buddie Abby sang a duet to "Crocodile Rock." They really got the audience into their performance, and neither act showed any real signs of nerves. What pro's! Eric's Dad and Uncle were on hand for the talent show, and really enjoyed the comic relief provided by some of the acts performed.


So now we can head into Thanksgiving without sports on the brain, or a talent show to prepare for. There are not any family emergencies at the moment, and we're looking forward to sleeping in on the weekends and preparing our home and hearts for the family gatherings that are fast approaching. We're ready for this change, and the change will do us good.

ps - Thank you for all the warm thoughts, cards, emails, flowers, and plants. Thank you for keeping our family in your prayers. Thank you to those who attended Jean's Memorial Service Life Celebration. We've had so many compliments given to our family on the way Jean's life was celebrated. But truly our friend and pastor, Skip deserves the recognition for setting the tone and for Jean giving us much to celebrate. God Bless You all.

Jean Burton's Memorial Service

Eternal Hills Cemetery & Mortuary
1999 El Camino Real
Oceanside, CA 92054
(760) 754-6600

Viewing - Tuesday, November 11th

4 - 8pm

Memorial Service - Wednesday, November 12th
1 pm

Map to location: http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?formtype=address&addtohistory=&address=1999%20S%20El%20Camino%20Real&city=Oceanside&state=CA&zipcode=92054%2d5754&country=US&geodiff=1

The family respectfully resquests that in lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the MS Society in Jean Burton's name.

Contact Karen Barton at (760) 448-8412 for assistance from the MS Society.

Jean has been set free...

Just a few minutes ago I finished speaking with both Ron and Eric about Jean. Around 11:30 this morning Jean went to be with the Lord and took her final breath in the body that's confined her for so many years.

A few days ago Jean awoke to a pain in her chest that turned out to be a massive blood clot nearing her lungs. She passed out and was taken by ambulance to the hospital. At the hospital they stabilized her body function and needed to take extreme measures to keep her alive. These extreme measures are not want Jean wanted. Over the next few days in the ICU she showed signs of life with eye fluttering, muscle twitching, chewing, etc. However, even though the tests administered to Jean showed blood flowing to the brain, there was severe damage when she was not able to get oxygen during her unstable time on Saturday. Also, the medicine used to bring her back, severely handicapped her brain function. As a result, the life signs we saw were merely muscle responses to her body relaxing, not a sign of brain function. The doctors concurred that Jean was not really there any longer, and as a family (husband, children, sister) it was decided that Jean would not want to live in this state on a respirator. They humanely agreed that removing Jean from the ventilator would be what Jean would want. The breathing tube was removed early Tuesday evening, and she continued to breathe on her own until late this morning.

Although it's going to be difficult to share this news with our children today, we can take comfort in these passages...

John 5:24 "I assure you, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life." ... Jean was a Christian and she knew where she was going!

1 Corinthians 15:42 "Our earthly bodies which die and decay, will be different when they are resurrected, for they will never die." ...Jean is now dancing in heaven!

John 11:25 "Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die like everyone else, will live again." ...Jean believed!

Lastly, I know that not all of our friends understand what it's like to be a believer and to know the Lord. We all have doubts. Some may look at a person like Jean and see the MS, the illness, the weakness. Eric and I have often wondered why Jean was given this burden in life. But then we've also seen that through her, our families have more compassion for others. We've raised money for the MS cause to find a cure - would we have done that without her being sick? Our children know that a wheelchair is not a death sentence. They've ridden on her lap, played with her "special toys" - like the chairs that raised her up and down, and the scooters and wheelchairs that drove her around. This is like a bumper car to a child - and fun, not scary. So we can see life and change in us, because of her...

One last verse to end my note today...

2 Corinthians 12:9 "Each time he said, "My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may work through me." ... Thank you Jean...I love you

Kelly

Jean in the hospital

Normally, I'd just post about our crazy weekend. Halloween costumes (Taylor was a candy corn & Sammie a bee). And how Eric ran in the NY Marathon today (11/2) and finished all 26.2 miles in a personal best of 4 hrs and 13 minutes. However, all of this greatness is overshadowed knowing that Eric's Mom, Jean, is currently in the hospital in Oceanside fighting to wake up.

As you may or may not know, Jean has Multiple Sclerosis and she's battled with it for 35+ years. She's gone from a belly-dancing, aerobic class taking, nurse and teacher, to a woman who is hand fed by her loved ones and taken care of 24/7 by Ron (her husband) and her hired care takers. She can no longer even use the controls on her wheelchair and she must be pushed. It's been a long road to say the least. It's been difficult to watch someone so alive on the inside succumb to such a horrible disease. She's a model of grace and love, with a ready smile for everyone she meets. And we know that if she doesn't come through, she'll be going to meet Jesus, because that is where her hope lies.

In the next 24 hours we'll get the results of her scans to know if there is still brain activity, and if the blood clots they found in her chest have been reduced. She's stable right now, but still intubated. She may wake up on her own, however the doctors did not want to raise any hopes telling me that she may not wake up at all.

So, after spending the night with family and being close to the hospital, we're now home and waiting for Eric's flight to arrive from NY. He'll spend tomorrow with his family in Oceanside. It was difficult for Eric to stay in NY to run knowing what was going on here. He got the news only hours after arriving in NY too. However EVERYONE here told him to stay and run - this is what Jean would be telling him to do! On a side note, both of Eric's uncles and one aunt had scheduled more than 6 months ago to be here for a visit. They've all arrived and isn't God amazing to know that Ron and his children would need the support of their extended family this week.

Thank you for following our family. God Bless You All!
Kelly

Burton Halloween Pictures (copy & paste this link): http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=9EYuWbdu3Yps

October Overatures

The overature would be my children playing the piano that Ron & Jean (Burton) gave us for the girls to use at home. Both Eric and his sister Julie learned how to play on it, so we're honored that the tradition can continue in our home. It's a beautiful thing to hear the sweet sounds come from their efforts on the instrument, and it's amazing that they can still find ways to fight about it too. "I'm first. No, it's my turn!" Oh, well... they're doing what sisters do.

In other news, Taylor is running for President of the Student Council at her elementary school. Her slogan is "vote for Mii! Taylor B. for Class Prez!" The mii part rhymes with wii (like the game system). Her picture and her wii likeness are on the poster in the library for all to see. She's getting so much positive feedback on the likeness and the poster that she's actually walking on air!

Recently a friend of mine sent an email about Caryn (a mutual friend from junior high) that is needing a new kidney. My heart went out to her, as you can imagine, having been through this necessity with my father for the last 5 years. A support group on Facebook was started for Caryn, so I joined Facebook, so I could support her. Now I'm finding that Facebook is going to be my new habit. OK, I admit it, I'm a computer junkie. I LOVE research on the computer, find deals, go to ebay, craigslist, google, you tube, our blog page, movie sites, webkinz (for the kid games) and now FACEBOOK. I hope our insurance can cover this additiction!!

Also, the kids have chosen their costumes for Halloween. Taylor will be a sweet looking piece of candy corn, and Sammie is a bee (a diva looking bee at that)! Halloween will be very fun this year, as we once again share it with Ron and Jean carving pumpkins, making pizza, and then trick-or-treating. It's become a tradition to share this day with them, and it's fun for grandkids, parents and kids alike.

Lastly, on Sunday - November 2nd, Eric will be running in the New York Marathon. He leaves on his flight on Friday (the Halloween Redeye) and runs starting at 10:20 am EST. We'll be tracking him online and then talking to him via webcam when he's done. Hopefully, I'll be able to post some of it. Eric has chosen to run for a cause too, it's the TSA (Tourette's Syndrome Association) since Taylor was diagnosed with it this last spring. NO she doesn't swear, she does have combo motor/vocal tics - it doesn't slow her down. We can talk more about that another time.

Check you later!
Kelly

Where Did September Go?

As I look at my past blog entries I realize that the first month of school is history! We did so much too! The girls started 5th and 2nd grade. They've begun piano lessons. They're back to regular girl scout meetings - and Taylor's troop is planning to go to San Francisco in May to bridge from Juniors to Cadette's! We're also deeply into soccer. Taylor has found her niche as the star center defender and Sammie cannot make up her mind what her favorite positions is... but who can blame her? She's a powerhouse no-matter where her coach puts her! And I'm her coach!

Since October is now 1/2 way finished, I'm trying to stop and look around. Take in the sights and sounds of fall in Southern California. Yes... we do get a change of season around here. The ivy on our back wall fence changes beautiful shades of brown and red before it gently dies and becomes part of the gardeners' problem. And, the hot winds have arrived which means the "fire bugs" are now out and wreaking havoc in SoCal too. We're praying our friends in Simi Valley won't have it too bad this year, although there is currently a fire too close to them.

Whispers of Halloween events are filling the air, candy is creeping into the house, pumpkins and skeletons are adorning the lawns of many neighbors. We've even been "boo'd". This means a neighbor secretly stashed candy in a bag and ditched it on our door for the girls. When we received it, we posted the required "BOO" flier on our window and promptly "boo'd" three additional neighbors to spread the chear. The girls loved filling the BOO bags and then giving them out. They "ding-dong-ditched" three neighbors and waited for them to come out and retrieve the surprise on the door. Where did they learn this term? I don't know... hmmm.... motherly moment to ponder...

Kelly's Morning Muse

School has begun, soccer has begun, Girl Scouts has begun, the Small Group is meeting again, and Mom alone time has begun once again too. This leaves me time to muse about my family, my life and this journey that God has placed me on.

First, I must tell you that Eric received an email yesterday from one of our interpreters in Africa from the Nazareen Church, Julius. Here was his email:

"Pastor Eric and Kelly,
I have tried many times to send you my greetings but messages failed. I will never forget the good time we had together at Nazarene Church. I also believe that the ministry goes well. We always talk about you. My young daughter chose to be called Kelly. We miss you a lot, we hope to see u in the future. May God bless you. Your Interpreter Jules."

I cried when I read this message because it's obvious from the email that we touched them as much as they touched us. His daughter decided to be called my name! What a huge compliment and testimony to just showing up! Also... Pastor Eric! :) funny huh!

In other news, my computer died a violent death and was resurrected once again. This time I tried the "Make It Work" service and it was fantastic! If you want to use them... just tell them I referred you (Referral ID: 789932).

Our small group is doing "40 Days of Love" based wholly on the Great Commandment and Commission. "Love the Lord with all your heart & Love your neighbor as yourself." As we break down these instructions and try to make them practical in every day life I realize that I'm not always very lovable and other people can be EGR's (extra Grace required), but maybe I'm an EGR to them! In any case, it's part of the journey. Not everyone has to be my best friend, but I also don't have to be disagreeable to those that are not my friends. We can all disagree without being disagreeable, yes?

On a separate note, the Burton Family is high on politics these days. We openly discuss the candidates and their positions. We watched both primaries and we're eagerly awaiting the debates (the VP debate is next week.) It's fun to get the girls to think about our country - especially when they've been out of the country and know that we're not all perceived the same way in other parts of the world.

Enough musing for now... thanks for following the Burton Family journey. We love you all and hope to hear from you soon.

Kelly

School is IN!

Finally, our countdown to grades 5 and 2 are over and the girls have started back to school. The realization that Taylor is in her final year of Elementary School has hit us all and really, Taylor is more excited than you can imagine. Do you remember what it was like to want to be older, but still hold on to the comfort of younger things? Like wanting to look like a teen, but liking to play with your little sister and some of her toys at the same time. This is our home!

Taylor has a teacher that is new to our school, however Mrs. Heuer has been in our district for 11 years. The BIG bonus is that Mrs. Heuer has taught middle school math and T really wants to learn some big-time algebra, so she's excited to have this teacher! She only wishes a few more of her good friends were in there too.

Sammie is already in love with her 2nd grade teacher, Mrs. Robbins. She has her best friend Abby in the class too, so all is good in Sammie-land.

Soccer games begin this Saturday and it's going to be awesome to see our girls in action on the field once again!

Shaved the Cats! Yes, you read it correctly...

OK, before I talk about the cats...
Dad is doing great! He's home and the kidney is working great. He's keeping his follow-up appointments at UCLA and he sounded downright giddy when I spoke with him yesterday. So far so good. Thank you everyone for the prayers, and the notes, and the concern. We ALL appreciate it more than you could know.

Now, the cats! While Taylor and Eric were away this week, I took the cat hair problem into my own hands - or hand! I called the mobile groomer and had him make our two longgggg hair kitties look like well groomed mini lions (or poodles). Sammie was upset with me after the first cat re-entered the house. She screamed and blocked the door. Later, she calmed down and liked the look. They're much softer now and are really acting pretty happy too! When I told Eric over the phone (he was in NY at the time) he said "Wow, Taylor is going to be so mad at you!" Well, he was right and I knew that she would be too. When I picked her up from camp today, I chose my moment very carefully before returning home. I told her, and she screamed. (Maybe I underestimated the value of cat hair?) After calmly reassuring her that she had every right to be upset, and that it was OK. I reassured her that the boys (that's what we call Odie and Howie) were very happy and acted like they like the lack of hair! She calmed down and really was just fine. I don't know if I'll ever do it again, but I do know... next time I'll make sure she knows ahead of time!

Kidney's and other "Parts" of our life...

Life never seams to slow down, it just changes to different paces throughout each day. Each days brings new challenges, laughter, thoughts, and most of all blessings. The latest blessing comes in the form of a new kidney for my Dad. At this time, he's at UCLA in the ICU with a newly given kidney. The kidney comes from a tragedy another family experienced (car accident from 19 year old), and they brought life to my Dad from it. This selfless acts reminds me that we could all stand to be more selfless each day. It's not about me right? Dad is doing great and is happy to not only have the kidney, but the stuffed "Papa Bear" build-a-bear that Taylor and Sammie gave to him that has a recorded voice of them saying "Get well soon Papa. We love you!."



On another note, Eric is preparing to run a 1/2 marathon in San Diego this weekend, and I'm preparing to start coaching soccer Today!!! I'm looking forward to seeing what name they pick for our little team (dressed in pink/blue) uniforms.

Next week Taylor will embark on a journey that will take her away from home for 5 days to learn more about the Lord with our church at camp. As she's packing right now, I'm reminded just how much she is growing up - I wish this pace would slow down. I'm missing the coloring at my side days (as Sammie is doing as I type this!).

So wherever you are today in your journey, I'm hoping your pace is just right and that you recognize the blessings in front of you - however great or small. I know mine are all around me, and for that I'm so very thankful!

Spectacular!

This past week (or should I say blur) we've been headed off to church every morning for our annual VBS - Vacation Bible School! This high energy event pairs 3000+ kids with willing adult leaders (like me) to teach them about Jesus in a fun and exciting way. We have a loud and vibrant band, water games, theatre and a minimum of 10 kids per adult to care for. Well, having read about our past month you can imagine how tired we all are already, and Taylor did get sick and miss the last 2 days of the camp. However, Sammie and I persevered, along with Ellysa Lim (from our Rwanda trip) to lead our group all week.

I think we're all looking forward to slowing down in the coming month to bask in the sun & do nothing. We're hoping so spend some time in my parents pool, lay in the sand at the beach, and connect with a few friends in a very LOW key way.

For now, we're glad to have been a part of VBS, but we're also glad we have a non-packed month ahead of us.

Part Bob Villa, part Martha Stewart, part Taxi Driver!

That's exactly how Eric and I are feeling these days. After an exhaustive process to make Taylor's room "her own" it's now finished! Eric hand-made the bookshelf hutch that's proudly sitting on her desk (the desk and walls and freshly painted too.) I made her duvet cover since we couldn't find anything that matched her decor choice of pink/brown that wasn't too "surfer", "little kid", or "old lady." The result... a pink and brown extravaganza that any tweenager would love. What's a tween? Any little lady who's too big to hang with her little sister's friends, and too young to hang out with parents and teenagers. Yes, we're officially in the land of limbo with Taylor. Some days we're cool parents, and other days we're the weirdest people in the world!

In addition to the redecorating this summer, the kids are enjoying camps... which means I'm driving all over the OC. But the smiles on their faces are very worth it. Sammie loved her camp last week which incorporated the "Magic Tree House" book series into a series of crafts and things that kids could cook themselves. She did this class with her friend Lucy and loved it! This week Taylor is taking a robotics class at the Discovery Science Center. (http://www.discoverycube.org/) You should know from the getgo that Taylor is a harsh critic of anything camplike... especially if it's educational too. AND... she's loving it! Each day she's talked for about 10 minutes straight about what they've done in class and what they're going to do the next day. So it looks like we've found the right kind of camp to interest Taylor and I'll be searching out more options like this next year.

Next week we'll be at our church every day for Vacation Bible School, and I'll be leading a Crew of 10 kids along with one student leader the whole week. My student leader is Elyssa, which is the middle daughter of the Lim family (we traveled to Africa with them this past April.) It's going to be great fun to share this experience with her as well.

So for now I'll get back to my reading (book 5 of the Harry Potter series) and relax in the midst of my Taxi driver summer. But don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade it for anything! However, it would only be better to share this week and next with Eric, but he's traveling for work (next week to Hawaii... bummer huh!)

July has arrived!

Yes, July is here and our summer is in full swing. Lot's of SO's (sleep overs), late nights where we just cannot stay on a schedule, and fun for everyone. July 4th was very eventful in that Taylor and Eric got up EARLY and went to do the YMCA "Run in the Park." It was the first 10K that Taylor had ever run and she did it in 1 hour & 23 min & 22 seconds - very impressive for a 10 year old! Later that weekend she was complaining that her legs hurt, and good Mom that I am... I said you're young - how could you possibly be sore? She said "Um, Mom... 10K? Remember?" Good Point T - good point!

We spent July 4th and 5th with friends in Simi Valley, lounging in the front yard, absorbing the misters that were very nicely setup for every ones enjoyment. Fireworks for the kids were viewed by climbing the rock across the street and looking out over the vast valley below. These are memories that just cannot be replaced (even if our children never remember living there).

This past Tuesday Eric and I celebrated our 13th Wedding Anniversary at a very exclusive club in Disneyland called "Club 33." I didn't realize what a treat this was until we arrived at Guest Services to find 2 free park hopper tix waiting for us and a dinner reservation as well! We rode everything that the girls would never want to ride in each park, including the roller coaster at California Adventure. Unfortunately though... my body thinks I'm getting older and immediately informed me to never do that again, too bad my head thinks I'm 18! After settling down on more comforting rides, we got ready for dinner (jeans and flip flops are not allowed) and made our way to the club. The only way to find it is by the "33" placard on the wall in New Orleans Square - with a private buzzer that questions you first before allowing you to enter. To make it short, it was an incredible meal, with a perfect view of "Fantasmic" and fireworks. I know why Disney fans are so enamored with this special place. We're so thankful that our friend Mike got us a reservation there!

Speaking of Mike, he and his wife (Kellyann) are bringing a new baby into the world today... Tristan Daniel. This little bundle of joy is scheduled to be delivered at Noon today, so the girls and I are off to meet this new little person right now.

Thanks for checking in on us Burton's! I hope to hear from you soon!

This one time... on "Band Camp"

This last week has been all about preparing for, going to, and enjoying Laughlin with our friends the Goldberg Family. Thursday through Sunday we enjoyed the sunshine on Lake Mohave on our boat (aka "Band Camp", it's named that because that is where Eric and I met in 1989 at Cal State Northridge in Marching Band Camp.)

We've found that little Luke Goldberg is truly a rival to the chattiness and craziness of our Sammie Burton. We all marvelled at the silly faces they could make and their equal affection for cured meat, earning them each a nickname of Pepper (Sammie) & Roni (Luke). Equally interesting was watching Sammie with both Goldberg boys come up with gross food concoctions at the end of our buffet breakfasts. I'll never look at Jello the same way again. And, as we've often said to others, why have more children... we already have our boy! (Tom boy that is!)

Taylor was quite keen to hang out with the adults, preferring to distance herself from the younger set. Additionally, Taylor set personal best records for her comfort zone riding the tube AND ventured to water skiing too! It was thrilling to watch her attempt to ski. Nervous as I was about it, I decided to be in the water with her for each take off and splash landing until she felt comfortable enough to be in the water on her own. And it shouldn't surprise anyone to know that she did get up on the skis twice!!! Go TEEEE! Brandon G. didn't have as much luck on the ski's, but he gave it an excellent try.

So once again, our desert escape on Band Camp did not disappoint anyone and we're already looking forward to getting back out there next month!

And so it begins...

The heat of the summer, the sound of a sleepover (or as Sammie calls it "an S.O."), the mind filled with all the thoughts of what can be done together each day. What shall we do? If it's up to Sammie, it will be the beach all day every day. Up to Taylor? I don't know yet, she's content to be home and reading or watching a movie.

We filled this past weekend with a bible study with our friends the Angeli's and the Benta's. This was followed by a lazy Saturday morning, an 'S.O.' for Taylor and her bud Mackenzie, and a BBQ dinner with Eric's parents and Auntie Barbie. We always enjoy these visits with Aunt Barbie as she brings such a unique spark each place she goes. And, she was a new and eager audience to hear our Rwandan tale.

Sunday morning we headed out for a birthday party for a dear friend of mine, Jacquie who turned 40! Jacquie recently started a business to help those of us who are challenged when it comes to organization and she's doing really well. (You can check her out here: http://www.sargentservices.com/ )

Lastly, we attended our weekly church service and then went to a reunion for all those who have gone to Rwanda from our church. They brought in a live choir from Rwanda of former street kids and they were HIGHLY entertaining! (http://www.hindurwa.com/) We stayed until the very end. However the best part of this evening was reuniting with our dear new family... the Lims & the Lanfrieds. Hugging them was like hugging brothers and sisters, we share bonds that cannot be broken. Lord do we love the Lims & Lanfrieds!

Enough of my rambling, I'm sure you've all had exciting weekends too. For now, I must get the kiddos off to bed and try to spend a few minutes with Eric before he falls asleep too. Tomorrow brings more opportunities to love my kids and enjoy them this summer... that is, as long as they get out of bed! Sleepy Heads!

Kelly

Happy Father's Day!

There's something genuinely cool about having children, especially when they're still little enough to get excited about making a meal special for their parent, wrapping them handmade gifts in brown paper bags with foam stickers of seahorses on them, writing out coupon books for a meal out with their daughter alone (of course the parent is paying for this mini-date) and mauling them with love from the moment the eyes open from sleep! Yes, this was our Sunday for Father's Day. Eric loved his gifts from his girls, including the new picture below we gave him for his desk at work.

We spent a lazy day at the beach catching sand crabs, spotting a dolphin in the surf, and watching the kites fly in the sky. It was perfect, as long as you don't count my bee sting (not the bee's fault though - I put my arm down on it's stinger not knowing there was a bee there!)

In this coming week, the girls will finish 1st and 4th grade and begin clamoring for summer fun. Sammie is already rallying for beach time EVERY day! Also this week, my nephew Danny will graduate from High School. Since his situation at home has been strained this year between his parents - none of his Dad's side of the family is invited to the graduation. It breaks my heart not to see him on this very momentous day, but it's his decision to make and we'll respect it. I love that boy so very much and hope that we'll get to see him soon. So for now, we'll have to settle for sending him loving notes and words of encouragement to let him know how much we care.

Crazy weekend behind us, summer days ahead...

I'm so glad that last week is behind us. With Eric out of town in DC with his Dad, and the girls having their open house at school, I'm beat! On Friday I gave Sammie a hug and left her with the Miller Family and off to camping with Taylor's Junior Girl Scout troop we went.

Well, I have to admit it was So Cal camping in that we were away from home... but we were in a house the GS's own in Laguna Beach. Enough about the accommodations, it was a great experience and perfect weather.

These weekends away with the Troop are so fulfilling to the girls (and to me to - I admit it!) I'm not a regular GS leader, but I'm the camping Mom. This means each and every time they are away overnight, I get to go too. Selfish of me? Maybe. But it's not about being away from home, it's about discovering the personalities of the girls within the Troop and encouraging their natural gifts. The theme of this particular weekend was First Aid & Making Good Choices in Life. These 10 year old ladies are VERY big thinkers. We discussed the upcoming choices they'll be faced with in the coming years relating to smoking, drugs, alcohol, relationships, classes to take, and college. Our campfire discussion could have gone on for hours had the one magical word uttered not broken its spell... "Smores!"

On Sunday night the Burton family was once again fully intact having survived all the details of schedule and commitment the prior 7 days entailed. I think I'm the luckiest Mom in the world though. I get to share these life altering experiences with my children, encourage other youth as well, and maintain friendships near and far. Each Day I thank God for my life and the blessings it brings.

The End of the School Year is Near!

Around here the thoughts of summer are coming quickly, mostly due to the fact that we just had our first long weekend out on the boat (named "Band Camp"), and there are only 2 weeks of school left for the girls. The girls will be having a blast at a few camps this summer including those with church and with the Girl Scouts. But I believe the most exciting adventures will be on our boat sharing lazy days with one another and with whomever we can get to make the drive to Laughlin with us.

This past weekend as we were settling in for the sunset, imagine this picture if you will. It's perfectly warm (87 degrees), the water is still, the desert sky is alight with dusky blues and roses. The mountains surrounding the Mohave Lake are deep in shadows that have too many layers to count. There's no sisterly bickering going on! It's perfect... and then

a few teenagers arrive on the shore closest to us. They've hiked down the side of the mountain to also enjoy the sunset and a few stolen beers. We hear, "Hey catch this football." And the largest man of them throws it out to us, and almost makes it too. Eric reluctantly dove in the water (remember it had been peaceful) and retrieved the football. Once back on board our little Sammie chimes in towards our new friends on shore... very loudly... and says... "Say goodbye to your little friend!" Once we stopped laughing we tossed the football back as far as we could, which they also had to dive into the water to retrieve and that was the end of the peace. At least until we put our CD back on and drowned out their voices with our music. Once all was again perfect in the world we retreated back to our family bliss and enjoyed the show God provided.

Back to Life, but not as usual

We've been back for close to a month now, however Rwanda is never far from our thoughts as a family. For example, we've measure time by how long it's been since we went or returned from Africa. We look at our actions and relate them to how we'd feel about them if we were back in Rwanda. We look at our home and feel so grateful to be blessed with children in our home, a loving family, a great neighborhood, wonderful teachers and incredible relationships.

Yesterday Eric and I had the opportunity to present a 1/2 hour look at our Missions Trip to Rwanda to a retired organization of Marines down on Camp Pendleton. We both felt electric with excitement, knowledge and opportunity in this presentation. It was incredible to share this experience with my husband and children, and then share the podium with them to present what we learned to others.

I keep coming back to this thought... the most important thing I learned was the importance of "Showing Up." Words don't have to be understood completely. The simple act of showing up for another person (or group) speaks volumes to how important you make the other person feel.

We're hoping to have other opportunities soon to present our information and once again feel the Holy Spirit move through us to our audience.

Thanks for keeping up with our family & have a wonderful week!
Kelly

PS - Thank you so much to everyone who has emailed and posted on this blog regarding the video. I truly appreciate the kind words you've shared.

PPS - My little softball team had a season-ending party yesterday too, and I love signed team picture, candid pictures in a frame, Starbucks gift card, and encouraging words too. I'm looking forward to coaching again next year!

Rwanda in 5 Minutes!

We've been home a little over a week now and the thoughts of Rwanda are still all around us. We greet each other with a hearty "Muraho" and use "Yego" for yes and "Oy-ya" for No. We're still grimacing over thoughts of the "squatty potty" and smiling over thoughts of the wonderful family we shared this adventure with... The Lim's.

We're also very grateful for Pastor Skip and his wife Laura (and children) for being in Rwanda at the same time and leading us through our first international mission trip.

Having said all that... I've composed a little video for you that gives you a taste of what we did in Rwanda (sans Safari)... more pictures to come... I hope you enjoy!

Kelly
ps - You WILL want to turn off the music on our blog page before starting the Rwanda video. The music is at the side of this blog page. Thanks!

Home - Safe & Sound

Hi everyone, after 37 hours of straight travel and flights to Entabbe (Uganda), Brussels, London, Chicago, and finally to Orange County... we're home. I'll email more about our travel experience later (which was not bad - just long). Today and the rest of the weekend we're just resting at home, reacclimating to the time, and spending time as just the four of us once again. We had a wonderful life changing experience and we'll write more later.
Thanks for checking in on us! Love, Kelly & Family

Wednesday - Safari Day & Family Update

From Sammie for Mrs. Howie's Class:

Today I went on a safari and I saw a babboon on the roof of our hotel. A babboon is like a big monkey/gorilla. If you saw one on the roof you'd be really scared. If your Mom and Dad told you what it would do to you, you'd be really scared. On the safari I saw more than 20 babboons! And I saw hippo's! Tell you more tomorrow! Sammie

From Taylor for Mrs. Cunningham's Class:

Today we went to a beautiful game lodge. We also went on a saffari. On the saffari I saw baboons, hippo's, impala's (a gazel like animal), and a bunch of birds. I will show you the pcitres when I get Back! See Ya! Taylor

The Akagera Game Lodge - What an experience

Today we left our hotel in Kigali and drove for about 2 hours into the landscape of what you'd probably imagine Africa to look like. Kigali was much more tropical. Along the way we saw whole villages constructing a drain for the terrential rain that has come each day we've been here. Many people yelled what sounded like "bazooka" at our van... which our driver says means foreigner.

After checking into the lodge, Sammie immediately spotted a baboon. We're told that they come out very frequently and will actually come and try to get food out of your hands or pockets. More on that later. We brought our driver, Emmanuel, down to the safari stop, hired a guide and setoff to see what we could see in the late afternoon. As the kids both mentioned... we saw many baboons! We also saw impalla, many birds, and a few hippo heads. Our scrapbook is going to be tremendous from this trip.

Tomorrow we'll do one more safari drive, and then make our way back to Kigali to start our long journey home. I don't know if we'll get to make an update to you all tomorrow, so please don't panic if you don't see one! We'll probably write again on Saturday.

Love you all!
Kelly & Eric

Tuesday - Both Taylor & Sammie's updates, and Our update as well

From Taylor for Mrs. Cunningham's Class:

Everything has been fun here including seeing all the kids smiles. Today we finished up with the church and they gave us a bunch of beautiful handmade gifts. With the kids today we made crosses with pipe cleaners and I took tons of pictures of the children. Tomorrow we are going to Akagara Game Lodge to go on a Safari. I am looking forward to it and I'll take a lot of pictures of the animals to show you.
See you soon, Taylor

From Sammie for Mrs. Howie's Class:
Today I got to sleep in and normally I have to be there at 8:15. Everybody else went to the Genocide Memorial. A Genocide is like a war where a lot of people get killed. I slept in until 9:15. I swallowed my Maleria pills on my first try both times. After lunch at the Bourbon Cafe we went to teach to kids about Jesus and do a craft with them, like making a cross. My Mom played a game where it made it sound like it was raining and then it really DID start to rain. It started raining very hard after we helped the kids. It rained so hard that we had to go in the van! We saw this kid by the trunk and when it started pouring the little boy was still there, he looked drenched! And then we got to in the church and it was all dry. In the Church we got to sing a song, and the Pastor said goodbye and gave my sister and I little purses, and gave my Dad a beautiful carved wood with two praying hands, and they gave my Mom a basket. And at the end, everyone shaked hands and we all said goodbye and hugged each other very hard. If you had blond hair, like me, your hair would be touched a million times. After Church we went to pick up Caroline and Jade and then we went to a place called "New Cactus" for dinner. And they mostly serve pizza there. Then we went back to the hotel called "The Impala." Tomorrow we are going to the Akagara Hotel and there will be lots of animals there and a pool there. We might get to go in the pool, but it might be too dirty! The End. Sammie

The Final Day in Kigali...


As you can imagine today was very emotional, and action packed. It only takes a second to see from the updates the girls provided that we did a great many things.

The morning started with our group going to the Genocide Memorial to see how this city has remembered the 100 days of Genocide in Rwanda in 1994. It was a moving experience for the adults where the pictures of the victims on the walls, look very much like the people we've encountered during our time here. It also brought home the realization that there is an age gap very apparent here with the lack of teenagers. We also found out that 300,000 orphans were left behind in this country and many families that we met are not only raising their own children but many of these orphans as well.

After lunch we were able to do our final VBS (Vacation Bible School) with the children of the church. It was an action packed hour of songs, stories and crafts. From the end of the hour hugs and smiles it was apparent that they loved our time with them as much as we loved being there.

The children were they ushered away so Amanda and I could meet with the Women of the church (they are considered women because they are married). Eric attended this one hour meeting with us to show support, while John waited out the rainstorm in the van with our children. The women asked us what advice we had for them because they felt many burdens. We did our best to encourage them as women, not as Rwandan women. We counselled them to really try and talk with their husbands, create a partnership were responsibilities for child-rearing were shared, where they prayed about their needs, and continued to be loving to their families. Our message must have really struck a cord because at the end of the hour the women were crying and hugging us over and over. They made Amanda and I a traditional smock to wear as a thank you gift. It was an emotional hour to say the least, but one I will never forget. I don't feel like any sort of expert. My world is so different from there's. The only differences I felt were in distance because their needs emotionally are the same as mine. They put us on a pedestal that felt so overwhelming...

Lastly, Pastor Osee held a special church service to say thank you to our families. There was singing, dancing, praying, and many tears. Pastor Osee was a difficult man to read, however it was obvious today that we were an answered prayer to him. He cried very hard, and hugged us closely. This is NOT typical for a Rwandan man. I don't think I've ever felt so appreciated in my life, and in my mind all I did was show up! Maybe that's the lesson in this whole experience, showing up in another person's life may be exactly the blessing they need. In the bible it says you will be blessed to be a blessing to others. This certainly is how I feel. Many gifts were exchanged at the end of the service, many hugs and joyful tears. Words barely suffice to explain how I feel today.

At dinner John, Amanda, Eric and I recapped our time of Mission with the church and relaxed a bit. We laughed so hard thinking of all the obstacles we overcame along the way to Rwanda, but they didn't stop us from getting here. Tomorrow we shall travel to the Akagera Game Lodge to write our report for Saddleback, go on a few "game drives" to see the African animals, and soak in this experience.

Thank you for following us on our journey. Talk to you tomorrow!

Kelly

Monday - update 2 From Kelly

You're probably wondering why there are two posts from us today, however Taylor and Sammie's school returned from Spring Break today and we promised their teachers that we'd provide a daily update from them both during this week that school has restarted.

We just now returned to the hotel and it's 10:30pm. It's been a highly meaningful day for the adults in the group and a pretty easy one for the children. The only event the children needed to attend with us today was rained out. And when I say rain I mean buckets pouring down like you've never seen before! But, Africa is prepared and it dries very quickly here. People do not stop working, they just take a break until it's merely sprinkling and then back to work again.

Eric and I, along with Amanda and John started our day rushing to the church to meet with the leadership there. Upon arriving we immediatly were driven to a local official's office. I believe he was the deputy-cell director for a sub-section of Kigali. This man had people waiting to see him lined up on a bench in the hallway just like you'd see in any other office in America. I was never able to catch his name as he didn't really make an effort to make it clear. Pastor Osee and our interpreter told this official why were were in Kigali and how Saddleback Church has partenered with his church (and all of Rwanda) to support the PEACE initiave in the country. We asked for an overview of his cell (over 30K people live there), over 40% unemployment, and a lack of educational resources for his community as well. We could tell that he was asking our interpreter what kind of money we'd be contributing to their community. We had to make it clear that we were not there to give him money. We were there to work through the church to promote the vision of the PEACE plan to which the church is committed and his government as well. We explained that his President Kigami and our Pastor Rick Warren were working from the top down and their programs will trickle down to the cell level. However, it's also up to the cell leaders to work on improvement in their cells from the ground level. Working together, they will meet in the middle. As this was a very interesting meeting were were excited to promote the vision of Pastor Osee's church to this local leader, and then walk back to Osee's church.

The second meeting of the day was with the lay church leaders, and what they call small groups. We were very suprised to find that the small groups here are NOT at all what we call them in the US. The Burton's and the Lim's split the 6 groups in half and met with them to hear what this church is trying to accomplish at this level. The people hear have a big heart for their community, but as you can imagine, they are trying to eat an elephant of problems all at once. Each of us, as couples, described Saddleback's small groups and ministries... because there are differences. The differences we described elicited some excited looks from many, however it's difficult to tell exactly how much was understood.

The last stop today was a muddy walk from the church to another local leader, a sub-leader to the deputy we met earlier. By the time we arrived, after walking through a mixed home and mud-hut neighborhood, it was dark. This leader repeated the same issues we've been hearing since our first conversation, and also had an expectation of financial support. Again, we were clear at explaining our purpose for being there and for supporting his community through programs at Pastor Osee's church. On the way back from this meeting, while walking in the muddy road in the dark, I asked one of the other Pastor's from the church, Tito... if our visit and our information brought information they were expecting to hear. He answered with a chuckle and said simply our information was timely. :)

Tomorrow our team here will visit the Genocide Memorial, continue VBS at the church for the children (rain or shine), and have one final meeting with the women of the church. That will be the end of our mission work here as well. On Wednesday we have a day to debrief, write our report to Saddleback church, and go on Game Drives in Akagera.

Until tomorrow... Bless you all!
Kelly

Monday update 1 - from Sammie & Taylor for their classrooms

For Mrs. Howie's class from Sammie -
If you imagined Rwanda, it wouldn't seam like you imagined it, because there are buildings and hotels.
Every morning we go to the breakfast place and their drinks are very good. I have to take Malaria pills every day and the juice drink here helps me, the water in England did not because you could taste the pill.
The children in Africa are very nice and they are not afraid of us. But I'm a little afraid about speaking to them.
When I look out of my window by my bed I can see all the mud huts. They look like houses that are almost underground. People lay their laundry out on clips to dry. We see kids playing out there sometimes. And I got a souvenir giraffe named "giraffee."
The people on our team here are Caroline (and she is 19), Jade (and she is 19), Ollyvia (9 years old), Ellysa (11 yrs), Allyson (13 yrs), Madeleine (12 yrs), Baer (10 years), Taylor (10 yrs), Amanda & John, Laura & Skip, and Mom & Dad.
* And only tell Abby that I miss Abby very much. (But please don't tell the whole class.)
Sammie

For Mrs. Cunningham's class from Taylor - Africa is prettier than you would think and everyone is so happy. All the people in the church are always smiling and giving us hugs. Our hotel is nicer than I thought it would be because it is like a mini apartment. There are many nice people in our group including 4 other girls. It has rained every day but it stops with ease. I am missing school but having fun here. There is a lot of pretty and unique artwork including the cute earrings I got.
It is sad to think, when I look out my hotel window, that there are other people living in huts when we can afford to live in a nice place. The huts are made of mud and extra pieces of metal and it's amazing that the people always have a smile on their face. I feel proud that I get to do this and I cannot wait to see you again. See ya! Taylor

Another Incredible Day in Rwanda

Today was a big day for our PEACE team here in Rwanda. Being Sunday, we participated in the regular church service this morning. Of the three hour service, we were given one hour to speak to the congregation.

It is difficult to communicate in words what it feels like to be among such committed Christians who have only crude walls, an uneven dirt floor, no doors, and only the vision of a roof to be completed some day when the financing is available. Despite the lack of physical things, this church is well organized, well led, and well attended for a community of this size. The potential is very evident and we are understanding more clearly why Saddleback leadership has chosen Rwanda to pilot a nation-wide implementation of the PEACE plan.

There were several hundred people in attendance at the service, including visitors from a few neighboring communities - Americans (or anyone white) are still not a very regular site in this country.

The first portion of the service was led by Pastor Osee and he tought on the 1st Purpose for our lives - To Worship God. It was incredible to see the curriculum developed at our church in the US, so very far from here, being taught and embraced by the Rwandans. As with each of the times we have met with the church members, we were greeted very warmly. The second portion of the service was about an hour of worship - led mostly by the various choirs. The music was wonderful and we enjoyed trying to sing along very much. The emotion on some of the faces in the choir was very powerful - knowing what happened here not so long ago you can almost read the minds of those still hurting. The final hour was ours and we filled it with a few songs sung by our children (they did fantastic), a few dances by the Lim family (Ohana style), and then a short "talk" as the Rwandan's like to say by John and me.

I am obviously not a Pastor and probably have as much to learn about God and the Bible as many of the church members, but with God's blessing and wisdom I was able to find the right words. Both John and I reinforced Pastor Osee's message on Worship and also spoke about the importance of Small Groups (they call them Cells) as they work to build their church and surrounding community. God was definitely present!

In the afternoon the ladies worked with the Children and this time it was more than 100 kids ranging in age from walking to pre-teen. John and I were in the church meeting with the church leaders and from the sound of things outside the children obviously had a great time. On our drive back to the main road, children ran along side the van, wearing their new crosses around their neck (that was the craft for today). The smiles are so big and they are so excited to be near our team.

John and I were waiting for the peace pipe to come out as we sat down with the church leaders. If you can imagine the scene from Dances with Wolves when Kevin Costner sits down with the Chief and his council it was pretty much like that. Communication is somewhat slow as we work through a combination of interpreter and leaders who speak some English. As in our earlier discussions there was a very comfortable atmosphere, laughter, and much common ground. We learned a lot about their needs and we did our best to answer questions they had about Saddleback, the PEACE plan, and our visit. They view us as experts and that is a bit difficult, but we know that God is working through us and trust that we are saying the right things.

As Kelly has said before it is really difficult to share all of our feelings in this format. I can tell you that this is a beautiful country, with a wonderful people, and understanding the horrible things that happened hear with the world watching is very difficult to take in when you are sitting face-to-face with people that you would gladly call friend at home. I am very encouraged by how well organized they are, how detailed their plans for continued development are, and how high the spirits are despite significant poverty and all that goes with it. We have been blessed to be here with our new Rwandan friends.

This update is gettting long quickly, so I think I'll stop here for today. We are off to meet with community leaders in the morning and will be meeting with the six "cells" or small groups in the afternoon. Please continue to pray for us as there is much work left to be completed.

God Bless,

Eric

What a big day here!

We knew that once we started working with the church it was going to be an eye opener here in Rwanda, but we didn't know the extent.
Today we scratched the surface of a people ripe with questions, struggling with poverty, unemployment, generations of family lost in 100 days, children caring for younger children, seeking education, and wanting very badly to be like Americans in their opportunites but not knowing how to get there. Every question we encountered today felt as if they wanted change to have already happened in their country. For example... we need to have computers so we can learn about the internet, however we don't have the money and means to get them. What can we do? Or... How can I improve my position in life when Rwanda does not have the infrastructure to get me there, like America? What can we do? Or... how can I make a decision to be with another person if in the back of my mind I'm afraid that they'll kill me? What can I do?
Well, any one of these questions are daunting on their own. However we know that God did not cause the genocide in their country, but He alone can bring good from it. Encouraging our new Rwanda friends is not difficult when you know this truth. How would it feel to know that the lack of men in your country could result in you not being married, in a culture that has always encouraged the women to stay home and multiply as their main job in life? This is a confusing time. But this country is in such flux that women are encouraged to work and help to care for their families and dowries of cows are still the practice here before marriage (how'd you like to be worth 4 cows when your friend is worth 6?)
The Rwandan Pastor here asked us to provide his congretation with a message of personal testimony and tie it back to the PEACE plan our church (Saddleback) is promoting and this Rwandan country is looking to follow. As such we each got up today and took one letter each from the word PEACE and explained what it meant to us personally and how the Rwandan congregation could use it too. We were rewarded with such warm thank you's and hugs, songs and dances.
Tomorrow, they've asked us to return and show them a song in English that we know, to speak for 1 hour to their congregation and to continue with the children's program that we also began today. Yes, we were expecting only about 20 kids to attend the children's program we planned for them, however over 100 children arrived! We were greeted with warm smiles, happy hugs, and adorable little voices learning to say Hello in english. Taylor and Samantha, along with the other children helped to act out the bible story we taught, helped to compete a craft with the children and also played games with them as well.
We're all being touched in so many ways, far too much to mention in an email or I fear it would take me another hour to write! As it's midnight here in Rwanda I'm going to stop and say thank you for reading about our great adventure, thank you for praying for us. Please know that I'm reading all of your comments to our whole family each day, however the internet connection here is unbelievably slow and just getting our blog updated daily takes about an hour by the time each page loads! I promise to respond personally to each of your questions when our family returns.

With much love,
Kelly

ps - many times I've tried to add pictures from here, however the connection is so slow that it times out before I can get it added! I promise to post a link when we get home to all our pictures.

Muraho - Neemayzah!

We started today with a Rwanda breakfast of fresh juice (using bottled water only to make it), eggs, fruits, and the best coffee ever. I'm definitely bringing some of this back with us. We had a brief meeting with Skip, our pastor, went on a tour of the city, and then to the actual site of the hotel the movie "Hotel Rwanda" was based upon. It was powerful to say the least.
Next we had our first official meeting with our host church here in Rwanda, and we were greeted so graciously. Everyone has been so warm and inviting. The children have huge smiles and they are just as curious about us as we are about them. They ask us where we are from and just to say the US is enough, adding California is too much information. There are some words that don't translate well in their language so we are learning to speak simply and slowly. We put together a plan for the remainder of our week here, through interpreters, to make sure we are addressing their needs educationally. Surprisingly they were very prepared for this! They even had a proposed agenda with timelines and everything.
Lastly this evening the children of their church danced 3 songs for us, and the women of their church cooked for us. Don't ask me what we ate, but it was flavorful. They have so many smiles for our families and it's such a gift from God to even be here.
Thank you all for your continued support of our family through prayer during out trip here to Rwanda. And in case you were wondering... Muraho is How are you, and Nemmayzah is I am well.
Imana Ishemway!
Kelly

The First Day in Africa - Welcome to Rwanda

We are here! We touched down at about 7pm and exited immigration about 45 minutes later. Pastor Skip from our Church in Orange County was there to greet us along with about 6 from the church we've been assigned to here in Rwanda. All the greetings we practiced sure came in handy, and we did the air kiss to each cheek (3 times) and then a handshake as the traditional hello. Sammie received her first kiss on the cheek and then her hair was touched, and she turned to me with a knowing smile because we've talked about how her looks will gain a ton of attention down here.

Sammie says that so far Rwanda does not look like what she thought it would look like. She says if you imagined Rwanda, you wouldn't get it right. Well, we'll see what it really looks like in the morning when we get to see the actual mudhuts that are behind our hotel and the Genocide Memorial off in the distance. Our hotel is called the Impala hotel, and NO it's not like the Chevy Impala. There are actual fake impala's mounted at the entrance (I mean driveway) to the hotel. Our room is descent sized and has an outside kitchen. Needless to say, we won't be cooking outside.

Well, that's it for now. We're all pretty tired after the 8 hour flight today, and it's currently 10pm here in Rwanda. I'll have the girls right an update for you all tomorrow so you can get their perspective on the first day here. If possible, in the comments section... Can Summer, Abby, and Lexi's parents send me a comment to this page with their home address? I know the first/last name, and city (except don't know the zip code for Lexi either).

Thanks so much everyone! We look forward to giving you an update on how God will use us here in Rwanda.
Love, Kelly & Family

Greetings from Brussels

Today we all took our first dose of anti-Malria pills, and it was the first time the girls ever swallowed a pill. There was some drama, but in the end they swallowed them. We can only hope this process gets easier. We met up with the Lim family at the airport and continued on to Brussels, Belgium without any event. All the children were VERY happy so see one another to say the least. It's now a complete giggle fest when they're all together.
Brussels is home to the best chocolate and waffles in the world and we've tried them both. I'm not sure about the chocolate part but I did eat the best waffle I've ever had in my life!
We visited the historic square of Brussels this afternoon and toured the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula, built in the beginning of the 13th century! It has some of the most beautiful stained glass ever seen and we went under the church to see the original church it was built over which dates back to the eleventh century!
Another important site to visit here is the Peeing Boy statue/fountain. I thought it would be larger since the post cards really make it seam so big... but alas he wasn't and we almost walked right by.
Tomorrow we travel to Kigali, Rwanda for our final stop on this tour and the beginning of our true purpose for the trip. We'll all anxious to begin using the language phrases we've been learning and passing along our love for the Lord as well.
Here we go everyone... time for the main event!
Love,
Kelly

Kensington, the eye & ducks

Tuesday in London and it was a Very full day. We awoke to realize that it was 10:30 am already and we still wanted to do so many things here. Jet lagged we forced ourselves out the door and to Starbucks to open our eyes. Next, bleary eyed we hopped on the tube and went the wrong way twice! We made it to Kensington Palace where Princess Diana + Prince Charles lived until their divorce. The garden there was beautiful and we wished we had more time to explore this place. But lacking time to really explore everything sufficiently, we booked a ride on the "duck tour." We did a duck tour in Boston last May and loved it, so we knew we'd see all the London highlights and we did. We quacked our way past the Scotland Yard, MI5 and MI6 (think James Bond), into the Thames River, and all the other big spots. Did you know Big Ben is actually named for the huge bell inside its tower?

Moving along we were surprised that both our girls found the courage to ride on the "London Eye" and marveled and their instant freedom in moving around in the capsule that took us around the wheel. By the way, it takes 30 minutes to complete one revolution on the wheel. We met another couple on board there from San Diego... Imagine that!

We made a quick stop to see the architectural beauty on the outside of Westminster Abby, but we arrived too late to see the inside. I don't know if our pictures will do it justice.

Our next stop will go down in Taylor's journal as a BIG highlight... Straight out of the Harry Potter book we found the train platform at King's Cross train station marked 9 3/4 and took a few pictures. It was completely setup for tourists too as they had half of a luggage cart embedded in the wall just for picture taking by Potter fans.

Lastly, we ate dinner at a local italian restaurant where the service was very attentive. The owner spoke more than 5 languages and the couple dining next to us was from Portugal. We had such a nice experience talking with everyone in their that we didn't leave until 10 pm!

It's now too late to see any more of London on this trip and we're getting excited to meet up with the Lim family again tomorrow to fly to Brussels. We'll have one day to see the big highlights there before reaching our ultimate stop in Rwanda. For now we'll keep practicing the "Queen's English" and laughing at one another... Cheerio Chaps!

Ps - I tried the tikka chicken for lunch Jacquie and you were right! Thanks for the comment yesterday!

Sightseeing - by Taylor

This is Taylor's journal entry for our 1st day in London.
"Today I woke up really early because of the time differences, and read until everyone was up. Today I also met my 3rd cousin who lives in Norway, but goes to school here in England. I got to ride the tube everywhere as well! The tube is similar to a subway.
Erik, the name of our cousin, took us to a seven story toy store! There, Sammie and I each got a Build-a-Bear passport. After the toy store we saw Buckingham Palace and it was super pretty. Then I got to see Big Ben and the Eye of London (a giant ferris wheel). I learned that Big Ben is part of the Parliament building. Near there I picked up cool postcards for my friends. I took a lot of pictures with my digital camera, which was loads of fun. Finally, we saw the Tower of London which contains the Crown Jewels. It was interesting.
When we left, I realized that there was nothing about the Prime Minister, who does all the work. It only had stuff about the Kings and Queens. All they did was be born important but they get the jewels and fancy titles. It is a beautiful country, but I think the US has a better government.
In the end, Erik had to go back to his school to study for his exams and we went to our hotel, all bundled up."

Taylor
Ps- Here's what Sammie had to say: "I woke up and had to get ready because my 3rd cousin was coming. I didn't even know what he looked like and then, after Starbucks, I was attached to him. His name is Erik. Erik was like flipping me upside down and it was really fun. And then I was sliding under him, it was really fun. And then he had to leave. It was hard to let go of him. The End"

The Queen of England says hello...

...Or atleast she would if she knew us!
We've arrived in London to a full blanket of snow (so glad we brought warm jackets too). The flight was uneventful, although it was hard for any of us to sleep. I think Taylor finished most of her assigned homework, and both girls spent some time sitting with the Lim's (Olivia + Alysia).
Going through customs wasn't difficult, but we did spend extra time waiting on Sammie's luggage because it was the only bag on the plane that didn't come out for claiming. United found it 1/2 hour later caught in the conveyor belt! We also misplaced Sammie's backpack having left it on the shuttle to our hotel, however the shuttle driver retuned when he found it. Lesson learned... keep track of our stuff!
Our hotel is perfectly located in Kensington near many famous spots like Hyde Park, Kensington Palace, + Herrods. I'm so thankful that all the hotel research I did brought us to our lovely hotel because it's actually a 2 bedroom apartment including a full kitchen, and patio!
Our internal clocks are very confused as England is 8 hrs ahead of California, but we managed to stay awake through 3pm here and then we all took a nap.
Tomorrow we will meet Eric's 2nd cousin, Erik Story from Norway, and officially become tourists.
So until tomorrow... God Save the Queen!
Kelly

We Leave Tomorrow!

This is the last update from home, we'll update you each day while we're gone. Thanks in advance for keeping us in your prayers while we're out of the country.
Love, The Burton's

Surfing Anyone?

While in Hawaii this weekend, Kelly and I tried surfing together for the first time this morning. Despite living in Southern California all these years this was a first for us both. We had a blast...Kelly was definitely the natural and we have some great pictures to prove it. The best way to sum up our surfing skills is to say that I always looked as if I were about to wipe out and Kelly often looked like she could ride it all the way into the beach. She did awesome! We came away with some great memories and I even managed, somehow, to deposit my wedding ring on the floor of the Pacific Ocean in the process - looks like I'll be doing some jewelry shopping tomorrow.

With our Rwanda trip just around the corner this time together has been a nice break. We miss Taylor and Sammie terribly, but know they're in good hands with my sister Julie.

Talk to you soon cousins...

Eric

Happy Easter!

Today we spent Easter visiting the Gillan Family in "the valley" in their new home.They are in a beautiful neighborhood with a HUGE avocado tree... There might be some guacamole in our future. Next, we visited my parents for Easter dinner, an egg hunt, a pear martini, and good conversation. This was our last visit with my parents (and Patrick and James) until we return from Rwanda. We missed Danny today, we sure do love him too and I hope to hear from him soon. Also, we toasted my parents for their 38th Wedding Anniversary! Happy Easter to you all and enjoy the gift that Jesus gave to you, we sure are! Love, Kelly

Sammie discusses her Webkinz

OK, this has nothing to do with our Rwanda trip, however since Taylor made a video today... Sammie did not want to be left out. Again, you should probably turn the music off on this blog first (the music is at the bottom of this blog page. Click it twice slowly to turn it off.) Sammie is patient, she'll wait for you first!

17 Days to Go!!!

Here's Taylortalking about our trip that's only 18 days away. You might want to stop the music playing at the bottom of this webpage first if you'd like to hear Taylor talk... she can wait a minute for you...

Violin Recital!

Presenting Taylor Burton!

Fourth Grade Honor Student, and a representative of her Elementary School at the CAPO District Honor Orchestra Recital

We're so proud of her - Congratulations Taylor.

Getting Closer!!

Since the last update we've been practicing our language skills, saying thank you to so many friends and family that have sent donations for our trip, and generally trying to stay healthy! It's not easy to do this when our sports practices are at night and we're already keeping the sniffles at bay.

Here's a special note though, tomorrow Taylor will get to play her violin in a special concert put on by our school district (held at our church funny enough). She was selected to represent her school (along with 3 others) to play 8 songs with other children selected from their elementary schools at the Honor Orchestra recital Friday night! So yesterday we went shopping for the dressy dress and shoes for this semi-formal event. I'll post a picture of her dressed up after we're finished tomorrow.

No update on Sammie except to say that she is loving tetherball (sp?) these days and since we got a tetherball pole in the backyard all she can think about is playing it even more!

More Training Today

Only 40 days to go and our training is starting to focus on the specifics of our Rwanda trip. Today we met a student from Rwanda that helped us with the pronunciation of certain phrases... how do you say "Where is the bathroom?" answer Ndshaka Toilette? Important question don't you think? Taylor and Sammie both enjoyed the training today and had NO trouble speaking up in front of the 60+ people in attendance too! We also learned how to pace our speech for an interpreter, and the kinds of greetings we can expect (ask me about the triple hug.)

Before training we had lunch with John & Amanda Lim (and their 3 girls) whom we'll be traveling to Rwanda with in April. Each time we get together our visits get longer and deeper in our discussions. We think we've found new permanent friends, and so have our girls since all you can hear from all 5 of them is constant giggles!

Lastly, we got a very concerned phone call today from family. They just wanted to make sure that we're going to be safe in Rwanda and not in danger of losing our lives. Honestly, I expected these phone calls earlier, but they are just fine and really demonstrate to us just how much we are loved by our family. Please rest assured that we would never knowingly put our family in harms way - in any place in the world. We are confident that this trip is for the right reasons and at the right time (God's timing), and with the right people. While we're in Rwanda there will be a week long remembrance of the genocide that occurred in 1994, and the kick-off of their country learning about being"Purpose Driven." We will help church leaders learn and or teach Purpose Driven life to their parishioners, be available to give our testimony (why we believe in God), help run a mini-camp for their kids, and help them strategize ways to overcome obstacles in their way towards success in this endeavor. The goal is sustaining this program long after we're gone. Members of our church will be coming into and out of Rwanda for the entire 6 weeks it will take to provide education of being "Purpose Driven," so we are not doing this alone!

We look forward to answering any questions you may have about our trip, and hope that we do get some questions posted about it.
Love, Kelly

Yego! (Rhymes with Lego)

In Kinyarwandan that means "Yes!" And to all of you who emailed me back this morning after finding out about our webpage or our Rwanda trip I say "Murakoze" (which means thank you.) I'm never surprised at the love of our friends and family, but I'm always happy when I see it so overtly given.

This upcoming Sunday we'll be learning more about our mission trip to Rwanda and a few more words as well. The conversations in the Burton house are getting funny as we learn bits and pieces of the language. And although we'll have an interpreter with our group, it's fun to try out these words on each other. Here's a few more for you...

• Muraho - Hello
• Mwaramutse - Good Morning
• Mwiriwe - Good Afternoon
• Amakuru - How are you?
• Nimeza - I'm well.
• Nikeza - Beautiful
• Imana Ishimwe - God be praised (Sammie likes to Say this one)
• Nibyiza - It's cool
• Ubwiherero Burihe - Where is the bathroom
• Eeky-Neeky? - How do you say...?

Have a great day & Mwiriwe! Off to softball practice we go for Sammie's team.
Nikeza,
Kelly

Shots!

Yesterday was the BIG day... "Shot Day!" We lined up and all got our vaccinations against Yellow Fever (which had to be special ordered by the CBC). We also made sure our Hepatitis A, B and Tetanus were up to date as well. The nurses who did Taylor's and Sammie's shots were very kind and got it over with quickly! Sammie squealed with each of her 2 shots and the room fell silent each time. But now it's done & we're really looking forward to our trip in April!

Travel Plans Completed!

Today we officially found our London "family" hotel, and this completes the LAST thing we needed to do for our Travel Itinerary in April. We're excited to stay in London for a few days (Sunday - Thurs. am) before we continue on our way to Rwanda for the Missions Trip. After London we fly to Brussels, Belgium and stay overnight, then we fly direct to Kilgali. We'll stay in Kilgali until April 17th before we begin the long journey home. We'll be home by April 18th at night, with no stops along the way.

Sammie is 7!

We blinked our eyes and our little baby turned 7 years old! She celebrated with only 2 friends this past weekend by going to Build-A-Bear and the Rainforest Cafe, both at Downtown Disney. You cannot believe how happy she's been, especially since she talks about her birthday every day of the year. I'm sure that tomorrow she'll begin making plans for her eighth year!