Hello folks, You haven't heard from us in a good few weeks, we have been in ALL OUT CRAZY mode over here. Our ministry season ramps up in the summer because that's when we have our SuperKids Camp and Teen Camp. This happens the first week of July where Beltway Park Church (our sending church) brings over a team of 40 plus people to help put on camp for hundreds of kids and teens from Enniscorthy and the surrounding villages. This year our pastors are expecting and praying for over 500 kids and teens! Enniscorthy's entire population is 10,000 so that means more and more we are reaching a larger percentage of kids and their families in our town, and that means more families being introduced to the gospel! It's a really exciting thing to be a part of and get to see happen again this year! So if you are thinking about us in the next few weeks be praying for camp; that many would come, many would be saved, and whole families would discover abundant life through Jesus Christ.

Now let me give you a re-cap of all the awesome things we've been up to as of late...

Leader Retreat

We got to take our interns to a leadership retreat over the June bank holiday! This is something that our pastors here gave James and I free reign to run with when it came to the planning and execution of it. We had the greatest time just planning it and an even better time getting to do it with them.

It's crazy because we started this internship program in September with 6 college students who were going into their freshman year. As of the beginning of this month they had just finished their first year of college and first school year of serving in the youth ministry and on Sunday mornings. We went on this leader retreat and I was just blown away with how far they have come this year. They have matured, given, and poured themselves out into Alive Church and our youth group continually this year. They have become more confident of who they are in God and who he's making them to be. They have begun creating this culture among themselves of honor, unity, and encouragement. To get to walk with them and give them opportunities to serve during this time in their life has been one of the greatest honors we've had here in Ireland.

Along with getting to meet with God together, pray over them, and teach them more about godly leadership. We played, it got ugly competitive at times, as pictured by my husband's stank face in this picture.

We had a paint war on the beach, it proceeded to pour buckets of rain on us, and then at the end we looked like we were diseased...

Bass Family Reunion

We also had the Bass family come see us one last time. We had James' parents, Stephen (James' brother), and Brittany (Stephen's girlfriend who flew in from Beijing, China where she is studying right now) stay with us. Then a week later James' aunt, uncle, and cousin came for a few days. Needless to say we got a lot of sweet family time in! We got a chance to all be together for a week for the first time in literally years, it had been too long!

We also got to take the one Irish road trip I had been patiently waiting to take since we moved here, to Connemara on the western coast of Ireland. Connemara is one of the most untouched, unspoiled landscapes in all of Ireland and it was more beautiful than I even dreamed of, pictures could not do it justice. We stayed at the cutest bed and breakfast overlooking the Twelve Bens mountain range, we rode horses on the beach below, visited the stunning Kylemore Abbey and hiked in Connemara National Park.

The whole family at Glendalough, in Wicklow National Park...

ALSO, these two celebrated 32 years of marriage while they were here with us! It was a beautiful thing to celebrate with them and thank them for the legacy they have handed down to us.

Best Friend Reunion

The day after our leader retreat our friends Vivian, Kendall and Haley came to stay with us for the week! We were exhausted from an intense week of planning and doing the leader retreat right before but they were exactly what we needed right after. Their presence in our home was refreshing, light, and filled with laughter. We had the sweetest time with them (p.s. below is a picture of all of us in front of the best ice cream shop in all of Ireland just so you know for when you come visit)! It also was extra special for us because Viv and Kendall have walked closely with us during our season of making the decision to come to Ireland.

Viv, was one of the first people we ever told about getting the chance to come to Ireland to work with Alive Church. We had gotten a message about it and a few days later we were all eating at Fuzzy's and James and I couldn't keep it in any longer so we kind of just sprung it on her.

Kendall, actually was the lifesaver who let me live with her in San Antonio the spring before we came to Ireland. I had gotten a child life internship at Children's Hospital of San Antonio and needed some place to stay during the week, while James was in Abilene finishing his master's. We were literally making the decision to be in Ireland during those few months we were long distance and I lived with her. She patiently listened and waded through many a conversation with me about Ireland during that time.

It was a full circle moment to have them here, since they had seen the beginnings of this journey when it was but an idea in our heads and now they were getting to see it as a flesh and blood ministry.

We had one more special visitor this past Sunday, the Wise family, who are from James' home church First United Methodist Carrollton. They have been supporting us these past two years, so it was an awesome thing for them to come and get to see what we do here in person!

All that to say, it's been a busy and crazy season of people and ministry but it has been altogether good! I feel like every time I thank God for the people he has placed around us my words cannot even come close to the depth of appreciation I feel in my heart. He literally has surrounded us with the BEST people. We have the best parents, best friends, best church family in the entire world. So if you are one of our people reading this, I just need to tell you thank you again from the bottom of my heart. Your generosity and support is what allowed this to turn into a reality, and we will be eternally grateful for that!

One more very important thing...

Happy {a few days early} Father's Day

The godly walk with integrity; blessed are their children who follow them. Proverbs 20:7

Happy Father's Day to the two men in our lives who have led in a way that continually displays Christ's sacrificial love! We would not be where we are today without the two of you! You are protectors of hearts, legacy builders, and mighty men of God. You displayed glimpses of the Father heart of God that in turn made us want to know Him more. You picked us up when we messed up, taught us what grace looked like, and set us on a course that led to life. To carry your names and legacy is a honor that we will never take for granted. Love you Dad forever and always!