Happy Birthday Emma Grace

Happy Birthday to my Emma Grace! We are so grateful for these past 3 years of knowing and loving you. God's grace and goodness has come into our lives in the form of a SPUNKY, independent, sharp, compassionate little girl. God gave you a zest for life and a brain that works around the clock. You love challenge and you constantly surprise me with your vocabulary. You are deeply loved, dear one. Happy Birthday Grapes. We are praising God for you today.

Looking forward

I am looking forward to lots of things about America. One of them is seeing this guy!
Charlie, I can't wait to see you and meet your beautiful wife. My kids are also excited about Unca Charlie!

REMEMBERING CHINA 57

Love the little shops, though most stuff won't actually fit me!

Two weeks to go

Our weekend away was the lull before the storm. We had an incredible time visiting Gui Lin this past weekend. We enjoyed time with friends and taking time to process lots of emotions and changes that have already begun and will continue for the next few months of major transition. We enjoyed sleeping 9 hours each night and it was possibly the coolest place I've ever been in China. We floated down the Li River on a bamboo raft, road bikes through the mountains, watched the most amazing light performance, directed by the same guy who directed the '08 Olympic ceremonies. We prayed and cried about leaving China and I even had a moment of panic where I was pretty sure I couldn't go through with this whole thing. But as we prayed and gave thanks for these past 7 years I was reminded how good and gracious our God is. The weekend was amazing and it was a tiny picture of God's abundant love for us, the love that has carried these past 7 years and will carry us right into our next chapter of life.

The lull is over. The storm is upon the Huffman house. Packing and goodbyes are what we are up to these days. Things like sleep, reading books to my kids, personal hygiene, blogging (for the most part) are being put on hold. The gauge of my stress level is always how many days I've gone without washing my hair. Last week I worked on a personal record. We are busy busy and thankful, so very thankful.

REMEMBERING CHINA 56

Walls Ice Cream, an after dinner favorite

REMEMBERING CHINA 55

Color

REMEMBERING CHINA 54

The land of Tea