The second week of July, we all packed everyone into the van and we headed to Madrid for a meeting with all the missionaries in the Western Mediterranean "Cluster"... we got to see many of our friends again! It was wonderful to be with other missionaries... and especially to worship together in ENGLISH! :) it's kinda crazy how we have taken that so for granted! There is something amazingly powerful about lifting praise to our King all together... in on accord (in words we could understand.) It was so refreshing. This meeting was planned before we were even here on the field... who would've ever guessed that Spain would be in the WORLD CUP on the first night of our conference?!?!
We left Cáceres early so that we could get to Madrid and relax a little at the hotel with the kids before we actually started our meeting. We were thankful that we did, b/c (according to our friends) the traffic ended up getting really bad with everyone coming into Madrid to celebrate and watch the World Cup. That night, we ended our meeting in time for everyone to be able to watch the game. There was a big party in the hotel, and they were also showing the game in the REAL Madrid Stadium (just blocks from us), but we had the pleasure of watching it with 3 excited little boys. :) Before we left home, we shopped around a bit and found España t-shirts for the whole family. It was such a big deal to the boys... it was cute. I had made some special snacks before we left home, so that we could enjoy the game together. So, we all piled on beds and couches in our hotel room and watched Spain win the World Cup! What a night!! :)
After the game was over, we could hear the screaming, yelling, hoking, and even fireworks very late into the night. It was so thrilling for the boys. :)
While Wes and I were in meetings and training sessions, the kids were with a group of volunteers from the States who had come on a mission trip to take care of all of our kids during this conference! They had quite a task ahead of them... there were SO many kids! The actually did VBS (Vacation Bible School) for them throughout the week. The first time we dropped the kids off was a little rough for Nathan and Carolina. It was almost like we had shifted back to our "transition mode," and they were insecure again. But, they eventually adjusted and really had a great time! The volunteers were wonderful. The last day, the kids all came in and did a little presentation for us.
It was a fun time to be with friends, worship, learn... and get our "American" fix. :) Most evenings, we went until 10:30pm (it was a long week for my kids who normally go to bed around 7:30!), but we did have one evening free. We took all four kids on the Metro in Madrid and went to Taco Bell! It was a great treat... although, I still can't believe we made SUCH a trip for Taco Bell. Thankfully, we had other families with us; and some helped us by trading off and on carrying Carolina and eventually Nathan. :) haha. BUT, we got Taco Bell... with fountain drinks and free refills! (Neither of which is normal here in Cáceres!) Wes and I also sneaked away during one of our breaks to find Starbucks! Wow... now THAT was a treat! There's no such thing as flavored coffee in Cáceres. I got the largest size, and savored every sip! :)
No comments:
Post a Comment