First Day of School!

Celia and I made it to Romania on Saturday. On Sunday, we attended church, unpacked and tried to survive jetlag.

Then Monday was the first day of school! For the second year in a row, I got to be super excited about the first day of school because I am neither a teacher nor a student. Monday morning came and the alarm was way too early but Celia and I managed to get out of bed to be ready to greet the children. Oh man, did we have children! Currently, our enrollment is up to 210 students!!! They came all dressed up (well, what they call dressed-up) and many of them with parents in tow.

It was great to see all their smiling little faces again. It was especially wonderful to see Nicu's little face. Many of you may remember that Nicu underwent major surgery last summer to correct a birth defect on both of his legs. His recovery took longer than expected so he missed the last year of school. When I visited him in June, he proclaimed that he was not going to school because he didn't like it and couldn't get there. Yet, on Monday morning there he was! Nicu quickly found Robert (they use to live down the street from each other when they were little),they walked into school hand in hand and found two seats together. Robert informed me today that they were no longer sitting together because their teacher had asked them to separate. Evidently, second grade boys can be quite the talkers when they haven't seen each other in months.

New backpacks for all new Ruth School students!

Adjusting to being back in Romania has been fairly easy. On Saturday, Celia and I were welcomed to Romania at the airport by dear friends holding giant signs, then brought home to a freshly cleaned apartment and spoiled with pizza and cake. Praise God for the blessing of friends that become family.

6 weeks.

My bags are packed. My carry-on weighs more than a small (maybe even large) toddler because of all the chocolate chips, Reese cups and children's ministry books. Today is the day I return to my Romanian home of Bucharest.

Part of my family after my presentation at my home church

For the past six weeks, I have been in the US and boy have they flown by. My days have been filled of visiting friends and family. Afternoons learning how to make my favorite cookies with my grandmother. Browsing through clearance racks (we don't have sales like that in Romania). Lunch dates with my mom. Afternoons in the arcade with Zach. Wal-mart runs with Dad. Sharing my passion for Project Ruth and the Roma people in various churches. It seems like I have done a lot which I have but one thing I haven't done enough of .....  is eating bacon :)

Enjoying the beauty of Virginia with Zach

This evening Celia, who will be at Project Ruth for 3 months, and I will board our plane bound for Bucharest. Please be in prayer for our families and friends as we say goodbye and especially our moms who are left to clean up the messes that we have left from packing.

My blog has been out of date for a while. Sorry about that. This summer was a whirlwind of activities. We had a six week long bible camp for the 1-4 graders of the Ruth School along with many community children. Celia is going to also be keeping a blog this fall so hopefully that will help me get in a better habit of blogging on a regular basis. Thanks for hanging in there with me.