ourlifeinwales

Some Recent Pics

2011-12-01T20:52:00.007Z

All but the last photo is from our trip to see my parents in October. I will post more about it later.

Lookin back at the year

2011-12-01T20:40:00.003Z

After posting my month of thanks, I looked back at my blog, only to come to the realization that I haven't posted anything in almost a year! Where has the time gone?? Boy, I have been neglecting you, haven't I? I have never really been a writer, as I didn't think that any thing I would say would be beneficail to anyone. I have often thought of things, wanted to write them, but then doubted myself. It is one of my faults. I must work on that one. So, I think it is time I try to overcome my insecurity, and get a move on. I just need to come up with some sort of routine for it.

Month Of Thanks

2011-12-01T20:32:00.003Z

For the month of November, on my facebook, I did the Month of Thanks. I really enjoyed it, and thought I should post it here. So, here it is in its entirety...

MONTH OF THANKS

‎1 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for the opportunity of being raised in a christian home by parents who did their best to teach me right.

‎2 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for a husband who takes care of his family. Last week we "celebrated" our 15th anniversary while in the states with family.

‎3 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for my 3 kids, Breanna, Iestyn and Ian. And even though it is hard to say, I am even thankful for the 2 that I was never able to hold in my arms.

4 Nov (Month of Thanks)...I know, you're wondering why this preacher's wife hasn't said anything about being thankful for her "religion". Truth is, today is the first day that I have had the extra time to sit down and try to write my gratitude concerning this area of my life down. Truthfully, I wanted to write all 30 of my days at the same time b/c I didn't want anyone to feel that they were further down the list that someone/something else. I want you, my fb friends, to walk away from my post KNOWING that I know the real reason that I sit here, in the place I do. So, here goes...Today I am thankful for the love of God, the grace of God, the forgiveness of God, the protection of God and the direction of God (and sometimes the correction Of God). I can go to sleep at night knowing that I am in the place that I should be and I can wake in the morning knowing that nothing can touch me without first going through HIS hand. Even though there may be dark days ahead, I know who holds tomorrow and I will rest in HIS hands. There is NO way that I could ever write all the things that He is to me...(If we with ink the ocean fill, and were the skies of parchment made, were every stalk on earth a quill, and every man a scribe by trade...To write the love of God above, would drain the oceans dry, nor could the scroll contain the whole, though stretched from sky to sky)...there are some things that words could never convey. So, in the short version...I am thankful I saw my lost condition, asked for and received forgiveness, heard His voice and followed His direction and thankfully rest in His protection. I could use the words penned by many other authors, but that would still only scratch the surface. All I can say to finish this off is, Thank You Lord, for your blessings on me!

If you, my fb friend, sit there and do not know what or who I am talking about, let me first say that I am available anytime to talk, and let me say secondly, I am sorry b/c I obviously haven't been as busy sharing with my friends as I should. My reason for joining fb was to keep in touch with my family who know me, but over the time, I have become fb friends with people that I don't know personally. My prayer has been that other's would come to know the God I serve through me, but if you sit on the other side of your computer and don't yet know, please find someone who can tell you...Either me or someone who you can physically sit beside you. All I ask is that you not wait, but find someone today to share with you the things I know already. I would not trade my life for anything. I only wish I could do more to show Him my thanks.

‎5 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Having a bit of trouble settling my heart on today's thanks. The devil always knows when to blind-side you. Yesterday, I knew exactly where I was. Today, I am in a whirl-wind of emotions and thoughts. None of it concerns the knowledge that I am His and He is mine, but in the uncertainty of what tomorrow may hold. When I said that there may be troubles ahead, I had no way of knowing how they would appear, and was hoping some of it would hold off before hitting, but the devil is relentless in his attacks against christian families. In saying that, I will say that today I am thankful that I have someone to pour my heart out to in the middle of the night when I feel alone in a problem/situation and know that He knows and understands and can calm my troubled heart. Praying for guidance in sensitive matters.

‎6 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for the house we live in. It is nice having a place were we don't feel as if we are sitting on top of each other all the time. It is the perfect size for us. It is within walking distance to everything here in town. In the 14 years that we have lived in Wales, the Lord has always provided us with good landlords who are willing to do what needed to be done. My aim in life is not to have the biggest house, but to have a house that is a haven from the world.

‎7 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for my extended family. We enjoyed the time we were able to spend with you while we were in. From eating out to eating in, from going shopping to playing in the park, from fits of laughter to a few shed tears, from monetary gifts to hand-picked gifts, from sitting on the couch together to warming hugs, from McDonald's to Cracker Barrel. We have a great family! Forever with us. Love you all!

‎8 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for all my friends. Even though we may not be able to sit down together over a spread of food, take our kids to the park together, or share hugs, I can spend my days remembering all the good times we have shared over the years. The most important gift you can give those you love, is the gift of a shared memory. Silly make-up parties with your bffs, times of prayer around a matter that you both hold dear, times together at a loved one's passing...and so many others will help to make the distance seem smaller and help to remind us that, even though apart, we are never far from each other's heart. You will never know how the memories we share help to sooth an aching heart. Love you all!

‎9 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for the churches we have had the privilege to work in/with. We have learned SO much over these last 14 years here.

10 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for my avon customers. They have helped us be able to afford little extras. My first round of customers helped me to pay for my driving lessons/test and my second group has helped to off-set the cost of our trip to see my parents. I may not be the top-seller...but I am thankful of the things my little group has afforded me.

11 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for the men and women who have fought to protect both my freedom and the freedoms of others who were not lucky enough to be born in a country with basic human rights. I was blessed to be born in the USA and blessed to be living in the UK, many others do not have the privileges that we live with every day. For our nephew, Michael Blaze Gilbert, thank you for your service to our country. Love you. God Bless our military!

12 Nov (Month of Thanks)... I know some of you will think this is a silly thing to be thankful for, but I will say it any way. I am thankful that our cat Velvet has settled well in her new home. When we were planning to go to the US, we prayed about where she would go. She was raised in farm-land, so when she came to us...on the main road...she had trouble settling and she couldn't go outside. Some friends of ours moved house recently...into a bungalow in the middle of farm-land...and we immediately started praying that the Lord would work it out to where Velvet could go back to living the way she did before she came to ours. Thankfully, she has settled in well with our friends and their kids, and they have asked to keep her. She can now go back to chasing birds and stalking mice. : ) I am also kind of thankful that she never got the chance to bring me any "presents".

13 Nov (Month of Thanks)... Today I am thankful for a properly running clothes dryer. It now takes me a third of the time to do laundry. : )

‎14 Nov (Month of Thanks)... Today I am thankful for the advances in technology that make it easier to keep in touch with family and friends than it was 14 years ago...AND MUCH CHEAPER!

‎15 Nov (Month of Thanks)... Today I am thankful for my health. I am aware of those friends/family with health issues, and remember them often in prayer. The issues I have pale in comparison with others.

16 Nov (Month of Thanks)... Today I am thankful for the little school that has welcomed our family in and been such a great help with Iestyn's different problems. When we first came here, the teacher completed an assessment on Iestyn and came back with 3 pages of things that he had problems with. 4 years on, and there is almost no sign of any of those issues. This is all down to the teachers themselves, as he has never been seen by an educational psychologist to diagnose him (one of the big problems with socialized medicine). The school may have its issues, but I cannot fault them on their care/concern for Iestyn.

‎17 Nov (Month of Thanks)...I know, I have already said this before, but I am gonna say it again...I am SO thankful for the great friends I have. Really looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with some of our missionary "family". They have proved themselves to be true friends and co-labourers over the last 14 years. As I sit here and think of next week, I get excited that we can get together and enjoy each other's company. I know we can't all live close together, but it sure would be fun if we could. I don't know how many of us are going to be able to be there, but I am looking forward to a good day! Dixie Quade, Gail Gritts, RuthAnn Wickham Pickett, Jaime Owens, Missy N Richie Orrick, Janice Marshall, SteveandMarcia McLean, CAN'T wait to see you all.

‎18 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for the knowledge to find great bargains that my mother, Debra Kay Couch, instilled in me as a girl. It is great fun to search out and find bargains. Thank you mum, truly a gift you gave me that keeps on giving. : )

19 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful that my boys let me sleep til 8:30am. : ) Not everyone wants to wake up at the crack of dawn on a Saturday morning!

20 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for our little chapel. We are expecting a visitor today. : ) It always lifts our people when we have visitors.

‎21 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for the opportunity that I have to cook for Luncheon Club. It's like cooking for 50 grandparents! (How I wish I had the chance to do this kind of thing for my grands/greatgrands.) Most of our luncheon club can no longer cook for themselves, so only get full meals when they go out. I enjoy it so much.

‎22 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful that I now only have to travel 11 miles to the nearest Tesco. Why is it so easy to travel so many miles across the US, but difficult to do the same here in Wales? Maybe it has something to do with all the twisty roads. : )

‎23 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for the 2 pair of winter boots I bought at the sales last year (for £5 each)...they will keep my feet warm this winter. : )

‎24 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful that even though I can't spend time with my blood family, I have the the best "adoptive" family to share Thanksgiving with. I have SO MUCH to be thankful for. Looking forward to a great day.

‎25 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for a day of shopping with friends.

26 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful that I got to do my Black Friday shopping in Wales...Americans do crazy things on Black Friday!

‎27 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for continued safety for our family.

28 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for doctors...even with their faults, they help us to help those we love. Thankful that God has given man the ability to search out and find ways of making us better (sometimes).

29 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today I am thankful for my drivers license...both the cheaply gotten American one and the one that took me a years worth of selling avon to get. : ) It is so nice to be able to take myself to the grocery without dragging Ronnie or the kids.

‎30 Nov (Month of Thanks)...Today is technically the last day of our 30 days of thanks, but may I strive to remember that I have MANY things to be thankful for every day! Here are just a few...my faith, my family, my friends, good food, love, laughter, our little chapel, beautiful scenery, reasonably good health, lovely home, my luncheon club peeps, and SOOOO many more...but you get the point. With a grateful heart, signing off. : )

Hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoyed posting them.

My Christmas Present

2011-01-14T20:48:00.002Z

For MANY months now, I have been searching for a new sofa. Since moving back to Wales, we have been sitting on a 2 seat sofa and a chair. That was fine for a while, but we are all getting bigger. : ) Last month, we went looking for a sofa at a furniture store. We found one that we liked the look of, but not the price. I remembered a sofa I had seen in a catalogue, and wondered if it was still available. It was kind of a shot in the dark, because I couldn't sit on it before I bought it, but it looked lovely in the book. So, after lots of looking and praying, I was able to purchase the sofa at a clearance price. So, I booked my delivery slot...and the snow began. I was rather worried...for both my sofa and the delivery drivers safety. He was to pick up the sofa at noon, and then deliver it to ours at 3:30. BUT, due to the snow, he finally arrived at 9:30pm. So, we unwrapped the new sofa...and went to bed. I am so glad it is finally here, because we can all sit on our new sofa TOGETHER!

Some Christmas Pictures

2011-01-14T19:16:00.002Z

Snow Nov-Dec 2010

2011-01-14T18:53:00.003Z

As you can see, we have been tolerating...I mean enjoying...some very wintery weather here in Wales. For most of November and December, we have been surrounded by lots of snow. I have never seen this much snow in my life. It has made things more challenging. The kids have missed SO much school, but have enjoyed the time off a little more than they should. : ) Since we live in a small village in the heart of Wales, we can find ourselves cut off in this kind of weather. Breanna spent lots of time sledging in the snow (aka. sledding to those of you in the USA). Iestyn spent most of his time snuggled up inside the house...he is an inside person. Ian enjoyed a little of both. Most of our planned Christmas activities had to be post-poned until after the New Year. Thankfully, the snow has been replaced by rain, and most of the snow is gone.

Good Intentions stink!

2011-01-14T18:46:00.002Z

As you can tell, I haven't done a very good job of updating our blog. I have never been much of a writer, but I would like to do better. So much has happened these last few months. Our schedule has become increasingly busy. We have enjoyed a wonderful day out for Thanksgiving as well as a great Christmas. I promise to try harder to post more often. I wonder if I need to put it in my schedule?

January Prayer Letter

2011-01-14T18:31:00.005Z

Prayer Letter January 2011

We want to wish everyone a Happy New Year for 2011.

Our prayers are that God will bless each one of you with His blessings, as we look to Him and trust Him daily serving and worshiping Him within the course of this new year.

I am reminded of a verse found in Proverbs. “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6.

Thank You!

We want to thank you for all the Christmas cards and Christmas gifts that you have sent to us. It was truly a blessing to receive them. Due to the adverse weather that we experienced in November and December, we did not get a prayer letter or even Christmas cards sent out.

The United Kingdom experienced the worst snow and wintery weather for over 30 years, due to this, everything was shut down for weeks. So, we hope that this prayer letter will be a blessing to you.

Unit 3 Youth Ministry

This is a picture of one our Sunday School meetings. In April 2010, we opened up our Unit that happens to be addressed as Unit 3. It was a slow start, but through prayer, the children have come and we have had a great opportunity to share the gospel with these children. In the months that followed, we have had many opportunities to have special meetings with the youth and adults in the Rhayader community. Please pray for us as we continue to use this building for the ministry. Reaching the community of Rhayader for the Lord is our desire and burden. We have a lot of praying and work to do. We thank you for the prayers that have been prayed. “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He That goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” Psalm 126:5-6.

Ministry Hi - Lites

September Our annual Harvest service was on September 15th. We had Pastor Stuart-Ryce Davies from Cardiff , South Wales, as the main speaker. We had a wonderful evening with over 100 in attendance. We are already planning for next years service.
October We as a family, do not celebrate Halloween, but this year felt the need to plan a “halloween” party to give the local kids something to do instead of trick or treating. We were expecting 16 children, but were amazed to see 34 children and 6 parents! We had fall festival games and told the kids how they were just like pumpkins. How we as people are full of yucky stuff, but God can take all the bad things out and fill us with His light, so we can be a light to others. We still have parents and kids talking about it.

November November started out sadly for the folks at Bethania, as one of the long standing members was laid to rest after a long illness. We all miss Muriel, but rejoice with her as she rests in the arms of her Saviour. We were able to enjoy Thanksgiving with 10 other missionary families! What a joy it is for us to be able to spend a day meant for families, with our “missionary family”. The last of November was also the start of one of the biggest snow falls we’ve seen since we moved to Wales. This snow fall stayed around well into December, making life very complicated.

December December, just like in any country, is ALWAYS a busy time. From school activities, to church activities, to fun family days in the snow, there is always a lot to be done. December 12th, marked the 1 year anniversary of our induction service at Bethania. As we look back over the last year, we are both happy and sad. We are happy with the many things that we have been a part of, as well as saddened by the loss of 2 of our members. This month, Aubrey Evans, a member of Bethania for over 60 years, died. His funeral was held at the chapel on a very cold and snowy day. A lot of our plans for December were cancelled due to the very treacherous conditions on the road. As we write this letter, I am glad to say, there is NO SNOW!

2011 As we begin 2011, we are excited about what great things God is going to do this year. We long to see a thriving, serving church here in the heart of Wales. We thank you for your prayers and support for our ministry. We are praying for your ministry and hope to hear from you of God’s blessings. Thank you again for the cards of encouragement and the Christmas / Birthday cards and the Special Christmas offerings given to our family. “And God is able to make grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things. may abound to every good work:” 2 Corinthians 9:8.

August Prayer Letter

2010-09-10T13:49:00.002+01:00

Hello praying friends,

Greetings once again from Rhayader, Wales. God has been wonderfully gracious to us. These past two months have gone by so quickly. We have been very busy with summer activities such as youth camps and youth meetings. In Britain, schools let out for the summer break in July and the kids have 6 weeks off for the summer break. So, during this time, we are going at super speed. We do appreciate your prayers for us.

Our family has the opportunity to partner with other Baptist churches across the UK to hold both junior and senior camps. My daughter, Breanna and I were able to attend both of these camps this year. The junior camp went great with 6 Baptist church ministries attending with 20 kids, with 4 accepting Jesus Christ as their Saviour. I had the opportunity to lead the music for the week. The senior camp went great as well, with over 230 campers and helpers. There were over 40 who received Jesus Christ as their Saviour. We are praising the Lord for these that have been saved. It is always great to see the Lord work in the lives of the youth over here in Great Britain.

The Sunday School is marching along well, with new children showing up. As this is summer, there are weeks when we have up to 15 kids as well as weeks when we only have 4 or 5. We are not deterred, as we continue to see an excitement in the children that spurs us on. These children are the future of the church ministry here in Rhayader.

In July and August, our youth meetings have increased. We are now having a Friday evening youth night. We have seen an increase in numbers and a welcome excitement in the children. We have had a “Pizza Night”, a “Hot Dog Night” and a “Dessert Night”, with a “Back to School Night” scheduled for next week. We are anticipating the prospect of more children attending as soon as school starts.

The ministry with Bethania Baptist Chapel is continuing well. We are having visitors come to our Sunday services and even our Wednesday service for prayer and Bible study. Listed in the box below are the names of the visitors that we are in prayer for, please partner with us in prayer as well.

On the 15th September, we will be having a special Harvest Service here at Bethania Baptist Chapel. We are praying that God will bless our outreach in the community, as we invite everyone to our special service. Since we live and work in the farming area of Wales, we want to thank the Lord for His grace and mercy during this season of harvest.

We have received a shipment of John & Romans books from Bearing Precious Seed. They have designed a beautiful cover for us, with several pictures of the country of Wales. We thank them for their wonderful work and ministry. Pray for us, as we go and give these booklets out to our community, reaching them for Jesus Christ.

We thank you for your continued prayers for our ministry,

Your voice for our Saviour,

Ronald, Tennille, Breanna, Iestyn, and Ian

July Already?

2010-07-06T10:09:00.005+01:00

July 3, 2010

I don't know about you, but I can't believe it is July already. The last 2 months have absolutely flown by. We are finding ourselves more and more busy as the weeks pass. As well as our normal family activities, we are keeping busy in our local community. I am still cooking for luncheon club, Ronnie is doing some volunteer driving, and the Sunday school group has really taken off. Along with that, I having started selling Avon as a way of making new contacts. We are excited about the possibilities here in Rhayader. We have been busy with the kids school as we approach the end of the school year. There is just less than 2 weeks before summer vacation begins. Breanna is spending this week at the high school just to prepare her for starting in September. It is proving to be a big learning curve as Ronnie and I both were raised in US schools. I'm afraid the teachers are in for a lot of questions.

June 23 was the 13th anniversary of our arrival here in Wales. We are incredibly thankful for all that we have learned and experienced here in Wales.

The next few months look set to be as busy as the last few. Summer camp is swiftly approaching and we are hoping to hold a few youth activities. Our minds have been buzzing with plans for the ministry.

The Sunday school has really grown in the past 3 months. We started with our 3 kids and one little boy and have now seen 21 kids come through. Our usual weekly number is 15. We are working hard to keep things running well, as there is only just the 2 of us to run it. We are encouraged by the excitement we see in the kids.

We are looking forward to a busy, fun-filled summer.

Sankey Singing

2010-07-06T09:56:00.003+01:00

I know, I promised these ages ago, but things have really picked up around the Downey house. These photos are from our annual Sankey singing on May 9th. The new parking area was truly a welcome addition as we had extra parking for our visitors. Our final count was just under 100. We had a lovely evening together.

Catch Up 2!!!

2010-05-09T13:34:00.010+01:00

Youth Building

Our Sunday School is Growing!

Iestyn's 8th Birthday Party

Spring Party at the Youth Building

Our 3 Kids

Picture from Ladies Retreat

As you can see, it has definitely been a busy couple of months for the Downey Family. I really do intend to be better at keeping our blog, but some weeks are just busier than others. So, it is again time to catch up. Since my last post, we have been in a constant state of busy. We are still in the midst of summer camp preparations as well as trying to get the youth building up and running. Our first event at the youth building was Iestyn's 8th birthday party. On 10th April, we hosted a Spring Party for the kids in our community. On 11th April we started Sunday School in the new building. Each week since then, we have averaged 2 new kids a week.

We become increasingly excited about the growth we are seeing.

We have also had the opportunity to attend a few special meetings in the last couple of months. It is great to fellowship with both old and new friends.

Our family also went away for a couple of days to the White House (Cannock Chase, not D.C.). We managed to sneak in a family day at the Birmingham Aquarium while on a "working" holiday. We must plan a proper holiday sometime.

The Lord is still opening up new ways to minister here in Rhayader. We are thankful for each chance we have.

Tonight we are scheduled to have a Sankey Singing at Bethania at 7:30. We are expecting a large crowd and we are delighted that the Lord has given us a car park! Just after we took the church, we mentioned in passing that we would love to see the derelict building next to the church knocked down and replaced with a car park. We never mentioned it again, because we thought it was too soon to start changing things. Well, a few weeks ago we arrived at the church and saw a pile of rubble where the building once stood. Over the last few weeks, the rubble has been disappearing and in its place is a lovely car park. We never made inquiries into having it done, so it was definitely God's plan. We are thankful for the Lord's hand in all of this. I will post some pictures as soon as I can. Last years Sankey night was standing room only while the cars were parked on the main road. We are expecting the same crowd tonight, but they won't have to park on the main road. : )

We are excited about our future here in Rhayader!

I was able to attend Ladies Retreat this week in Conwy. It is amazing what great things God can do when we answer yes to God. Excited about saying yes to God this year! I can not tell you how special these ladies are to me. I am so blessed! : ) : )

Today is also Mother's Day in the USA, so I must say a very special Thank You to all the MUMS in my life. To my mum and my Grandmas and even my great grandmas...I love you and thank God for you. Wish we could spend today around the same table...just remember that I am thankful for ALL you mean to me. LOVE YOU

January-March Prayer Letter

2010-03-09T11:58:00.010Z

Greetings in Jesus’ lovely name... I trust you are well and enjoying the blessings of the Lord; and seeing fruit for your labors during the beginning months of this new year.

In January, we were hit with severe winter weather and had to cancel several of the services at the chapel. As you can imagine, the weather can prevent even the most faithful members from being in their seats. We are thankful that spring will soon be here.

In February, we were able to sign the lease for renting a building in Rhayader. We have had a lot of work to do to get ready to open the building to the public. The UK Government requires that people working or volunteering for public activities abide by several different laws such as Health & Safety, Child Protection, and a few more. Tennille and I have been attending classes and taking courses that will enable us to engage ourselves in the lives of the people in our community.

We plan to open the new building and ministry for the youth and adults of Rhayader before the end of March. We are waiting for our insurance company to provide us with a suitable policy. In the mean time, we are inviting people to the church services and letting them know that we will be opening the building soon. The people in the community have been very generous in giving either donations or providing children’s items such as books, puzzles and games and even a small refrigerator. We have also been able to purchase chairs and tables for our meetings, and other office supplies to meet the needs of this new ministry. There have been many people in the last few months that have given to our ministry for the purpose of opening the new building and we want to thank them for their monetary gifts and notes of encouragement.

Prayer request: Please pray for Rob and Thomas & Faye for salvation. We have been witnessing to these people for some time now, and it would be a blessing to win these people to the Lord.

February Madness

2010-02-21T07:42:00.005Z

(A picture of the boys with Shelley at the Bible Conference in B'ham.)

You've heard of March Madness, haven't you? Well, we have been in the midst of what I will only call February madness. There have been many things happening in the Downey house this month.

On February 4th, we signed papers for what you could call our "youth wing". Since Bethania doesn't have any space to have youth activities, we have rented a small building here in town. We are trying to come up with a name to call it, so that the local people will know what it is. Any name ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Along with that major thing, we have had lots of other things as well. There was Pastors Wives Retreat, Ronnie's birthday, a youth camp planning meeting, a MIDAS course, Valentines Day, a Bible Conference in Birmingham, a CRB day, a trip for Breanna and some of her friends ice skating, as well as 1 whole week with no school. All of this in only 3 weeks. At that doesn't include all the "normal" weekly things like church, school, grocery shopping, and visits.

All I can say is, "Will things ever slow down?." The kids go back to school on Monday, so at least they will be back to a normal routine. Starting Monday, it will be full time work on the building. Monday the insurance man is coming to look over the building and sort the paperwork. We need to find someone who can teach us how to work the boiler and heating system. We need to plan the layout of each of the rooms as well as source the last few things we need to finish it off. We need to have the local fire fighters come out and tell us what kind of fire and safety equipment we need. There is still so much we need to do before we can open it. We hope to have it up and running as soon as possible, but we must have all the safety stuff sorted first. We will keep you posted to any new details and I will post pictures as soon as the deep clean is finished.

Oh, by the way, it is still SNOWING! We are beginning to think that spring has forgotten where Rhayader is, so winter has just camped out here.

On a silly excited note, the new local Tesco is opening on Monday! And to top that, as I was walking in town yesterday, I saw the front page of the local newspaper and it said that the other Tesco looks set to open in July! Right now, I have to drive 80 minutes to get to a Tesco. Monday, I will only have to drive 45 minutes to get to Tesco. And in July, I will only have to drive 13 minutes to get to a Tesco! At present, our little village only has a Spar, which is like a 7/11 or a Pantry in the states. It will be so nice to have a cheaper place to shop that isn't so far away. I am greatly anticipating next weeks shopping trip! I might even have to take a picture. : )

We are looking forward to opening the building, and will keep you informed of our progress.

More January Snow Pictures

2010-01-29T18:51:00.001Z

Winter In Wales

2010-01-01T10:14:00.002Z

Induction Service

2009-12-14T19:38:00.003Z

This past Saturday was a great day! We were supposed to have the Induction service in November, but due to ill health, it was changed to 12th December. We have had a busy schedule this week, but thanks to the ladies at the Elan Valley Visitors Centre, we didn't have to worry about cooking for 80 people. We had 75 people come out to the special service. Pastor Thomas was a great moderator and Pastor Quade preached a great message. We are so blessed to have such great friends, some of which traveled quite a distance to be with us for the day. After the service, we had a lovely tea prepared by the visitor centre ladies. The scenery looked out to the Elan Valley Dam. Everyone had a great time. We can't say thank you enough to everyone who helped make our day so special. We are expecting great things to come!

Back to a normal schedule, I HOPE!

2009-11-16T11:07:00.006Z

Well, as you can see, I have been absent from my normal blog posting. Things have been rather busy at our house over the last few weeks. I will try to update you on what we have been up to.

In late October, we were asked to take the position of missionary pastor at Bethania Baptist Chapel in the Elan Valley. We have been working with this chapel for a year now, and this was a welcome, albeit, unexpected request. After much talking and praying, we have accepted their call and are planning an induction service. We had planned to have it on November 14th, but due to some illnesses in the church, we have changed the date to December 12th. I am not sure how your area is faring with the flu season, but ours is becoming overwhelmed with sickness. We are excited about this opportunity to serve here in Wales.

The kids are all doing well. Breanna is well into her last year of primary school. Next year, she will be starting high school . I can't believe we are there already. It is a bit daunting to think she is starting high school at the age of 11. That is 2 years earlier than in the US, but she will also be finished 2 years earlier. We are learning right along with her, because this is all new to us. Iestyn seems to finally be making some progress with his reading, but he still has a way to go. He is growing up more every day. Ian, as always, brings smiles to our faces everyday. He is, by far, our cheekiest child. He can get himself into the funniest situations. Just last night, he decided he wanted to camp out in his sister's room for the night. He gathered his bedroll and off he went. All was well until about 4am this morning. He woke up firmly stuck underneath Breanna's bed. There he was, screaming to the top of his voice. Breanna couldn't get him out, so he yelled for me. So, I climbed out of my bed to try, only to hear him yell for his dad. After his dad picked the bed up, Ian finally crawled out. Needless to say, that was 30 minutes out of our night. I did not want to wake up this morning. : )

We are well on our way to the holiday season. I am getting my Thanksgiving recipes ready for the missionary get-together in England. We always look forward to getting together with our friends for a traditional Thanksgiving meal. It helps to feel close to "home" even though we are so far away. Christmas lights have gone up here in Rhayader, so things are downhill from here. The kids are super-excited and it is not even December 1st yet.

Most of the time, I post about the things that we do as a family, but at the moment, the Downey family have many friends and family who are going through trials that seem unbearable. We are reminded, that even though we don't know why things happen, God does! We as christians, must be ever aware that the devil can use situations in our life to rob us of our joy and cause us to lose sight of our main goal...to reach others for Christ. Even though our hearts are heavy for those we love, we are confident that God will work in each of these situations!

To our friends and family, we love you and we pray that you are blessed with a wonderful holiday season!

What Crazy Things Boys Do!

2009-10-09T19:58:00.003+01:00

Last week, our Ian learned that foreheads and carpets don't mix. While playing in his new room, he was pushing his forehead along the carpet. He felt his forehead go warm, but did not realise that he was giving himself a carpet burn. After a few minutes, he came downstairs with this puzzled look on his face. He couldn't understand why his forehead was burning. Needless to say, he has learned this lesson the first time! For the last few days everyone he has seen has asked how he got a boo-boo in the shape of an -i-. I think he was glad when it finally went away!

I am so thankful for all the wonderful and funny memories Ian has given me. I love you little man!

BEING A CHRISTIAN CAN BE FUN!

2009-10-09T19:31:00.003+01:00

This week was Pastor's Wives Retreat! Twice a year, a group of UK Pastor's wives get together to be an encouragement to each other. I must say that this weeks retreat was definitely that! I haven't laughed that hard in ages. I am so thankful to be blessed with wonderful friends. The theme of the retreat was on Prayer. We shared answered prayers and unanswered prayers. How great it is to be able to share both with dear friends.

We enjoyed games, movies, tears, hugs, a candle-lit dinner, shopping and even some friendly pranks--all while remembering the importance of prayer. Thanks for the memories ladies! I can't wait until next time!

More House Pictures

2009-10-08T20:39:00.006+01:00

THE GRASS IS GROWING!!
BREAKFAST ROOM--FINISHED!!

HALLWAY FINISHED!!

It seems as if the Downey household is running 100 miles an hour this week! We have been extremely busy lately. I promised that I would post more pictures as we finished work on the house, so here are a few more. We are enjoying all the "work" that moving house requires. Some days are more tiring than others, but the finished product will be worth it. The boys bunk beds have arrived and I am in the process of painting their room. After their room is finished, I will be painting Breanna's room. The kids are really enjoying their new rooms and being closer to all their friends. We look forward to doing more with the kids in Rhayader!

First Day of School!

2009-09-09T19:58:00.004+01:00

Last Thursday was the first day of school here in Rhayader. The kids have been ready for it for quite a while. I don't know what they would do if they had 3 months off school like the U.S. This is Breanna's last year in the primary school. Next year will be her first year of high school. She will be 11 in January. Seems too early for me, but that is the age here. Iestyn's new teacher is a man this year, so I am hoping that it doesn't make it hard for him to learn. With his special issues (mild spectrum autism?--still undiagnosed) there are some things that agitate him. He used to have a man dentist, but that didn't work, so we had to change to a woman dentist. We are confident that this change will not be a problem, as he has already made fast friends with the new teacher. On the first day of school, he came home with a huge smile and a picture that his teacher drew him. The fastest way to Iestyn's heart is by being interested in the things that he draws. He has a wonderful imagination! Ian is slotting back into school easily, and is still the class clown. I look forward to all the things he will be learning this year. We are ready for this school year!

Some Before and After Photos

2009-09-09T19:33:00.008+01:00

# 8 Green Gardens
The Garden--After a tidy up.

The garden--before the tidy up.

The Living room--with the new doorway.
The Living room before.

I was hoping I would be able to put these pictures in a proper order, but it just won't go the way I want it to. So, here are a couple of pics for you to look at. We are still in the process of moving things, and should be completely finished by next Wednesday. It looks as if the painting will have to be done after we move in as the work around the house has only just been finished. We are all getting excited about the move. The boy's old beds have gone to new homes, and we will be picking up their bunk beds on Saturday. Our new bed is being delivered tomorrow afternoon, so the house will soon be looking like a real home. I am ready to put into practice what I have been reading on how to decorate on a (tiny) budget. I can't wait to see how it turns out. More pictures to follow.

Our New House--Before the work is finished!

2009-08-29T20:14:00.006+01:00

This will be the boys bedroom-needs a new paint color!
This will be my new fridge! I get to have a freezer in the house!
The kitchen--sorry the picture is so fuzzy.
This is the staircase--Definitely needs a new coat of paint.
The breakfast room.
This will be the dining room.
This is the main bedroom with built in wardrobes.
This is how the garden looked before work started.
This is the living room before the door was re-fitted.
Fireplace in the living room.

Here are some pictures of our new house. We will be able to start painting on Wednesday after the kids start school. We are getting excited about the move. We should be finished moving in by the 15th September in time to scrub down the old house before we turn in the keys on the 18th. I will post more pictures next week.

Monday is Bank Holiday and we are driving up to Colwyn Bay for the camp reunion. We are looking forward to seeing friends and hearing how all the youth are doing. Ronnie will be speaking again to the junior campers. We are excited about the day away.

Last week, we took a few days off to relax before the move. We had a lovely time in South Wales with our long-time friends, the Liverick's. As always, they welcomed us with open arms and as part of their family. For over 10 years, they have been great friends. We were also able to have lunch with veteran missionaries, Ferrel and Barbara Kearney. Ever since we met them, they have been a great encouragement to us. The trip to Cardiff also allowed for a bit of shopping--for the new house--of course. We had a lovely day and even enjoyed a treat--MT. DEW!! We are so thankful for all the GREAT friends we have made on the field.

On a fun note, a Subway Sandwich shop opened in Merthyr. Now, only if we could get one in Newtown or Llandrindod Wells. Now, on big shopping days, we can have a Subway sandwich. Yippee!

Until next week--Goodbye!

I wish my mountain was a molehill!

2009-08-13T07:53:00.003+01:00

Do you ever fell like you are drowning under a mountain of housework? As we are moving soon, I feel it is time to have a big clutter clear out. I think I am going to start by going one room at a time. Due to the relaxed nature of our new landlord, we will be able to move one room at a time as well. So, on my plans for today is at least one room in our house. I haven't decided which one yet. I suppose the living room would be the easiest, but no matter what I chose, I will still be surrounded by kids. School doesn't start here until 2nd September. Along with the move, both Breanna and Iestyn will be starting school with new teachers this year. I am praying that Iestyn's new teacher will understand his learning difficulties. Sometimes change can be hard for him. I must say that in the last 18 months here in Rhayader he has improved hugely!

The new house is getting on well. The workers have finished laying the new patio as well as putting in new windows. There still seems to be a bit of rubble out front, so they mustn't be finished completely yet. We will be able to start helping with the paint work soon. The kids have been busy choosing the colors for their new rooms. We need to go uptown today to talk to a friend about making us a bed frame that will fit in our room. It looks as if it will be a bit of a challenge as the room has a funny layout. I am hoping that having a custom fitted mattress won't cost the earth. We may end up sleeping on a blow up mattress for a few weeks while we work out the sizes. We have done it many times before so it shouldn't be foreign to us. : )

When the work is finished we will post some "before and after" photos for you. We will be completely moved before 18th September.

On a super note--we received Breanna's passport yesterday--after only 7 days!

Now, off to work!

2009-08-08T14:43:00.003+01:00

Big Ben from the top of the London Eye! Passport renewal trip for Ronnie and Breanna.
Youth Camp Pics

The 4 boys who I spent the week with! Austin, Iestyn, Alex and Ian.

Well, as you can see there have been 101 things going on the last few weeks. Where do I start? Well, I was able to do 2 yard sales in July. We were able to get rid of a lot of extra stuff in the garage. One more sale to do this month and we should be finished tidying up. School has let out for summer holidays. Six weeks of no school makes for a very busy mum. I know it may sound a little silly, but Ronnie and I were thrilled to receive an invitation to our first garden party. About 30 families were invited to the party. We played ping pong and badminton, the kids jumped on the trampoline and went on the slip and slide and we had a lovely bbq. Our thanks to the Walton's for a lovely evening for both the parents and the kids.

Camp went well. The new venue was great with lots of places to play-rain or shine. There were 15 campers saved during the week. Everyone had a good time with just a few minor hick-ups. The weather was a little worse than we had hoped for, but it went well anyway. The boys and I enjoyed our time together with Alex and Austin. We managed to keep busy and stay away from any major disagreements about toys. We had a great time!

This month has also brought some changes for the Downey family. Due to some recent issues surrounding our current house, we will be moving to a new house in September. The children are starting to get excited about the move. They will be able to choose the colors of their rooms. The new house is only 1 mile away and with the help of our friends here, we should be moved fairly easy. We are thankful that the Lord knew our path, even though we didn't! The building that we are looking into is only around the corner from the new house. The next few weeks will be busy, but full of God's plans for us.

Last week, Ronnie and Breanna had to travel to London to renew Breanna's passport. The embassy sorted the passport quickly, and they were able to do some sight-seeing. They had a lovely day walking through London. They were able to go on the London Eye and see allot of London from the top! Ian will be the next one due for a new passport, so Ronnie will have to take another trip to London.

Camp Week

2009-07-30T09:26:00.002+01:00

Well, It is about time I posted. I have been rather busy with a lot of things the past couple of weeks. At the moment I am surrounded by 4 little boys playing with power rangers! Two 7 year olds and two 4 year olds. Needless to say, this has been a long week. The boys have had a great week together. So far, no major problems. Youth Camp started on Monday and I have been keeping the boys so that it would be easier for the workers to work without chasing around kids. The camp is only 30 minutes away. Ronnie and Breanna are enjoying their time at camp. Tomorrow my four boys will turn back into 2!!

Also this week, we are still continuing the search for God's plan for us here in Rhayader. We will be making a final decision this week about our house move. I stopped by the house on Tuesday and was able to see how some of the work is going at the new house. I can't help but get a bit excited about the possibilities of a slightly larger house. If we decide to move, it would be the second week of September. We want to make sure that we follow God's perfect will for us. (And not the wife's perfect will--although this wife would love to be able to call a tiny space in the house mine!) If we decide to move, I will post some before and after photos of the house. It is looking hopeful. We plan to have a final meeting with the new landlady over the weekend to sort through any last minute discussions.

The discussion/negotiations over the possible meeting site are still ongoing. We hope to have some definite details soon. With all the summer ministries, it makes some things take a little longer to sort through. We will let you know as soon as any details are set.

To all our family and friends, we love you!

The Future Looks Bright

2009-07-17T14:02:00.003+01:00

It has been 2 weeks since I last posted, so I thought it was time I let you know what we've been doing. A couple of weeks ago, Ronnie found a building in the local industrial estate. After some inquiries, the owner told us that the rent would be £600 per month. At today's exchange rate, that comes to $980. After a few days, the man called back and told us that he was prepared to rent it to us for £400 per month($650 ). It would be a good place to start our new ministry in properly. We have been using the local Baptist Church, but in order to move forward, we will have to find our own place. After finding this place, Ronnie and I talked and we had a figure in our minds of what we thought we could financially do. Mr. Lloyd's second offer was exactly the amount we had talked about. We will be going through all the ins and outs of researching this possible path. We need to find out if there are any safety requirements or other things that we don't know about.

At the same time as this, we are also looking at the possibility of having to move house as well. The owner of the house we rent has it up for sale. We are not sure if/when this will happen. It could be in a month, but it could take a year. A friend has offered us a house to rent with an unlimited stay. It is still in town and it is bigger than the house we are currently in. The owner needs to replace some windows and a leaky shower, so it would be a couple of months before it is ready. We need to make a decision about this house as well. We are scheduled to have a talk with our current landlord this weekend.

Even with all this going on, we are excited about the future of our ministry here in Rhayader. We will be looking into several different ways to minister in this town. We would, of course, be moving our Sunday School to this new building, barring any unforeseen issues. The possibilities are many. The building is approximately 54 feet by 54 feet. As well as the warehouse space, it has restroom facilities, a store room and an office space. There is plenty of room for growth.

The kids have been busy with end of school year stuff. They are excited about the summer break. Now all we need is to get some pretty weather. We have been very unfortunate with our weather so far. Youth Camp is less than 2 weeks away. Ronnie is busy preparing for his sessions. He will be the main speaker for the junior campers. This years theme is about Paul and the underground church. We are already praying for the kids that will attend camp. While Ronnie and Breanna are at camp, I will be at home with our boys and 2 of our friend's boys. They will also be working at the camp. So, it will be an interesting time! I haven't ever tried to keep 4 boys at one time (for 5 days). The boys and I are looking forward to having company.

I have finished Luncheon Club for the summer. I will not be cooking again until the end of September. In preparation of a possible move, I have been doing some boot sales (flea market) to try to clear some unneeded clutter. I hope to have quite a lot of stuff cleared if we have to move.

Summer Has Arrived in Wales

2009-07-02T10:58:00.005+01:00

It looks as if summer has finally arrived in Wales! The last couple of weeks have been super-busy with all the end of school stuff.

Last week, we did a Family First Aid course with our kids. It was fun watching the boys try to give CPR to a dummy 3 times their size. We all learned a lot of stuff--don't know how much the boys will actually remember.

School Sports Day was last Thursday. The children enjoyed a full day of games and races with all their school friends. I went along as a parent helper and had a great time with all the other parents. I am thankful it was a mild weather day, because my skin doesn't like the hot sun. Last Friday was also the school fair, which made for a very busy school week. Saturday was the 3 mile Fun Run through the Elan Valley. Breanna ran the race and was the 4th girl to cross the finish line. We were very proud of her. This Wednesday was the schools Achievement Assembly. It is a time when the school allows the children to show their friends the awards they have received. Ian received his first achievement certificate from school. As he has only been in school since January, it was a great achievement. All three of the children got to show off their certificates for their first aid course and Breanna got to show her friends her award for the fun run. It is great to see the children doing so well in all they are doing!

Saturday, our family went down to the local boot sale to try and sell some stuff--a spring clean of the garage. We had a lovely day and made a good amount of money. I used some of the money I got to buy a carpet cleaner. The house we rent has a light colored carpet, so it is starting to look dirty, and I just couldn't stand it any more. So, if this week EVER slows down, I will shampoo the carpets.

We had a lovely day on Sunday. Our Sunday School kids were super-attentive! We had so much fun teaching the kids some basic facts about the Bible. Last week we spoke to the mother of one of our SS kids. She said her son has started talking about what he is learning, and she is unable to answer any of his questions because she herself has never been to church. So, we will be teaching on some basic facts and stories with some take-home sheets so that his mother can learn some things too. This is an exciting time for us as we are starting to see interest in what we are doing. Also this week, we were able to speak to a young mum in town. She was a bit hesitant at the time, so we sent her away with a John & Romans. We are praying that His Word will not return void. Her name is Catherine.

We are looking forward to Saturday as we will be driving up to North Wales to spend the day with some American friends for the 4th July. We are praying for a nice weather day so that we can have a great day out with friends. Keep watching, I hope to be able to post some pics next week!

Please continue to pray for us here. The more people show interest in our ministry here, the more the devil shows his face. We are excited about what the future holds for Rhayader.

Summer camp is just around the corner! We are busy helping with all the prep work. I am learning SOOOO much. I am thankful to the group who are finding ways for me to help, even though the boys and I won't actually be able to go to camp. Next year, we should all be able to go as a family! The boys and I are looking forward to a great week with 2 little boys who's parents are also working at the camp. So, it will be 4 boys to 1 "me" that week. I look forward to seeing if we survive the week.

All our love, until next post,

Tennille : )

It's About Time

2009-06-17T18:56:00.009+01:00

Well, it seems as if I have been missing in action the last couple of weeks. We have been quite busy with normal family things. Since my last post we have had chicken pox in the Downey house. Thankfully, it wasn't a major case, but we are still expecting Iestyn to come down with it soon. I have been in a bit of a picture-taking mode for the last couple of weeks. I am enjoying all the beautiful flowers--and the small foals in the field in front of our house. Last Saturday, we spent a couple of hours at the park with some of our friends and their kids. It was a lovely day.

On the 16th of June, I was able to go out for the day with my Luncheon Club group. It was a lovely day and I was able to get in a bit of "window shopping". We took a coach to Weston-Super-Mare, which is a coastal town that overlooks the Bristol Channel. It is the typical British holiday destination. The weather was excellent. Not too hot, and not too cold.

I wish I could put a photo album on here, because I never seem to have enough room for all my pics. Until I figure it out, I will just have to keep posting all my pics on my facebook page!

2009-06-05T21:04:00.002+01:00

2009-06-05T19:21:00.006+01:00

After a few weeks of waiting and wondering, the chicken pox has landed! As of today, Ian has the chicken pox. Now, we wait to see how long it will be before Iestyn gets it. They are not too bad so far, so we will just have to see how bad they get before it is over.

I have been out and about taking some pictures lately. Our house looks out over a field that is full of horses and sheep. So, I have been taking advantage of all the wild-life.

Wednesday was Luncheon Club. I always enjoy my time with all the pensioners. Each time I cook, it seems to get easier. I perfect the recipe and shorten the time it takes to get everything ready. I am really thankful for the chance to cook for other peoples grandparents-it feels as if I am cooking for my own. It is taking quite a while to learn everyone's names! I look forward to finding other ways to serve the people here in Rhayader.

This week was my birthday! Ronnie organized a babysitter to get the kids from school so he could take me out for lunch. We drove to Chester to go to Toby's Carvery for lunch and then did some shopping. We actually got to get some Krispy Kreme donuts!!! : ) : ) When we got home, the kids jumped out and screamed Happy Birthday! It was really sweet. Ronnie has managed to surprise me 2 years in a row! Next year I will not be so gullible! : ) Thank you to Sabina and the kids for a lovely surprise!

Some of you know that we fostered a baby hedgehog last year. We released her back into the wild, and prayed that she would survive the winter. Well, this week, we found out! At about

11 pm, she waddled over to where our neighbors have been placing food out for her. We had spotted some signs that she has been around, but seeing her was so nice. Above is a picture of what she looked like last year and last week.

I just wish I could figure out how to move these pictures around so that I could put their description under their picture! It will only let me put them this way, and I can't put them in any sort of order. Another lesson for another day!

Time to take a breather!

2009-05-26T10:47:00.004+01:00

Well, It is about time I sit down and go over what we have been up to lately. So, here goes....

As I said before, Ladies Retreat was excellent! I enjoyed the chance to be away for a bit of "mum" time. While away, I took the time to remember how, just last year, the day before I was scheduled to leave for ladies retreat, my grandfather passed away after a battle with cancer. It was hard to be so far from family at such a trying time. However, with the wonderful ladies there, I was comforted to know that even though I couldn't be there with my physical family, I was able to spend some time with my spiritual family. I am thrilled to know that the last years of his life were the most fun! He went places and seen things that he had never seen before! And it was all before he knew anything about his cancer. Isn't God good to allow us the simple pleasures of spending time with our families! Don't miss a chance to tell your family that you love them!

We were able to take a trip up to West Shore last week to drop off some John and Romans for the upcoming summer outreach. It was good to see old friends as well as some new faces. They have even done some work on the church building. I believe they enjoyed the chance to see how the children have grown.

Ronnie has also been busy helping get things ready for youth camp. Ronnie has been asked to be junior camp speaker this year, so please help us pray that hearts will be prepared to hear God's word. Every camp is an excellent opportunity to reach into homes that would otherwise be closed to the gospel. We don't take this lightly! The men and women who work so hard to plan this camp don't do so for man's glory, but that Christ's name be magnified. They really are a very special group of people! Next year will be the camps 20th anniversary.

This week we have been able to have some company! Wednesday night we were able to have a couple come for tea and Thursday night we were able to have a very good missionary friend come to stay the night so he could go over some camp stuff with a couple of the men. The ministry of hospitality is really one of my favorite. I find it fun to share food and fellowship with others! The Downey B & B is always open! We just don't have enough guests!

This week, the children have the week off school. I am still expecting the chicken pox in our house, but it hasn't shown up yet. Maybe the boys aren't easily susceptible to it. Just you wait and see, the boys are going to wait until next week, after their week break! They do know how to stretch time off of school. School doesn't finish until July 19th.

We are looking forward to some family time this week! We have a couple of things planned, but will have to see how the weather holds up. We are praying for some good weather! This has not been a "good weather" year.

Next month will see the end of my 30th year. Somehow, it didn't seem any different to the others. We have had an incredible year here in Wales!

Last week, we found out that our landlord has plans to sell the house that we live in. This has been an uneasy couple of days for us. We had a verbal agreement to stay here for 2 more years, but for a reason unknown to us, he has decided to sell. This house is enjoyable to live in, but is on the small size. Would you help us pray that we will find God's timing and perfect place for us. We don't want to be "priced out" of the Rhayader market . We would like to stay very close to town center so that we can live closely to the people we are trying to reach.

We look forward to what God has for us this year! Until next time, God Bless.

Catch Up!!!

2009-05-16T15:46:00.007+01:00

As you can tell, I have been away for a few days. I just returned from a Ladies Retreat! I had a wonderful time, as usual! There were 54 ladies! We enjoyed 3 days together at the Regents Park Conference Center in Nantwich, England. It is always a refreshing time. This years theme was about having joy in your life. Even as we finish this years retreat, we are already looking forward to next years. It is always fun seeing old friends and making new ones!

As you can see, our babies have flown the coop! They took off from the nest on Sunday! We will miss them!

2009-05-07T12:57:00.004+01:00

Next week is Ladies Retreat, and I wanted to get my hair done. So, here's a picture of my new cut. It usually takes me a few days to figure out if I like it, but, so far so good. I'll let you know in a few days. Thanks Leanne for a nice cut and friendly conversation, even if it was about all our children : ). I am looking forward to a couple of days away next week. This years theme is Christmas in May. We will be having a Christmas fashion show, a Christmas fair with crafts and all and a gift exchange for all the workers at the convention center. It is going to be so much fun! I will be taking the Wednesday, 7 am train to Nantwich, England. I hope I have a better train ride than last year : ). I will get back home Friday night. This is a special time in my mummy calendar for the year. I was hoping to take someone from Rhayader with me, but it looks as if I'll have to wait until next year. Our baby robins are growing quickly, and will probably take their first flight in a couple of days : )/: (.

2009-05-05T19:13:00.002+01:00

The babies sure are growing! Hope you are enjoying this as much as we are!

Larry, Mo and Curly???

2009-05-04T11:47:00.002+01:00

These are the babies, as of this morning. You can just see the 4th egg in the back of the nest. It seems as if this little one won't be making an appearance. This is fun, but it's getting close to the day they will fly away. I think we should call them Larry, Mo and Curly. What do you think? You can just see 3 beaks, all lined up, ready for mum to come with breakfast. Their eyes are open, but we still haven't heard much noise from them yet. I thought they would be chirping like crazy by now! Only God could make such a beautiful creation! Could you imagine what it would be like, if our babies were born, grew up and left home all in 2 weeks??? Not much fun for all us mums who love our cuddly little babies!

Psalms 139:14

I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Update on the Babies

2009-05-02T12:50:00.003+01:00

Here is the latest photo of the babies. They should be 7 days old today. There were 4 eggs in the nest to start with, but only 3 have hatched. I caught a glimpse of the last egg yesterday, but still no new chick. I imagine that this egg will not hatch. I know that the mother bird takes away all egg shells, but I am pretty sure she couldn't carry away a whole egg. We will have to wait and see what happens to the other egg. We are still enjoying the chance to see baby birds grow. Only about a week to go before our babies take their first flight! Isn't our God amazing!

The Babies are growing!

2009-04-30T22:02:00.002+01:00

HOW CUTE IS THIS?

Luncheon Club #3

2009-04-29T16:02:00.005+01:00

Today was my 3rd time to cook for the luncheon club here in Rhayader. I was finally able to get a picture of some of the men and women that I cook for. Today, there was 47 pensioners and 8 workers. Even though it can be a bit hectic, I always have a good time. I am really glad that I have the opportunity to volunteer in this manner. It really is good to hear 50+ people say that your cooking is good : )!! They really are a special bunch of people! I think that after 3 attempts at this, I have finally perfected the recipe! I suppose we'll see next time.

Take a look!

2009-04-28T12:20:00.003+01:00

Have a look at our babies! Mom was away getting a bit of lunch, and I managed to sneek you a peek of the babies. Enjoy! After having a look, the picture is little fuzzy, but you can still get a good look, and hear the birds!

The Baby Robins Are Here!

2009-04-27T19:04:00.004+01:00

Look what we have! Three baby robins! These 3 (I think) hatched sometime Saturday or Sunday. We will try to keep an eye out for them, but are trying to be extra careful because we don't want to scare the mom away. We will try to have a peek when she is out getting a bite to eat : ).We are hoping that she hasn't built the nest to close to the ground... we have a neighbor with cats : (. She has chosen to build her nest in a short hedge VERY close to the house. I'm surprised the boys haven't scared her off already. We look forward to seeing these little ones fly around the garden! I will keep you posted. I have never had such a close view of baby birds! If you double click on the picture above, it should show you a large copy of the picture! Hope you enjoy these little babies as much as we do!

Visit Wales Blog Awards

2009-04-24T19:06:00.006+01:00

Look what I got today! I received an email from Visit Wales - Department of Heritage office saying they found my website and want me to enter a blog competition! They are trying to encourage more people to write about Wales. The winner gets a 3 night stay in the capital city, Cardiff. Most of you are aware that we use this blog to keep our family, friends and prayer partners up to date on what we are doing here in Wales. We like to know that everyone can see photos and read family news here. I will add more to this post later, as the kids are ready for tea!

Spring has sprung!

2009-04-21T11:54:00.006+01:00

It looks as if spring has arrived in Wales! We have been enjoying some really nice days this week. Although the sun is shining, the breeze is still quite cold. We are praying that this year's weather will be better than last year's. On Saturday, we went to visit a friend's farm. Even though we love animals, we don't often get to be so close to them. It really was an enjoyable day out. It smelled like Kentucky! : ) I would really like the chance to go and spend some more time at the farm. It is one thing to know what an animal looks like in a picture, but another thing to be able to see, touch and even smell, REAL animals. Our Breanna seems to think she wants to be a vet when she grows up, so a little contact with animals should show her what vet work is all about. It is not always pleasant and you can't always have happy endings. Karen has around 600 ewes who have produced around 800 lambs! When you add in horses, pigs, geese and sheep dogs, you have a lot of animals to take care of. What a fulfilling, but busy life! Thank You Karen for a nice day out!

Easter Time

2009-04-16T14:04:00.003+01:00

April, I must say, is proving to be an extra busy month! I can't believe it has been 15 days since Iestyn's birthday. Here is a run-down of the last 2 weeks. The children have been out of school since April 2nd. As you can imagine, that in itself is enough to keep the normal family inundated with things to do. Our car had been playing up for a couple of weeks, so that was the first thing on our agenda. After trying several times to pin down the cause of the trouble, we found a local Renault dealer who was able to diagnose it as a problem with the flywheel. After 2 hours in the shop, it was fixed! And, for way less than we were expecting!

Along with the normal schedule, I had a special trip planned for Breanna and myself for our first annual mother-daughter trip. Ronnie and I had been discussing it for a couple of weeks when we ran across a newly built hotel in a town nearby. We popped in for a look around and got some information about it. After a couple weeks discussion, we were able to book a 2 night stay for a lot less than the normal cost. A normal nights cost is £54.00. We were able to get it for £39.00 for 2 nights! A huge saving of £69.00, which is $105.00! To those of you who are keen bargain hunters, we got a great deal! We were able to see friends, do some shopping and have some mother-daughter time. The Lord also provided an extra special treat! We were able to have a complimentary beauty treatment! As I have been having some pain in my back lately, it was perfect timing! The Lord always knows what we need! A HUGE Thank You to Stephanie of Serenity Beauty Room!

On Easter Sunday, we were at Bethel Baptist Church for the day. Our Sunday School children have been learning Bible verses, so we used this day to show the church how well the children are doing. We stood them in front of the church and had them recite 5 of the 10 verses we have been teaching them. They received medals to show them how proud we are of their progress. We pray that the church will see the need to reach a younger generation.

On Easter Monday, we piled into the car for a 3 hour drive to Bury, England for special Easter services. Bible Baptist Church holds this meeting every year, but we have been unable to attend for the last 3 years. It is always great to spend time with friends from all over the UK. Both missionaries and church members alike!

This week has been a rather busy week with speech therapy, dental, and eye appointments galore! Thankfully, the speech therapist thinks that Ian's speech issues are minor and may be caused by the accent divide! As he becomes more involved with school, he should catch the British accent bug! We are looking forward to the children going back to school so that things calm down a bit! The Tylenol bottle will be empty soon!

Please continue to pray that God will continue to work here in Rhayader! We look forward to the day when we can look out over a crowd of people in Bethel Baptist Church!

In closing, could you help us pray for a special request? Ronnie's cousin Leo is a missionary to Canada. Just recently we learned that they are expecting a new baby. At a recent ultrasound, something caught the doctors attention. Could you help us pray that God will work in this situation for His glory?

To family and friends alike, please know that we love you and think of you often! To the McPeters Family, HURRY UP AND GET OVER HERE! We can't wait to meet you! We need more missionaries in Wales!

April is here!

2009-04-04T10:25:00.004+01:00

April marks another Downey birthday! On Wednesday, Iestyn turned 7! As it was a school night, we had his party scheduled for Friday lunch time. The last day of school before Easter break was Thursday. Iestyn's friends came over at 12:00 on Friday for hot dogs and crisps (chips to those in the USA) and cake and ice cream. It was a small party as it is lambing season here, so many of the families are with their sheep. The boys had a good time playing together. It is great seeing the change in Iestyn since he started school last year. To go from being in a bubble by himself to having friends all around him is great! I must say, making an omnitrix cake was not easy! It took me forever to figure out the shapes! The only problem was that I couldn't get any black icing : ). The boys didn't seem to mind and the cake was delicious! We hope that having these boys over will open more doors for us.

Off to the Elan Valley

2009-03-18T14:37:00.005Z

This week we have had some great weather! For the first time this year, we are getting some sunny warm days. So, we packed into the car and headed off to do some sight seeing in the local area. We are trying to get out and about and see the beauty that God has created all around us. We had a wonderful day looking at God's beautiful creation! We are looking forward to many more sunny days to come.

School Days or School Daze?

2009-03-11T21:37:00.005Z

This is a picture of our kids at Sunday School.

Do you ever have one of those weeks where it seems everyone you see wants money? Well, this is one of those weeks. With 3 kids in school, that sometimes translates into 3 times the fundraising. We live in a small village and our local school is very small, and so is it's budget. Just as everyone else at the moment, our little school is in a fight to continue it's high standard of teaching. So, that means that the school is having to find ways to keep it's head above water. This week, we have had no fewer than 4 different ways to try to raise funds for our school and a charity that they help with. With no family near-by, it is always a challenge! We usually put money in just so our kids have at least a couple of pounds to put in. Sometimes, it is just a bit much. I am very grateful for all that this little school has done to help Iestyn. As I was speaking to a lady in town today, she asked how Iestyn is doing in school. I had spoken to her a couple of months ago about Iestyn's learning difficulties, and I was happy to tell her that he is doing excellent with all the extra help he receives at the school. We pray that we will be able to have as much impact in this little village as they are having in our little boy's learning!

Today was also my second time cooking for the Luncheon Club here in Rhayader. I must say that I am finding it very enjoyable! There are still a few things that need to be tweeked-mostly in my recipe. Changing a recipe for 5 into a recipe for 50 is not as easy as multiplying it by 10! Sometimes, that just doesn't do the trick! Hopefully, I will only need one more go at it before I figure all this out! How nice it has been to get out and have a full conversation with someone who is not 5 years old! You moms out there will know exactly what I mean! I look forward to many more attempts at perfecting my recipe. Hopefully it won't take that many more tries!

Both times I have cooked, I have been asked why we are here, so it has definitely been a way to introduce people to why we are here. This is proving to be a great adventure! Until next time!

Ladies Retreat

2009-03-07T14:36:00.004Z

This week was the Pastor's Wives Retreat in Cannock Chase, England. I was able to spend 3 days away with some GREAT ladies! It is always a refreshing time of fellowship for all of us. The theme for the retreat was Spiritual Mothering. We went over how we are responsible for teaching those around us, just as mother's do. It is, at times, a great challenge to think of the things we do as either a help to others or a hinderance to others. I am thankful for the friendships of these ladies! I am also thankful that we all have such GREAT husbands who allow us the chance to get away! As always, we can't wait until the next time that we are able to get together again.

Day Out In Birmingham, England

2009-02-19T12:22:00.005Z

Shelley Curtis and Iestyn

This June will mark the 12th Anniversary of our arrival here in Wales! It will also be 12 years from the first time I met the Larry Curtis family, missionaries in England. Over a lifetime, you meet many people, but few leave lasting impressions on your life. When we arrived in the UK, I was only 19 years old! There were days when I felt a little lost, so Ronnie drove me out to B'ham to meet the Curtis family. They had a daughter who is not much younger than me, and the friendship begun on that day has meant a lot to me. All though we do not get to see each other often, I know that if I ever needed anything, she would be only a phone call away. Twelve years have passed and we are no longer "little girls", but firm friends. We were able to go to B'ham yesterday in order to see the Curtis family and be a part of their Sword of the Spirit Bible Conference. We had a lovely trip to Subway : ) for lunch and then to the Bullring Shopping Center for a bit of shopping. The meeting was great -as always- with Evangelist Brian Beaver from NC. It is always nice to hear another Southern accent! The Curtis Family ALWAYS make us feel at home and ALWAYS takes care of us while we are there. (Bro. Curtis is a great chauffer through the B'ham streets - we would be SOOOOO lost without him!) We are thankful that the Lord allows us to have such great friends! May we NOT take so long to get together again!

Curtis Family, if you are reading this, WE LOVE YOU AND THANK GOD FOR YOU!! UNTIL NEXT TIME, TAKE CARE OF EACH OTHER!

Prayer Letter

2009-02-13T15:56:00.003Z

Dear Pastor and Praying Friends, January - February 2009

We were blessed with a lovely Christmas here in Rhayader. Our Christmas morning services, held at Bethel, was attended by around 25 people. We were also blessed to be able to spend the day with our neighbors, Peter and Leslie. It was a lovely day for both us and them. It was like having Christmas with family! We are thankful for the chance to get to know the people here in Rhayader. New doors are opening every day!

The weather has made the last couple of months crawl by at a snail’s pace and we wonder if anything is going to happen. The winter has been a bitter one, and we have seen our heating bill skyrocket! However, even with the weather, we have had a record attendance for our Sunday School. On January 18th, we had 11 children come. It was a very encouraging day, as we could see what it would be like if we had that many children each week. We could also see that it would be great to have someone else to work along with us as it can be a challenge to teach all age groups in one class. Nonetheless, it was an exciting day. We have challenged the children to learn 10 Bible verses. In just 3 short weeks, they have learned 3 verses which is a great accomplishment as most of these children have never learned a verse before. We plan to hold a special service in April to recognize all the work that the children have been doing. We will be inviting all the parents to see their children receive a special award. Please pray that this will be a successful means of reaching the parents.

Also in January, we were able to do an assembly for the local primary school. WeI used a clear box to show the children that God wants to take the bad from their heart and replace it with good things from Him. It proved to be a most productive day as both children and teachers understood the meaning. We look forward to every opportunity that we have to present the gospel to all those at the school. We are scheduled to take the assembly again in May.

We want to say a very big THANK YOU to all who sent cards and extra gifts for Christmas! With the economy as it is, we are even more aware of the sacrifices that our supporters give every month to keep us on the field. We are eternally grateful. We would not be here if not for the prayers and financial support that you give so graciously. We pray for and think of you often!

On another note, we are trying to take advantage of all the technology that is available to us. My wife has begun a family blog. The address is www.ourlifeinwales.blogspot.com. We would love to see you drop by our site and leave us a message. We even have a facebook site that we post all our photos on. You can email my wife at tennilleinwales@gmail.com if you are interested in receiving any of our family updates. We look forward to building a strong base to communicate closely with our churches in the states.

Again, we thank you for all you do for us! May our God bless you tremendously this year!

In Christ, your missionary family,

Ronald, Tennille, Breanna, Iestyn, & Ian

More Snow Tonight

2009-02-08T14:10:00.003Z

As I am writing this post, it is snowing AGAIN. It is Sunday afternoon and we are expecting blizzard type conditions for the rest of the day and into the night. Most of the time, the weather man is usually wrong except when he calls for sun -and then it usually rains : (. However, they have been right all week with the snow, so we are ready for a snow storm. Last week, the kids only went to school on Wednesday. It looks as if they may have most of this week off as well. They are already scheduled to be off school next week for half term break. They could have 3 weeks off school. We had another good week in Sunday School, even with all the snow around. It is good to see the children getting more interested in coming. We had 8, with 3 off sick. Breanna has gotten a case of slapped cheek disease - the first time I have ever heard if it! It seems to be going around the village. It looks like she has a bad sun burn in the middle of winter. Other than that, we are all well, just hoping there is school this week.

What a Week!!

2009-02-04T15:51:00.002Z

Well, it is about time I post another entry. This is the week I was scheduled to cook for the Luncheon Club. It has been a crazy week! On Sunday, it started to snow! It has been snowing on and off since then. School was cancelled on Monday and Tuesday. The children were able to go to school today, but they came home with news that school has already been cancelled tomorrow. We are expecting another 6 inches tonight. In the middle of all this, I still had to prepare and cook for 60 people. Thankfully, the kids did go to school today so that I could get everything done. I went to the community center at 10:00 to start getting ready. However, I started cooking for it on Tuesday. Someone donated a turkey, so I was able to cook, cool and de-bone it at home before today. Yesterday, I baked 3 chocolate cakes for the dessert. So, today, all I had to do was put it all together. The final menu was turkey pot pie, mashed potatoes, broccoli and cauliflower and chocolate cake with single cream for dessert. It was a great day! The kitchen staff said that there wasn't anything left to wash off the plates! They said I could cook for them again. Just to let you know, it took 2 pans that were 14 by 18 inch and 2 1/2 inches deep for the chicken pot pie and 3 pans that were 10 by 13 inches for the cake. Next time, this should be even easier to do. It really has been a good week. The kids have loved the snow days and I have enjoyed my first cooking for 60 experience. If you would like my rough recipe, devised with the help of a friend and a bisquik recipe, just send me an email! Will post again soon with more snow pics! LOL, Tennille

A Great Day at the school assembly!

2009-01-23T16:31:00.002Z

We have had a great day today! Today was our day to take assembly at the kids school. Every school in the UK is required to have a Religious education class. Thankfully, the village we are in is mostly a christian community, so they were excited when we moved into town. The last time Ronnie took the assembly he did the wordless book, and it proved a hit with both the teachers and the students. Today, he had one of the teachers help him with showing the children that God can take away the sin in their heart and replace it with good gifts. He used candy to represent the good gifts that God gives-needless to say, the kids took it all in! All the teachers commented on how well he held their attention and how easy it was to understand. Breanna's teacher even said he would have us every week if he could! Our next assembly is scheduled for May, so we are going to have to find something else that captivates the children so well. We are thankful for the opportunity to be able to see so many children at one time. We pray that this will help us become familiar with the families in town. We are still looking forward to the great things that God has in store for this village.

Looking forward to this New Year

2009-01-22T10:29:00.004Z

Well, I must say that I am quite enjoying this new routine. It is definitely making for easier house cleaning. I can get up, get the kids dressed and fed, and while Ronnie takes the kids to school, I can clean the house with NO interruptions! It seems as if the house is clean 24/7 for a change.

I am now 2 weeks away from cooking for 60 people! It has been quite an interesting job to sort through, but I am still looking forward to the challenge. I think I have settled on the menu. I will be making chicken pot pie with broccoli and roasted potatoes for the main course and devils food chocolate cake with pouring cream for dessert. I am still working on the actual recipe conversion for the chicken pot pie, but I am pretty sure that I will need to make three 10 by 13 cakes to make sure that I have enough for everyone. I will post pics and info on how it goes : ). I must take another trip out to the kitchen to check all the pan sizes. This is all new to me.

The children are all doing well. Ian seems to be doing well at school, however we did have a bit of a scare on his first full day. When he returned home, it appeared that he hadn't eaten a thing ALL day. When I asked him about it, he started crying and we couldn't seem to understand what had happened. The teachers here seem to expect us to know ALL the rules without being told what they are. I sent a packed lunch, but because we didn't put it into the proper box, he wasn't allowed to have it for lunch. The teacher's just assumed he was to have a cooked dinner, so they sent him to the school canteen for lunch. I was upset because I thought no one was keeping an eye on him at lunch and he was upset because he thought he was in trouble for not eating what I sent. What an emotional roller-coaster! We finally got it sorted and the teachers are trying to inform us of all the rules we didn't know about.

Breanna has started going to the local St. John's Ambulance class. It is the same as attending a Red Cross First Aid class. We look forward to seeing what she can learn from it. Once she is qualified she could be a part of the group when they volunteer to work at local county fairs for first aid care. It sounds pretty exciting!

Iestyn is also doing great. The school here is proving to be the best place for him as his teachers are better qualified to help sort through his learning problems. He is receiving lots of extra help while at school and is due to have speech therapy while at school. He still seems to be having a problem with reading, but he is being highly praised for his math ability. Don't have a clue where he got that from : )! We are looking forward to seem him grow even more! He has become much more comfortable with all the changes we have made lately. He went from being home-schooled while on the road to being put into a class of 30. How daunting it was for him. Thankfully, he is doing great!

Ronnie and I are doing great. It has been 10 years having children around, so this is a nice change. We can actually have a lunch date! It also seems as if we are spending less on groceries as well! This could be a great help if the exchange rate changes again! We are looking forward to what God has in store for us this year! LOL, Tennille

Highest Sunday Yet!

2009-01-19T08:29:00.005Z

Well, the Downey family are thankful for our largest number yet for Sunday School. We had 11 kids. You say, that is not a lot, but we say that is great! There has been no weekly Sunday School here in Rhayader for quite a while, so getting 11 children out of their beds early on a Sunday morning is quite a fete. It was a very encouraging day for us. There was our 3 kids and 8 others. Nathan, Harri, Daniel, Hana, Rebecca, Leonie, Cameron and Aylesha. We pray that we will be able to help these children see that church isn't just for old, boring people : ). There was also 20+ adults for the morning service as well. A good day all around! The picture above is of the church that we are now holding our Sunday School and Monday Bible study at. The church (Bethel Baptist) has given us the opportunity to use their building to have our Sunday School in. We feel this is the Lord's way of showing this church that God can use them again! We pray that it will someday be a place that will be open every day of the week. This church as been without pastoral leadership or Sunday School for many years. They have begun to feel as if they are too old to be used, but we know that God is able, if they are willing!

Please, if you think of us today, pray for my mum as she is unwell. She has faced so many physical challenges as of late, and is due for a break. She has had shingles and possibly another bout with e-coli, among her other existing conditions. Sometimes it is hard being so far away. Please pray for my dad as he is trying to get her better. LOL, Dad, I love you!

What have I done??

2009-01-15T20:28:00.004Z

Well, it looks as if this stay at home mum has her work cut out for her! Just before Christmas, I volunteered to help at our local luncheon club. This is a group of people who prepare lunch for elderly folks who have been referred as needing some friendly contact outside of their house. I thought that they would introduce me slowly to the process, but was I ever wrong! Two days ago, the organizer phoned to say that she has me signed up to plan, purchase and prepare lunch for 60 hungry pensioners in 3 weeks time! I have a lot of homework to do. I will be on a strict budget which will work out to £1.00 per person. I will have to make a 2 course meal. I thought they would start me off as a helper, but they needed a cook more. I will be on a 5 weekly rota, so hopefully it will turn out to be a good experience for me.

I need to find something that can be partially prepared ahead of time and finished off at the hall. I need to find a dessert that can be served with pouring cream, custard or chocolate sauce as they like things with a nice topping. My thoughts are leaning to chicken pot pie with veggies on the side and devils food cake with chocolate sauce. The other cooks do roasted dinners, so they think it would be nice for me to try the chicken pie, but I also have to consider the budget. If you think you could help, PLEASE email me. I am NOT opposed to taking advice. I am excited, but I have a lot of planning to do.

Also, if you have facebook, you can look me up under Tennille Downey. Just ask me to be your friend and let me know who you are : ). LOL, Tennille

The New Year has begun!

2009-01-09T14:24:00.005Z

As you can see, we have been very busy around the Downey house. The above pictures are of the kids on their first day of school and one of Breanna with the girls who came to her birthday party. We had a great day! This year looks to be a busy one already. Tomorrow, Iestyn has been invited to a friend's birthday party and we are looking forward to getting to know the little boy and his family more through this contact. We will post a couple of pics later.

I will have to start planning for Ronnie's birthday next month. You only turn 40 once : ). I hope to be able to keep up with our blog better now that I will have a bit of time to do it. Check back soon as I have to be on my way to pick the kids up for school. LOL

Back to school today!

2009-01-05T08:25:00.001Z

Well, it is all systems go as the children are on their way to school. We got up, got dressed, ate our breakfast, took our first day of school photo and now we are on our way to the first day of school. Ian will only be staying until just before lunch time for his first 2 weeks, and then he will be a full-time student just like all the other kids. I pray that he has a good day and doesn't cause any problems to his new teacher! There was a light dusting of snow last night. Everything looks so pretty! The kids spotted some bird tracks around the frond garden this morning.

On another note, our Breanna turned 10 on Friday. She had a great group of 10 girls over for a birthday party with 3 of the girls staying the night. Ronnie and I were very impressed with the girls behavior. They are not your typical bunch of British 10 year olds. It seems that the "farming" community that we live in turns out very polite kids. I often tell my kids that it is nice having their friends over because they always eat what I cook with NO whining!!! How nice it is to hear someone say that they love your cooking : )! We had a great time playing games and having a nice lunch of TACOS! It was really a very nice time!

A Busy Week

2008-11-14T14:33:00.000Z

Hello from Wales again! We have been extremely busy this last week. Since I posted last, we have had much to do. Ian has had his first visit to the primary school here in town. He was able to spend 3 hours with the Welsh speaking class, and next week, he will be spending the day with the English speaking class. Iestyn took part in a special assembly with the other children in his class. It was to celebrate Remembrance Day (which is like Veterans Day). It is great to see him progressing so well. Breanna has bought a pet hamster with money she made from selling some old toys. Today is Children In Need Day, and the children have all dressed up for a parade around town. Breanna went as a cowgirl and Iestyn dressed up as Spiderman. The kids are all doing well here in Rhayader. We were able to spend Tuesday with a large group of American and British preacher friends. It was great to catch up with friends from all over the UK. We are all looking forward to our Thanksgiving Lunch which will be held in England. How fun it will be to spend the day with others who also have family far away. We love you all. Have a great Thanksgiving Holiday!

The Year is Almost Gone!

2008-11-06T21:49:00.000Z

Well, we are well on our way to the end of the year here in Wales and it has been a very busy year. We ended our furlough in January, moved into a new house in February, started a new school in March, had two camps/VBS in the summer, and started a Sunday ministry in the local village in September. November has begun and there is not many days to go before 2009 is here. I hope to be able to continue writing this blog so that our friends and family can keep track of us. We love you all.