Team Five Morris

Hello to all our faithful family members and friends.  We are currently in the London airport after a sleepless night crossing over the pond.  Emotions were high yesterday when we left.  We had to get 11 bags checked and 9 bags through security to take on the plane.  We managed to get through security but were flagged for an indepth search.  So much fun.  Little Ben even had to be frisked.  Then the flight was perfect and we made it in to London alright.  Now we are battling fatigue after 3 hours of sleep and cranky kids.  We keep looking at eachother and saying, "We are really doing this!".  Reality has set in and we are joyful in the opportunity.  I can't wait to post more once we get there.  For now my stomach thinks it's time for a late breakfast, or is it lunch in London, or is it dinner in Uganda?  Ah, such is the life of such jetsetters like us!  Love you all and miss you already more than you know.  Please pray for our patience levels with eachother and the kids in the coming days.  I imagine there will be more sleepless nights to come! 

Today was our last sunday at Easthaven Baptist.  I woke up dreading what I knew would be a shameless display of crying and snotting in public.  (My own)  I hate crying in public, losing emotional control.  So this morning seeing my mom sitting on the couch crying and saying she wasn't going to come to church set the mood.  I broke down before we even got in the car.  From there it was just a cry-fest.  Don't get me wrong, it's not that I didn't want to say goodbye.  I'd just rather wave from afar with a stiff upper lip.  This day was hard but I'm greatful for the church body at Easthaven.  So many of you support us and pray for us and having you pray over us this morning was worth all the embarrassing tears.  We missed many friends who weren't there and we won't have time to see everyone before we leave.  But know this...we love you and will miss you in our everyday lives.  I ask two things from the church body at Easthaven:

1. Keep praying.  We desperately need your prayers.

2. Take care of my mom.  She joyfully supports us on this venture but we have never been apart for more than a year and she has never been away from the grandkids for more than a few weeks. This will be hard for her.  Please rally around her and invite her to coffee, pray for her, love on her. 

Thanks again church family!  All our love and prayers go out for you as well! 

I miss my weird, wacky communal living friends.  It is true.  After four months of living, eating, praying, studying and playing pranks on eachother I feel lonely without them.  So it got me thinking.  Being friends with missionaries is no good.  First of all, missionary-types are often weird people.  They sell all their stuff including houses and forsake the American dream to go live in dirty, remote and often dangerous places.  That should be the first clue that these are not people to hang out with.  Secondly, they are often from Iowa which everyone knows breeds weird corn farmers.  Sometimes they are from even weirder places like Virginia or Washington which breeds weird ham people and apple growers.  (Sometimes even the really odd clown families! You know who you are.)  Thirdly they have odd senses of humor.  They enjoy kicking over cans of beans and hiding in other people's closets.  But the biggest reason to never be friends with a missionary is that you might end up growing too fond of them and then they move to the other side of the world. 

My dearest missionary friends of MMT...I hate it that we are all going to different places instead of living in communal utopia forever.  But I wouldn't trade our experiences together for anything!  We may all be headed to different countries but oh what a reunion we'll have in heaven!  (or on our next Skype conference call!)  Love you, miss you...and I'm praying for you!

And for all those people who I love dearly that aren't called to international missions...I love you just as much and will miss you terribly and will continue to pray for you! 

19 days and counting until Team 5 Morris departs!

So today was our last official day of class.  We dressed up and went out to a fancy dinner and recieved our diplomas.  Even the kids got one!  I can't write too much or I'll start to cry...I'm going to miss our MMT family.  It wouldn't have been as much fun without you guys!  We'll see you in Uganda...right?