April 2016 in Pictures
Author: Mitcheners
March 2016 in Pictures
A few pictures from our month of March!
February 2016 in pictures
Time is flying! A few pictures from our busy February.
Our Colorful New Home
We are so excited! The apartments on the Freedom campus are coming along – railings are going on the porches, tile is being put down, closets, kitchen cabinets, and counter tops are going in… (The Hilgemans have actually already moved – they say the quiet atmosphere is so relaxing!) Life will be so different once we move. I’m personally counting down the days til I get to flush toilet paper again! More than anything, I’m praying this move will help us to more effectively minister to our sweet students and their families.
To keep things moving, missionaries are painting their own apartments. We were thinking it was going to take us quite awhile to finish painting, considering our three little munchkins. Guess what? Scott’s brother Ryan and his wife Erin decided to come for a visit. Perfect timing, right? We put them to work! And it was much more fun painting with company. Scott and I may have gone a little color crazy, but it was so fun picking all the paint and thinking about how we’ll decorate! Enjoy some pictures (click to enlarge)!
January 2016 in pictures
Oh, how my heart has been aching to write. But alas, life is running a mile a minute. I’ve been feeding sweet babygirl, playing momma to the boys, driving to school several times a week, emailing, making phone calls, cooking, planning, and washing (our clothes, our dishes, and our children). Life has been so beautifully and wonderfully full, and I’ve been enjoying this fleeting season. It’s been impossible to find time to splurge on writing. So for now, I’ll post some pictures of this first month of 2016 and try to be more intentional about sharing life over the next 11 months.
Caleigh’s birth story – sort of
When it comes to hearing birth stories, there are two types of people: those who want to know every single detail, and those who don’t. I’m guessing the majority of my friends are found in the latter group. So if you really want a play-by-play of how Caleigh miraculously entered the world, just email me. For the rest of you, here’s the abridged version: It hurt. A lot. It was worth every ounce of pain, of course. Because after all that hurting came my healthy baby girl! And the rest, as they say, is history.
I brushed over some of those birth details, I know. But I’d be remiss to gloss over what the Lord reminded me through that experience.
In the hospital room where Caleigh was born, there were two picture frames on the wall – one containing the word Hope, the other Strength. I remember sitting in the hospital bed, waiting for the induction medicine to kick in. I knew that a pain-filled night was ahead of me.
I saw those words on the wall and thought to myself, Oh, what good reminders! When I’m in a world of hurt here in a few hours, I’ll just look over and remember to be strong. To have hope. That’ll get me through. I can do this!
Before I even finished that thought, another tidal wave of a thought crept up and overtook the first: No, Ang, that’s wrong! Those two words in and of themselves will do nothing for you. You’ve forgotten something. The Source!
Truths like, “The Lord is my strength” and “God is my rock, in whom I take refuge” began to run through my head. Of course! What was I thinking? It’s not me. I can’t do this alone. It’s about Him! He is my help and my hope.
There came a point during labor that I just wasn’t sure if I could physically go on. I remember saying, “Oh, Lord, help me!” My midwife didn’t miss a beat. She said, “He is helping you, honey. He’s here!”
Such truth in those simple words. He was there! Even in moments of great physical pain, He is present. He is my Strength and my Hope!
After Caleigh’s birth, a friend visited us in the hospital and dropped off a gift. It was a CD called Roots for the Journey by Yancy. One of the songs repeats the phrase “My hope is in the Lord.” Oh, what a blessed relief! I absolutely cannot do life on my own. It’s only by His strength.
So very thankful for my beautiful baby. For simple reminders of His truth. For opportunities to live those truths out. And for a patient Savior.
How God used Art the Trucker to teach me a lesson
We had just gotten back to the States for furlough. Scott was driving through the boondocks of Indiana, looking for a place to meet up with his parents for lunch after attending a family wedding. We found an exit with several fast food restaurants and settled on Steak ‘n Shake. Scott and I decided to order early since we were headed to a checkup appointment for our soon-to-arrive baby girl. We sat down, saved some seats, and waited for our gloriously greasy burgers to arrive.
I love to people watch. I enjoy seeing what makes people tick and watching how they interact with those around them. This particular restaurant out in the middle of nowhere provided me with the perfect opportunity to do just that. So I began to chat with Scott, all the while checking out the people around me.
I watched the frazzled waitress scamper from table to table, clearing dirty dishes and pushing the tips into her pocket. I observed the strange quartet of silent deer hunters, decked out in their camo clothes, playing with their cell phones instead of talking with each other in the moment. I saw a grandmother push aside her plate of pasta that she obviously didn’t care for. She stood up to pay the ticket for her daughter and grandchildren before they all walked out of the restaurant. I watched an older couple saunter in and settle themselves in the small corner booth, oblivious of those around them. And I saw the old trucker with his giant beer belly and long salt-and-pepper beard ask the waitress for a refill.
For some reason, the trucker intrigued me. I wondered where he was from and where he was going. But the more I observed him, the more my “people-watching” turned into “people-judging”. I started making assumptions about this man who apparently frequented this restaurant on his journeys throughout the country. That guy looks pretty ridiculous, I thought. He’s got to be a trucker – just look at that old flannel shirt, ball cap, and suspenders… At one point, he caught me staring at him. I nonchalantly looked away, focusing my eyes on another customer. But soon enough, my eyes wandered back to Trucker Guy. Wow, he ordered a lot of food…
I got up to use the restroom at one point. On my way back to my seat, I glanced over at Trucker Guy and realized he was staring at me. Uh-oh, is this guy a creep? What in the world? He’s been sitting there forever. He needs to get the show on the road…
Our food arrived. I was elated and scarfed down my burger and fries. Scott graciously treated me to a milkshake, and we sat there chatting some more. I happened to glance up from my ice cream to see Trucker Guy finally stand up and talk to the waitress once more.
He didn’t even drink his Coke refill! Ugh, he made that poor waitress run all over the place to take care of him. Can’t he see how busy she is? The judgmental thoughts kept flowing. Well, at least he tipped her well…
Trucker Guy stuffed a giant wad of money in his pocket and began to walk towards the exit. His path led him right past our table. I could feel him looking in our direction. I pretended not to notice him, keeping my eyes glued on my shake. And then he stopped. Right beside us. Could he hear my thoughts? I started to feel uncomfortable.
In a thick country accent, Trucker Guy spoke up, directing his words to Scott. “Hey sir, I saw your wife headed to the bathroom awhile ago, and I thought to myself, That new momma needs a break! So I bought your lunch for you.”
I was dumbfounded. And humiliated.
“Wow, thank you so much!” Scott replied. “What’s your name?”
“I’m Art.”
“Well, Art, my name’s Scott, and I really appreciate it!”
Art just smiled and said, “I bet you would’ve ordered a steak dinner if you knew I was gonna pay for it.”
We all laughed, and Art congratulated us on our soon-to-be addition to the family. I tried adding another heartfelt “thank you” to the conversation as Art walked out to his truck, but my words fell flat. As enormously pregnant as I was, I felt as small as a mouse.
Scott’s parents arrived soon, and we quickly finished up our dessert before heading to our appointment. I spent the rest of the day thanking the Lord for reminding me a very important lesson and praying that I would start to look for more opportunities to pour into the lives of those around me, just like Art did for me.
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1 Samuel 16:7
For man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh upon the heart.
Caleigh Elise
Our sweet baby girl finally decided to make her debut – 10 days late! Whew! We are so thankful that Ang had a much healthier pregnancy this time around and that we’re now a family of 5!
Without further ado, meet Caleigh Elise Mitchener!
She was born August 31 at 4:55am. She weighed in at a hefty 9 pounds and 22 inches.
We are in love!
It’s a Girl!
Big news! Baby #3 is a girl! We are so excited for this new addition to our growing family!
Ang and baby are doing well as of now. At the last sonogram, the ultrasound technician said baby girl’s got a head full of hair! Ang’s blood pressure is continuing to rise slightly. She’s also taking even more iron supplements to try to get her iron level up before giving birth, but we’re keeping an eye on things as we get closer to having the baby. We’re still looking at an August 21st due date.
It won’t be long now! Bring on the diaper changes, sleepless nights, cuddles and coos!
Now to think of a name…
Home
“Are you excited, Noah? We’re going home in a few days!” Noah’s wide, cheesy grin indicated his enthusiasm as he quickly colored in another airplane on his countdown calendar. Soon, we’d be headed back to the States for an extended furlough full of raising support and adding another little minion to our family.
Finally! We’re going home! Then I started thinking. Are we really headed home? No, not really. We’re just headed back to our precious families and to houses filled with memories of what home used to be for us.
Over the last four years, Noah has called four different houses in two different countries “home”. We haven’t lived in those places with any sense of permanence. We’ve held off hanging pictures and buying certain furniture because we knew we wouldn’t be settling there.
Even after three years in the Dominican, I still don’t know that I can call the DR “home”. There are amazing aspects to living in the Dominican. We’ve somewhat acclimated to DR life, but we aren’t Dominican. Can we ever really call this country full of beloved people “home”? The truth is, we’re living as strangers in a foreign country.
The past 14 days stateside have been strange, though, too. I keep forgetting that it’s OK to drink the tap water. It’s weird being able to throw the toilet paper in the toilet. (TMI? Sorry.) Vehicles (usually) follow traffic patterns. I don’t feel like I’m going to run a moto concho off the road at any moment. It feels odd to walk through the grass with bare feet. People aren’t as “friendly” here – you don’t walk into a room and say hello to every person within hearing distance. I’m beginning to feel a little like a stranger in my own country, too…
So where is home? It isn’t in the States, but it isn’t in the Dominican, either.
And then I remember something Paul declared several times throughout his writings. This world is not my home! I’m living as a foreigner and stranger on this earth. Neither the Dominican nor the US is my final destination. My true citizenship is in heaven! I’m so excited that someday I’ll be able to experience the place I truly call “home”.
The Mitcheners 