The more you know…
So as a nesting mama-to-be, the unknown has been getting to me- especially in regards to our missions endeavors. Today we talked to a Covenant representative and asked her a bunch of questions. We got some great information about what the future may look like. The next step in the application process is to meet with a mental health professional to ensure we are “fit.” Only for God’s grace will we get through this part! . After we “pass the test,” our application will be passed on to the director of missions and then to the Africa missions directors for their approval which usually takes a few weeks. So we should know for sure by the end of the year. We also learned that the missionaries in Central African Republic have already been contacted concerning us and were “excited for us to come.” So this told us two things: our assignment will be CAR and we have their blessing! Once we have officially been approved, we can start fundraising. The Covenant person gave us a very rough figure- about $100,000 for the two of us for two years. This includes all of our traveling expenses, health insurance, housing, etc. The figure is actually half of what we thought it would be- so that is nice. In order for us to start our two year journey, we will have to have 85% raised through either upfront gifts or pledges. If we don’t raise it all, we will have to continue fundraising from another country. I am praying for 100% so that way we can focus on our training. Speaking of training, looks like our first training session will be in June in Chicago. This is Covenant annual training for all missionaries. I look forward to meeting people like us going all around the world and to getting prepared for our mission, but it shall be interesting with a 2 month old! Our training will continue probably in either France or Belgium for French language school for 3-4 months. Then a few more months of language study in CAR. Then the real work begins. Looks like the earliest we would leave for language school would be Fall/Winter 2011. I would like to push it back a few more months to January 2012 so that we can spend Thanksgiving and Christmas with family- especially since it will be the first Christmas with the new baby! But I pray that I will be content with God’s timing- whenever that may be!
Monkey tales…
As for the little monkey- I am 16 weeks and feeling great. I have felt the baby move a little bit. It feels like tickling, but from the inside. It is kind of weird and exciting at the same time. We will find out in 1 ½ weeks whether we are having a boy or a girl! We have also started the process of getting the baby room ready. We are converting my office to the nursery which means I have done a lot of rearranging of my stuff into other rooms of the house and also letting a lot of stuff go (putting it into boxes for a yard sale). Which has made me realize how much junk we have and how little we will be able to take with us which is a little sad, but mostly freeing. Today, Josh set up the crib! That made having a baby that much more real!
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