Spring Getaway 2017

We just returned from our annual WorldVenture team retreat. This is a longstanding tradition for team Austria, allowing us to get away together for 4 days for a time of learning, refreshment, prayer and retreat. Here are a few highlights from our time together:

Team game time

 * We played a few games together that Ellie could participate in. It's important to us as a team to include the kids in activities and time together, so they feel like a part of our team as they grow up. Ellie had fun with "hot potato" and a game where we guessed what objects were that we picked out of a bag while blind-folded.

* We watched video messages/sermons each day as a team and discussed them.

* Each family had a time of sharing about the last year and how we could be praying for each other. We had a focused time of prayer for each family.

Being commissioned as the new field leaders

 * Nate and I will be stepping into the team Austria field leadership role in the coming months (something we will write more about in our coming updates and probably a separate blog post). The group prayed over us and commissioned us as the new field leaders.

* Ellie got to spend our meeting times playing with our friend Mallory, who joined us for the retreat to provide childcare. They did lots of crafts, played on the playground, went swimming and had an all-around great time together.

* We took an excursion to a local chocolate factory and samples lots of delicious chocolate.

* We went swimming almost every day. Ellie is obsessed with the water, so she begged us everyday to swim in the hotel pool! Maya had her first swim and loved it.

* We survived four days staying in a hotel, despite some horrible night sleep from Maya. After several weeks of sickness, Maya was struggling to get back to sleep on her own at night. This has improved since returning home and we hope it doesn't repeat itself in the future when we travel! Unfortunately, the sleep deprivation made the week a bit difficult for me...but such is life with a baby!

Overall, it was a good time away. We will be planning the Spring Getaway for our team next year, so
we will soon begin to think about where and how we will spend our time in 2018. We hope to continue the tradition of getting away as a team to worship, pray, rest and spend time together.

Brains and Sponges

Ellie's first day of kindergarten

This is a photo of Ellie on her first day of Kindergarten back in early January. In Austria, Kindergarten is the name of the pre-school/child care programs provided from birth through age 5, up until they start first grade around age 6. Ellie started attending kindergarten in German 5 days/week from 8:30 - 12:30 the day after she turned 3 on January 7.

Word cannot express how proud we have been of her for jumping in to this new experience with very little fear. Although she started the program not knowing any German and not knowing any of the kids in her class, she was excited and eager to play and learn. When Ellie was younger, she was very attached and struggled with separation anxiety for a long time. She was also very shy. But we have seen a lot of change in her in the last year, as she has learned to be apart from us and come out of her shell. She is really blossoming into an outgoing, sweet and friendly little girl who brings joy to many!

Sitting at the lego table

It has been so interesting and neat to watch her language acquisition begin. Her teachers at school both speak a little English, so they spoke quite a bit of English to her at the beginning when it was important that she understood what was going on. But they are doing this less and less, and it has become clear that she understands more and more simple sentences and commands in German, even after just a few months.

Ellie's English language skills have always been ahead of the curve, and she started speaking English so well so early, because she has always repeated almost everything we say. She was like a little parrot starting around 18 months old, and her vocabulary in English has continued to increase for this reason. (If you know Nate and I, this probably isn't a surprise. Knowing our personalities, we always assumed our kids would be bookish and very verbal but probably not very good athletes!)

Playing a game with her teacher

So far, her German learning seems to be progressing very similarly. She has started throwing around German phrases at home, even when she has no idea what they mean. She repeats German words and phrases that we say and is eager to experiment with the language. Unlike many adults learning a foreign language, Ellie is not afraid of making mistakes or saying things perfectly. She just tries and experiments and repeats. Her brain is truly like a sponge, soaking in and learning a lot of information very rapidly, and it's incredible to watch. I can already hear her pronouncing German words with correct sounds that are hard even for me to reproduce properly. Within a few years, she'll be speaking fluently with absolutely no American English accent, and I'll be jealous of her language skills!

We are so thankful for how God has blessed us through this kindergarten transition, a change that could have been difficult. We are praying that she not only acquires the language, but also friendships with the kids in her class. These friendships could lead to play dates, which could lead to relationships between us and the other parents. We are praying that Ellie will be a light for Jesus at her school and that God will use these connections to help us find community and share our faith with the families in our neighborhood. Please pray with us!

Oops! Sorry for the delay....

Hey friends! Life has been pretty hectic around here lately and, hence, there's been a break in our blogging. Sorry about that! In an attempt to catch up a little, here is our life in photos recently...

Nate preached his first sermon at the Floridsdorf Church, where we've been attending

Maya started eating food (or trying to)

We went out on a date for the first time in a few months

Maya got bigger and snugglier

Ellie learned to write her name and has started learning German in her pre-school

We led worship together at a church planting conference in Vienna

We made connections and heard challenging messages at the church planting conference

Maya enjoyed her exersaucer