Busy and Meaningful Advent Season

We have the privilege of introducing our local friends from many places on the globe to the real meaning of Advent or the coming of Jesus the Christ. There have been parties and games and card making and carol singing and generous portions of food! May we all have a present sense of gratitude for the gift of all ages, and pause to give thanks for friends old and new.

Advent 2015

Brass Band at Blenheim

Under the food tent

Betsys Family

Students

UOB Treehouse Team

Sights and Sounds of Cambodia

Here are a few of the sights and sounds we experienced in Cambodia during our 10 day trip.

As close to Vietnam as I've ever been

When I was 18 I registered for the draft and was frightened by a mistakenly low number assigned to my birthday on the radio. I thought for sure it was off to Vietnam for me to fight in the jungles. When the newspaper came out there was a clarification and my number was very high and in the end I was not drafted. These memories came back to me as we flew into Phnom Penh over the rice fields and blue roofs and the Mekong River. My life would have been drastically different if I had survived. Then there was the Khmer Rouge scourge of the 70s and into the 80s while we were raising young children and I was going to University. This trip was to encourage rural churches and people who have had to pick up the pieces over the interim years and about how the God of life can redeem even the worst circumstances.

Cooling Down

Warm Response

Leche Fruit

Strange Fruit

Protection?

Off to School

Sweet Children

Children are Children Everywhere

New Bridge

Wood Stove

Skipping

Tiny Dancers

Temple

Farewells

October Half-term

We packed up the English children in the Jazz and trundled them from Oxford to Luton for half-term where we had a memorable week scurrying after the toddler and trotting after the girls. Crafts were completed at an incredible pace, apple trees climbed, big trucks moved along living room mountains and tracks, and there were Charlie and Lola sessions along with Chuggington and Shawn the Sheep. When the wee ones were put to sleep we watched the Baseball playoffs and then dove into bed expecting to be awakened with the sun. We are amazed at the sentences Theo is putting together to express himself, but then his two sisters are constantly expecting him to excel.

Big Truck time

Grandma in action

I've been waiting here a long time!

Lumber Leaping

You mean we can pick apples from the tree?

Where are you Grandpa?

A brief non-squiggle moment

Oh my aching feet

Can't catch me I'm the dough-boy

Oxford Garden Games

We are all enjoying Betsy's new garden and surrounds in Oxford. It's a place for pretend, for exercise, for playing in the water and occasionally spotting things that fly.

Look at that!

Ballet Bun

Roses

Hammock Games

Lay on top

Wheelies

In the tube

Interlaken and Jungfrau

Our final big trip was to Interlaken and up to a town without autos called Mureen in the Jungfrau region. Once again the Swiss Rail connections were amazing going from regional train to boat to cog trains to cable cars etc. We could see the massive peaks peeking out between clouds and giving you a sense of the majestic.

Luzern and Mt Pilatus

Luzern is a unique city due to it's many towers, it's wooden bridge, it's painted murals and Mt. Pilatus so near. We chose a clear day and as we stepped out of the Baunhoff there was the steamer waiting to take us to the cog railway up Mt. Pilatus. A sunny summit, paragliders, a cross on one of the peaks, and more Alphorns made this a delightful day.