Family Time

Over the past several weeks we were able to spend some time with extended family and get to know some of our great nephews and nieces.  

We traveled to Fayetteville, Arkansas, on Friday, April 27, and connected with our nephew, Aaron, and his wife, Ally.  They are the proud parents of three boys, Hudson, Max and Rhett.  We had never met Max, who just turned three, or his month-old brother, Rhett.  Aaron is an assistant athletic direction at the University of Arkansas, so we got a short tour of the baseball stadium and indoor track.  We enjoyed going to their favorite pizza place and playing at the park around the corner from their home.  We watched Hudson's last spring soccer game on Saturday morning and then headed home after a stop for donuts.

On Saturday, May 5, we took a day trip to El Dorado, Kansas, to spend time with our niece, Camillia, and her family of eight.  We made it there in time for breakfast at 10:00 a.m. We played games, played music, went on a "tour" of their farm and got to know the names of their animals (dogs, cats, cows and a horse.) It was a sweet time of fellowship.

Welcome 2018

Somewhere in the middle of 2017 I felt like I "ran out of words" and decided to stop blogging.  Now that 2018 is here, I think it may be time to return to the blog. I want to try to make it less about what we are doing in the ministry and more of what we are becoming in the ministry.  I don't know what it's going to look like or how long this phase will last, but I hope I enjoy the process.

The last three months of 2017 were especially difficult, with a variety of trials/ challenges/frustrating events and more.  I've not made it a habit to share the hard things, but I'm thinking that perhaps my failure to acknowledge that things do not always go perfectly, might be unwise.  I've never wanted to look like I'm complaining or dwell on negative things, but hardships/trails are one of God's most powerful teaching tools.    

The difficult season started with a series of problems with things, i.e. broken refrigerator, broken truck, flat tire, broken van window and more.  It's so easy to complain and feel "put upon" when things happen, especially when this type of problem comes with a price tag. We tried to keep a positive attitude, knowing that "things" can be replaced, however, in the middle of those issues, we came a series of family health problems:

• My niece, LIz, fully rejected her transplanted kidney and went back on dialysis. She had complications and ended up in the hospital for a week in October.  
• My brother, Ron, had a mild heart attack while working out of town
• Stephen's mom had several falls and her overall health continued to decline

Things have stabilized for my niece, although she will need surgery in January to repair a problem with her diaphragm.  Praise the Lord, my brother has very little, if any, damage to his heart and did not need any stints or by-pass.

Stephen's mom went to the hospital earlier in December and after a three-day stay was moved to a skilled nursing facility.  Her 30-day stay ends on January 5 and his dad is planning to take her home, against the advice of her doctors and the counsel of her children.  Our New Year's Eve party was a family conference call (3 brothers together, 2 other siblings on the phone) to determine what course of action needs to be taken in the situation.  At the end of the evening, we decided not to fight them, but rather allow them to return home and provide support through in-home care--at least in the short-term.

There are no easy answers as we move through this phase of life.  Thankfully, my dad, who celebrated his 92 birthday in October, is still in good health and is able to live alone. He is beginning to consider a move to a maintenance-free apartment, so we may be handing a move for him in the near future.

Although we have more than 12 mission trips per year, they are not equally spaced out through the year.  In fact, there are months when there are no scheduled mission trips, for example mid-January through February, April and September. During 2018, we've decided, as the schedule allows, to spend more time in the states to be of help to our parents and support our siblings.   

We are flying to Bogota, Colombia on Friday for the first campaign of 2018, but will be returning to Kansas City instead of El Salvador.  Our plan is to return to San Salvador on March 1 when the 2018 campaign season really gets going--three campaigns in a row during the month.

We know that God has a plan and that he is always faithful, but we covet your prayers for Stephen's parents and siblings as we all navigate this difficult time. In addition, please pray for us as we balance family and ministry--it's hard to be away from our regular ministry obligations with Vida Nueva.

 

Would you consider supporting this family from our church in San Salvador?

A Trip to Hayward

One of the amazing things about cataract surgery is that the recovery period doesn't come with a lot of restrictions.  It's pretty much limited to don't press or rub your eyes and don't let shower water hit you directly in the eye.  Otherwise, he's free to do whatever he wants, including playing golf and running.  

We knew before we came to California that Pastor Julio and Patty were going to be in the area while we were here.  They are presenting a family conference in a Hispanic church in Hayward; so we told them we would come to one of the evening services.

Because the rush-hour traffic across the Dumbarton Bridge between Sunnyvale and Hayward can be crazy, we left about 3:00 p.m. and arrived with no major delays.  We were able to explore the city and walk through the rather quaint, but almost empty (more shops were out of business than were open) stores.  The city hall and other government buildings were quite impressive, though.

We also had time to drive to Garin Regional Park and do a bit of walking.  We weren't dressed for hiking, so we didn't wander far from the parking lot.  These two pictures don't do justice to the scenery--the rolling hills were much greener than they appear.  

Iglesia Bautista La Roca wasn't too far from the park so we were one of the first to arrive.  Pastor Julio and Patty are in the area all week talking about how to have strong marriages and families.

We felt right at home in the Hispanic service!  Pastor Julio even played the piano for one of the hymns we sang.

After the service we went out to eat with Pastor Carlos, his daughter, Rebeca, (his wife, Isa, is battling cancer and her counts were too low for her to come to the service), Pastor Julio and Patty.  Carlos and his wife are both Salvadorans who worshipped at our church in San Salvador before moving to California to plant their current church. 

Highlights of Visiting Kansas City

We were able to take advantage of a small break in the campaign schedule (which later ended up changing) and make a trip back to the states to visit family.  We were scheduled to fly out on April 19, but torrential rain and flooding in Houston caused a delay of a day and a half.  We arrived just before midnight on Wednesday, April 20 ,and were picked up by my brother, Ron.  It was after 1:00 a.m. when we got to bed in Lee's Summit.



Our time "back home" in the Kansas City area gives us the opportunity to visit family, friends and our home church, Abundant Life.  Stephen spent two days with his parents, I was able to spend time with my dad, we both saw our siblings (over various meals) and there was also time to reconnect with friends.  This trip, we also had the priviledge to be in the Sunday evening service at Topeka Baptist Church.  It's always great to spend time with Jeff and Paula Rhoades, our missionary mentors.  Stephen sang "Jesus, Messiah" in English and Spanish while a slideshow of our work ran on the screen.  It is also impactful for me as many of the slides bring back memories of past campaigns and of God's faithfulness.

On April 28, we left Kansas City to start the second half of our visit with a trip to see our kids and grandkids in California!



  

Merry Christmas

We left California on Christmas Eve afternoon and landed in Kansas City at 9:45 p.m.  It was 10:30 when we left the airport and we were starving.  A quick call to the Minsky's Pizza on Barry Road confirmed that they were open until 11:00 p.m so we enjoyed a half mushroom/half pepperoni as our late Christmas Eve dinner.  It was almost midnight by the time we reached the mission house in Lee's Summit.

Thanks to Steve and Terisa making a HyVee run for us and stocking the frig, I was able to make Stephen and Jon's favorite breakfast on Christmas morning: bacon, eggs, biscuits and gravy.  

Stephen left for West Plains before lunch; Jon and I joined the McKinney side for lunch at my sister's house.  The spread included ham and smoked turkey, plus side dishes and salads too numerous to mention.    

After lunch we played cards and worked on putting together a 1000-piece puzzle.  

Late afternoon, we finally moved into the living room and exchanged the gifts under the tree.  Jon's gifts had a decided Royals bent.

We finished off the gift exchange and headed back to the game tables!  It took most of the night, but we did finish the puzzle.  My dad even played cards with us until midnight!  

Peanutize Me

We've been seeing tons of people use the new app called Peanutize Me (you can find it here), and we couldn't resist making our very own version with our kids and grandkids.  Stephen made most of us; I think he did an especially good job on himself--you just knew there wouldn't be a smile.

Just a little bit of fun on a Thursday afternoon!

Happy Birthday

Monday was my birthday and I made my favorite dessert--a cherry cobbler--to celebrate.  We had a nice, quiet day at home only venturing out to eat lunch at

(love their sweet potato fries) and then walk to

for dinner.  

There were phone calls from kids/grandkids and family/friends, plus hundreds of Facebook greetings from good friends all over the states and Central America.   

Maria Elena, Ena and Isabel took to me breakfast at 

on Tuesday morning.  It was a great time of fellowship:  talking about Hilo, Aguja and Biblia and enjoying each other's company. 

I'm so thankful for God's blessing in my life . . . there's just nothing better!

Busy time in Lee's Summit

We are having a great time here at our "home away from home."  We flew in from California on Tuesday and were treated to dinner (at our favorite pizza place) by my brother and sister-in-law.  It was a nice time of catching up with them as they are going to be out of town for most of the rest of the time we are here.

One of the main reasons we came back was so that Stephen could have two procedures (colonoscopy and an EGD.)  He had both of them yesterday morning and, thankfully, the results from both were normal and we are praising God.

Last night we had dinner with two of Stephen's brothers, David and Michael/Denise.  Tomorrow his third brother, Mark and his wife, Tonia, are driving up from Oklahoma.  With everyone's busy schedules, it is normally impossible to get all four of them together, so we take what we get.

We don't have Internet access where we are staying, so blog updates will continue to be sporadic while we are here.  

Goodbye old year

As everyone says, it's hard to believe we are saying goodbye to another year, but we are.  Once again as we look back, God's grace was evident.   So thankful for everyone who joined us on a trip somewhere in Central America.  We loved serving along with you and seeing how God used you.  We are grateful for your willingness to invest your time and money to share Jesus with the people of El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala and Costa Rica.

We are thankful for our family and dear friends wherever they are tonight.  We are praying for God to reveal himself to you and us in new and deeper ways in 2015.  We are looking forward to another year of serving him!

Christmas Day in Bend

We spent a relaxing Christmas day at the house in Bend, with an emphasis on family time, not gifts.  The O'Neil siblings drew names at Thanksgiving and so they exchanged gifts.  Michael (Shannon's older brother) and his wife, Emilee, who were in Atlanta with Emilee's parents, are expecting a baby in May.  We all participated in their gender reveal over Skype.  The box was wrapped in both pink and blue paper and inside was a giant stuffed kangaroo.  Inside the pouch was a little baby kangaroo wrapped in a BLUE diaper.  They were so excited with the news of the first O'Neil boy, who could be Michael Charles O'Neil IV.  

Of course, there were a couple of small gifts for the kids, but, not surprisingly, they had the most fun with the boxes!

VW popup tent camper for Josiah

Lego set for Maleia--just like her Daddy

Lunch was an amazing turkey dinner with all the trimmings.  Quite a feat when you're all just visiting!  Thanks to Shannon's mom, Patty, for bringing most of the food with her.  Surprise, surprise, my contribution was two pumpkin pies.

The cranberries were Aviah's favorite dish

In the afternoon, Aunt Katherine helped the kids add (eat) candies to the gingerbread house.  

We finished off the evening watching "It's a Wonderful Life," and then playing games.  

Merry Christmas 2014 from the Parris and O'Neil family.  

Last Night in Kansas City

As always, time flies when we're in the states.  We have a seven o'clock flight to San Francisco and should be hugging the grandkids by lunch time.  

Unfortunately for us, the weather has decided to throw a possible wrench is our last night and rather than have someone drive us to the airport very early in the morning, we are going to stay at the Fairfield Inn and catch their shuttle in the morning.  We'll leave my dad's car at the hotel and he and my brother will come pick it up tomorrow afternoon.  

We always like reconnecting and catching up with family and friends and this time has been no different.  We were able to worship at Abundant Life on Sunday; Stephen spent time with his Mom and Dad in West Plains and we've continued our city-wide restaurant tour.

Eating, but not necessarily healthy eating

We've been eating, eating, eating since we landed in Kansas City on Monday night, which isn't really a good thing.  However, we have enjoyed spending time over breakfast, lunch and dinner with family and friends.

Here's the list so far:

Jumpin' Catfish with my dad
La Fuente with the Yallaly's
Egg and I with Sheryl 
Don Chilitos with the Rhoades
Spin Pizza with Stephen
Hereford House with David and Michael (two of Stephen's brothers and wives)
Joe's KC BBQ with Mark and David (two of Stephen's brothers and wives)

There are still breakfasts, lunches and dinners to come!  

Denise, Michael, me and Stephen
(Hereford House)

David, Mandy and Haley
Hereford House

Me, Stephen, Mark and Tonia
(Joe's Kansas City BBQ)

Cold in Kansas City

Although our family and friends say it's not that bad, it feels really cold to us!  On top of the cold weather I have a terrible "cold" which has resulted in both of my ears being completely stopped up.  I knew that I would have trouble with the flights yesterday and by the time we landed in KC last night at 10:00 p.m. I could have cried from the pain/pressure in my left ear.  I went to clinic today and the nurse practitioner told me I had the worst ears she'd seen this year--oh, good!  I always want to have the "best" something.  She also predicted that if I hadn't come in today that my left eardrum would have ruptured by tomorrow--it was that full of fluid.  Praying that the one dose of antibiotic I took tonight will start the turn around so that it doesn't get any worse.  

In spite of everything, we managed to go to lunch with my dad and then out for dinner with our friends, John and Sarah Yallaly.   They also brought six months of mail and 4-5 packages from our PO box.  Guess that will be my job before the dentist appointment in the morning.

Well, going to try to get to bed early and give my tired, sick body a good night's rest.  More from cold Kansas City another day.

Two days at home

The taxi picked us up at 1:30 a.m. Saturday  morning to take us to the bus station in Managua for our 3:00 a.m. departure to San Salvador.  The trip was almost twelve hours.  We were pretty tired by the time we got home; even so, I made a quick trip to the grocery store so we could eat at home.  After eating at the food court or in the hotel restaurant for eight days, we were ready to eat at home.

We thought that Sunday would be a quiet day, but realized that we needed to remove the four appliances from our old place before we left the country.  So, Gilma and William met us at Finca de Asturias at 8:00 a.m.  William, Francisco and Stephen loaded the frig and the stove in the pickup.  William's son, Willy, and his wife, Patty, were having a garage sale, so they dropped the appliances off at their house and then returned to pick up the washer and dryer.  Willy and Patty are going to try to sell them for us.  

In the afternoon we met with the owner of the house and he paid us for the improvements we made and the things we left in the house (3 ceiling fans, wooden blinds, lights, etc.)  We thought he would give us cash, but he wrote us a check instead.  So, tomorrow morning before we leave for the airport, we have to go to the bank to see if we can cash the check.  Hopefully, it won't take too much time--the bank opens at 9:00 and we have to leave for the airport at 10:30.  I know that sounds like plenty of time, but the lines at the banks are often very long.  

We're anxious to see family and friends in Kansas City for ten days and then travel to California to see our kids and grandkids.