greenhouse

What a great weekend!  We spent lots of time getting ready and working on little projects around the house and for the classroom.

Don replaced our sink and made LEFT hot and RIGHT cold again after Matt fixed (ahem) our sink a few weeks ago :)  He fixed a ton of leaky gutters, is building Lily a bamboo swing set (SO cool) and did a lot of high trimming.  

Matt prepped for a seminar taking place on Tuesday and two courses he is teaching, I'm ready for class tomorrow (one day at a time :) and the girls had a blast playing with their Christmas presents, cooking with Mommy, visiting friends and Sofie, mastering getting into everything.

Church this morning was also great, and today is Abel (51) and Kerline's (35) birthday, so this afternoon we took them birthday cupcakes and caught up!  Junior got back last night, so he and a new student who just moved in came to lunch, and Lily was SO glad to see Junior again.  ("Mom!  He is just my very best friend!  I missed him!")

Lots of students arrived this evening, and everyone is just so happy to be back.  Their excitement is contagious!  

While the end of last semester had everyone tired, after a month off, the thing everyone is telling us tonight is what a peaceful, joyful, positive and godly environment this is...and I feel SO blessed to be able to have that for them!...to be a part of that!

So many of you have helped with that with your construction skills and time and gifts and prayers and teaching and help, and I just am so thankful that in the middle of this spiritually and economically and morally desert-place that Emmaus is a greenhouse for men and women to come, grow in Christ, be cared for, and learn how to give Living Water to everyone they meet.

What a great reminder tonight with enthusiastic hugs from returning staff and students what a blessing Emmaus is...to them and to us and I pray, to Him!

Bring on the new semester!