Blessings of 2010: Travel

I was blown away by the amount of times I was able to leave Houston this year.  I love to travel, and this year was a huge sucess!

In March, I got to go to Arlington with two friends from work for the Texas Middle School Conference, but the best part was getting to reconnect with my brothers Jeff and Fred and meeting their families for the first time.  It was a beautiful weekend.

Fred, Tina, and Jeff

In April, I got to visit with my sister-in-law Brie and the girls while Jeff was in Zambia.  We went to the Ft. Worth Zoo and just be four fun-loving girls!  It was a treat to worship with them, too.

Brie, Joelle, and Tina

The month of May found us in Ohio for Isaac's best friend's wedding.  We enjoyed our time with Mark and Anna and Isaac's family.  My cousin Lindsay even joined us for breakfast in Cinci one morning.

Anna and Mark

Lindsay

Mid-June found us in Dallas again for our dear friends' Ashley and Tim's wedding.  We had a wonderful time celebrating the beginning of their marriage with our Houston friends and a few old friends from college.  We also got to spend time with both Fred and Jeff and their families.

Ashley and Tim

A week later, this shy, scared girl who doesn't like to be anywhere without her Mommy, Nanny, or husband, boarded a HUGE plane for London-all by myself.  I then proceeded to walk around London for an entire day-all by myself.  Wait, that's not true.  Christ was with me the whole way, and I know He's the one who gave me the courage and determination to conquer my apprehensions.  I sang "My God is so Big" an awful lot that day, but I accomplished everything on my agenda and was so darn proud of myself!

Buckingham Palace

After my day in London, this shy, scared girl boarded another HUGE plane for the Homeland-Zambia.  The fear of the unknown mingled so tightly with the excitement that I could no longer differentiate between the two.  As I walked off the plane, tears were running down my cheeks to know that God was answering 14 years of prayers right in that moment.  I was on Zambian soil, and it felt so amazingly wonderful.  I dove into the next 2 1/2 weeks with all I was as I loved on kids, taught school, and reconnected with my brother Kelvin and old friends.  I made new friends that are still impacting my life.  And Jessy, well, she's getting her own post.   Africa is more than a continent.  It's a way of life, and a spirit, and a blood flow that's inexplicable to those who haven't experienced it.  It's like Aggieland.  :)  God was present everyday, and I am so grateful for all the ways He stretched me and made me grow.  Of course, the comfort of a well hidden ratty, well- loved blanket that Isaac thought might be helpful being so far from home was a nice surprise too.  :)

Zambian Vocal Collection and me

August 8th was our first anniversary, so we treated ourselves to a five day cruise to Cozumel.  We loved being on the beach, scuba diving, and swimming with dolphins.  The time to just be together after my 3 weeks away was wonderful.

The end of October and first week of November found us in Florida for an attempted shuttle launch.  We never did get to see Steve soar into space, but we had a fabulous week of the beach and Disney with my mom and dad.  I really do hope that was the first of many trips for the four of us.  I wasn't expecting to get back to Disney so soon after Meredith and I went for graduation in June '07, and I was thrilled to be there again.  Disney is pure magic, and I enjoyed sharing it with Isaac.  We hope to get to spend more time there for an anniversary trip in a few years.

In December we went back to Ohio for the week before Christmas.  We also drove to Louisville to see family and friends of mine.  I loved it.  Snow, snow, and more snow described our trip, along with a lot of love!

Silly prom pose before our night at the theater

2010 was a blessed year of travel.  I don't think 2011 will be a repeat of the jet-setting, and I'm a-ok with that.  Praise You, Jesus for all of the people you've blessed us with as we traveled this year!