In the Meantime...

We're still working on the final details of the move.  Gary is in Haiti right now getting things set.  We're hoping to buy our plane tickets when he gets back.  This waiting thing is really hard, so we're keeping busy...

 Girls' Night Out

Always at least one incident of almost peeing my pants from laughing

 Fancy Dinner out

 Celebrating Pappy's birthday

THE BEST cupcakes in the world

Almond Joy cupcakes via Your Cup of Cake

Mine don't look nearly as pretty as hers, but I bet they tasted just as delicious!

 Last Sunday at Church

We were prayed over, and we said some goodbyes.  We love our church!

 Boys getting into mischief

We had three services at church where we needed to be on stage as they announced our departure and prayed for us.  In between the second and third services, the wheels came unhinged.  Our boy decided to dump 10 gallons of water over his head (???) and the little lady got her forehead painted.

 Our children kind of looked like a wreck while we were on stage the last service.  Oh well.  

You might wonder why they were just running free between services... 

Gary and I were manning our station during "Serve the World" week on the church patio.  So, yes, they were just running free and clearly can't be trusted.

I ran the 1st Annual Grove Barefoot 5K, my very first 5K in fact.  I had so much fun!  It was so well organized, I hope this becomes a tradition for our church.  And in case you're wondering, no I didn't run the whole thing barefoot, just the last 100 meters or so.  We left our shoes to be donated, and will be taken to Liberia and Malawi next summer.  You can read more about it {HERE}.

And somehow, Noah's lucky streak of always ending up on the Jumbotron continues... He and Mylie were selected to stand on the dugout and lead the crowd with "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the 7th inning stretch at a Diamondback game.

Auction is Live!

And by live, of course I mean "active online"... although it would be pretty fun to try my hand at real live, honest to goodness crazy talk actioneering.  If "auctioneering" is even a real word.

In case you have no earthly idea what I'm talking about, let me catch you up.  We are raising money to purchase a vehicle in Haiti.  We need reliable transportation to get to and from the orphanage each day, as well as up to to the mountains to continue our relationship and construction process with the church in Lespinasse.  Having a vehicle in Haiti is a lifeline.  This is the last major piece in the puzzle before we purchase our one way plane tickets.  Please help us get there by bidding on one of the amazing items below!

Go {HERE} to Bid

Here's what's up for grabs...

Adam's Blankie

My favorite go-to place for baby shower gifts and headbands for my girls... Kari's fabric choices are amazing, the quality is impeccable, and I LOVE her style!  

Scentsy

Two Scentsy gift packs are available, generously donated by to great women!  

Ponzi Vineyards

My friend Erin and I go way back to PLNU days, and she now has a totally rad job working at Ponzi Vineyards in Portland, Oregon.  Not only is she lovely to look at and gets to live in my dream city, but she's also so very generous, also, she is crafty... and I like that about her.  

Absence of Time

It's good to have creative friends.  I highly recomend getting some.  Chris and I go way back to junior high youth group, and I also like to take credit for playing matchmaker for him and his wife.  He has donated two handcrafted pieces of steampunk jewelry.

Simply Been

It is really hard to hate someone who is as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside.  Kacie is one of those women.  I have great memories of kayaking in Hawaii with her when we were young, childless, and tan.  She is the designer and owner behind the beautiful keepsake jewelry of Simply Been.  She has graciously offered up a $50.00 gift certificate to her shop!

Arizona Cardinals
Two tickets to ANY Arizona Cardinals game, home or away!  Great seats too!!!

Set Free Apparel
Cool, not lame, Christian t-shirts.  Where were these when I was in high school?

Also:  sports memorabilia, gift cards, DATE NIGHT (can I get an amen?!), two ipod Shuffles, and a baby boy gift basket!!!

Go {HERE} to Bid
Auction runs from September 23-29

Live Auction

Many (many many many) have asked us, "So, when are you leaving."  or "Hey, I thought you would be gone by now!"... Let's just say we wish we knew, we had hoped to have made the move earlier in the month.  But, alas here we wait.  I liken it to the last few weeks of pregnancy when every.single.person you see asks when you're due, says you look like you're gonna pop, or wonders aloud why you haven't gone into labor yet.  Then you go home and cry, kick your cankles up on the couch, and google "how to induce labor".  

The only thing holding us back is securing the funds to purchase a vehicle to use in Haiti.  In the grand scheme of things, this is a drop in the bucket.  We know God is fully able to provide, and we're having to wait to see how He does it.  So far, people we know, family, church family, and even strangers have joined in by supporting us financially.  Each person has a role in us serving in Haiti, and we just couldn't do it without the many people who are sacrificing financially to send us.  We are grateful!

We are planning an online silent auction to raise money for the vehicle.  As donations come in, we are preparing for the auction to go LIVE, Sunday, September 23rd!  It will run through September 29th.  Some items will only be available for local pick-up, but several will be available to ship anywhere in the U.S.  We will post a link to the auction here next Sunday.

We are still working on securing some final donations, but are you curious about what's up for grabs so far?  You are!  Here's a little sneaky peek:  2 tickets to ANY home or away Arizona Cardinals game (amazing seats too!!), Bottles of wine and cookbook from Oregon's Ponzi Vineyards, Scentsy gift baskets, Adam's Blankie items, a Date Night package, sports memorabilia, Simply Been gift certificate, and more!!!

Updated to add:  Go {HERE} to view the auction, runs from September 23-29th

The Beard

It would be remiss if I didn't document the rise and fall of Gary's beard.  It has become a joke around these parts.  Some dared him to just let it grow for the next two years, some applauded my mad wife skillz by not nagging him to shave, some simply asked what his plan was.  There were some comparisons to fringe extremists, lumberjacks, and my personal favorite, Jesus.  Whatever, after 10.5 months of hairy bliss...

Before                                                                 After

Let me just state the obvious, m'kay... my husband is one foxy man.  In my world, he's the most handsome in all of the lands.  I truly did not care one little bit if he was beardy or clean shaven, but it was pretty exciting to see his face again.  I really really like his face.

Calling All Donations

Hi all!  As we're busily preparing for the move, we have also realized that we're coming up financially short to purchase a vehicle in Haiti.  Having a vehicle will be a necessity for us, as we will be traveling to the orphanage almost daily, and also going up into the mountains to visit the construction project of the new church in Lespinasse.  Having a reliable vehicle to help us get from place to place safely is important to us.

We are organizing an online silent auction.  We want to make this fundraiser accessible to friends and family all over the United States, not only here in Arizona.  We would like to begin next week, but are still in need of more donations.  I would love to get donations from all you creative Etsy shop owners, small business owners, gift certificates, the sky is the limit!

If you donate something, I would love to promote your business here through my blog, as well as via facebook.  Please email us at garyandmichaela {at} hotmail.com, and I will send you more information.

Please pray with us that the money will come in, one way or another.  This is final piece that needs to fall into place before we buy our one way plane tickets!

Once we have it organized, I will post the information here for anyone interested in what is up for grabs! 

Thank you!!

Edited to add:  Go {HERE} to view the auction, runs from September 23-29

Final Countdown

The past month has been a whirlwind of sleeping in strange beds, eating out way. too. much.  Lots of driving and packing and unpacking and laundry.  In the past month, we have traveled to California and back, to Michigan and back, Gary to Haiti and back, to California again and back, and around and around the Phoenix area.  Good news:  Gary found a house for us to rent in Haiti.  Yay!  We are currently on the edge of a logistical free fall as we figure out how to get our selves and our stuff to Haiti.  We're navigating goodbyes.  We have lots of dinners and coffee dates mixed in with our regular stuff and our moving to Haiti stuff.  I'm tired.  Here's a little peek into our San Diego trip.  It was so much fun!  

 Presley's "Cheese Face" face has begun.  It happens to every child, and I think it's hilarious.  At times I just wanted a picture of her sweet face, but got this every single time.  

 My campaign to convince our children to pick my alma mater as their college choice began, starting with the soccer field that overlooks the ocean.  

 Seaworld

 We totally did this, despite every one's resistance.  I may or may not have almost taken out a crowd when it was my turn to steer.

This was one of the best parts of the day for Noah... he LOVED the starfish!