No, no it doesn't. Actually I don't even know where to find a plain here. But there is plenty of rain. Today, as we drove around trying to find a parking spot close to the church building I jumped out to buy a cake from the bakery nearby. (It was for the 'Mums & Tots' program on Wednesday mornings, though I probably could have eaten the entire thing...but that's another posting subject alltogether) As I stepped out I realized I had made a bad decision. The mid calf deep water running down the street was rushing so fast that I nearly tumbled over. Denia is situated at the base of a mountain, sort of. And our church building is near by the highest point, the castle. So all the streets are on an upward/downward angle, and as I learned today, to aide in rushing the water back to the Mediterrean sea... I also learned that winter in our area consists of torrential down pours on a regular basis....but at least it's a lot cooler than before...
The ministry here is primarily geared towards British expatriates that live in the Denia area. So, being missionaries in Spain, we could 'survive' without ever really speaking Spanish a great deal. So there are various programs during the week that are only in English.
One such program is the 'Mums & Tots'. It's a group of women who drive in to have a big play
date once a week. It is a flourishing program, and I am grateful that something so similiar to my own MOPS experience already exists here! Today a new mother joined us! (Possibly to get in out of the rain, possibly to get her 14 month old to expend some excess energy. *side note: she was 4 days past her due date with her second son....) Anyways, I learned the "proper" way to make tea...and to stop asking if they wanted milk in it...yes they wanted milk, you can't drink tea without milk, and "You put honey in your tea???"....
date once a week. It is a flourishing program, and I am grateful that something so similiar to my own MOPS experience already exists here! Today a new mother joined us! (Possibly to get in out of the rain, possibly to get her 14 month old to expend some excess energy. *side note: she was 4 days past her due date with her second son....) Anyways, I learned the "proper" way to make tea...and to stop asking if they wanted milk in it...yes they wanted milk, you can't drink tea without milk, and "You put honey in your tea???"....The boys have been doing incredibly well at day care. Each day is a little less traumatic than the last. (It's only been 3 days) And this process is slightly necessary in order to prepare Bram to start school next fall, since no day care will take him after this year. Apparently the boys do even better during the day when separated, and the ladies taking care of them always stop me to 
comment on how well the boys eat....Jonas is still having some trouble during the day (off and on crying) and Bram every morning so far has asked "You're coming back, right, Mommy?" I am extremely grateful that at the end of the night the boys are so tired that they go straight to sleep!! I'll keep paying just for that alone! The employees are obviously used to working with nervous, foreign parents. They are very patient and kind, but at the same time they basically tell me to just leave in the morning. :)
comment on how well the boys eat....Jonas is still having some trouble during the day (off and on crying) and Bram every morning so far has asked "You're coming back, right, Mommy?" I am extremely grateful that at the end of the night the boys are so tired that they go straight to sleep!! I'll keep paying just for that alone! The employees are obviously used to working with nervous, foreign parents. They are very patient and kind, but at the same time they basically tell me to just leave in the morning. :) I seem to need to remind myself that there will be a bit of a learning curve with everything here. For example, cooking: I bought what I believed to be pre-cooked chicken nuggets (it said precooked and frozen on the box) to fry and eat with our Mac & Cheese from the states, only to bite into a raw piece of chicken. I think part of God's plan for our family in this situation to learn a new measure of His peace in all aspects of life (even in raw chicken). "Peace that exceeds anything we can understand" I've been thinking about what His peace really means and what it looks like. I don't think it means I am in a "hippy daze" at all times, never letting things ruffle my feathers, but I do believe that it means there's a deeper peace that is evident at all times. I was thinking this morning about our family verse and what it means that "His peace will guard your hearts and minds". What does my heart need protecting from? How does it guard my mind? I think those things are guarded by peace, in that I know that nothing can destroy them as long as I live in Christ Jesus. Things may catch me off guard (I spit the chicken back out), but they cannot tear me apart. Water can seep into our building through the roof and walls during the rain storm, and I can be upset about it, but the peace of Christ guarding my heart and mind reminds me in that moment that this conquer my peace in Christ Jesus.....anyways, I'm not even sure all of that made sense....
**I would like to take a public moment to say how excited I am to have all these new friends!!!! I write this blog, and people are actually reading it! That's a lot of pressure.....I hope I'm up to the task...
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