We're all so proud!

Our nephew Asa, Charley's sister's youngest boy, had his first part on the Theocratic Ministry School last night. He did an AWESOME job! I'm so glad that we got to be there for it. And then we got to enjoy ice cream cake at his house afterwards!!

He wasn't a bit nervous. If you don't want to watch it all, just skip to 1:00 to see one of his gestures, and then skip to 4:30 to see some more gestures and some very enthusiastic emphasis that made us all laugh!!!

Click here to see Asa's Bible reading video

Good job Asa - we're so proud of you.

Friends with a car for sale

Trying to spread the word on a car that's for sale. This couple went to serve in Honduras and are still trying to sell their car. If you want a ride with a mini-fridge in it - this is your car! Click the link below to see details.

The Mad Adventures of Zach and Robynn: Selling the Car....Still: Howdy y'all (That's my impression of a Texan. Good, right?) ((I actually do say y'all tho.) So... our car still hasn't ...

How time flies!

So, since I last blogged we've been mostly working and trying to get a bit of field service time in - well, we have the rest of the year to catch up, eh?!

We spent a lovely evening in the company of some old friends from Indy. It was nice to catch up, hear their experiences and stories of how Jehovah is blessing their efforts to lead a simple life and put Kingdom interests first. We also enjoyed some good food! Here we all are at the end of the evening.

Monday afternoon I had coffee with a friend who used to serve in the Spanish, and now she's in the French congregation. She's a regular pioneer and her husband just started up again, and they seem to be doing well in the French. It was nice to hear her experiences about serving in that field here in Indy. 

On Wednesday, we celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary. Charley took me on a picnic in Brown County State Park. It was a bit chilly, but the sun did finally come out. We had a lovely time eating and walking the trails and trying to take pictures of ourselves! I'm quite pleased with the results below. You come up with ingenious places to put a camera when there's nobody around to take a picture for you! Unfortunately Charley came home with a temperature of 101, something he'd been fighting with for a couple of days finally won out! But a day off soon fixed that and he was fine. Seems like the last couple of anniversaries have been rather eventful, we're thinking we'll just stop celebrating it!!

Charley unpacking the lovely picnic he put together for us

All the things I miss about living in the States and England - good cheese, good sausage, strawberries, good bread. YUM!!!!

I get earache really easily so this was the only way to enjoy lunch!

10 shots later we got this nice little picture

I guess this is work of a beaver - pretty impressive!

Another self shot - about 12 takes maybe!!

He was running around so fast it was hard to get a picture, but check out how full those little cheeks are!!

The trees here in Brown County haven't reached their peak yet, but they were still pretty.

One of the trails around the lake.

On Thursday we had a chili cook-off and dessert contest at work. I made some caramel shortbread. I didn't win anything (shock to those of you who have eaten the shortbread!) but I did get to enjoy watching people's faces as they ate shortbread for the first time. They thought it was really good. Can't go wrong with a recipe full of butter, sugar and condensed milk can you?!

Friday I had lunch with two other old friends, and also enjoyed catching up with all of their activities over the past year. They have plans on working less real soon and pioneering, and perhaps looking to serve elsewhere. It was encouraging to catch up with them. Before we knew it we'd been at lunch for an hour and a half!! Whoops! I'll have to make that up next week sometime!!

Yesterday the Spanish congregation had an anniversary party for us!!! It was so lovely. I'm still collecting pictures since my battery died and I didn't take many. It was cold out but they had a fire pit which was lovely. I just stayed warm by dancing all night in the garage!! We did some Scottish dancing, which they all seemed to really enjoy! My in-laws, and one of my sisters-in-law and her two boys came too. Our 7-year old nephew Asa was the star of the evening. I didn't know he was such a dancer!!!! He was out there dancing salsa and bachata and cumbia and didn't seem to want to stop!! He even danced by himself in the middle of the floor with everyone watching him for a while!!

Charley is giving the talk at East Spanish today (our old congregation here) and they do hospitality by group so I guess we'll be doing more eating this afternoon!! East Spanish also had another elder announced this week!!!!! So now they have FIVE elders. And four new regular pioneers were announced - two that moved in to help from another congregation, and two that just started up again. WOOHOO!!!!!! So now we can go back to Nicaragua knowing that East Spanish is stocked with elders!

So, we have lots coming up for the rest of our month here. My mind is already back in Nicaragua - I think I've dreamt we're there, or on our way there, every night for a week now! Our nephew Asa has his first part on the school this coming week so we're going to hear that, we're taking a short trip to Charlotte, NC to see a study of mine who we haven't seen since just after she got baptized about 6 years ago! We're having dinner with some more old friends next week, Charley's family have their Special Assembly Day up here in Indy so we'll be having them here for dinner afterwards, East Spanish is host congregation so we'll have a special week of activity with them, and then the circuit assembly. It's just all go!!! In between all that we're working, going out in service, and trying to collect some things to take back with us. Hopefully we can fit it all in two suitcases!!

Well, that's it for now. Best start getting ready for the meeting and finish doing laundry. Hope you're all doing well. And a big thank you to the two couples who sent us anniversary cards from England - you know who you are!! They arrived right on the day of our anniversary, both of them!!! Thanks!!

I wanna go!!!

Man, just watched the new video about the relocation of Jehovah's Witnesses headquarters.  I downloaded it late afternoon and watched it at the bus stop. I know people were looking at me! I was grinning, sniffing and crying all at once. What an amazing organization we are a part of.

In case you haven't seen it yet here is the link right to it

http://www.jw.org/en/jehovahs-witnesses/activities/construction/video-world-headquarters-jehovahs-witnesses-history-warwick/

What a month of theocratic history we have had the privilege of being a part of.

I know not everyone who reads the blog is a Witness so I would like to mention that the revised Bible that we received last weekend is free to download in PDF at www.jw.org and the new app which allows you to compare 6 Bible translations including the King James Version and American Standard Version is available now for iPad®, iPhone®, and iPod touch®, devices running Android™ 2.3 and later, and computers and tablets running Windows 8. It is also free. 

You can read more about it and get links to download it here http://www.jw.org/en/online-help/jw-library/

So, where was I?

More pictures from the rest of our NY trip!

Bakery crew - one of the brothers in this picture was in Puerto Rico Bethel but it closed. He knows some friends who are serving near us in Nicaragua. Always a small world in the organization!

Charley's kitchen overseer in the middle and another brother who used to work in the kitchen when Charley was there.

Guess what's for lunch?!

We also ran into Brother Ortiz who was our District Overseer in Spanish about 10 years ago! He's in Patterson now but just happened to be in Brooklyn that day.

Meatloaf for lunch with Natheer & Mary. He was congregation servant (pre-elder days!) in the congregation my dad went to when he was in Bethel in the late 60's.

Outside the dining room.

Recognize this from the video they just showed at the annual meeting?! We visited the writing department, which is where our friend we ate lunch with works.

Family shot outside the new archives museum in Brooklyn Bethel.

The name of the exhibit - it was FANTASTIC!

A copy of the first ever Watchtower - July 1879 - been in print ever since. Looks a little different these days though, right?!

Slides from the Photo Drama of Creation - I thought this was awesome to see!

I particularly liked these two slides!! Especially the one about hats!!!

Isn't this the cutest picture?!

A memory from "home". Thankfully we don't have to use that kind of paper for our publications in Nicaragua now.

Remember the article on the suitcases on wheels that the sisters used to deliver book subscriptions?

Paradise!

45 years since mam and dad met. Mam was on tour, dad was tour guide. This building doesn't belong to the Society anymore but it has fond memories for my mam and dad, and many others I'm sure.

We went to Charley's old English congregation in the Bronx. It was so nice to see everyone.

I can't put any pictures from the MET tour that we did, but I think this one is okay. This is the group of us on the tour. We had other Americans with us, and then a couple of Australians and one from South Africa. This tour was amazing. You can reserve a tour at Oasis Tours website. If you're going to NY try to fit this in. It was wonderful. They showed us art related to the first 4 of the 7 world powers from Bible history. And that little boy you see there - not quite 5 yet - and he spent 3 hours on tour with the group and never complained. He was adorably sweet!

Ahhhh - Friday afternoon in Central Park with free live music and lots of sunshine!

Mam and dad chillin' in Central Park

Saw this hall when we were on the bus - I thought it was cool looking, just across from Central Park.

Then we went upstate to visit my dad's brother and his family. This picture is actually taken in Indianapolis bc somehow I managed to never take a picture with Uncle Jimmy in - sorry Uncle Jimmy!

My cousin Jason and his family

We stayed with my cousin Jenny. This is her hubby John who almost ended up without a picture too!

With my aunt Julie, cousin Jenny, and her daughters Ryanne & Tessa. I remember when Tessa was a newborn and we visited once. Wow - how time flies by!

These two are siblings in my Uncle Jimmy's congregation and guess what their names are - Charlie & Rachel!!!!

And this is awesome place we stayed in above my cousin Jenny's garage. Her husband kindly let us hang out in his den for a couple of nights.

How's that for a welcome!!!

And the bed was up there at the top. I tried to sleep all night without needing the bathroom but it didn't work. That was quite a fun trip down in the middle of the night!!!

So, that was the rest of our trip to NY. We had a fantastic time. The only bummer is that we missed that new Bible exhibit that they mentioned at the annual meeting this past weekend.

Speaking of the Annual Meeting - WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOW!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't find words!! WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have more pictures from Indy and the lovely welcome party the Spanish here had for us, but that will keep for another post!

Bit of this, bit of that

So, time is flying by and we're having a blast. Here are some photos of some of the things we've been up to since we got back. Can't believe we've been here almost a month already. Jehovah has blessed us with work. Charley went back to his old job the week after we got back, he's working 32 hours a week. And I went back to my old job the day after we got back from NY, working my same old schedule, same three days a week! 

It's so great to be with family again, and our old congregation is bursting at the seams. It's been great to see them, and meet so many new ones who are coming along. They just had a new elder appointed so that's exciting. Makes me feel a little less guilty about the fact that we're only staying for two months!!

So, most of the stories will be told in pictures. I start in Indy, then off to NY, but only half the trip in this one because there are too many photos!

We spent the weekend with Charley's family and Lara made some DELICIOUS pizza.

Our nephews have grown so much in this last year. Isn't Noah just gorgeous?!

And Asa too of course. He's such a comedian. We had a good laugh with him.

Charley's dad & grandpa. We spent a nice afternoon at grandpa's chatting and switching between football and baseball (and eating all his candy!!!)

And we met Hannah's new dog - ain't she adorable?!

I was invited out to breakfast with a few friends from the Spanish congregation. 

Oscar works there and made us some yummy omelettes.

German & Maritza, Sabina and her sister Tere - this was part of the breakfast crew. After breakfast, I went downtown to meet friends for lunch - soup was about all I could eat!! And then went to my old job and got my job back! That was a very good day indeed!

 I can't remember what we did that following week. Charley worked I guess, and I went out in service or something. I don't know. The days are all sort of running together at this point!

Josslyn & Hollister at the Indy Irish Fest. They had a great time dancing!

The fish 'n' chips were great, and the music and dancing was very entertaining. We even saw some of Charley's family there and a couple other friends from Indy. It was good to be back at the Irish Fest again!

Then off we went to NY. Our first day we toured Walkill.

They've done such a lot of expansion there.

Amy gave us our tour. She's been there two years now, with her husband. They used to be in my parent's circuit in Indianapolis. 

I think for the first time ever...

...I actually got to see one roll ending and the new one starting!

Just to give some perspective on how tall the piles of paper are for the presses at Walkill. I think the press goes through one of those rolls in about 25 minutes when it's operating at max speed.

They've changed the way they do the congregation orders. Now the guys get to run around kitted out like Transformers or something!

The new literature shipping system.

Heading towards the new residence building where Amy lives and works.

They're building the new recreation building over there.

The roof was lovely with lots of tables and chairs everywhere.

Amy and her new vacuum cleaner.

At lunch with Todd and Amy. The other three sisters at the table were day workers harvesting grapes!

Trying to be "artsy".

Walkill grapes

The harvest in action.

The usual picture you have to take at Walkill!

Then in the afternoon we went to Brotherhood Winery - the oldest winery in America.

There I go, trying to be artsy again.

And again

We took a tour through the wine cellars.

Charley and his vat of wine - it was really hard to get in the car.

Wine tasting. My dad had a good time - the camera just didn't capture that!

So, that took us part way through the trip. Stay tuned for more NY pictures. Coming soon - Brooklyn, the Met, Central Park and upstate NY with family.