Istanbul, Turkey WE ARE HERE!!! WHOO HOO

Our group on our first night here.
What we walked through to get to dinner

Chuck going through security for us to get into CHURCH today.

Finally we have slowed down long enough for me to update you on our trip. I am totally in love with this city already. It is more beautiful than I imagined. OH! and the food is fabulous. It is much more healthy than we eat in the States. The cooks do not use canned veggies...and their produce is not sprayed with harmful pesticides. It is amazing and I could eat myself sick. We have done TONS of walking today and my feet hurt. We came back to our hotel for a quick rest before heading out to dinner. I can't wait:) I am including some pictures of our LONG trip here and our first night and day in the city. I will try to update some more throughout the week. We are having so much fun. I love you all.

Finally, I get this posted...a month later. We are home now, of course. Istanbul was amazing. I am blown away by God. He constantly amazes me. Life in a relationship with Christ is full of adventure and wonder. He wants to us to go and tell others about the Hope we have in Him....if we are just willing and available He will send us. Yes, you have to overcome fears and trust Him. Just be willing to GO......and see what He does in your own life. I am so thankful that God provided in everyway for Chuck and I to take this trip together. Really, that a stay at home, homeschooling mom of three boys would have the opportunities God has given me to GO.....I truly stand in awe at the way He loves me. He gives me the desires of my heart. I don't deserve His goodness, yet He pours out his love and blessings. More than anything I want to follow Him WHEREVER He leads me, doing WHATEVER He calls me to do. I don't want to miss a thing.

From the mouth of Trace

Trace and I were looking at some pictures of the hotel we will be staying in while in Turkey. He said, "I did not know Turkey was that fashionable". He's enjoyed looking at the pictures online and talking about the history of Istanbul. I think it helps him feel better about his mom going "halfway around the world".

Lots and lots of pictures! Here a couple from the boys playing in the water in Destin when we were at Dad's a couple of weeks ago.

Trace lost his front tooth last week and is now snaggletoothed:) Too cute! We were already in bed and the two big boys came running into our room celebrating. So out came the camera to catch the moment.

Last Thursday Turner was sick. The big boys were at Summer Spectacular and Turner found a LIZARD in my bedroom!!!!! A REAL one....and it was ON my BED. I was not about to catch the thing. Tolar and Trace were not home so I just did not go in there until they got home and found the thing. It was in a fake tree in our room hiding out. Thankfully the boys got it and released it outside! Both the lizard and I were happy:) How do these things happen, anyway?

Early Friday morning the stomach bug hit big time with Turner. Chuck and I got about 2 hours of solid sleep. The poor little guy was vomiting every 15 minutes for a couple of hours and then about every 30 minutes to an hour for a few more hours. It was a night! I was supposed to be heading out to Deeper Still (ladies conf.) in Atlanta at 8am. WELL>>>>> I had to get up and head to Wal Mart since Chuck would not be able to go with sickness in the house....as I was leaving Tolar started vomiting! Got the groceries bought (lots of gatorade, ginger ale and pops as we call them). Then took Turner to the doctor and got some meds...enough for the entire family if needed. Finally, everything calmed down and was stable enough that Jana and I were able to pull out around lunch. We ended up meeting the group at Phillips Arena with plenty of time to spare. 19,000 ladies gathered to hear Priscilla Shirer, Kay Arthur and Beth Moore. It was a wonderful weekend. Jana and I needed a video camera to document our adventures. God was so good to us. We made the trip with no complications and ended up getting where we needed to be...with NO MAP. Praise God! Part of that included a 45 minute adventure of us trying to find our hotel in Buckhead. We decided to walk from Lenox Mall to the hotel. The hard part of that is that you cannot just cross over hwy 400....so you have to travel around your elbow to get to your thumb. We needed exercise and were not upset at all about our walk. It was a beautiful afternoon and thankfully still daylight. Finally, we ended up at the hotel and On The Boarder for some good mexican food. (I will say it was not so good at 2:30am!) I found myself up and walking the hall at 3:30 trying to find a coke to settle my stomach. I had to get on the eleveator and go down a floor to find a machine that worked. Thankfully, the coke helped. On Sunday we headed home (to my sweet husband who was holding down the fort in the midst of vomit and diarrhea). What a man! Yes, his wife did come home refreshed and challenged in her relationship with Christ. We will find at times that is will cost something of others for us to be where God calls us to be.

Turner went for his first visit with Dr Clay Wright (our dentist and friend). He sat there and took it all very seriously! Finally, it was his turn!