Family happenings

Thank you God for this wonderful family! We are so blessed to have these four girls who bring us great joy and laughter day after day. We are grateful to God that He gave us some time to enjoy them on vacation before we hit the ground running in moving and transitioning to Albania.
Kris's mom and dad, Arper and Rose Ann Stire, visited us for a week in the beginning of May for Kris's graduation and to celebrate mother's day. We had such a wonderful time with them. It was a tearful goodbye knowing that we wouldn't be seeing them again for a few years. They have been so supportive of our family and telling everyone to pray for us. By the way, they are on a mission trip to Africa right now.
Chelle's mom and her husband, Charles and Elaine Lovell, joined us for Kris's graduation from DTS and also drove to our house to celebrate Whitney's 8th birthday on May 24th. They are such loving parents and grandparents. Grammie and Granbud, as they are called by the girls, always bring a load of laughs, love and great memories. We are so thankfult that they are living only 1 hour away from us now, so that we can spend more time with them before we move away. They have encouraged us and prayed for us so much during the last few months of preparation. This has included watching the kids for Kris and me to get away for our anniversary and our elders retreat. Thanks to God for them!
Whitney had such a wonderful 8th birthday! She got to celebrate it 3 times - first, on her actual birthday with our little family, then with Grammie and Granbud, and then again with my dad and his wife, Bill and Amanda Boyd and my sister and her husband and family, Jay and Stephanie Flowers. We praise God for our sweet "Whitterspot snugglebug". He has given us 8 wonderful years with her and we look forward to many more.
At the end of May my dad and Amanda, or Poppy and Mimi to the grandkids, took our family and my sister's family on a vacation to Lake LBJ here in Texas. They rented a wonderful townhouse on the lake for all of us to enjoy. We spent the week swimming, playing games, eating, praying and singing together. The sunsets and lightning storms were spectacular. The cousins, our 4 girls and my sister's girl (Madeline) and boy (Mason) had so much fun together. We made some wonderful memories and it was such a blessing to have this time before we leave for Albania. God has been so good to us to give us such a sweet unity as a family. Our family is so blessed by these family members as they pray for us and support us on our ministry endeavor to Albania.

Thank you God for the treasure of family! We have been grateful for a month of family time. I know that over the next few years the memories and pictures we have will be frequently recalled and looked over.