Visit to the States

Here you have it - the long awaited account of our time in the States!

Unfortunately, as it turns out, we don't have many pictures from our time in the States - I guess we were too busy marvelling over the amount of items available at Wallmart and the number of restaurant options to remember to pull out our camera.

When we finally arrived in Omaha, the first thing we saw on our way to the baggage claim was Eric's parents, holding up signs with our names on it. It was a good thing they did this, because they may not have recognized us, now that we have become so africanized! Actually, other than Eric having lost 20 lbs due to having giardia, we looked pretty much the same. And Eric's parents made it their mission to remedy the weight issue by feeding us non-stop! From our first meal of BLT's (crispy bacon, fresh lettuce and tomatoes - yum!!), to having dessert after every meal (including breakfast!), we ate quite well, and by the time we left, Eric was well on his way to his normal weight.

We must not forget the main reason we were back in the States - Wendy's exam. During the first two weeks, Wendy spent the majority of her non-meal time studying. She was very dilligent, and we hope to receive good news when the results for the exam come out in late May. While Wendy was studying, Eric spent time with his family, going to movies, getting some shopping done, but also sifting through emails.

After Wendy's exam, we had one free day with Eric's family before leaving for our next destination. To celebrate Wendy being done, we went out to a nice Italian restaurant, went to a movie, went to the zoo, and Eric's parents treated us to a shopping spree (for Christmas and birthday presents).

Then we were off to California for a quick trip to see some friends who have been big supporters of the eye clinic in Gabon. We had a great (but short) time with them. One of the mornings, Wendy went off for a ladies time of shopping and to get a hair cut while Eric did something more manly - high speed go carts! Thankfully, that ended without injury, neither to Eric nor his go cart.

Our trip to CA felt like a whirlwind, but it was nice to see so many folks! Then the next destination was OK City to see Wendy's family. There, we were met at the airport by Wendy's parents, with fresh baked chocolate chip cookies! This warm welcome was only a foreshadowing of the nice time to come. We enjoyed many a tasty meal, and much time with family. We played tennis, went to movies, and went for a hike in the mountains of OK. We even got a chance to color Easter eggs with all the nieces and nephews, and go to the Easter church service with the whole family.

But sad to say, this all came to an end. We had a hard time saying goodbye to everyone, but it just reminds of how blessed we are to have such a loving and fun family.

A few quick impressions of America after being gone for so long:
- What amazing variety of restaurants are available! We ate like crazy and still never made it to all the places we wanted to go to.
- Things are so convenient - everything is fast, and customer service is wonderful!
- 3D movies?! Just how long have we been gone anyway??
- What a luxury to be able to bathe and flush the toilet with drinkable water! Once again I could sing in the shower without worries of getting parasites!
- High speed internet - what will they think of next??
- God bless dairy farmers! Dairy is in abundant supply in the US, and we savored every glass of milk, spoonful of sour cream, and dollup of whipped cream (and don't forget the ice cream!)
- The roads are so smooth and people can drive so fast!!! The next time you are slowed down due to construction, thank the Lord for it. If it wasn't for that construction, you'd be driving slow all the time (because of bad roads).
- English is great!! It's such a nice feeling to be able to walk up to someone and know without a doubt that we'll be able to make ourselves understood.
- It's so nice to have family in the same time zone, or even the same room!

God bless you, America - land that we love! May we never again take you for granted, and may God protect you from the many attacks the devil throws your way.