What a day in my life looks like

Well, this may be the #1 question I get while in America..."What does a day in your life look like?"

The truth is, the answer to this is always changing because my life is fluid...meaning it is NEVER the same. I enjoy a little structure here and there, so I try to set up some routine but we travel at least 10 days out of the month...so that makes life crazy...but while we are at home (we as in the boys and I) this is what my day looks like:

6am- everyone wakes up
6-8- diapers are changed, breakfast is eaten, the garbage guy comes by and asks for all our garbage, the newspaper guy comes and delivers our paper, and we play
8-10- Levi's office hours (if he is at home) This is when he goes into our bedroom and has time with the Lord and works on work stuff
8-9- we play in the play room
9-Tate goes to sleep and Wyatt and I do crafts, read books and sing new songs
10- Levi normally leaves to do what needs to be done and Rupa (my house helper) comes over and starts washing dishes and cleaning our floors (I know, biggest blessing of my life!) Wyatt and I play for another hour (sometimes this play involves laundry, cleaning the house, ect.) and most days our neighbors come over around this time
11-Tate wakes up and we all play with our  neighbors, go outside, play in the playroom, ect.
12-we eat between 12 and 2
2-Nap time for Wyatt and Tate
4-Time to get outside and take a walk
6-we try to eat around this time, then we read books, sing songs, say our verses, and pray together before bed
7-Bedtime for both the boys!
7-9-my quiet time and office time
9-10 or 11- Levi and I get to hang out

Well, there you have it! This is an organized typical day of my life...What I can't write down is the daily unexpected visits where I drop all plans and serve a random guest, the long visits we have with shopkeepers on our daily walks where we sit, eat a snack and fellowship, the fact that we are NEVER alone as a family for a whole day...almost NEVER! ;)

I have always been one to really desire the unexpected, and living overseas meets that desire in EVERY way! I love the fact that my day never looks like the day before, that I plan my life out only to have it change every time, that I am always entertained by simple things such as taking walks because something random always happens!  Although it can be frustrating, it is so beautiful and so much fun! I can't imagine leaving this life (the life we have known for 4 out of our 5 years of marriage) and returning to a life where there are very few variables. Perhaps it would be refreshing, but also a little boring! ;)

Our surprise trip home

Because we left America in June, we were unsure if our return so soon was a good idea. We felt like we were letting down our friends here by not participating in Christmas activities, but we took the plunge and didn't look back...I must say it was worth every dime spent, lack of sleep, and weeks of sickness that came with the 4 weeks in America. When we went home for 6 months to have Tate, our life was a whirlwind and I felt as if I missed so many moments. I spent the whole time back living life as if I had never left. I was too exhausted to have hard conversations about my new life, the ways I have changed, or even different perspectives. No one asked about life in India, and I was ok with that. This time, things were different. I found myself longing to share, but unsure of how to do so. I didn't want to, but I do feel that I dominated conversations with family in an effort to cram 4 years of my life into 4 weeks of time....desperately trying to be sensitive, yet understood. Trying to love, yet be truthful about the things I struggle with in America and I found myself exhausted, yet in many ways finally able to express so many emotions, feelings, and ideas that have been trapped inside for years now. 

A friend told me about a blog she read where someone said, "If America is blue and South Asia is yellow, then I am green." The lady didn't fit in America anymore, but would never truly fit in South Asia so she always found herself hanging in the middle. This is me. I am green!

A few pics from our trip to the states

 It was an exhausting trip! This is a pic of the boys asleep in the airport at Detroit. Took a long time to get home and it was probably the hardest so far just because of the ages of the boys.

 These moments were worth it all. This is the kids from Lindsey's side eating together at Mo and Pop's house.(Lindsey's mom and dad)

 This is at Nana and Dede's house (Levi's mom and dad)

These are the lights that our cousins always put up. Something we miss so much in India!