First day of School

Good morning friends and family,

My apologies for the long lapse in posting.....we returned home from Brazil on August 23 at 6 a.m.  We hit the ground running (literally) getting the kids' school registrations, shopping, physicals, and what seemed like a million other details taken care of before school started today.  But all was accomplished, more or less, and the kids are all at school now, the house is quiet, and I'm not sure what I will do today.  I must admit that a lingered a while in Drew's classroom.  I didn't cry--don't get crazy--but he is the last one--and a gem of a little guy too.  Don't get me wrong, I am more than okay with having a little downtime now that they are all in school.  All the stresses of relocating, going back and forth to Brazil, and just simply re-arranging life for a family of 7 has taken its toll.  Maybe I will sleep awhile.  That being said, I will give you a little update on each of the kids and then a short re-cap of our time in Brazil, and our plans for returning.

Shelby, dressed in full uniform of plaid skirt and white collared shirt, nose ring removed and looking beautiful as always..just a little nervous, headed to Cornerstone Christian Academy in McKinney--the city right next to us.  She will be starting her Junior year.  It is about a 20 minute drive for her.  The school is a University Model Christian school which means she attends Monday, Wednesday, and Friday; and is home on Tuesday and Thursday.  This will be a great fit for her as it will give her flexibility to do her work in Brazil while we are there.  She continues to work at Marble Slab Creamery ice cream shop in Frisco about 15-20 hours a week as well. 

Jack, joined his group of buddies and walked to Maus Middle School for 8th grade.  He starts football tomorrow morning bright and early and since he finished the year there last spring, he was all smiles as he went back to a school that he really loves.  He will also be playing fall baseball.

Molly, Ellie, and Drew went to Mooneyham Elementary which is about 4 blocks from our house.  I will walk over and pick them up after school today.  They will be able to walk home by themselves after that which will be nice.  Molly is in 5th grade, Ellie in 3rd, and Drew in Kindergarten.  Molly is playing her first season of soccer; Ellie also as well as softball for the Texas Twist select team, and Drew will play baseball for the Rockies.

Brad continues to work on getting his business going and hopefully the details will all be worked out soon.  He is excited and soon I will share more details on this here on the blog.

Brazil~~~where our hearts are.  We had a blessed time there as a family and as always, the time went way too fast.  We spent lots of time with the kids in craft classes and playing baseball and soccer.  Brad even taught them to play "Lightening" with the basketball and that was a real favorite.  I spent a good amount of time helping the housemother, Fabiane, in House 7 with all her work.  Much laundry, dishes, cleaning and cooking were done together.  It is a great joy to me to be able to help her.  I also led the housemothers bible study and spoke to them about discouragement and how God wants to help us through it when we find ourselves there.  I taught the teen girls sunday school as well and that is always a joy.  Brad and I helped the young missionary couple there as well with much work as they were preparing to leave for Canada.  We continue to find ourselves growing closer and closer to the children and houseparents there at Chain of Love and continue to find confirmation of our place and work there.  We are hoping to return in November and December and stay as long as possible.  The staff there is hopeful that we will be able to substitute as houseparents while we are there to give the houseparents their weekends off that they need each month.  Our kids are turning in to real Brazilians.  Learning to speak Portuguese, eating beans and rice, and playing soccer is all they really need!

We are grateful to all who are praying for us and encouraging us as we serve in Brazil.   Thank you for the support that allows us to go as a family which is our heart's desire.  God continues to show himself faithful in our desire to serve him and raise our kids to serve him as well. 

God bless you as you seek Him and may He show you also with great clarity what he has put in your heart to do.

Robbyn for the Hanstads

Seasons

Good morning from hot and sweaty North Texas...we are officially uttering words that should never, EVER, and I mean NEVER, come out of the mouths of native, born and raised, tried and true North Dakotans........."CAN'T WAIT TIL WINTER!!!"  Yup.   We said it.  Curse us if you will our Northern amigos, but truth be told, come November....we'll be the Hap-Hap-Happiest group of North Texans ya'll have ever seen!

Okay, I'm done.  Lost my head.  Certainly I have better things to talk about than the weather.  But since we are on the subject, it is Winter in Brazil....and that's where we are headed today at 6:00 p.m. on American Airlines.  Once again, the Hanstad Family of 7 will embark on a journey to South America, seeking and searching for what God will have for them and encountering many people, both English and Portuguese speakers along the way, and hearing that question that always opens many doors of sharing our faith and our story...."ARE ALL THOSE KIDS YOURS?"

Boy are they ever.   And even though there are moments when all the planning, the details, the chaos (it's so loud--why do they have to be so loud?), the difficulty, the heartache and tears, the joy and everything that goes into to trying to do ministry in Brazil with five kids is completely overwhelming, it is certain that this is as it should be.  As we share with various people in our lives about going to Brazil, often they ask, "What do you down there?"  And so we go about sharing about our work, and the people and what we hope to accomplish.  But, I am starting to really grasp, and God is continuing to reveal to me,  that it is not at all about what we do down there.  God's got that.  It's about what God is doing in us.  In each and every one of us.  He is about the business of turning hearts toward him.  And although we hope to help him with that in Brazil, we have seen him work more in each one of us in turning hearts that want to live for US and molding them into hearts that want to live for HIM.  And we know that as God leads us, goes with us, and in us, beside us and behind us, he smiles and says to himself, "Those 7 Hanstads, Yep....they're all MINE."

Thank you for being our support and encouragement by reading this blog and praying for us.  We are definitely not alone on this journey and we are grateful for each one of you.  Please pray for safe travel and good health while we are gone.  Please pray that we will continue to find doors open for ministry in Brazil and that God's timing will continue to line up for our returning.

Zephaniah 3:14 "The Lord your God is with you,  He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing."

Boa viajem!  (Safe Travels!)

Robbyn for the Hanstads