Smiles Galore!

What a fantastic evening we all had greeting Kendall last night at the airport. We hugged and cried, and laughed a lot. My eyes as a Mother took in the beautiful face I had dreamed of seeing for so long, and etched in my mind the moments I will recall time after time.

I can imagine what the people around us thought, watching all 7 of us being....us,... loud, demonstrative, and crazy. We were so engaged with talking and laughing that we wandered aimlessly around the multi levels of baggage areas and had no clue where we were supposed to be. It was quite funny, usually it's just me that is missing the navigation gene. We finally found her lone bag relocated to the darkened unclaimed corner, the conveyer belt long stopped, and not a soul in sight.

After 9 long months of being apart, Kendall saw huge changes in the boys sizes and faces, and sadly she saw changes in Duane and I....probably all the stress of this last year, I'm sure it's not from just getting older!!

We stopped and got a bite to eat and hung out awhile around the table, seemed like old times, noisy, chaotic, and everyone talking at once, so good to have the family back together again. On the way home we did some "Ullrich car dancing", cranked up the oldies and boogied and enjoyed the celebration.

Between the noise, I escaped into my prayer closet and offered up multiple thanks to a loving God that made this all happen. With Kendall's head on my shoulder and her mixed tears of missing Zura, being overly tired, and happiness to see us on my sleeve, I stroked her soft skin with my fingers and sighed a contented "Mother sigh" when all of her babies are in the "nest", safe, healthy and home.

We had been a bit worried how her dog would receive her again after being away for so long. If he didn't remember her it would be a long two months. As she approached him, he growled, barked and ran away, (typical for Tyson the guard dog), Larsen picked him up and took him over to Kendall and after a minute, thankfully he retained his memory of her scent, and licked her to death. Of course all of this was caught on camera for future laughs.

Presently Kendall is zonked out in her bed oblivious to life around her,and the sadness she left behind. As the nine hour time difference is pretty hard on the body, it will take her some time to readjust and get on our schedule. I'm sure she will be up in a while scrounging around in the cupboards like normal.

We pray for a wonderful visit, paperwork ease, another job, (she got a part-time one so far) and God to fill the void in her heart for Zura back in Georgia. Thank you once again for your kind words, encouragement, prayers and comments, they mean so much to us and we thank God for you all.
Love to all,
The Ullrich's

Hello everyone,

I wanted to Thank You all so much for your many, many prayers for the Georgian people and my family. I know that they carried us through some pretty rough waters.

It’s amazing how fast things start to go back to normal, and how people lose interest after bombs are no longer flying over people’s heads and opposition forces are no longer threatening homes and live’s. It becomes almost in a way "boring" when they go home and there is a sense of peace in the land, and there is nothing shocking to report about. Why is it that as people who live normal and comfortable live’s are no longer interested in a topic that doesn’t have to do with something that is not out of a war movie? It's like the peak of the scare is almost a magnet for the human race somehow.

Just now I was looking for a recent article on msnbc.com and couldn't find a single current write-up about Georgia. I was thinking well, is this because there is truly nothing left to write about? And then I remembered, no there ARE still plenty of things to write about and just because they are not the size and destruction of bombs doesn’t mean that the story is over. Life just resumes for those uneffected.

I too was on the verge of thinking that there was nothing left to write about here and everything was over. I had started to turn my mind and begin focusing my thoughts towards more "important" (to me personally), things like... what to pack for my upcoming trip in a couple of days, or better yet, what would I eat first when my feet touch American soil. But as I walked into an unusually crowded church here in Tbilisi Sunday, my mind began to shift. And it really began to reel when I discovered that these extra people were refugees and had lived first hand the experience of this war.

Dr. Levan (the Pastor here) talked about how he had visited many of the refuges and when he asked them what they would like most, they embarrassingly replied "underwear". Imagine, these Georgian ladies didn’t even have the basics that they needed from life, like a pair of simple underwear!

Thousands of people are packed in kindergartens and schools all throughout Georgia, (mostly Tbilisi), some even down my street. All are inadequately housed, clothed, and even fed. There was this one old lady at church this last Sunday who is already a believer, she had lived in South Ossetia and of course her house had burned down. At the end of the service, the people asked what they could do for her and all that she replied, with tears rolling down her face was, "A bible, mine was burned with my house". Just think about what faith that displays, and a deep love for God's Word that she has. There are probably hundreds of other things that she could have asked for, and from a worldly point of view they could be described as more important, but no, the only things she asked for was another bible she could call her own. That tipped my world around rocked it, and then shook it up!

So I guess all that I can say about this is please keep these people in your prayers, this war is not over yet. People like these refugees are "fighting" in it everyday. And never take your faith for granted because you never know when yours is going to be tested next.

I look forward to seeing as many of you as I can that have been a part of my "adventure" when I get home. My mom asked me what I have been craving and wanting as one of my first meals....I would love a bunch of chicken wings, of course I'm not sure my body will tolerate it very well at first but I will have to try.

If you think of me this Thursday as I make my way across the Atlantic, pray for safety as I hear another hurricane is threatening Florida around my arrival time in Tampa, I sure would hate to be stranded in Chicago. I will try to be better about blogging while I am there.

Much love,

Kendall

Exciting News

As I sit here and contemplate the words that my fingers want to hurry along, I mull over the best possible avenue to deliver the exciting events of the last few days. I have conflicting thoughts, part of me wants to shout it from the internet, and the other part wants to keep it just for a while longer, for our family to celebrate alone. What's a girl to do...ok, ok, I'll tell you, but you have to promise to not let anyone else know yet. It will just be our secret....

Kendall is coming home on Sept 4th!! Is that good news or what? The purpose of her visit is to file paperwork here in the states for Zura to get an immigration visa. It will be a "long and winding road". We have some dear friends and family members that are going to make this all happen, and we will be forever indebted to them.. For now they will remain anonymous. This process can take 6 months to a year on a normal day, but now with the conflict over there, they said the work load has doubled with applications. The not-so-good news is that Kendall is going back on Nov. 4th. She will wait there for however long it takes to be able to bring Zura back with her.

We spoke with Kendall and Zura yesterday, wow, it was awesome to hear their voices. That was the first time that we had ever heard Zura's voice, it was music to my ears. As you can imagine, they are excited about the sponsorship/immigration process to begin. Please continue to pray as we pursue this, there could be potential problems with mail, processing, wrong forms sent or filled out, whatever. We know that if God wants it to go right through it will, and if he wants it to have snags, it will. It's in his hands.

While she is home she would like to work and start putting money away for expenses that will be coming up with the immigration process. If anyone local knows of a job that she could do short-term, please let us know.

Today (the 22nd) marks 9 long months that Kendall has been gone. Back on Thanksgiving day she packed up for what she thought was going to be a two week stay, so much has happened since then. So we ask for prayers for this new leg to our journey. The Bible says, "Many are the plans of man, but it is God's will that prevails".

So please take time to celebrate with us, and to give all of the thanks where it is due, "To God be the Glory".

Just Random Thoughts

I was so proud of myself today as I signed up with an International phone company and promptly placed a call to my "sissy girl" as I like to call her. My excitement died when it just rang and rang, I felt several things.... Had their phones gotten cut off, was she out of minutes, or was she just away? Several hours later I found out through text that she had been away all day and that she hadn't had her phone with her. Now I have already confessed to you about my jumping on her about not keeping me informed, so I couldn't go that route again. But at least I knew she was still OK. And talk about a day when there was like nothing on the news regarding Georgia due to the hurricane, I resorted to a much deserved "sit" on the beach with my honey, watching the boys ride the rare Florida waves. What a fun time they had, waves and no school.
If you are like me, you have read Kendall's blog more than once and are still having trouble believing that this 19 year old is in the middle of this sadness and pain. I think I tear up every time my eyes rove over the words that capture what she has described. And then I read all of your comments and imagine each one of you dealing with this in your own way. My Mom's tearful words as she cannot even fathom what her Granddaughter is writing, just breaks my heart. Comments from cousins, nieces, awesome friends and long-ago acquaintances warm my heart and I know Kendall has got to be blessed. I have heard from so many of you that say you cried as you read it, and can't believe that most of this stuff isn't even mentioned in the news. I fear we haven't heard the last of it.
Over, and over I think about how common people like us have been picked for this trial, it's supposed to be people that you only hear about, not ones that you know. And then I think well, why not people like us? Throughout our married lives (20 years) Duane and I have asked God to use us, use our children to bring glory to his name, to let our lives be an example to others. Let me tell you, many times we haven't done so well with a trial, and sometimes we have had temper tantrums with God. Sometimes downright bratty moments of whining and complaining, which only makes the trial worse by the way, and yes there have been trials that we have come out of and been able to see how we were used, and actually been thankful for the growth that we acquired from it.
I was reminded this week that James 1:2 says to; consider it "pure joy" when we face trials,.... there's more... because it produces good things in us, (see rest of passage). OK, so my question to myself and I guess to you is, are you considering it Pure Joy for the trial you are in? Our family is not alone in hardship at this moment. Ours just has a different name than yours, but yours is difficult too. I'm so glad that we are allowed tears, doubt, fear, and other things that we are privy to being human, and still be so loved and cherished by The God of the Universe.
I have heard it said that God gives us designer grace for our trials. Just as a designer dress is specifically made for the wearer and it wouldn't fit anyone else as good, designer grace is tailored exactly to fit our darkest days. Yes they hurt, and are not any fun at all,( and I am all about having fun), but there is a purpose to them, and God has a different definition to the word "purpose" than we do.
Thank you for your healing comments, your tears that you cry with us, your prayers for this whole hard mess, and thank you for loving on Kendall and Zura. It means the world to us. I sure hope I get to connect with her soon on the phone, I haven't heard her voice in a couple of months, would do this Mama some good.

Sunday, sent from Kendall

Every night all my senses are filled with the devastation the war has brought. Cries from wailing parents, siblings, and friends piercing the night air. The stench of decaying flesh fills your lungs every time you breathe in (and this is when I am sitting in the house). I can even peer outside my bedroom window and watch as dead people are unpacked from scores of trucks. I see, smell, and hear the constant reminder of all the pain that has been bestowed upon this now hopeless little country. And even though I am far away from the conflict zone I still feel it's rippling effect come over me as if I were there too.
The news I hear here, are 60,000 left homeless, 5,000 soldiers cornered by the Russians only to meet their death and 1,000’s left killed and injured in inadequately housed hospitals. And even now, the pain and suffering is still going on. Yes, the Russians signed a cease fire agreement, but that cease fire agreement doesn’t include: stop terrorizing Georgian citizens. They are continuing to steal from people, execute whomever they feel like, and plunder whatever looks good to their eye. I thought that what I was hearing couldn’t be true because we had also heard stories that they were not hurting people. But last night as I looked on into the street and saw 20 people standing there (some on their knees screaming ), I realized that more than just a killed soldier had been unpacked. As I was told, this 7 year old girl was found who was stolen by Russian soldiers, raped, and then cast down the side of a mountain, a sudden horror and grief came over me.
Yes things might be settling down from the war point of view (and lets hope they continually do), but this story will go on way longer than what people away from this country will ever know. Because now there is an underlying battle, one that only the people of this country who were raised in war know all too well. It’s a battle of survival of starting anew, of carrying a heavy heart and knowing that your government will do very little to help in the upcoming years. And it will continue long after all the humanitarian aid has finished. Just when it seemed Georgia was starting to get back on their feet in the last 5 years, it was all taken away in the last 5 days.

Mom Behaving Badly

What an awful title to begin a blog with, my very first I might add, but I deserve the title above. Several days ago God put the idea of this blog in my thoughts, and 3 different times it was confirmed with people asking me if I had ever thought to do a blog, so here I am, and I guess here you are also.

I have a confession to make, in my quest for information and any sort of tidbit I could get from Kendall, I stepped over the bounds and got on her for not delivering enough news to us here at home. I had expectations of her being "Judy Journalist" and giving us a first-hand account of what is going on all around her. I had envisioned 1st person, fact finding, descriptive and detailed emails, and of course bulging with adjectives . I wanted us all to get the feel of what she was experiencing, the sights and sounds, and the pulse of the people. I wanted her to capture for us the hurt, the sadness, the deep loss that she hears about and probably sees. Their safety and plans for the upcoming days would have also been on my list. I thought my intentions were right, and this would draw our American hearts to the devastation, and we could be more aware of things beyond our sheltered lives here on "free soil".
Well, I cannot tell you how awful I felt this afternoon as she gave me a reprimand and basically laid it out for me. She is surrounded by such sadness and suffering and I had been insensitive to her ability to process it all in her own time. I had been only looking to get my many questions answered, and the ones I had been asked. In no way was I trying to exploit or sensationalize the Georgian people or the horror they have known this last week, but I wanted to be a channel for news and awareness. Of course I apologized and felt the stab of guilt and rottenness and shame at my actions, and beat myself up all evening for hurting her.
The purpose of this blog is for you the reader and prayer warrior to love on Kendall and Zura, and to let them feel your encouragement, wear your strength, and carry their burdens. So I pray that all who find themselves drawn to our story would continue to send those prayers, shed those tears, and claim God's promises for us. Please leave your comments, scripture and notes of hope.
I will do my best to update you as I hear news, but sometimes I may just need to give sound to my thoughts, share what God is showing me, or ask for some downright S.O.S. prayers. And I committ to Kendall and Zura to not be a "Mom Behaving Badly".
Love to all