Church, Bus, Beach

Today has been a looong, but amazing day! It started at about 6:15am when we left our hotel in Phnom Penh and headed to New Life Church for worship and a great sermon from Pastor Vek. It always feels special being welcomed by their church community and it's INSANE how much it's grown in the past several years. After church we loaded up with all of the kids and headed to the beach. It's a long bus ride, but we make it fun :) We sang songs (like Taylor Swift - my personal favorite), played games (like pictionary) and slept some too. The kids are so well behaved and you can just sense their excitement knowing we are on our way to THE BEACH! When we finally got to the beach, the weather was perfect. It's probably the best beach day I can remember in my 5 years of being here. I personally got a little motion sick (very unlike me) from the bus ride, so I sat out from the fun & sun for a bit, but then was able to join in. BUT, while I was chillin' - not feeling so hot - I took a moment to thank God for our amazing team. I seriously love our team! Each one of them - Mark, Amber, Lee, Mary Brantley, Maris & Maureen bring so much value! The way they interact with the kids, the joy that radiates from them, the way they treat others and each other... the list could go on and on. You can already see the relationships they are building with the children - especially our first timers. It's fun to watch the connections happenning. We had several prep meetings and got to know each other pretty well before this trip... As excited as I am to be here and loving on the kids, I'm just as excited to be experiencing this trip with THIS team and getting to know them better. We're at the hotel (much nicer this year) and winding down. Getting ready for another early start tomorrow AM at 7:00am. Beachin' for a few hours, and then heading taking the 10+ hour bus ride to Bantey Meanchey. Missing Candace, and my sweet baby Ryder, daily. Pictures from the beach to follow... Much love, Mike