The End is Near

Well here's a quick picture-less post to update you on what's going on. We thoroughly enjoyed the rest of our time in AZ with our immediate family. Christa came in town to celebrate Christmas and we enjoyed our traditional Christmas Eve dinner of appetizers after a wonderful service at church. We exchanged some presents - including some we opened on Skype so my sisters could be there virtually. Over the week we also made Christmas cookies, hiked, saw Narnia, and much more. Christmas day Joesph came home and we later went out to dinner at a fun Italian restaurant, which we've never done for Christmas before, but it was fun and easy.

Sunday we drove up to CA and stopped by to visit with one of our supporters on the way and in the evening arrived and Johnny and Krista's house. We had a fun day with them yesterday and in a few hours we're headed to the airport to catch our flight to NJ. We'll arrive there around noon and probably be exhausted from the red-eye! Good thing we don't have plans for tomorrow except enjoying our three year anniversary! We're so excited to be celebrating three married years together. It feels like a big accomplishment considering how many changes and new challenges we've faced together. I also feel like three years is a good landmark where we cross over from being newlyweds to being semi experienced and established as a married couple. Do you know what I mean? We're excited and so happy and blessed to spend this life together.

Anyway, we'll have time in NJ through Monday, and on Tuesday we'll leave for Brazil! We have a lot of last minute things to accomplish while we're in NJ - picking up last minute things from people and from stores, saying goodbye to relatives, packing and more. We have a lot to accomplish which will be extra challenging over the holiday weekend and only a part-time car (my Grandma plans to lend us hers when she doesn't need it which will be good) but one way or the other I know it will all get done and we'll be on our way before we know it.

So are we feeling ready? Absolutely! I feel like we've done, visited, purchased, and eaten everything we wanted to and more. We feel relaxed, revved up, encouraged, and ready to hit the ground running. Of course we'll miss things, places, and people, but we feel called to Brazil so we can't wait to get back. I also can't wait to have the most blissful sleep in 4 1/2 months....in our own bed at last!! I also can't wait to get back to a bit of a routine and some healthy eating again. It's been absolutely stellar here....I mean completely awesomely terrific...but it is SO time to go home. But in the meantime, we have one more week of fun and tasks ahead.

One week left in Arizona

I can't believe we only have about a week left here in AZ with family! It has been so much fun to be here with Mom and Dad and Joe. The events of the past days have included hiking, a visit to the Grand Canyon, shopping for some last minute things and gifts we want to bring to Brazil, spending time with 3 of our friends from Moody who live out here, moving Joe to a group home instead of the facility he was at (great new place!), and much more. It's been going by so fast and every day I am feeling a strange mix of emotions. I'm feeling sad about leaving family and friends behind, saying goodbye to the many conveniences and foods I love, but at the same time I feel made to do what we do in Brazil and I feel anxious to get back! I feel like a big part of me is missing while I'm away from our new home and ministry. I think that's a good sign! Mostly I feel like we timed our return perfectly. I feel like I have a little more soaking up to do here with family, but Jan 4th I will be excited to jump on our plane. It's just perfect!

On other news, we're making progress with our goal of monthly support. We now only have $335 of monthly committments to go to be at 100% of our goal. It's been awesome to see how and who God chooses to add to our team and excited to see how He provides the rest.

Ok now time for a few pictures of our trip to the Grand Canyon:

We met some guys from Argentina who have been making their way around North and South America...by motorcycle! They left home in Argentina December 2009 and have been biking around, stopping anywhere interesting, sleeping wherever is offered, and just having fun. They plan to be back home by March 2011. Can you imagine? And I thought WE'D been traveling for a long time being gone 4 months! We had fun chatting with them. Jeyson spoke with them in Spanish and I spoke in Portuguese, which they could understand really well since they had just been biking through Brazil on their way up this summer.

We stayed overnight in Flagstaff on the way home, where surprisingly the weather was much colder! We actually had to scrap our windshield. Jeyson was really excited to experience at least a tiny bit of cold weather.

Our next plans are to enjoy Christmas with my parents, Joe, and my sister Christa who is coming in town. Then, Dec 26th well drive back up to CA to drop off our car with Johnny and Krista, spend a few days with them, and Dec 28th we're heading back to NJ to get our flight to Brazil. Crazy how fast time is going!

Fantastic Family

Our time here in the States is winding down. We've had an incredibly wonderful (and sometimes incredibly exhausting) time. We're starting to feel ready to go home, but the part that makes us saddest to leave is it means we'll have to say goodbye to family for likely a few years. So in these last weeks we have and will continue to soak in every bit of family time possible. (hence the lack of blogging :) Right now we're in Arizona, where my parents now live.

Over Thanksgiving, all of my sisters and their husbands/boyfriend came in town and we had a few days just PACKED with fun! It even included a trip to Sedona. Here's me with my mom and oldest sister, Danielle. Dad and Mom as we did some fun window shopping

Some of the best times though were just hanging out at my parents' new home with the whole gang. Also with my sisters, Jamie and Christa. We enjoyed a lovely evening having shrimp cocktail and broccoli soup as a tribute to Grandma Longo...since those were two of her specialties.

There was no shortage of hanging out time!

The three son-in-laws (so far!) with Dad....I'm pretty sure they were brainstorming for their upcoming day shooting in the desert.

The mini Ciotta family minus Mom (since she was sick) on Thanksgiving day

Well what can I say? Family...it's the best! Being far away from them is the hardest part of doing what we do! We'll miss you a ton over the next few years. But it's not over yet....still ahead we have a few more weeks with Mom, Dad, and Joe. And we're so glad Christa will be back in town for Christmas!

California Roadtrip

Oh my...where to start on our incredible trip to northern CA with Johnny and Krista (Jeyson's brother and his wife). I can't even tell you how wonderful it was to have a real, several day vacation. We've taken over night trips in Brazil before, but it's been 2 years since doing a several day, just for fun trip. And this was our first time since our honeymoon taking a trip that didn't mean staying with family. This was so fun and so appreciated!





Johnny and Krista live in the L.A. area but we drove up to see Sequoia, Yosemite, and San Francisco.


The first stop was Sequoia....


Among the towering trees...

We felt like ants. Below is General Sherman...the biggest tree in the world in terms of volume.

There was so much to discover and see as we hiked around.

Look at the size of the base...and this wasn't even a "special" tree in the forest.

Probably the peak of the trip (pun intended :) was Moro's Rock. It was a pretty intense hike up but totally worth it!

Just breathtaking! I can't tell you how many times we said that!

Next stop: Yosemite There was so much to say here too but no words would do it justice. This is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen!

We hiked for hours...I was so sore the next day but it was worth it!

The next day we explored San Francisco which was a whole different kind of fun. Clam chowder in sourdough bread bowls. You can't go to San Francisco without trying one!

Followed by sundaes at the original Ghirardelli's where the make their own hot fudge sauce in the store. The only thing better than this:

Was this:

Yum!

We toured the docks and saw the Golden Gate Bridge at sunset

And of course, we followed the old song's advice....that when you're going to San Francisco be sure to wear some flowers in your hair :)

Ahh...what a wonderful day!

Driving home we went along the famous Highway 1. The best part was seeing the elephant seals that have a natural, undisturbed habitat along a certain point on the beach.

They were so adorable and each one with a different personality. This little baby wanted to come to Brazil with us....not sure how it would get through customs though :)

What a wonderful, refreshing trip. Thank you Johnny and Krista for showing us around your beautiful state!!

Goal Update

So we've been mentioning how we're busy raising our level of monthly support. You may be wondering how it's going...so it's time for a quick update.

When we started out raising support this Fall, we were at just about 83% of our total goal of $3,600 monthly.



It's a little tricky to know exactly where we're at now since there is a bit of a delay until gifts are processed and we can know the committments that have been made. However, to the best of our ability to assess, we know that now we're at about 88% of our goal.



We're excited about this progress towards our goal and are so thankful for God's provision even during difficult economical times. We still have about $410 to raise, but we're excited to see how God is going to work! We have so much to be thankful for at Thanksgiving time!

Furlough Funny

We've had a lot of different opportunities to share about our ministry in the past weeks. We've shared at crowded churches and one-on-one. We've shared with senior citizens and young families. One of the most memorable moments of all though, was sharing with a group of children at a camp that I grew up at.

We began sharing with the kids how our goal is to reach people that live in the middle of the Amazon with the Good News of Jesus. We told them about the dense forest and how there are no roads. We told them how the main way to get around in the Amazon is by small boat....generally canoe type boats. Just then, one kid raised his hand though and completely seriously suggested, "Maybe the people in the Amazon could get around by jetski" I could barely hold in my laughter at the idea of imagining simple, simple people like these.... Whipping to and from the poor, isolated villages of the Amazon on one of these!

Such a cute and memorable moment of furlough! But it would so neat to see the kid was thinking! After all, it was just around that age that I first felt lead by God into missions...he could be a future missionary!

A Family Post

Lately our families have been on our minds and hearts, so I can't help but include this post in our blog. Recent family changes and news have been both sad and happy lately.



First, the sad part is that just yesterday my grandmother passed away. We haven't seen my grandparents in a few years (since we've been in Brazil) but while we were in NJ we were able to visit with them twice. Since grandma passed away very quickly and unexpectedly, a few weeks ago when we visited she was in good health and herself. We had a great time catching up with them, talking about how she would make homemade ravioli and hearing my grandpa's war stories....just like a visit to your grandparents should be. I'm so thankful to have this wonderful last memory of her. I'm also SO thankful that we happened to pack our camera with us when we visited, and impulsively I asked Jeyson to take a picture of the three of us. This is possibly the last picture that anyone has of grandma, and I'm so glad to be in it with her. Grandma, you will be missed!



At the same time that we're struggling to process this sadness, we have other joyful family news. We are so excited to be welcoming not one, not two, but THREE little nieces and nephews into the world very shortly. This is especially a joy since up until now we don't have any little ones on either side of the family. So we will get to be aunts and uncles for the first times, three times over.

We are expectantly waiting for news of the births of Lucas (Jeyson's sister's little one), Charlotte (Stephanie's oldest sister's little one), and Baby Schuld (Stephanie's second oldest sister's little one).

Furlough Faithfulness

Support raising and furlough are mostly a lot of fun, but there are also moments we're tempted to feel discouraged. In these moments we have to keep looking back and remembering how God has shown Himself to be our faithful provider in the past and how He's not going to let us down now! Here's one story we keep going back to that reminds us how He has provided for us the in past.

Three years ago, when we were just setting out to begin our fund raising for our first term, we were just overwhelmed! We had a seemingly impossible monthly goal to raise and we were starting with almost 0 commitments and only a few months to do it (since Jeyson was in the country on a tourist visa). On one of the first stops, I met another missionary couple who was headed overseas and also needing to raise about the same amount that we did. We spent some time chatting about the challenges, etc.

Over the next few months were were able to raise all of the support we needed at the time, and headed to Brazil. Now 3 years later we are back support raising again. We are working to raise our goal by about 20% because of our move to the Amazon where everything is a lot more expensive and because of the sad situation of the deflating value of the dollar. As we've been traveling around, we ran into the same couple again! In conversation we found out that they have spent the past three years raising support to make it to their goal and hadn't yet been able to go overseas.

We know God's timing is different for everyone and will bring this couple overseas when He has planned, but this story just blew us away, allowing us to realize just how quickly He provided just what we needed! It is so unusual that we were able to raise our first goal in just a few months - we know it was all Him working in these hearts so we could quickly get to do this:

And this:

We are so thankful for the way He provided in the past and we just keep going back to this story whenever we get overwhelmed with our current, higher goal. We have personally seen Him do great things in our life story and we're looking forward to what He's going to do next!

This Week's Happenigs and Delightful Downtown

It's so much fun to be back in the Chicago area! We've been having a blast and so far have fit so much into the past week.

We've:

- Visited with our pastor from Brazil who is temporarily in the States

- Met with the Winnetka Bible church missions council (one of our supporting churches)

- Spoken at WBC in Sunday school and the church service

- Spent the day with our friends who moved from NJ to IL while we've been in Brazil

- Gotten together with a bunch of our "Moody" friends

- Gone to Harvest Bible Chapel to the weekend service and toured around Walk in the Word.





Getting to HBC was especially meaningful to us because we really enjoy the head pastor, James McDonald's preaching ministry from Brazil. Every week that we're not traveling, we participate in our local church in Brazil, but we feel like James is also our pastor in a way since we listen to him all of the time via podcasts. It is just so meaningful to hear the Word in your heart language so we listen to him all the time. It was great to get to attend the church he pastors and see the place where the podcasts are recorded. Very cool!



Also this week we had a chance to tour around downtown Chicago, which was a blast! We stopped by Moody during the annual missions conference and got to see some of our professors and old friends, which was also fun. We just LOVE downtown Chi-town and spend the whole day just walking around and enjoying...especially before the weather gets brutal! Here's a few of our favorite moments of the day.



The John Hancock....only a few blocks from Moody.



Walking down the street...JH in the background



Chicago Sun-Times building and tours on the river

The Sears tower is now the Willis tower! We couldn't believe it! I think we'll always call it the Sears though :) You got to love being back on American soil and all of the freedoms and blessings it brings!

How cool is this? The Trump Tower! They were just starting to build it while we were in college so it was so fun to see it finished.

We just LOVE this city! Have I mentioned that already?

Yes it is great to be back! It is so sentimental as walking up and down these streets was how we spent so many cheap dates back in college. This is a view overseeing millennium park where there are tons of fun free activities going on throughout the warm months.

And who can pass up some pictures at "the bean"? It's this huge mirror sculpture in the middle of the city park where you can take all kinds of fun pictures.

Here's a picture of us reflected in the bean with the city in the background. Such a creative and interactive piece of art!
And a shot from inside the bean. There were so many people swarming around also taking pictures.

This was such a perfect day....we loved every moment!

Gorgeous view from Michigan Ave.

And the Water Tower...one of the few buildings that survived The Great Chicago Fire

And the best part of the day - deep dish pizza at Pizzano's. Great food and great memories as this is one of the places we had one of our first dates almost 7 years ago.

What a great week it has been!

But no matter where we go, our precious home in Brazil is not far from our mind! This statue in from the Sears Tower was one of the 483 times our lives, friends, and ministry came to mind this week!