I think it was March when I committed to going to Ecuador. I was super excited about it for about a month. And then MASSIVE anxiety set in. I'm talking I was up for nights in a row crying to Evan about how I didn't want to go. I was picturing myself driving of a cliff and leaving Evan as a single parent to raise Grayson (who knows where G gets his dramatic side from - right?!), getting super sick from traveling, the meds I had to take and the water there (thank-you crazy health department lady) and all sorts of other things. To the point of which Evan was like - maybe you shouldn't go... And then I can't tell you what happened. I just had this revelation of - HELLO you are totally letting Satan rob you of so much joy! God has called you to love on these kids and you are completely missing the point. I had a friend/ co counselor at a summer camp I worked at that always said... "Satan is a jerk." And while it's obvious - I think I sometimes forget that. Satan knows my biggest fears and struggles and he is going to do EVERYTHING he can to make me doubt myself, and my God. Thankfully I serve Jesus who is way more powerful and fights hard for me. And I'm so grateful that he blessed me with a clear head and heart to go on this trip. I wouldn't have traded this experience for anything!
SO- with all that said...
{Day 1} We had to be at the airport at 10:30 am. Evan, G and I headed that way. I actually kept myself together until right before security - we circled up to pray and all I kept thinking was, "Get me on the freaking plane now - or I'm not going to be able to leave this kid." After a few tears (it actually wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be - thank-you Jesus) and lots of hugs and kisses we got through security and headed to our gate. I was very thankful for some mommy friends that were on the trip as well and knew how hard it was to leave behind kiddos and husbands! We settled in to our first flight to Atlanta which was a couple hours, had a bit of a layover there before we hopped on the flight to Quito, Ecuador and from there got on a bus for a 6 hour bus ride to Shell - our final destination. The last part of the travel was what I was most nervous about. I'd heard how windy and bumpy the roads were, and I get super car sick. But I popped my pill and woke up a bit later to ask if we could stop to use the restroom to find out that we were 5 minutes from our destination... YES!!!! My friend Ashley actually told me that at one point she looked over to make sure I was alive because I was laying down on the seat and my head was just bobbing up and down as we went over the bumpy roads. All I was thinking was - man the power of prayer is awesome and God is good... ALL the time! We got to Shell at about 4:30 in the morning. Which technically bleeds into day 2... but that will come later!
{Low} Saying good-bye to my family!
{High} Realizing that I slept all the way through that bus ride without any sickness!
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