Shannon Yee

I try to be intentional to spend quality time with family and friends. It is important to me that our immediate, nuclear family spend time together. It is also important that we enjoy time with extended family. That becomes more difficult as we all spread out around the country (and soon – the world. Yikes!)

This summer we have had one family fun time after another and it has been really wonderful.

We started off with a wedding for one of my cousins (actually his daughter) in Minneapolis. Then we had a family vacation, tent camping and hiking, exploring and laughing in Michigan’s U.P. We saw the Porcupine Mountains (no Michigan does not really have mountains, but there are a lot of forests!) and Pictured Rocks. We climbed a lighthouse and went on a boat cruise. We swam and skipped rocks in Lake Superior and swatted millions of mosquitos. We spent a few days with friends in Traverse City (so much fun!!) and then made it home in time for the kids to have their own adventures.

After time apart, we were so glad to be reunited and had our annual trips with the Janes’ side and the Yee side. For as long as the kids can remember, we’ve spent a very long weekend at Aunt TeeTee’s, enjoying time with cousins and on the lake. There are official games and lots of snacks and always an ice cream trip too. Then, we went the following weekend to Kalahari with the other side cousins, aunt, uncle and Grandma Karen. They had so much fun at the water park and the arcade and the zip line and the hi-ropes course and even just being in the hotel room. These trips are the highlight for all of us over the summer.

The big trips aren’t the only fun we’ve had this summer. We also enjoyed several trips to the library, the zoo, the village, swim clubs, air shows, and shopping. Our regular routine included plenty of gym time and some church time as well as a few playdates. We didn’t have quite enough trips to the farm (at Miss Barb’s or Walls Nuts Woods), but it’s not too late yet!

We are starting our fall bucket list though as Labor Day and the return to school in quickly approaching… cider mills, hikes through the woods with fall colors, and football games are at the top.

Our missions journey to date has been full of lots of waiting and unknowns. That is sure to continue.

We started to have a clearer picture of what the future might hold in November 2015 when we became members of Wycliffe Bible Translators. December marked the official invitation for us to go to Cameroon. And so, we ended the year with a lot more answers than we started with.

In January 2016, we attended the orientation course, Equip, in Orlando. We learned a lot. Among the lessons we learned that we can plan, but God has the ultimate plan, which may not match ours exactly. Then in February, our Partnership Development (PD) began. We sent out our very first newsletter and began to tell people about what we planned to do (because we finally knew some of those answers!)

Early in March, it became clear that we would have to go to France for language study and so we began researching and learning about that.

As we began to try to learn more in preparation for our move, we were connected with a family in Cameroon and got our buddies in April. (We really do wish this had happened much earlier, maybe if a full year earlier!)

We sent out another newsletter in May and reached the halfway point in our monthly financial partnership promises. This cleared the way for us to attend a required training in NC in the fall.

In June, we decided to attend language school in a small village in the French Alps. From the CCEF, we learned that our classes will start on January 3, 2017.

Now it is July and we are the missionaries of the month at our home church. That means that we are talking in front of the church one Sunday, doing a presentation with some families from our church and that we are being prayed for specifically each Wednesday at prayer.

August and September will be more PD work for us and hopefully our Wycliffe ministry will have a full partnership team. We will send out information to our prayer partners about a specific day to pray for each other each month. We’ve already been praying for each of our partners and this will help us to be more orderly about it. This is also when we will have a garage sale and possibly put our house on the market.

The Intercultural Communication Course (ICC) is another training for Brian and I. So, we will be going to JAARS in NC for the month of October (and one week of November) to study and learn as much as possible to help us in our transition. The plan for the kids is to stay in school and live with their grandparents while we are gone. Brian will likely leave his current job in October as we will be working full-time as missionaries (in training).

We will all need to go to Chicago for a visa interview in November. If all goes according to our plan, we will have our visas in time to leave for France at the end of December 2016. I am also going to try to make a last trip to LA to visit my sister and her new baby girl that should be born at the end of November!

So, January-June 2017, we will be studying French in France and then if everything works according to my plan, we will be fluent and ready to return to the US for a quick visit with family and friends in July 2017. Then we will move to Cameroon by August 2017 so that the kids can start the new school year in our new home.

I sometimes get bored with the way things are and feel the need to spice it up a bit. I was feeling that way about our living room. My amazing husband, of course, agreed that it was in need of some updating, as did everyone else who saw it. So, we changed it and after a lot of money and energy spent, it looks great in my opinion. We haven’t really taken any pics that capture it well and our camera is sort of protesting taking pictures, so you’ll just have to take my word for it. Well, I am also feeling a bit bored with my personal appearance. So, I am now occasionally wearing make-up when the aforementioned husband is around. Also, I am going to cut my hair, which has been growing for the past few years. Every couple of years, I get it all chopped off and then when I get bored with short hair or tired of keeping up with the haircuts, I grow it out until the process repeats itself again. I’ll donate the long hair and hopefully enjoy the new look. I may even get some highlights. Changes are coming, exciting changes… for me anyway.

I imagined that when I had more than one child in school, things would slow down. I would be able to get so much done around the house and provide great meals for our family. I figured that with only one kid, we would be able to have fun and get our work done and also have time for naps or relaxing each day. I don’t know what I was thinking!

As I write this, I’ve just realized that I only have 5 hours of time between the dropping off and picking up times instead of the 8 that I imagined I had. This might explain some of why I’m not as productive and fun as I thought I’d be. In reality, after playing with Josiah until he has to leave for school, Thad and I usually get the grocery shopping done, have one fun outing (like the zoo or park), help out a school (go to a playdate for TJ) and make a few meals each week. Each afternoon, he naps while I work on Bible study or ESL lesson plans or connect with people or maybe do a bit of a house project. Then I wake him up to go get Eila and we go, go, go until bedtime. Each evening is different, but they are all the same too: eating, playing, working, talking, laughing, crying, cleaning, reading, sleeping.

Fall is here and I don’t want to miss it, but it is tricky taking time to enjoy and experience life as we live it. If you have any tips, please share!

I started this list in early June, but am just now getting around to making it legible…

Here are some things we’ve already checked off the list:
Plant Garden
Pick Strawberries
Make Jam
Go Camping
Watch Race Cars
Play at Beach
Swim with Friends
Attend Car Show
Visit Rouge Factory Tour
Go to Carnival
Visit Zoo

Remaining Fun To Be Had:
Watch Fireworks
Go to MLB game
Attend Foster Care Info Meeting
Have a BBQ
Organize Storage Room
Host a Game Night
Watch Olympics
Visit Hands-On Museum
Hike at State Park
Ride Bikes
Visit Farm (for milk, produce &/or animals)
Work on House Projects
Play Tennis
Visit Titanic Exhibit
Go Putt-Putting
Visit Art Museum
Print Photo Books for Kids
Go Rollerskating
Tour Botanical Gardens
Pick Blueberries
Vacation without Kids!

Since it’s already the second week of January, I figured I should finally review my year in regards to my resolution to be gracious. Well, I have been mostly successful. I must admit that I had sort of forgotten about it by the end of the year, but the work had been done in me and so the change is there. While, I’m still a perfectionist and would love to be completely right in all ways and at all times, I have learned a bit and am able to extend grace to myself and others, on occasion.

2011 was amazing for our family – with two fabulous vacations (LA and Disney), plus lots of time with our extended families (love them), but it was also hard with unexpected twists (Elizabeth). It was a year of tremendous growth for me personally (PTL!). It was a year full of really good home improvement and decorating ideas (kitchen & living room), and with some actual change in at least one room (boys). This was also a year with a pretty big loss (wedding and engagement ring). 2011 was a year of waiting, and yet there were lots of signs and steps toward where I’m waiting and wanting to go, so I rejoice as I look back.

But, I’m also looking ahead.

Last Friday, my kids and I cemented into tradition the way we greet the end of spring. We started the day picking up our canning supplies, which included new lids and some canning utensils. I cannot overemphasize the benefits of those tongs for removing the jars after they are processed in the boiling water bath, absolutely worth $5. From our local Kmart, we headed to the farm where we spent approximately two hours picking the best berries. I suppose “we” is a bit optimistic. Eila helped and picked about 3 quarts total, eating a quart. Josiah ate every single strawberry he picked. Thaddeus ate strawberries that Eila or I picked. After about an hour, the boys tired of the berries and decided to play in the paths around the field and in the car. All in all, we left with about 40 quarts of strawberries, twice as many as previous years.

The children got to work hulling the strawberries and mashing them up. Josiah helped stir while we cooked the berries, pectin and sugar. Then we sealed the jars and I started over again with another batch when the kids went to bed. It was a long day, but I now have a year’s supply of jam, plus nice presents to give to some lucky loved ones. I froze several quarts, made a strawberry pie for Father’s Day, strawberry muffins this morning, and have been enjoying fresh berries in salads and for snacks. I love the last week of spring, not only because it means it’s finally summer!

For the holiday weekend, we have a change of our weekend pace. Normally, Saturdays start early with gymnastics practice and flying lessons, then soccer followed by pick-up from practice then lunch and various errands and outings. This weekend, we enjoyed a leisurely trip to Eastern Market and family game time. A wedding will round out the plans for Saturday. It’s nice to celebrate with our friends and also to still have time to enjoy a day with our kids. I can see why families start to limit activities in the spring…

Here is one of the amazing gifts that I received for Mother’s Day this year.

I also got a wonderful song and several other thoughtful things from my beautiful daughter. The boys had good intentions…

My firstborn now has two adult teeth and an extra set of molars growing in her mouth. Before I can even accept this information, she’ll be getting her wisdom teeth pulled. She turned six a few weeks ago and asks every day to get her ears pierced. Despite being sick, she competed in her second gymnastics meet and was determined to stick it out even though it was really hard – because it seemed like the right thing to do. We’ve had to institute parent controls on the computer and time limits on the Wii. She can’t say or understand anything in French. What happened to my baby?

Tonight, we cuddled and looked at the American Girl Doll catalogue. She still asks me to lay down and cuddle with her for a few minutes each night, but she doesn’t need me to sing anymore and she says her own prayers. We have a dance party at least a few times a week and I’m still told to follow her lead. The highlight of her day is often “Tickle Time.” And, every morning she needs a few minutes of mom-time before her day can begin. I hope that never changes…