Thank you for joining our quarterly newsletter! We're days away from our departure to Rwanda! It's hard to believe it's already here. Keep reading to see what's been happening for the past 3 months!

April

We kicked off with a week-long family trip to Stevensville, Montana to visit Adam's brother, Charlie, and his wife, Oriana, and their new baby, Amara. The entire family was there and we enjoyed good food, great conversations, an Easter egg hunt at Poppy and Dove's, and even some snow! Adjusting to life as a family of 4 in a tiny, 2-bedroom, 1-bathroom apartment wasn't as hard as we thought it would be. In fact, we've had a blast! Adam focused on seminary and continued networking with churches and planning for ministry once we get to Kigali. In fact, we welcomed our first TRN staff members to the team. Aimable and Eric in Burundi and Ezechias and George in Rwanda. We're excited to get to Africa and get to work with them! Aside from that, we've been spending as much time with friends and family as possible!

May

May was, for the most part, uneventful. Adam finished his seminary class... only one more to go! New Beginnings prayed over us during Beyond: Night of Prayer & Worship and commissioned our ministry...

The girls got their yellow fever shots and were TOTAL bosses! They also finished their last school year at CHS. It has been a wonderful place for Abbott and Hannah, and laid a solid foundation for their education. The 3rd grade class even raised $212.53 and donated it to The Roots Network! Thanks to all the teachers and volunteers that have poured into our girls, we pray that their time at KICS will be just as amazing.   

We said goodbye to our dog Sam. He's been with us for 16 years and this transition would be too much for him. We miss him terribly but he's in good hands with the Thomases... he even has his own room. Seriously, his own bedroom... we feel like he's doing ok! Speaking of 16 years, we celebrated our 16th anniversary on May 18th! Emily said goodbye to her friends and coworkers as she wrapped up her 16 years as a speech-pathologist in Longview... 

We enjoyed one last hoorah at the lake with friends and, last but not least, we welcomed our newest nephew, Thomas Atticus Daulong, to the world. Congratulations Clare and Tim! Like I said, May was fairly uneventful!

June

June started off with a week's vacation with Emily's family in Hot Springs. We tubed, and tubed, and then we tubed some more! It was a great week spending quality time with everyone before we leave and we're so grateful for Emily's parents for being so intentional to make family vacation possible for the last 17 years! We took one last trip to Crossett, Arkansas where Adam had the opportunity to speak about the mission and vision of The Roots Network at Emily's hometown church, FBC Crossett, and we can't wait to see what kind of partnership the Lord forges with them. We also got to spend some time with Memaw before we left and, when we got home, some friends threw an Africa themed going away party for Abbott... thanks Sewells, it was fantastic!

The second half of June has been a whirlwind. We moved out of our tiny apartment, and into Emily's sister's house while they've been on vacation. Thanks Meredith and Faber! We wouldn't have been able to pack everything if we were still in the apartment, mostly because it wouldn't all fit... literally! For the last 10 days, we have juggled packing, phone calls, FaceTime, packing, meetings, breakfasts, dinners, play dates, and yes, more packing. The girls have had more play dates in the last 2 weeks than they've had in their entire lives combined, and I think the Koellings have single-handedly kept Amazon and Walmart in business! When it's all said and done, we'll be taking 17 suitcases with us, to the tune of 811 pounds. That's a lot of luggage people! And that'd not including the additional bags full of our stuff that the New Beginnings team will be bringing with them about 10 days after we arrive! Good luck NBBC, we'll see you soon!

What's Next?

July 3rd is, in the words of our 5 year old, just 2 sleeps away! We have a small army driving us to the airport, because it takes a small army to transport 17 suitcases and crates that weigh 811 pounds! It's been a long time coming, but the last year and a half has flown by and it is finally here. And we're ready. Suffice it to say that emotions are firing on all cylinders. We've laughed, and cried, and stressed, and worked, and prayed to get to this moment. We've milked our free time for all its worth to spend as much quality time with those we love. We're packed. We're prepared. We're nervous. We're sad. But most of all, we're excited about the adventure ahead, and humbled by the opportunity that God has given us. We say it all the time, but we cannot do this alone, and so many people have been so generous and sacrificial with their time and their finances to help us get here. Many of you are reading this newsletter, and we just want to say thank you and we love you. 

We'll hit the ground running on July 4th. Our first 10 days will involve getting unpacked and settled in our new house, buying a car, opening a bank account, getting our cell phones, and getting ready to welcome New Beginnings when their mission team arrives on July 13th. We'll update you again in a few months with our next newsletter, but in the meantime, here's how you can get involved...

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