Game night with the girls

Carrie and I had a game night for most of the female teachers at VCS. It was a lot of fun playing games, eating snacks, and simply enjoying each other's company. Many friends brought some of their favorite games but I think the hit was Reesa's game called Snorta. It was hilarious. Each player has an animal in a barn. Each player has these cards with animals on it and each person turns over a card one at a time. When you see a match you have to say the sound of the animal the person with the match has. It sound complicated and from what I saw it was a bit confusing to my brain. So, while the girls were playing I took a video of it to share with all of you!! Enjoy!

An amazing visit to a quilt shop

This is an amazing story of God's faithfulness even when you don't expect it in the least bit. This happened to Carrie and me this summer while we were visiting beautiful Estes Park, Colorado with some dear friends. On our last day in Estes Park we were going to visit a quilt/fabric shop where our friend's mother has a friend who started work there that day. I just thought we were going to a cute fabric/quilt store but the Lord had other plans.

When I walked in I was overwhelmed at the amount of merchandise that was on display. The merchandise ranged from beautiful Amish quilts to things one would find in Christian bookstore. As I looked around simply taking it all in I was introduced to the employee as a missionary. This lady kindly smiled and wanted to know a lot about what I did in Vienna. I continued to browse and heard that there were sale items downstairs. So, I ventured downstairs and was greeted by our friend, who was starting her first day of work, and the owner of the business. They had just come back from starting their day with prayer. I was quite impressed. The owner was told that Carrie and I were the missionaries that she had just been told about and she (the owner) grabbed us and took us to the office area. She asked a few questions about our sending organization and wanted to know about our support levels. She then went to her desk and pulled out the "missionary account" checkbook. I was astonished. She wrote us a check right there on the spot!! It was amazing. They then prayed for us for about 20 minutes all the while I was in tears and shaky at God's amazing faithfulness. They then told us that we can get anything in she shop that we would like. The thank yous couldn't come from my mouth fast enough.

I was overwhelmed at God's love. Just that morning I was stressing again about my support level and by this lady and her business I was reaffirmed that yes, I am following the Lord's path. I still tear up as I write this. It is amazing who the Lord uses everyday to remind us that He is faithful and will not give up on us.

If you are ever in Estes Park, Colorado visit the Cottage Bliss store. It is amazing and their profits go to missionaries. What a wonderful way to run a business. Here is the address and website:

Cottage Bliss

Unit 36-A

870 Moraine Ave,

Estes Park, CO 80517-8054

(970) 577-1557

http://cottageblissestes.com/

An afternoon with friends

This afternoon Carrie, RheaAnne, Leslie, and I went on a paddle boat. It was great! Here are some pictures to prove we did it!

After paddle boating we went to a sporting complex to watch a group of people play sand volleyball. It was fun to watch. Eventually RheaAnne and I found a cute round swing so we swung for a while and then Carrie and I decided to leave. On the way out I found these poles which I thought looked like they would be good balance beams so I tried them out. It was fun but I fell off quite a bit.

Carrie and I bought a Toyota!

Carrie and I are excited! We have shopped around and priced checked and have finally settled on a Toyota. We bought a Toyota sewing machine! We are so excited about this as we didn't think we could get through the school year without sewing a quilt or two!! ;) We also found a few skirt patterns and bag patterns in the states and are excited to fill our time with creating masterpieces! Here are a few pictures of our beauty!

Seeing God's beauty

I love sunsets, lakes, rivers, and the mountains. They all remind me of God's imagination and beauty. I really love to see the sun's rays in a sunset. I captured a photo of this while I was in Colorado this summer. Enjoy.

We made scrubs

My sister works at an animal kennel. She loves her job but needed more animal print scrubs. So Carrie and I decided to make her some scrubs and matching reversible bag to complete the outfit! Let me tell you she loved the scrubs but was quite uncertain about having the matching bag!! ;) Here is proof of our accomplishments!

Please pray for Carrie's dad...

Hello all,

Carrie and I are requesting prayer for her dad, Francis. He was rushed to the hospital yesterday around 3:00 in septic shock. We spent the afternoon and evening in various waiting rooms awaiting word of what was going on and when we can see him. They had to do emergency surgery on his arm where they believe the initial infection had come from. The surgery went well but he is, as they have all told us, " a very sick man and we will see what the next 48 hours will bring." This is stressful and oh so hard. They are having trouble keeping his blood pressure at a safe level and keeping him breathing. I asked many questions and one thing I found out is this is in no way related to his heart attacks he has had within the last few months. So, please keep Francis in your prayers. He will be in the hospital for "several weeks" (as they say). He is currently in the ICU.

Thank you,

Carrie and Amanda

Prayers for support...

Hello all,

Carrie and I are currently in our beloved Colorado and are trying to spread the word about all that has happened this last year! Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we raise additional monthly support. I (Amanda) am at 76% of my monthly needed amount and Carrie is at 86%. I am stressed out because it is the lowest amount I have been at all year. I know that the Lord will provide. He always does! If you know of any creative ideas for additional monthly donations please feel free to let us know. I appreciate all of your continued words of encouragement and prayers!

Love,

Amanda and Carrie

God's Gifts for June 28, 2009

1. Another church service at my home church
2. Welcoming smiles from people
3. Needing to buy jeans two sizes smaller than last year at this time
4. Lunch at Kokoro
5. Edamame with peanut sauce
6. Fixing my car all by myself
7. Being able to help my parents
8. Dinner with mom, dad, and Chante
9. Chats/emails from friends

God's Gifts for June 27, 2009

• Safe travels back to Colorado from Kansas
• Walking from the Colorado state line to the Kansas state line and back
• Taking a lot of pictures with Merlin's camera - boy will she be surprised when she downloads her photos!
• Listening to my favorite songs while driving
• Sweet Tea
• Corn free pizza =)
• Aloe lotion for a lobster looking sunburn
• Raspberry lemonade

God's Gifts for June 26, 2009

1. Playing games with Cynthia - it was so much fun and I can safely say that I am not good at Nerts or Dutch Blitz but I can certainly provide a lot of laughter!
2. A good cheeseburger
3. Petting a very kind cat
4. Finishing all of the square by square puzzles
5. A nap in the car
6. The wind
7. Evening rain
8. Free museums full of very interesting historical artifacts
9. Time to read
10. 6 raccoons - even though they scared me a bit!
11. Air conditioning
12. Counting bales of hay really fast!!

God's Gifts for June 25, 2009

• Shoes for $1
• Safe travels to Kansas
• Watching an amazing lightning storm from the driver's seat
• Rain
• getting our camp physicals done for free and without any hassles
• Running with Chante - she thought she was going to die but the time spent with her was invaluable
• McDonald's iced coffee
• Working on the square by square game

God's Gifts for June 24, 2009

• Breakfast with mom and dad
• Good chats in the car with Chante
• Grilled chicken at KFC
• Spending the day with Carrie and Chante
• Finding a pattern for scrubs for Chante
• Finding the games Rush Hour and Square by Square
• Books and a DVD are ready at the library
• Incentive charts for 75 cents

Taking particular note of God's daily gifts

In church on Sunday we were challenged to take particular note that God is right alongside of us by noticing his daily gifts to us (no matter how small). We need to see God's footprints and know that He is all around us. We then had to think of one gift that God had given us within the last 24 hours no matter how small. While doing this it reminded me of several friends who are keeping track of grace in the small things moments. I like the idea of paying special attention to the daily gifts of God no matter how small. So, here are gifts from God that were noticed for yesterday and today!

• My home church visit was encouraging! I missed hearing the sermon solely in English and was quite surprised at how quickly my pastor spoke. People were excited to speak with me and that blessed my heart!
• Precious time spent in laughter and stories with family. Reminding my father that he is loved!
• Carrie's dad maybe didn't have another heart attack and will have more tests to help figure out what is going on.
• Grandpa Wiggins is getting the treatment he needs for pneumonia.
• A comfy bed to sleep on at my brother's house.
• Some funny dogs to play with and make me laugh out loud.
• A relaxing evening spent with my sister in law!
• Helping my dad fix problems with a car.
• Chats with my mom
• Macaroni and cheese with peas
• A cat to pet

Hello Friends!

Carrie and I are safely in Colorado! We are excited to see all of you at our coffee/dessert evenings where we will tell you about our ministry in Vienna! Look at your inbox soon for an official invitation. We are so thankful for each and everyone of you and hope to visit with you before we head back to Vienna on August 10th!

49 Kilometers

So, I've been wanting to ride my bike down the Donauinsel.  It looks beautiful and my curiosity of what it looks like and how long it really is finally got the best of me.  So, today, Carrie, Cindi and I went down the entire Donauinsel on our bikes.  It was fun and hard.  By the time I arrived back home on my bike I had ridden 49 Kilometers (30 miles)!  It is amazing.  I didn't think that something like that was ever possible for me!  Here is a picture of the odometer on my bike to prove the correct mileage!!!

A Sunday of Churches...

I've been wanting to hear the Vienna Boy's Choir sing.  I read about it in a book and researched it and then headed out.  It was amazing.  You couldn't see them at all but you could certainly hear them!  After listening to them I went to my own church.  So it seems as though it was a day of churches.  Here are some pictures and a video of my Sunday visits.                                                                 My home church here in Vienna

 (the second picture is the German symbol for the YMCA which our church meets in.)

Vienna Boy's Choir

A Bloggable moment

So, my friend, Melissa M., is a very good blog account updater.  Every once in a while I see her taking pictures and I just understand that you never know when something could be a "bloggable moment." Today I actually had a bloggable moment and when it happened I thought of Melissa.  Unfortunately she was not there to witness this amazing moment so I will recount it here for her and all of you.  

My birthday is tomorrow (Monday).  My friend Cindi's birthday was Saturday.  So, since we both know the same people here we decided to celebrate our birthdays together.  We had a get together at her house on Saturday.  One of the people who attended the birthday party also attends our church.  He decided to stand up during announcement time and share with the entire congregation that we celebrated our birthdays yesterday and proceeded to say that Cindi and I should stand up so everyone can sing to us.  I seriously wanted to disappear.  I thought about not standing up but then I realized, quite quickly mind you, that I would be pulled to my feet if I decided to revolt.  So I stood up and was serenaded by some beautiful voices from many different countries all singing to me and Cindi to honor us for our birthdays.  It was interesting, fun, and quite embarrassing.  I can honestly say that I have never had the entire congregation sing happy birthday to me before.  I figured that this counts as a bloggable moment.  Sorry I don't have any pictures to share it was quite a quick, impromptu moment!  Blessings!

A Football Expert??!!

So, this is my week for recess duty. I like recess duty because the kids crack me up and I love playing with them. Today a group of 5th graders brought out an American football to play with at recess. I was amazed by this because I haven't seen an actual American football in a long time. I was also curious by this simply because I wanted to see if the kids knew what to do with it. Well, they got the general concept. Throw the ball, try to catch the ball, and then try to kick the ball. I did notice that they needed a little guidance with technique so I went up to help them. I taught them how to hold the ball correctly to throw it, and then how to catch it without getting seriously hurt, and finally how to hold the ball so someone else can kick it. While I was walking away to check on another group of kids one of the 5th grade football players said, "Wow, Miss Brunker, you're like a football expert!" I literally laughed out loud when I heard this but I guess it is good that I have 5 brothers who taught me football. Thank you brothers!!!

Leaving on a Jet Plane...

Hey All! I just wanted to let you all know that we have our plane tickets and will be flying into Colorado (DIA) on June 15. Our return flight to Vienna is August 10. We are excited to see you all and tell you about our ministry here at VCS. If you would like to get together with us please send us an e-mail and let us know!!! Thank you for all of your support and prayers. We appreciate you more than you know!