The Six Senses of Life Overseas

Nothing ever prepares you for arriving in the dark of night on a new continent. There isn't enough cultural sensitivity classes, language training or dining at a hole in the wall ethnic restaurant in your city that can prepare you for the way your life will change.

Go ahead and embrace that truth. You can have all the training and orientation in the world, but stepping foot on the soil of your new overseas home will challenge and change you in ways that you will only understand once you are there. 

You can't fully prepare your senses. 

Prepare your senses to be ravished in the country to where you are headed. Take in the sights and sounds because too soon they will become commonplace.

I'm over at Velvet Ashes today sharing about how to experience life in your over new overseas home with all six of your senses. Yes, six senses. The sixth might be the most important.

Photo Credit: D-Stanley via Compfight cc

10 Survival Tips While Your Husband Is Away

{I wrote this back a few months back when my hubs was traveling a ton overseas. I'm excited to be encouraging the Velvet Ashes community with my 10 Survival Tips While Your Husband is Away today!}

Out of the past twelve weeks my husband has been gone six of those weeks. I love serving our family here while he heads to Africa and South America (his two recent excursions) to work on water and sanitation projects. But let's be real...It is exhausting.

His longest trips are three weeks. We set that as a personal rule for our family for sanity, purity and protection, but I know for many of you your husband is gone far longer than three weeks at a time. I've learned a few things over the course of his travels.

These are things that I do and some things that I don't do so that me and my daughter not only survive, but thrive while he is away.

Head on over to Velvet Ashes and read all 10 of my learned-by-experience tips. This really is for any woman at home or overseas whose husband travels.