Shay Thomason – Page 6 – everything beautiful in it's time

A Nesting Bethany

It was another day of sickness and lots of sleep. Not only did I sleep in today, but I ended up taking two naps, both of which were more than two hours in length. Avery, Titus, and I continue to hack and cough while sharing the Kleenex box which is running low. Thankfully, Bethany has been able to stay healthy thus far although she said she’s a little worried she might be sick by tomorrow. This is our life and for me it feels like I’ve written this same blog many times before.

Bethany has gone in to full “nesting” mode. I asked her today if pregnancy nesting was scientifically proven and she affirmed it so it must be true (plus, I’m pretty sure it’s scientifically proven that challenging a pregnant woman is unwise). This has happened with all of our kids, but right before she’s about to give birth (either a few days or weeks before), Bethany gets a little crazy with getting things organized, purchased, or whatever else may be required. With Titus I vividly remember running around Sears trying to find a new dishwasher for our house. Bethany was dead set on having a new dishwasher before that baby came. That same night she ended up going in to labor. I don’t remember the specifics for when Avery was born, but I think it had something to do with Christmas decorations or cleaning the house. For the past few days it’s been a bunch of the same.

Today she really wanted to make sure we went to the mall and got a few things that we’ve been needing. Even though I’m sick, we packed in to the car and off we went (I should be clear that she didn’t force me–I went of my volition). She also followed up on a tax accountant in the U.S. to help us with international tax law. She was working with the kids to make sure they cleaned up the living room and got things organized. She did all the dishes. She got a box out of the garage with baby clothes that she’s been wanting to loan to another family (which I hand delivered today). Earlier this week we were reorganizing our bedroom, throwing out old clothes, and even taking things down to the basement storage. Maybe some of these things sound normal to you, but I’m telling you things have ramped up around here. At one point she asked me if I wanted her to drive the car because I wasn’t feeling well and I told her I was too scared of her driving us because of her super nesting mode she’s in. Her response, “We gotta get this stuff done.” Yes, mam!

Tags baby, Bethany, nesting, sick, sleep, tissue

365 Czech Republic

Asleep on the Office Floor

Above is a photo of me sleeping on the floor of my office today. I don’t remember a time in my life where I’ve done something like that, but I guess there’s always a first time for everything. The back story goes like this. I had a long meeting in the morning and got back to the office around 1:15pm. I hadn’t had any lunch, so a few of us went and grabbed some lunch. Upon returning I just didn’t feel well. I figured I would just go home, but the thought of driving for 30 minutes just didn’t sound possible considering how I was feeling. As soon as we walked back in to the office, I laid down on the ground and feel asleep for what I think was about 45 minutes. My body just basically shut down. During that time time, my teammate Daniel got this photo of me presumably because the thought it was just weird that I would fall asleep right there. I literally used my wallet as a pillow.

After my nap, I did feel well enough to get to the car and drive home. However, as soon as I got home I laid down and slept for another 2 hours. Titus ended up convincing Bethany to send me in some medicine because he thought it would instantly make me well enough to take him outside and play baseball. I took the medicine, but it definitely wasn’t enough to get me outside and on my feet. I feel completely and utterly exhausted even now.

Tonight we ended up taking a meal to one of our missionary friends and teammates, but while we were driving Titus said he was going to throw up. We pulled over and sure enough he took care of that in the parking lot of a grocery store. We honestly thought he was getting better even though he’s still really stuffed up, but I think we’re going to keep him out of school again tomorrow. Avery doesn’t seem to have it as bad as Titus and I, but she’s still battling something too. This really isn’t my favorite time to be sick with Bethany so close to her due date. We’re in that place where anything could happen and my hope would be that we could all feel better before that baby arrives. Not only do I not want to be sick when the baby comes (simply because that’s usually not good for babies), but I also want to be well enough to help with all the other details. Lord willing, we’ll be healthy and ready but even if that doesn’t happen we’ll just have to figure out how to respond well.

Tags sick, sleep, tired

365 Czech Republic

The Streak is Over

Our streak is over. It’s been about two months since we’ve been sick, but it all came back the last couple days. No doubt that is the longest health streak we’ve had since arriving in Czech, so that’s a blessing.

The sickness started with Titus on Sunday night and has worked it’s way through the family with only one survivor at this point and that’s Bethany. I’m not complaining. This seems like a normal sickness, maybe like a cold which has given Titus, Avery, and me runny noses, congestion, and soar throats. The only bummer is that last night Titus woke up in the middle of the night throwing up in his bed which severely alters any kind of sleep pattern a human might have. All I remember doing is take the sheets on his bed and putting them in the washer–beyond that it’s anyone’s guess. It was almost cruel for Bethany to ask me today if I had put both his top sheet and fitted sheet in there (she didn’t want to have to reach in and see, which makes sense). But who is going to remember that!? I’m pretty sure I slept through most of the event.

Needless to say I’m a little tired this evening. The kids are stuffy and fussy. And Bethany is just flat out ready to get that baby out and not be sick in the process. We’re mostly in good spirits, but I think we’ll be battling this sickness for a few days. Despite this, I did manage to make it to the grocery store tonight for food and Titus and I took out the recycling (shown above) which was getting full. Beyond that we haven’t done much else. I was at the JV office most of the day since I’m not as a sick as usual, but we’ll just have to see how the rest of the week goes. I’ve actually got an important meeting in the morning and I’m hoping to get a good night’s sleep tonight and feel better tomorrow. I’m doing my best to take as much zinc as I can in hopes of reducing the amount of time I’m sick as well as the symptoms. Again, I’m hopeful this too will work!

That’s all for this Wednesday. It’s time to put the kids to bed and I’m going to try to be close behind them. Good night!

Tags recycling, sick, tired

365 Czech Republic

Thirty Eight

Post author By Shay
Post date May 12, 2015
1 Comment on Thirty Eight

As of Today Bethany is 38 weeks pregnant with baby #3 and she got a good report today during he second to last check-up. After next week’s appointment, she’ll be transferred to the care of the hospital who will see her for week 40 should that be required. Things work a little bit different here in Czech for these kinds of appointments, but I would say overall it’s been a pretty similar experience as to what we’ve had in the States.

Following her appointment this morning, we headed over to our friend Lauren’s house because she’s the one helping us with all the details at the Czech hospital and will be Bethany’s doula as well as translator. She just wanted to nail down all of the details and make sure everything was ready to go in regards to paperwork and the birth plan. There are still a few things left to fill out and seems that there’s always a lot of paperwork to do in Czech, but we’re excited to be nearing the finish line and meet our new daughter!

Since Lauren and her family live near the JV office, I decided to just go in and work for bit even though the office was mostly closed today. Usually everyone takes the two days following the conference for a little time off because of just how busy things are and the big push leading up to conference. It was nice and quiet there today and I had about an hour to get some emails out and follow up on a few outstanding items from the week. Everyone should be back in tomorrow and we’ll keep rollin’ with projects and all the other things going on.

I try to keep a book with me when I’m out and about, just in case I get a moment or two where I’m waiting or have time to read. When I went to pick up Bethany her meeting was going a little longer so I ended up reading in the car which I had parked in the shade. I’m really enjoying this book Gospel-Centered Counseling and it’s focus on how the gospel changes how we help people. There is one quote in particular that stood out to me today that I think is just helpful. Bob Kellemen writes on pages 34-35,

Typically we ask God and seek help from each other to change our feelings and our circumstances. God is in the change business, but a very different type of change–heart change, Christlikeness–presenting everyone “perfect,” or mature, in Christ (Col. 1:28).

Listen to the song of eternity–it’s about celebrating Christ’s victory and the Bride’s purity for God’s glory! We look at our lives and want instructions or explanations. What we need is imagination and vision to see life today in light of eternity.“.

I quoted more for the context, but it’s that last sentence in particular that stood out to me. We do need to be able to see our life today in light of eternity. That takes work to do, but if we look at each day through the lens of the gospel narrative we will begin to see our story as part of the greater story that the Lord has written which started with Creation and ends with Consummation. When we view our lives as part of the greater story we get a bigger picture of what the Lord is doing and can see His hand more clearly in the details in our lives. I need to take those truths to heart and remember that God is working in all the details of our lives in light of eternity. That’s a wonderful truth and a great reminder to me today.

Tags baby, doctor, gospel, Jesus, pregnancy

365 Czech Republic

A (Mon)Day of Rest

With a full week of conference behind us, my family and my team took today off for a little rest. It was nice to sleep in a bit today (whatever that means with little kids running around the house) and just spend time together as a family. I did my best to stay away from email, but I must admit I had a few things to take care of and made sure I wrote some people back that had been waiting on things from me all week. Mostly we lounged today, did some laundry, cleaned the house a bit, and I began reading a new book I got called Gospel-Centered Counseling by Robert W. Kelleman. We even had time this afternoon to watch Wall-E and that’s just a great movie. It was a nice Monday of rest.

This morning Titus came to my desk where I was sitting and reading and said, “Dad, you gotta see this” and grabbed my arm to pull me towards the other room. Upon arrival to the living room he said, “It’s a battlefield!” That’s when I saw what you see in the photo above. Like a scene from Braveheart, all of his toys were standing on the floor ready for some kind of fight. I’m pretty sure I heard Olaf yelling “Freeeeedooooooooommmm!!!” Titus really should’ve been in school today, but he’s sick right now which is a bummer. I think it’s just a bad cold, but he’s got a cough that’s bad enough that it caused him to throw up today which is a bummer. Avery had the same thing yesterday so we’re pretty sure it’s just something that’s going around but hopefully won’t last too long. We’ve been so blessed with good health for the past 6-7 weeks so we’re thankful for that.

Late this afternoon after we all had taken naps, Bethany made the comment, “I could really just go for a Starbucks today.” In the States that may have been a normal comment, but since Starbucks is about a 30 minute drive from us it’s a pretty rare treat. But something in me just thought, “let’s do it!” and I told her, “Yes! Let’s go and we’ll just have dinner out there.” So this evening we decided to take a little drive and head in to the big city that is Ostrava and enjoy some family time there. With such a full week and with me already feeling guilty about the lack of Mother’s Day celebration, it seemed like a fun thing to do and I knew it would bless Bethany. When we got there the kids somehow convinced Bethany to let them get “shakes” (aka: Frappuccinos) from Starbucks. To my knowledge this is the first time they’ve ever had them (editors note: they only ordered the non-coffee based ones…we’re not that dumb!). After take her first sip Avery said, “This is the best treat ever!” Here’s a few photos of them guzzling.

After enjoying our family Starbucks, we went over to the play place that the kids love so much. Since it was a Monday, it wasn’t very busy which was nice and the kids just love going up and down the huge slide. Next to the play area is a little store where you can get cosmetics and other things that you can’t get at a regular store, so Bethany went in and got a few things that are not easy to find. I was glad she had a little time to do that and more glad that she was able to find a few fun things for herself. I think it was a fun night for everyone.

That’s all for this Monday!

Tags coffee, day off, family, Monday, rest

365 Czech Republic

Mother’s Day and the Last Day of Spring Conference

Post author By Shay
Post date May 10, 2015
1 Comment on Mother’s Day and the Last Day of Spring Conference

I’m back writing again from my desk at home as today was the last day of Spring Conference. Above is a photo I got today of Dave Patty teaching the last session on family traditions and I thought it was a fun and helpful session. At one point he passed the mic around to people to hear their different traditions and it was great to hear all the different things that families do in their homes and when they go on vacation. This is an area that Bethany and I feel we could do better in. For instance, family vacation has been harder to think through as everything is still so new and we don’t always know where to go or what it’ll look like. No matter what we want to try something this summer and just see what might work for us here in Europe.

Conference ended with a big performance from all the JV school-aged kids that they had been preparing all week. Our kids are still too young to be involved with it, but they had fun watching it (actually, Avery wasn’t feeling amazing and fell asleep in Bethany’s arms, but Titus sat down in the front of the room and watched). It was full of singing, dancing, and even some skits that the kids did a wonderful job at. Even with just a few days of preparation these young kids had memorized lines, hand motions, and even dances and I was really impressed with how well they did! Apparently this is something that happens every year among the missionary kids and I’m sure it’s something they also look forward to. Well done, kids!

Above is a photo I took of one of the photos that the men gave to all the ladies today at the Spring Conference in honor of moms on Mother’s Day. I have written already about how amazing Bethany has been this week with all the full days we’ve had and my limited time, and that’s just worth repeating. She has been amazing considering she’s only a few weeks away from having our third child and how involved I was with conference this year. I’m sad to say I didn’t have anything for her by way of a gift today not because I didn’t think about a week ago, but I just didn’t make the time to plan for it. It’s something I am not proud of today, especially considering just how much she has helped me and our family this week. Even this morning Avery threw up during breakfast so Bethany stayed with her, thus missing the last session of conference. Wife, I love you and you’re an incredible mom to our kids. Thank you for caring for us this week and always, and for how you are an example of Christ. I am reminded of Mark 10:45, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” You are so like Christ in that you give your life for this family and for me. Thank you! I love you and happy Mother’s Day!

Tags event, Mother's Day, Spring Conference

365 Czech Republic

Spring Conference Day 4

It’s weird that Saturday feels like Thursday. I’ve been thrown off with the days all week because the conference started on Wednesday night and the days have been full. Today was probably the fullest day yet, but it was another good one!

Today was just non-stop with two main session in the morning. During the first session this morning our friend Tanya Miller who serves in Poland did this incredible recitation of Scripture called The History of Redemption in which she literally was just quoting a series of Bible verses for at least twenty minutes straight, all set to music and accompanying artwork. It was a very moving and rich time of just listening to God’s Word being recited. The verses are all organized in such a way that it goes from Creation to Revelation and walks through the redemption story. Towards the end when she was reciting from Revelation I’m not sure there was a dry eye in the room including her own. It was an incredible thing to witness and both Bethany and I were in awe of the amount of work that must have taken, but more importantly with the truth of the Scripture.

After lunch today I went from rehearsal to a meeting and then to a larger “Communications” meeting that I spoke at. As the director of the communications team for JV I got the opportunity to speak to a number of different communication areas and get the whole JV family excited about different things we’re working on and serving them in. I had fun with them and hopefully they enjoyed the meeting and left with a few things that are helpful to them in the future.

Tonight we had a special worship night in the big tent that we’re meeting in and I again had the privilege of playing the drums and being part of leading people in song. It was a family-focused event and so all the kids were with us and I got the above photo of them singing and playing in the front of the room near the stage. A little later they all congregated on the actual stage and we sang worship songs that were for kids and then for everyone. It was a sweet time tonight and I had a lot of fun.

Bethany has been having a lot more discomfort today than previous days in this pregnancy. She has been an absolute trooper with taking care of the kids and other things while I have been involved with various things at this conference. I have been so impressed with her this week and she heart has not been one of complaint. She’s a model of sacrificial love to both me and the kids and that couldn’t have been more true than today.

I really haven’t had much sleep this week, but I believe the Lord has really sustained me and given me the energy needed to serve the Josiah Venture family this week. It was one of my joys to serve and support others and I have been blessed this week just to be part of the conference. I go to bed tired tonight but hopefully that’s because I spent my energy on others and not on my self. As I’ve heard said by others, “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.”

Tags Bethany, conference, Josiah Venture, rest, tired

365 Czech Republic

Spring Conference Day 3 and a Trip to the Science Center

Post author By Shay
Post date May 8, 2015
1 Comment on Spring Conference Day 3 and a Trip to the Science Center

Today was the third day of Josiah Venture’s Spring Conference and it was definitely a fun one. I had the privilege again this morning to play drums for the worship team and just really enjoyed that. At one point I looked out from the drums to see people just singing so loudly to the Lord. We ended the set this morning with “In Christ Alone” which is easily my favorite modern hymn and hearing everyone just belt it out was something special.

This afternoon was set aside for “Family Day” and everyone at the conference (I think it’s 300 something people?) went to a nearby science center which was a blast. It was an amazing place and our kids loved it. They had an entire hands-on area just for kids six years old and under which is almost hard to describe. They had a water area where you could play with water toys. There was a music area with keyboards, drums, and a recording booth for playing instruments. Everything inside was interactive and the kids just went wild on all of it. Here are a bunch of a photos I got from it.

There were a ton of places in the museum that we didn’t get to see, but we also went to this big steel manufacturing area which was just incredible. The sheer size of some of the equipment in there was overwhelming. But it was also interactive and kid-friendly so our kids played on everything and anything they could. We ended up going to that place twice, the first time by ourselves but then a second time with our friends the Wicks. It was great to catch up with them a bit and we enjoyed seeing our kids play together. Here’s a few more photos from that building.

Tonight after we got back Titus asked if I would be up for throwing him a few pitches so we found a nice spot on the lawn at the hotel to play some baseball. Zach and a new friend, Evan, came too and we had a mini baseball game. Titus sometimes asks if we can “do slow-mo” which means he wants to make a slow video of him hitting the ball. So Zach became the camera man and got the below video of Titus crush a “deep downtown” homer to right-center field.

More Titus Slow-Mo Baseball from Shay on Vimeo.

Tomorrow is my first morning off from leading music, so I might get an extra half hour of sleep which will be nice. We’ve had a full and busy time at conference but it’s been great to catch up with friends. I’ve got a presentation tomorrow for all the JV missionaries which will be fun so we’ll just see how that goes!

365 Czech Republic

Spring Conference Day 2 and USA Hockey in Czech!

Post author By Shay
Post date May 7, 2015
1 Comment on Spring Conference Day 2 and USA Hockey in Czech!

Today was the second day of Spring Conference and again I sit here tonight tired and worn out, but also super blessed. This morning was actually an extra special blessing because I had the privilege of leading music with my friend Zach. Zach and I have known each other since the fourth grade and been friends ever since. It’s an unbelievable blessing that we get to serve the Lord in the same organization and in the same country of Czech Republic today. It’s an even more incredible blessing that I got to serve with Zach this morning by leading music for the Josiah Venture family. In the photo above taken by our mutual friend Landen, you can see Zach and I playing guitar with another missionary, Christy. We did more of a “coffee house” feel for music today and it was a true joy to serve with Zach and to lead others in a time of worship.

But if that wasn’t sweet enough, I had the second joy today of taking Titus to his first ever hockey game here in Czech! Oh, and it just so happened to be Team USA playing against Belarus! I’m still energized by the fun we had this afternoon at the game and I honestly can’t believe that the USA was playing just 30 minutes from us. Above is a photo of us walking at the arena with Titus wearing a paper “helmet” that they were passing out to the kids. You can see how excited he was by the smile on his face.

The USA was playing Belarus today and sadly this was their first loss in this World Championship tournament. Despite the loss, however, we had a really fun time and it was quite the experience to see an international hockey game in Czech. Zach and Kara were the masterminds behind getting the tickets for us and putting the plans together and we had a ton of fun cheering for USA. Below is a little video I caught of the action and you see just how close we were to the ice!

USA vs Belarus in Ostrava, Czech Republic from Shay on Vimeo.

There were a surprising number of fans there supporting the United States, including two guys completely covered head to toe in American flags. I loved this guy sitting behind us that had an American flag draped across himself and the chairs.

Titus and I got up during the first period to get some food thinking we could just come back in and continue enjoying the game. But I guess the rules are different here because after loading up on hot dogs and sausage we weren’t allowed to take our food into the stadium. So we ended up eating and watching the game on the screens near the food area. Here’s a shot of Titus where I perched up on these standing tables.

I think the absolute highlight for us tonight was when we got this photo on the big screen at the arean TWICE! Look at Titus sporting his new USA scarf.

Here’s a couple more photos we got as we were leaving the game.

We made it back this evening to an excited Avery who literally ran down the hall to see us and give me a hug. We had an extra hat from the game that we gave to her and this is the photo I got.

What a fun day! So glad we got to make a memory like that today and enjoy rooting for our home country. Thanks to my friends Zach and Kara for inviting us with you today and for being awesome. It’s a joy to serve with you (and watch hockey games)!

Tags Belarus, fun, hockey, ice hockey, USA, worship

365 Czech Republic

Spring Conference – Day 1

Today was the start of the Josiah Venture Spring Conference, an annual event for all the missionaries to come and be together. The theme this year is “Family on Mission” and Dave Patty (the president of the organization) will be the main speaker. But as I sit here in my bed at the hotel with my family asleep around me, I’m just flat out tired.

We got an early start on the day because we needed to be out the door in order to make it here in time for music rehearsal (we live about 40 minutes from where we’re staying this week). Amazingly, we did leave on time and made it here but rehearsals didn’t go as planned today. I’m playing the drums and all in all it went just fine, but our music leader’s family all got the stomach flu so we had to improvise a lot of different things today to make music practice go well. I think we ended up rehearsing for a totally of five hours throughout today, plus we played the music during tonight’s session which as about another thirty minutes of playing. I haven’t played the drums in over a year, so my hands are hurting a bit and my legs are tired. However, despite my physical state I really didn’t enjoy playing worship music with a bunch of other missionaries. There are so many talented people serving in so many different countries. It’s pretty awesome.

It rained a ton today, so that put a bit of a damper (literally?) on things. If not a damper, it just made things a little more challenging. But tonight’s session was good and I felt like overall the conference is off to a great start. Above you can see a photo of Dave teaching and he mostly did an intro to his messages for the rest of the week.

After the main session and a long day, I ended up playing another hour or so of music with Zach and another missionary named Christy. We’ll actually be leading music tomorrow morning (yes, really) and I’ll be playing guitar. We’ll be there bright an early at 7:30am for rehearsal. I honestly hope I make it. My body is so tired at this moment that I’m not even sure I’ll have the energy to change out of my clothes!

I really don’t want my tired tone to affect how I felt about today. Playing music was a ton of fun and I’m so blessed to be able to serve that way this week. However, this has added some extra work to Bethany today which is double hard with her in the last weeks of pregnancy. The kids are excited to be here and for them a new place and new kids around is really exciting (I regret that I don’t have time to tell the story about how Titus got out of child care tonight and was running around the hotel crying).

So with heavy eyes I leave you in hopes that the next six hours of sleep will feel like ten!