Feb. 14 - Back In Congo

Mbote and Bon Jour! It's been a while since I've updated the blog, but we've been busy since January 19th, which is the day we left America. We flew out of Atlanta, then Washington D.C. for a 15 hour plane ride to Johannesburg, South Africa. We overnighted there with some missionary friends, then had a 4 hour plane ride to Congo the next morning, arriving on the 21st as scheduled.

We just got connected to the internet today, so I've been catching up on emails and other stuff. Pictured here is the last day I had with my boys in September 2007, just before coming to the States on furlough. There were 60 of them that day, and the first Sunday afternoon I had with them a couple weeks ago, there were also just above 60! I've played a lot of soccer in the last couple weeks, so I'm enjoying that and staying in shape.

Willy and Jean have done a fine job in keeping the church together during our absence, so our work continues with them. I'll be able to update the blog more regular now, so bear with me as I need to take some new pics and upload our latest ones from our plane trip. Thanks to all of you who have prayed for us on furlough and for our safe return to Congo.

January 1, 2009

Happy New Year to all of you. It has been exactly 2 weeks now since our granddaughter was born. The Greene family is busy packing and preparing for our return to Congo, but also enjoying some time with family. Our son Joshua has been home on leave since December 20th, and Tally's mom arrived in Tennessee today to see the baby.

The kids and I are currently in Georgia, then mom and granny will drive down tomorrow to join us for the weekend. Joshua returns to Camp Lejeune on Sunday the 4th, then on Monday the 5th we will return to Tennessee to visit with Nina, Brad and LeAnna Rose.

For those of you who follow this blog, I wanted to let you know that I have posted many pictures of the baby on facebook, as it is easier than posting on the blog. I will continue to update the blog, but if you would like to see pics on facebook, feel free to look me up and send a friend request.

Dec. 22 - She's Here!!

LeAnna Rose was born on Dec.18, 2008, 2:30pm CST, in Carthage, Tennessee. She weighed 6 lbs. 8 oz. and was 19" long. Mom and baby are both fine, so we thank the Lord for a safe delivery and a healthy child.

Tally was there for the birth (on Thursday), and I went up to see my new grandbaby over the weekend. Joshua arrived to our empty home in Georgia (from Camp Lejeune) that Saturday, and he'll be with us for 2 weeks. The kids & I came home today (Monday) to be with Josh, then we'll all go up to see the baby at the end of this week.

My wife has a bunch of pictures on our old camera, but I forgot to download them onto my computer. So, you'll just have to settle for the few pics I got on my new camera!

Proud New Parents

9 Year Old Uncle Josiah!

Grandma Price

Grandpa Price

Dec. 18 - Baby On The Way!

We got the call at 5:30 this morning, so Tally and Bethany left at 6:15 for the 2 1/2 hour drive up to Tennessee. Nina's contractions are 3-5 minutes apart, so they should have plenty of time to be there for the birth. Pray with us for a safe delivery.

Nov. 26 to 30 - Thanksgiving

We spent last Thanksgiving with the Ratterree family, as our little house in the woods didn't even have a kitchen sink at that time! Now, 1 year later, with the house fully furnished, we were able to enjoy Thanksgiving with the entire Greene family. (more below)

Surprise!

We didn't know if Joshua would be able to make it from Camp Lejeune or not. I called him on Wednesday afternoon, but as he was en route, he wouldn't answer my call. He caught a ride with a buddy on his way to Kentucky, who dropped Josh off in Knoxville. A family friend picked him up there, and at 10:15 he popped his head inside our front door! Needless to say, we were thrilled.

Our Two Oldest

Nina called Josh on Thanksgiving day to see if he was coming to our house, but he wouldn't answer her call either! Nina and Brad drove in on Thanksgiving day, so she was glad to see her brother in uniform as they pulled into our driveway.

On Friday, Nina and her mother spent the day shopping and visiting friends. The rest of us went to the Chickamauga Battlefield. Bethany & Josiah went inside the Museum, while I took Brad and Josh on a run through the half marathon course I ran a few weeks ago. Brad went about 4.5 miles with us, then turned back to the Museum. I took a wrong turn around the 9-mile mark, so Josh and I only ended up running 11 miles instead of 13!

Together Again!

This Thanksgiving was the first time our family has been together since Josh graduated from Boot Camp in February. So, here it is, the latest Greene family photo, including the newest (Greene / Price) member on the way!

Nina & Brad left Friday night to have Thanksgiving with Brad's brother on Saturday, but Josh stayed until Sunday. We drove him up to a truck-stop in Knoxville after the evening service, had supper at Hardee's and hung out with him until 11:30 pm. His buddy from Kentucky had to drive through some snow, so he didn't meet Josh until way after midnight. They arrived at Lejeune at 1:00 pm on Monday.

Only 1 More Month!

Nina is due on Dec. 29th, so here she is at 8 full months along. She is doing fine, but is suffering with back pain much of the time. Naturally, we desire the Lord's will, but we're also hoping for an early arrival. Please pray with us to that end.

November 16 - Nina's Baby Shower

I stayed home in Georgia this weekend, while my family went up to Carthage for Nina's baby shower. Sitting on Nina's far right is Brad's mother, Mrs. Lisa Price, and next to her is Hannah, noting the gifts.

The Baby's Room

As always, friends and family from Cornerstone Baptist Church blessed Nina and Brad with many nice gifts. Nina cleared out her sewing room to prepare it for the baby.

November 14 - NHL Hockey!

Back in summertime, Bethany & Josiah participated in a book-reading club at our local library here in Chickamauga. By simply reading 5 books each, they earned free tickets to both an Atlanta Hawks (basketball) and Atlanta Thrashers (hockey)game. As their parent, all I had to do was purchase 1 discounted ticket for myself, so it was a pretty good deal.

But, back when gas was close to $4 a gallon, I wasn't going to makes 2 trips to Atlanta, so I told the kids to choose 1 team to go see. Bethany is a Carolina Hurricanes fan, and the Thrashers are division rivals, so the photo reveals which sport we chose! This is Philips Arena in downtown Atlanta, where the 3 of us enjoyed our first professional hockey game.

Coming Out Of The Tunnel

Bethany & Josiah watching the Carolina Hurricanes coming out onto the ice to warm up before the game.

Pre-Game Practice

It was amazing to get a close-up view of the players on the ice. They skate by you so fast, executing passing drills and taking shots on goal. Hockey is one of the only sports I have not played, but I could easily get into it!

Our View

We had "end zone" seats way up near the top. However, a hockey arena isn't nearly as large as a baseball or football stadium, so it's still a decent view of the game. Amazingly enough, these are $32 seats, but I only had to pay $25 for mine. But, that's a whole lot better than paying $96 for 3, amen?

Thrashers Win!

Bethany was rooting for the visiting Canes, but they fell short that night. The Thrashers won 3-2, but she enjoyed her evening anyhow!

November 8 - Race Day!

Well, the day of the Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon has finally come. The clock shows 2 minutes and 5 seconds til race time. It was a brisk, cool morning, with a race time temperature of 45 degrees at 7:30am. That's too cold for my liking, as I like to run in the hot afternoons, but I was more than ready to begin this my first race.

There were a total of 1,222 participants in this race, 551 runnning the marathon (26.2 miles), and 671 of us "slackers" running the half marathon (13.1 miles). Continue to scroll down and follow along as I give you a chronological account of my day.

What A Crowd!

Have you ever wondered how a race works? When you have 100's or 1,000's of participants, how do the all the runners who begin nowhere near the starting line have a fair chance? The answer is simple.

There is the "gun time" that begins the race, which is the clock on display at the start / finish line. However, each runner has a timing chip attatched to one of his / her shoes.

You can be at the very back of the pack, starting several minutes behind those in the front, but each individual's time begins when they cross the starting line. Therefore, you can cross the finish line behind others, but if your individual time is faster, you will be the winner.

Patiently Waiting

Slowly We All Start

Crossing The Starting Line