Finland is a truly beautiful country and even though the sun never sets they have the most beautiful sunsets lol. I am here is summer. But let me tell you our adventure to getting to this point.
Firstly weeks ago my storms start telling me that they want to go fishing. They have no idea we are going on holiday. They have no clue about the destination. But every day they want to go fishing.
Now fast forward and we are preparing to travel. First how do we get to the airport? Concerning but by some miracle my mum turns up at the house to help us travel with the kids on public transport to the airport.
We just about make our first bus connection. With a little running from me and the little man we get their. Next we have 18 minutes to make the next bus connection and travel is piling up. We make it with 5 minutes to spare thanks to some miracle of God. But just as the bus is about to pull up my hubby realises I have left his backpack at the bus stop.
He takes off running. I get the storms, the luggage and the adults on the bus. All the while worrying I have managed to lose his camera and other precious items! The bus driver then hearing my conversation with my mum stops the bus and asks if he wants me to wait! I said no we should be ok. Call desperately to figure out if everything is ok. As we go to the otherside of the town for our next stop. As the bus starts to fill we see my hubby who has run across the town having found his bag. He makes the bus. Praise God.
We arrive at the airport and after some misguided listening we follow my mum to the correct terminal and check in.
Well we sit and wait for our plane to be announced which gate. The hubby is off looking for shirt. He does not want to be sweaty from his jog! Then I see the news so I think ok let's go. He goes to grab some water while I make my way with the boys. As we approach they are closing the gate! Seriously closing the gate! We aren't late there were no last calls but they are closing the gate. The lady says excellent our last four. So I call Jeremy tell him forget the water and come down. So he races down and they lock the gate behind him!
We get on the plane settle down and we are ready to go! Nope we just sit there due to some problem for another 35 minutes waiting to leave. After more time has elapsed the sheer joy by storms have at the plane taking off was the most amazing amazing feeling in the world. No pain in my ears could possibly spoil the joy that moment gave me.
We land I am in excruciating pain not so unusual I have real problems flying. The surprise is that my poor storm is experiencing something similar. This has never happened before. So the air stewards were amazing and materialises with two cups or Mickey Mouse ears to help the pressure and somehow I see past my crippling pain and deafness to sing and give comfort to my boy who settles against mummy.
Then we settle in our room and more hilarity. There are four of us and three beds. We juggle around and find a way to sleep. The toilet however is on the otherside of the building through what can only be described in my wild imagination as a maze of horror movie tunnels. Every time we needed to use the facilities it was funny to sing through the corridors.
We have the shocked expression on one mans face when try realise their sabbath morning speaker is a woman. I thought he might pass out. Fun times lol.
We then have a major misunderstanding and have to rustle up some lunch. More hilarity as the storms to refuse to eat food they normally stuff in England!
We are then picked up and travel many hours to camp. Was it all worth it? Absolutely. We are in a beautifully place. The people are so lovely and the kids are swimming, fishing!!!!!!!! Playing volleyball, football, darts, tennis and bouncing on trampolines! So much so that our littlest storm says on Tuesday we are not going home we will stay and extra week! I smiled he has a wild imagination just like his mother!
Thursday a rash breaks out on the storms. Friday morning the on site doctor says chicken pox and quarantine. We head to the health centre and after a few hours of waiting we are not going home we are staying for the extra week. Somehow the little one had a whisper from the Holy Spirit. What was one camp turns into two.
As God would have it the speaker for the second camp is arriving late and here I am to fill in. All because of a case of cheeky pox (my storms name for them). Every time I thought this is just crazy God worked out some miracle of fun to happen. From fishing predictions weeks ago to bags left at bus stops to an extra week stay thanks to cheeky pox. God has been with us every step of the way.
Most times things aren't straight forward but remember that it's ok. It really doesn't have to be. What you do want is peace love and joy so that no matter what happens it doesn't phase you. It just causes you to go higher an higher.
So I sit with the sun setting in a traditionally Finnish way not disappearing from the sky but changing colour I think there will be more adventures and I need to remember to trust God!
