A lot has happened last time we posted. As you all know our family moved in with one of our friends to wait for our house to be ready for move in. There have been a few problems since then.... Instead of the 2 days we were expecting it been almost 6 days... I think... I've lost track there has been so much happening. We found out the the electricity meter had been removed from our house due to the fact that no one was paying the bill. No one has lived in the house in over a year. When our future landlord went to take care of it he found out that the electricity had never been switched over to his name when he had bought it from the previous owner! Our landlord can't speak English so we have been communication through our friend Peggy. PLEASE.... pray that everything is taken care of VERY VERY quickly (things can take quite a while in Thailand) so that we can get out of Peggy's hair and get on with it! We are all ready to be in our own place.

Secondly... God gave me a perfect job! I am now working full time at a bilingual pre-school / k-6 grade school. The best part is Maya gets to come with me and stay with me every day. Amphun, my boss just so happened to be looking for a nursery teacher! (nursery is age 1-2) I met her last Wednesday and we just talked... she didn't even truly interview me. After that she asked me how much I wanted to get paid and when I could start! Wow... God knows what we need and delivers! I never dreamed that I could get a full time job in Thailand where I could bring Maya with me! Amphun also offered Jared a part time job teaching sports and a few other things! You should have seen him smile. He is currently praying about timing. Amphun also offered Diane a kindergarten teaching position either full or part-time.... she is currently praying about the many options now available to her! The name of the school is Ambassador Bilingual School. It was started by Amphun and here husband who are Christians! They teach Christian values in the school but do not openly promote it as a Christian school. ABS is a way to build foundational relationships with parents and children to later share the gospel with them as friends and through the Godly living of our lives.

YOUR PRAYERS AND SUPPORT ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN OUR LIVES. ALL OF THIS IS TESTIMONY!

We ask that you continue to pray in these areas:

1. Covering in safety, health (especially now that we are in full time school), peace, and finances.

2. We've discussed between a moped and a car and we've decided safer to go with a car having Maya. So please pray that God will provide transportation for us in the form of a car!

3. Please pray our house gets ready SOON!

4. We still need to figure out visa stuff... we are contemplating a few things... so please pray for very, very clear direction and confirmation as to what we should do. We are trying to get around having to do border runs every three mo. In fact we have to do one before Nov. 9

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, and WE LOVE YOU

God Bless

We're Moving!

Hello Everyone!

QUICK UPDATE AS WE ARE NOT SURE WHEN WE WILL HAVE INTERNET ACCESS AGAIN.... hopefully not longer than a week :)

We are ecstatic to say that we are finally, FINALLY, moving into a house!! God completely set everything up and it is PERFECT. Tomorrow we will be moving out of our hotel into our friend Peggy's home until the house is ready for us. It should be only 2 or 3 days. She has been such a blessing to us. In fact, she is the one who showed us the house. The owner was looking for the right people and has turned several down. He had such a good experience with missionaries renting before that he hoped for more to come and rent. So, here we are! The house is a large Townhouse with 4 huge bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, a few balconies, a huge kitchen, and a rooftop area to go out on at night. Oh did I mention... there is already a gate installed to block off the very, very steep stairs. Thai stairways are all very steep. Oh yeah... the house has a bathtub and pantries as well... very rare here in Thailand. The location is 5-10 minutes from 2 parks, the city center, and large access roads. We will have plenty of room to house people when they come to visit, do ministry events, and tutor in our home!

Also.... On Wed. at 10 am we have a meeting with a Christian lady named Amphun who is in charge of several Christian bilingual schools here in Thailand. Ages from nursery-6th grade. She said they were needing a nursery teacher in one of their schools. So, it is possible I could get the job and bring Maya with me. She also said Jared and Diane could come along. We aren't sure if she is hiring full time English teachers but if she is.... and can hire Jared and Mom.... full time, and take care of our visas.... WOW..... We are not sure what will come of our meeting. We would ask that you pray for blessings and favor over the meeting, Amphun, and us. God is continuing to make a way and your prayers are helping so much!

I've got to cut it short. We are exhausted... a long day today. We love you all and miss you all. Hopefully next time we post we will have lots of pics of our new house. Sorry there are none right now... don't have them on the computer. Please continue to pray for direction, open doors, wisdom, health, strength, and protection.

With Love,

Amber

What's New!

Hello to all!

Sorry it has been so long since we last updated our blog. It seems that so much has happened here so quickly, that we haven't been able to catch our breath. My mom and I completed our TEFL certification and have been out looking for work. We were having a difficult time finding jobs, due to the excess amount of foreigners in Chiang Mai and the time of year it is. We were not aware that all of the schools went on a three week break as soon as we completed our course. It just so happened that it is the end of the first school semester here in Thailand. So it was a bit of a rough go for us. However, God dropped an incredible opportunity into our laps as we sought His guidance. We have found part-time work with unknown potential at a language school. The director, Pat, is a Thai-born Chinese who went to university in the States. His school currently doesn't have a strong English program. Enter my mom and I (not that WE have great English). We are excited about the opportunity and look forward with expectation to what is on the horizon. I start work tomorrow, not exactly sure what I'm supposed to be teaching. My mom starts sometime later this month. Hey, it is Thailand, and we're learning that being flexible and just showing up makes a world of difference in so many lives!


We have been busy looking for a house to rent, as it is definitely past time to move from our hotel room. We hope to have something nailed down by the end of the week. Our search has been difficult, not knowing for most of the time where we would be working and wanting to be close to work, as Chiang Mai is very spread out. We hope to get something soon and share the pics with everyone.


Maya is becoming somewhat of a local legend, with people recognizing her everywhere we go. Often, someone will run out of a shop and call out "Maya, Maya!", to which Amber and I look at each other and ask "Who is that?" thinking each other knows the answer. Many times neither of us has seen the person before! It is always fun to see their expressions and excitement when seeing her. Something new happens every time we go out. One of her favorite things to do is ride on a motor bike. We will rent one every now and then, when we have a lot to do around the city. She loves wearing helmets, so we decided to buy her one, as opposed to wearing one we rent. Here is a pic of her "showing" it off. She is such a poser! Must be from Amber's side, as us Lee's are ALWAYS serious and don't play games :)


Amber and I recently got in our first motor bike accident. Luckily it was nothing serious, just a couple of scrapes and bruises. The drivers in Thailand don't have much respect for "right of way", as we experienced first-hand. We were side-swiped by a car, causing us to flip off the bike in the middle of the road. Our first thoughts were of getting out of the way of the traffic coming up behind us. After that, we tried to manage an angry Thai women (just saying...) driver, who was VERY concerned about the damage we did to her car. After she saw there was no damage, she quickly calmed down, got back in her car, and drove off. We are thankful that Maya wasn't with us, that it was only minor, and that we weren't taken advantage of (as we have heard many stories of foreigners having to pay even when it wasn't their fault). Thank you for your prayers...they are working!




We are looking forward for winter (that is what THEY call it) to come. The rainy season is almost over, with just a couple of weeks left, and then hello to a slice of Heaven, 80 degrees with just a hint of humidity! I'm not missing Fall one bit, as I have been keeping track of the weather States-side. Amber misses the colors of the leaves and the bite of the cold air. We did recently come across a restaurant that reminds us of home. It has good hamburgers, hot wings, root beer floats, and chicken nuggets and hot dogs for Maya! All at very good prices. Not to mention they are the only place in Chiang Mai that has FOOTBALL ON TV!!! Ok, so I'm a little excited, I'll admit it. But what can I say?

We miss all of you and are so grateful for your prayers. We love hearing from you and all that is happening back home, even if it doesn't seem like much to you. It always lifts our spirits and helps us feel connected. Here are a couple of things we ask that you would keep in prayer:

• Housing - Pray that we find housing soon, that it fits our needs, and is close to our work
• Transportation - Pray that we will be able to find affordable transportation
• Safety - Continued safety
• Health - Pray that our bodies continue fighting off any and all sickness
• Ears to hear - Direction, daily and long-term
  

We love all of you and promise that it won't be long before we post again!

With Love,

Jared and Family