Weir in PNG

Here is our story....

It is easier for me to write as if I am telling the story. I will let Caleb fill in and make any comments that he feels I forgot!

We met at Campbell Univeristy during the fall of my freshman year (2000). Caleb was pursuing a government major and I was on the accounting track. We dated all through college and married when I graduated in 2004. We had a beuatiful day for a wedding in Frederick, Maryland on May 29, 2004.

As you can see in the pictures above, Caleb's head is shaved. This is because while we were engaged and during the start of our marriage, Caleb was going through the Raleigh Police Academy. In fact, we were married while he was still in training, which meant postponing our honeymoon for a year. But, during this time, Caleb realized that he had a knack for security and crisis managment:
That first year of marriage, I worked full time, while attending school full time for my MBA. When I graduated, I went to work with the North Carolina Department of Revenue as a Tax Auditor. Soon after, we were able to afford our first hosue in Raleigh, NC:

After being married for 3 1/2 years, we welcomed little Benjamin Asher Weir into our life. He was born on December 28, 2007.

While I was pregnant with Benjamin, college friends of ours (Paul and Kelly Stewart) moved to Papua New Guinea with their 5-month-old daughter to serve as support staff missionaries for a well-known Bible Translation organization. At this time, we entertained the idea of going to Papua New Guinea ourselves....but we thought it would be for a long vacation!

Caleb went to the website and saw that there was a need for a Director of Security. We realized that we were at a place in our lives where we could pick up and actually go. One thing led to another and we found ourselves members as of December 2008:

(This was one of the pictures we used for our newsletter announcing our big decision.)

Unfortunately, I had used all my maternity leave.....and being a tax auditor, I was unable to take two weeks off during April to attend our new member training. It was really hard to wait....really hard. Finally, we were able to attend the Orlando training which began the last week of June:

We met so many wonderful people who are still heavily involved in our ministry now.

I returned to work after the July 4th holiday only to turn in my two-week notice. I quit my job and we packed up to go to our next training which was held in Waxhaw, NC. This training helped to prepare us for our life in an international/multi-national community.

The partnership development rolled along. God continued to surprise us with new prayer and financial partners. There were lulls.....and periods of extreme discouragment....and you can't really see that in our prayer magnet....but trust me! It was hard!

In October 2009, we attempted our first camping trip together as a family. Part of me thinks that this was a test. I think Caleb wanted to know how I would handle "roughing it" with Ben. I think I passed the test!

During the months of October through December, we made various trips to strengthen our partnership development team. To date, we are very confident about the people God has placed in our lives to support us through prayer, their finances and moral support.

The first week-end of December 2009, we started our move out of our house and in with our friends Joe, Amy and John. Our friends Brandon, Kelli and Maddie moved into our house on December 20th, and we officially became landlords! Joe, Amy and John helped to ease the transition. They opened up their home and lives to us unselfishly. We are so grateful for our time with them! We lived with them for over a month. During this time, Caleb quit his job.

(There is something eerie about realizing you are jobless and homeless and that you chose this!)

We are also so thankful for the time that Ben and John had together. They truly became "best buds" or "brothers for a month".

On a side note, I became OBSESSED with Guitar Hero. Our small group even pitched in and purchased a Wii and the game for us to take with us.

Guitar is just one of our many things that we had to fit into two crates this size, which we shipped December 30, 2009:

Benjamin turned 2 December 28, 2009. For his birthday, he received lots of plane toys to help keep him entertained for the 32 hour total travel time to Papua New Guinea. He also got a couple immunizations....which he hated. He doesn't know what is ahead, but we know that this will be a trip of a lifetime....and an experience we hope to share with all of you!

We hope that you enjoy this blog. Please know that it is personal. We are inviting you into this journey by way of partnership. We hope to be as honest as possible with you....to share the highs and the lows of this adventure. We also pray that God will touch your heart so that you, too, may become a part of the bigger picture.

We ask for your prayers and support. Without you, this would not be possible. Without God, this would all be in vain!

(If you have time, feel free to check out the blog I have used for the past 5 years! The address is: www.jointhefray.blogspot.com)