Western Pennsylvania
This week was a bit more taxing than last. It is becoming pretty clear that weekends will be our busy time. Last weekend we were lucky enough to be at one parish for the entire weekend. This week we were at a new parish each day! That's 3 parishes in 3 days. Each day was BOTH a travel day and a work day.
Michael takes the brunt of this as he is usually the main driver as well as the one who has to set up and play the concerts. The good news is that he doesn't mind driving and he loves playing music!
The kids were good sports. I am always amazed at how flexible they are with time in the van and staying on church parking lots. They seem to entertain themselves most of the time. I don't make them attend every concert and Mass, but they try to help out by carrying gear and selling CDs. Really just like to touch everything and handle money. By the time we arrived to the third parish on Sunday night, I decided that it was time to give them a break. Our host family was gracious enough to let us do crafts and watch movies in their home while everyone else was at Mass and XLT.
“We continue to be amazed by the hospitality!”
We continue to be amazed by the hospitality and spirit of the parishes that we visit. We have never really doubted that God has called us to this more missionary lifestyle, but we knew it would be filled with bumps and challenges along the way (and we have seen many). The positives have far outweighed the challenges thus far.