Jonny and Lisa Lobel

We have mostly recovered from our 7 week “tour” of America. We spent our summer visiting family and friends in various parts of the States. Some of our highlights include: meeting our new nephew (who came a month early just to meet us!), hiking with some of the Lobel clan in the White Mountains, sharing about BMA and other parts of our life in the Czech Republic with supporters and friends, going back to the place where we got married, Jonny speaking at Light of the World in Albany, NY and Main Street Ministries in Allegon, MI, being interviewed about BMA on WMBI, and spending quality time with both of our families.

We came back home with 10 days before the start of school… just enough time to get over jetlag, figure out the classes we will teach for the year, and start planning. It was the first time for me (Lisa) to go back to the States since moving here. By the end of the trip we were both ready to come back, but arriving brought mixed emotions for me. I was really glad to be back in our own apartment, not quite so excited to start again with language lessons, and melancholy about not seeing our families again for a long amount of time. Jonny, on the other hand, seems quite excited about his language lessons. He has even decided to work on his German by attending the first year German classes at BMA… in addition to Czech lessons.

We have finally settled into our new schedule and are looking forward to what the year will bring. So far, Jonny has already introduced the new first year students to BMA at the first year retreat, helped everyone work on their pirate speak during “Talk like a Pirate Day”, and has been working hard at some new technology for the school. I have mostly been working on my teaching and cooking. We also celebrated Jonny’s 26^th birthday with a surprise (for him, not for me) dinner and game night with some friends, a lovely dinner of homemade, Chicago style stuffed pizza, and a weekend hiking trip to the Tatras. The hiking just about killed me, but I survived and Jonny very much enjoyed it. We are excited be be back in our normal routine and are looking forward to what they year might bring.

Enjoy a few pictures from our summer and early fall…

Chandler siblings

Our sister-in-law, Judy, interviewing Jonny at WMBI

Our new nephew, Truman

On our way to visit Opa

In the Tatras

Talk Like a Pirate Day 2009