The Powells

Home from China! We took a couple weeks enjoying the hot summer in Mississippi, road tripping visiting friends and family, and at our family reunion at the lake house in East Tennessee. It was difficult at first to relax after being so on-the-go this summer, but we had a really great time. We went to Atlanta, Savannah, Charleston, Asheville, Johnson City, the lake house and through Chattanooga on the way home. Alice, being a seasoned traveler, enjoyed meeting new people. It was a great couple of weeks!

In the kiddie pool at JJ and Papa's

Swim baby

Just sunning

Robino! We've been friends for over 10 years!

Our sweet friends Robin and Kyle

Beautiful Savannah

Visiting Boyce, Rainer's brother

Brothers

With Paula Deen

Juliette Low birthplace... Girl Scouts

Outside SCAD museum

Alice's pool party

Night out in Savannah

Touring Charleston

Great views!

A lot of history

Fun night out!

Visiting Bryan and Meredith

Family pic at the Biltmore

Uncle Bryan and Aunt Meredith

On the boat with mom and dad

Cool shades

Cousins and babies

We finally got to meet Robert... we love him!

Hello!

Papa with Alice and Kendall

Mimi and Alice

Just chillin'

Watauga Lake

Grandma and Alice

Got to ski!

What IS that?!

Catherine with Alice

A wonderful day on the lake together

Coston and Alice meet

Tubing!

A great family reunion!

A wonderful visit with Babbie on the way home

To cross the street in China, you just GO. You can slowly start walking into the street to cross and traffic will stop for you. At first glance the traffic seems out of control but really it’s very organized chaos that everyone driving understands.

Alice is a star in China! No exaggerating, over 300 Chinese took a photo of her. People loved to come up and look at her, and they all wanted to touch her. I had a Chinese friend write on a piece of paper "My name is Alice, I'm four months old, and because I'm so young, please do not touch me".

We arrived back in busy Beijing after another 20 hour over-night train ride. Alice had her best night sleep that night, best for the whole summer. I have to figure out a way to get a smooth rocking train motion built into her crib. The last week in Beijing is for debriefing and a little bit of sight seeing. You can’t come all the way to China without seeing the Great Wall.

The team spent most of everyday writing reports about their summers including topics like spiritual growth, evangelism, culture and heritage, and team dynamics. We do topical group Bible studies and learn about transitioning back into life at home. This time is very important for the students to prepare their hearts and minds to go home after growing in faith this summer and having so many different experiences.

“I climbed the great wall of China… with stomach flu while nursing a baby”. That’s what our nanny said I can now claim. I didn’t feel good but it was awesome to see. We took the ‘steep side’ and Rainer went way, way, way up there. The best part for me was seeing how the wall rolled over the landscape and meandered through the mountains. The other culture and heritage adventures were to the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and the Silk Market…. See photos below.

God is moving in China and we got to see that this summer. He used us and our team to spread the gospel. Our students grew in their faith and have built a foundation to depend on for the rest of their lives. It was a privilege to serve with the Royal Servants China family of 2014!