getting ready for our last leg

so today is our last day of rest. we will be heading out early tomorrow morning to continue our trip to Guatemala. We were able to hang out with friends and family for a few days and it was great. My back is killing me because of the heavy lifting I did while moving (those big boxes full of books). The weather has cooled down a bit so this should help out our overheating problem. We will be travelling through Texas then Mexico and finally we will enter Guatemala. We will keep you updated as we move on.

the photo of the monkey is from our friend Pablo who went to the fair and won it. Before we left he gave it to us, so we have decided to take pics of the monkey where ever we go. Thanks Pablo.

The other pic is of some cool little canyon with water at the bottom.

thanks for your prayers,

the virags


WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

we are doing well in the middle of nowhere

just a quick note. really quick because we are using a computer in radio shack. We are doing well, in the middle of nowhere, desert.

the tranny in the van is making some funny noises and it is overheating quite a bit. We are driving in 100 degree weather with the windows down and the heat on full, not good.

We are taking a quick break and staying a few days off the road to visit friends and family.

will update you as soon as we can.

please continue to pray for us.

thanks

the virags


WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

day 2 on the road soon

we are up and almost at em'
Going to eat a great breakfast of muffins, eggs,cereal, juice and whatever the kids want.
I am tired already but we must drive on.
yep thats me, sleeping and driving.

shawn
the virags


WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

1st day almost over, now we stop to rest

So we did it.

We made over 1000km's only 3 stops, 0 pee breaks other then at time of fill up, 1 country line, 3 state lines and one hotel stop.

We tried leaving the house at 6 am but of course we were late. I lost my patience before we left the driveway so the start was a little rough. We prayed in the driveway, made a few last adjustments and we were on our way.

When we got to the border the officer was nice enough to want to talk inside the building, so he pulled us over. They noticed we had fruit that wasn't allowed to enter the USA so they took our oranges and mango. Carsten wants us to go back for the mango cuz it looked like a good one. We went in the nice building with all the other smugglers and crooks where we showed our ID. The officer needed me to give him some papers that were conveniently located in the front of the completely packed trailer with only a back door access and alot of stuff in the way. After I removed most of the contents I found the paper, showed the officer, then we were on our way. Approx 1 hr delay. Bonding time with the CBP officer was priceless.....haha

Snapshot of rest of day

started ok with cool weather
got warmer and our van started to regularly overheat... needed to turn the heat on to prevent damage to engine (outside temp was 30'C)man it was hot in that van
because windows were down kids couldn't do much school due to excessive winds
we couldn't read out loud due to above mentioned problem (wind)
bought healthy yogurt that cost a fortune from gas station
had to go to the bathroom so bad I used the women's (owner said it was ok)
Kids argued over eraser so we threw it out the window.... problem solved
kids had to do homeschool early in the morning...they were all asleep within minutes
ate some beef jerky.. not addison because he wouldn't eat his apple.. he is still mad at us for that one
Dogs went poo 2 times on gas station grass area
chantelle spill dogs water on herself so she through the water and cup out the window at 100kms/hr
did I mention we can only go 100kms/hr because my wife has so much stuff. Seriously I can't go any faster then 100km/hr
I love going downhill way better than up, and my feet were a bit itchy half way through the day.

Day ended somewhere where only potatoes grow and Denny's was great.

All in all the day was good, the above did happen but we thought it might make you laugh. We all loved the day.

Must go to bed

Until tomorrow


thanks for everything,

Shawn
the virags


WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

Gas leak in the house for our last days here

We had a gas leak in the house today. 2 days before we leave, we had our regular hvac maintenance and they found a gas leak. The gas company was called, we had to evacuate our home. The gas company confirmed we had a leak, they turned all the gas off, and we now have no heat or hot water. We are really living like missionaries now....no furniture, no heat, no hot water, no plates, etc. Our life just keeps getting more exciting

the virags



WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

the good bye party at the Burrell's

We had a great time at our friend's house today. Peter and Irene were nice enough to have a going away party at their house. They are great friends and we will miss them a lot. We will miss all of our friends. Thanks to all who came out and made our day a great one.

the virags


WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

the calculations

So I taught the kids homeschool today and I thought it would be fun to combine a few subjects. We decided to calculate the amount of km's, gas cost, hotel cost and a few other things. This is what we came up with:

BC to Guatemala - 6626 KM's (for my USA friends 3982 miles)
Cost per gallon - $3
Size of tank 20 gallons
Amount to fill tank $60 US, because most of the driving is through USA
Gas mileage 400km per tank
Amount of tanks needed to drive to Guatemala - 17
Gas Cost - $1020
Hotel Cost - $480
Total cost without food will be $1500 US.. we didn't add any money for food because I haven't told anyone yet but we will be fasting the entire trip(no food or water,). This will not only save us money but it will drastically cut down on washroom stops. HAHA!
Shawn


WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

bought the trailer....

well Chantelle, Emma and I went to Abbotsford and bought our trailer today. I thought it was a big deal because without it, we wouldn't be able to bring anything. Less than two weeks to go.... Thinking of putting some decals on the trailer.. any suggestions



WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

My God is my protector!

I have a significant praise report to share with all of you. This morning I was unexpectedly prompted to go check our basement patio door while I was getting ready to go to church. To my surprise it had been left unlocked the entire night. I locked the screen and the glass door, finished getting ready, and left for church. After arriving home in the late afternoon I returned to the patio door to let my dogs out. The screen door had been torn enough to unlock and open it. Some one had tried to break into our house. If it hadn't been for the Holy Spirit"s prompting we could have had our remaining possessions, ID, and moving sale money stolen. I see this as a total victory and a significant reminder that MY GOD IS MY PROTECTOR. How timely is this reminder. Thank you God for making your voice clear. I am so glad that I listened to You. You rock God!!!! xo Chantelle

WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

Man, We are close!!!!!!!!!

So, we had our big moving sale on Saturday and most of the stuff went. We now sleep on blow up mattresses and eat from paper plates. It was a good sale and we made a bit more money that we can bring and help people in Guatemala. We are all very excited to go. Had a great time at our Church corn boil. Our Church is great and they are behind us 100%. Thanks to all our WIA friends and Pastor Wes, Brad and Ian. We will miss you all. We are leaving in less than 2 weeks....


ps the pic is one of our friends and pastor.... Brad

shawn

WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.

A Word from Emmariah

It has been my heart's desire to be a missionary in Mexico or Guatemala since my mom started homeschooling me a year and a half ago. The first YWAM book my mom read out loud to us was about Cameron Townsend. He was a missionary in Mexico and Guatemala. I really like the YWAM books because they are all about missionaries. I always ask my mom to read longer to us. I was thinking that I would be a missionary after I finish University. Wow, things are happening much quicker.

We went to Tijuana, Mexico already to build a house for a poor family, play with children, and hand out goodie bags. To see the look on those kids' faces was priceless. I didn't want to leave Mexico. I prayed that we would move soon to do mission work. Well, we are moving September 26th, 2009 and going to Guatemala. I am so excited, happy, and sad. I will miss my friends in BC. I am blessed that God put this on my heart and that He is now allowing that desire to come to pass.

Thank you for taking your time to read this. It means a lot to us. I would love to share the experience with you. Please reply to my blog if you want to. Thanks!

God bless!
xo Emmariah

WIA
151-10090 152nd st
suite 314
Surrey, BC, Canada
V3R 8X8

If you are donating and would like a tax receipt make the cheques out to WIA. Do not put our names on the cheque, simply drop in a quick note allocating the funds to the Virag family.